In the midst of all the Metacrtic user score bashing, you may have missed out on some fairly important Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe news. The Joker’s Gag Gun fatality that took the internet by storm has been reworked due to ESRB Teen rating scrutiny.

If you have been following our coverage of the game here at Ripten, you already know that we had a chance to sit down with Hector Sanchez (the game’s producer) at E3. He walked us through the latest MK installment, and we spent some hands-on time with it as well.

Overall, my impression was positive, and I was looking forward to the game’s release. That excitement escalated further when I saw Hector unveil the Joker’s Gag Gun fatality in late August on GameTrailers TV. He wrapped up the segment by addressing skeptics.

“So for all the people that thought that this was going to be Mortal Kombat light, you’ve seen it here first on GameTrailers TV, the Joker actually blows Katana’s head off.”

The concept was vicious and yet the blood wasn’t persistent — something Hector explained to be a key requirement in order to achieve a Teen rating. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to be enough to convince the ESRB powers at be.

The Joker’s Gag Gun fatality that I fell in love with just two short months ago has been further “teen-a-fied”. Kotaku describes the new version after experiencing it first hand:

Joker still whips out his prank gun, a “BANG!” flag unfurling. Unfortunately, you won’t see the follow up of Joker shooting someone in the face; that actually happens off screen now, the headshot safely out of sight.

Meh. I’m disappointed. Personally, I find those damn Highschool Musical films more disturbing than a little non-persistent blood. It’s too bad. I’m holding out hope for Hector and the crew at Midway, but it appears that the ESRB has them right where they want them — drained, dazed, and ready for a finishing move of their own.

We recently stumbled on a video highlighting the “kombat modes” of Mortal Kombat versus DC Universe, and the end of the clip reveals yet another Joker fatality.

The first MK vs DC Joker fatality, which we reported two months ago, utilized a gag gun double take to brutally finish off the opponent, while the second installment gives new meaning to the saying “Jokers Wild.”

Hit the jump and see why the Joker’s version of fifty-two card pick up only needs five cards.

Some of the dudes working on the upcoming Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, namely Senior Producer Hans Lo and Associate Producer Hector Sanchez, put together a little video to help us all understand this crazy new fighting game.  Arguably, the most important factor in what makes a good fighting game is good fighting (no shit), and these producer fellas give us the rundown on how exactly we can beat each other’s asses.  It also showcases another one of the Joker’s fatalities (yeah!). Video follows.

I got some hands-on time with Hector and the MK vs DC game at E3 this year, and while I was impressed with the amount of blood they worked into the game, the Fatalities and Brutalities demonstrated at that point were a little on the lighter side.

So when I saw the Joker’s Fatality (and yes, it appears that DC Villains will be able to perform Fatalities) I almost shit my pants. If you are one of the many gamers out there who vowed they would never buy a Teen Rated Mortal Kombat game, you may want to check this clip out before you utter another word.

The clip above was zoomed in and cut out from a GameTrailers video interview (shown in full below). I opted to feature the animated gif because it highlights the Fatality, but if you want to see the full video, and check out the rest of the Joker’s moves, have at it.

Afterthought: What say you? Are you impressed by the creativity and graphic nature of the Joker’s Fatality, or is this type of thing still not good enough?

Update: The Joker’s second fatality has surfaced online. Click here to check it out.

Source: Neogaf

Thanks to /film for sending this our way.