The Mortal Kombat franchise is one of those video game series that people my age grew up with, but after a while it kind of became like that one friend that you used to talk to, but due to some poor decisions on their part, you eventually started avoiding. Luckily, both people and video game franchises can redeem themselves, and from the looks of the recent Mortal Kombat demo, this familiar face is sure to please.

Its been almost five years since the last true Mortal Kombat game (Mortal Kombat: Armageddon), and fans of the series have been craving for some brutal hand-to-hand combat the whole time. Not to say that the recent Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe wasn’t an enjoyable game, but the fact is that with its Teen rating and somewhat cheesy “Brutalities”, it was less than true to the gut-wrenching series.

What makes the upcoming Mortal Kombat great is that it is going back to basics. Although the game features a traditional 2-D style (the characters are rendered in 3-D), it offers all of the excitement of the classic originals, while adding its own unique feel. Fan favorites such as Scorpion and Sub-Zero make their returns to a character lineup featuring over 25 characters, each with their own unique moves and fighting styles. Playstation 3 owners get a special treat as Kratos, the God of War himself, will be a console exclusive for PS3 owners.

New to this entry in the series is a 4-Button fighting system made popular by the Tekken series. In this setup, each of the four main buttons on a controller correspond to a character’s body part. This new feature makes for some very interesting combos while fighting. Also featured in this entry is a unique Story mode, the Classic Tower mode, and the always exciting Tag-Team mode. Check out the Offical Tag-Team gameplay video below.

Mortal Kombat hits stores Tuesday, April 19th.