Mortal Kombat X, which launched yesterday, is one of the biggest releases in recent history for the series, but the title’s “Easy Fatalities” DLC has some fans crying foul.

Fatalities are a staple of the Mortal Kombat franchise, and are perhaps the most iconic feature of the entire series. Players capable of pulling off the complicated button combinations required for a fatality would quickly draw a crowd of impressed tweens in any early 1990s video game arcade, and the finishing moves have only gotten more outrageous and creative over the years.

So it came as some surprise when the developers of Mortal Kombat X announced that the game would offer an “Easy Fatalities” DLC, allowing players to pay money to skip the complicated maneuvers needed to execute fatalities and instead press one or two buttons for the same effect.

Rather than unlocking easy mode for all fatalities, the new DLC comes in packs of five or thirty, which sell for $0.99 and $4.99 respectively. It is also possible to unlock Easy Fatalities for free using Koins, Mortal Kombat X’s in-game currency, but it could take players a significant amount of time to save up enough to unlock all of them.

Many fans of the series were confused and a little angered by the DLC, especially because some previous Mortal Kombat games offered Easy Fatalities as a cheat code rather than a paid service.

But there are also many fans defending the move, arguing that the DLC is optional and does not really affect the game anyway.

While the Easy Fatalities DLC does make the finishing moves easier for those who buy them, the feature does not actually change the gameplay. Fatalities are only available after a match has already been won, and they are not required to defeat an opponent. In that sense, fatalities are entirely cosmetic.

Sill, the move has some fans wistfully recalling the early days of Mortal Kombat, when pulling off a fatality was a badge of honor in an age before achievements or trophies.

Image credit: “Fatality” Licensed under Fair use via Wikipedia.