Mortal Kombat

n/a

Mortal Kombat
System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Sega Mega-CD, Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear
Publisher: Arena Entertainment (US/EU) Acclaim Japan (JP)
Developer: Probe Software, Grey Team
Licensor: Midway Manufacturing
Original system(s): Arcade boards
Sound driver: Krisalis sound driver
Peripherals supported: Six Button Control Pad Gear-to-Gear Cable
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1-2
Release Date RRP Code JP 1994-05-27 ¥8,800 (9,064)8,800e T-81013 US 1993-09-13 T-81186 EU 1993-09-13 T-81186-50 DE 1993 DM 140140 T-81186-50 PT 1993 14.200$14.200 MD81186 UK 1993-09-13 £49.9949.99 T-81186-50 SE (Rental) 199x AU 199x FMOR00SMC BR 1994-07 047030 EU 1993-09-13 MK-29021-50 DE 1993 DM 120120 MK-29021-50 PT 1993 11.900$11.900 MS29021 UK 1993-09-13 £34.9934.99 MK-29021-50 AU 199x FMOR00SEC BR 1994 028240 JP 1993-12-17 ¥4,8004,800 T-81017 US 1993-09-13 T-81198 EU 1993-09-13 T-81198-50 PT 199x UK 1993-09-13 T-81198-50 JP 1994-06-03 ¥6,800 (7,004)6,800e T-81014 US 1994-04 T-81025 EU 1994-07 T-81025-50 PT 1994 CDJ300 UK 1994-07 £49.9949.99 T-81025-50 AU 199x FMOR00SMR BR 199x 063240
Non-Sega versions Amiga Arcade IBM PC Super NES

Mortal Kombat (モータルコンバット), also known as Mortal Kombat Kanzen-ban (モータルコンバット完全版) on the Mega-CD in Japan, is a 1992 arcade fighting game by Midway Manufacturing. At the time, it was considered revolutionary for its use of digitized graphics, though it was also met with controversy thanks to its high levels of violence.

Following its release in the arcades, home versions were created and released in September 1993 on a date which became known as "Mortal Monday". This date saw Sega Mega Drive, Sega Master System, and Sega Game Gear versions of the game (among versions for other systems), published by Arena Entertainment simultaneously in North America and Europe, although Japan and Brazil were forced to wait some months later. A Sega Mega-CD version did not arrive until 1994.

Story

Goro

The game takes place in Earthrealm, where a tournament is being held on Shang Tsung's Island. Shang Tsung was banished to Earthrealm 500 years previously and, with the help of the monstrous Goro, is able to seize control of the Mortal Kombat tournament in an attempt to doom the realm. For 500 years straight, Goro has been undefeated in the tournament and won nine consecutive tournaments. If Goro wins again, Shao Kahn, Emperor of Outworld, will be allowed to take Earthrealm. In order to prevent this, a new generation of warriors must challenge Goro.

Gameplay

Choose Your Fighter

Test Your Might

Mortal Kombat is a fighting game in which players battle opponents in one-on-one matches. The fighter that drains the opponent's health bar first wins the round, and the first to win two rounds wins the match. Each round is timed; if both fighters still have health remaining when time runs out, the one with more health wins the round. At the end of the final round, the losing character is dazed, and the winning fighter has a short amount of time to perform a Fatality, a finishing move performed against a defeated opponent to execute them in a gruesome fashion. Two players can start a game together, or a second player can join in during a single player's game by pressing  START  to fight against them. If a game was in progress at the time, the winner continues it alone; if not, the winner begins a new game.

In the single-player game, the player faces each of the seven playable characters in a series of one-on-one matches against computer-controlled opponents, ending in a "Mirror Match" against a duplicate of the player's chosen character and then three endurance matches against two opponents. As soon as the player defeats the first opponent, the second one enters the arena and the timer resets, but the player's health meter does not regenerate. After the third endurance match, the player fights the sub-boss Goro, followed by a final match against Shang Tsung.

Between certain levels, players can compete in a mini-game called "Test Your Might" for bonus points, breaking blocks of various materials by filling a meter past a certain point through rapid button presses. The first material the player must break is wood, followed by stone, steel, ruby, and finally diamond, with each successive material requiring more of the meter to be filled up and thus awarding more points. Two players can compete in the mini-game at once; the last two materials are only accessible through two-player mode.

Characters move with and and crouch with . They jump with and flip back and forth with and . All characters have punches and kicks that can either be aimed high or low. Characters perform a low punch with , a high punch with , a low kick with , and a high kick with . Characters block by holding or . Blocking can be done while standing or crouching. Some attacks cannot be blocked while standing (such as sweeps). All attacks do a small amount of damage even when blocked.

When using a standard three-button control pad, characters perform a low punch with , a high punch with + or +, a low kick with , and a high kick with , and  START  blocks.

In the 8-bit versions, characters punch with and kick with . Block is assigned to  START  in the Game Gear version and + in the Master System version.

All characters have a shared set of attacks performed by holding the D-Pad in various directions, such as the roundhouse kick, leg sweep, and uppercut. Uppercuts knock the enemy high into the air and cause a large amount of damage. The game introduced the concept of "juggling," knocking an opponent into the air and following up with a combination of attacks while the enemy is still airborne and defenseless. Normal moves are mostly the same between characters, with variations in range and speed, but characters differ in their special moves. Most special moves are performed by moving the D-Pad in certain directions, usually ending with an attack button. Unlike most one-on-one fighting games, few moves involve semicircular directional motions. The game's blocking system also distinguished itself from other fighting games, as it uses a dedicated block button, and characters take a small amount of damage from regular moves while blocking. However, the dedicated block button allows characters to defend against attacks without retreating, so blocking characters lose very little ground when struck, making counterattacks much easier after a successful block.

The Mega Drive and Mega-CD versions have five difficulty settings for computer-controlled opponents (Very Easy, Easy, Medium, Hard, and Very Hard) and allow the player to change the number of starting credits in the options. The Master System and Game Gear versions have three difficulty settings (Easy, Medium, and Hard) and no other options. With the exception of the Mega-CD version, violent finishing moves are censored and blood is disabled by default. By entering a special code, blood is enabled and some finishing moves are more graphic.

Characters

Move lists assume the player is facing right. If facing left, and should be reversed.

All characters can perform roundhouse kicks with + HK  (which knock the opponent away), leg sweeps with + LK  (which cause the opponent to fall down), and uppercuts with + LP  or + HP  (which knock the opponent high into the air). Throws are performed by pressing  HK  when next to the opponent.

When using a standard three-button control pad on the Mega Drive version, the  LP  button can generally substitute for either  LP  or  HP  when performing special moves.

Fatalities often require being a certain distance from the opponent in order to execute. All finishing moves can be performed while holding the  BL  button, which is sometimes useful to avoid accidentally moving or hitting the opponent before the button combination is fully pressed. The Pit stage has a unique stage-specific Fatality, performed by simply finishing with an uppercut. The "blood code" must be entered to see the Fatalities as described.

Kano was omitted from the 8-bit versions.

Playable

	Johnny Cage
	A famous martial artist and movie star who entered the tournament for the publicity. Move list Name Command Description Green Flame  LP  or  HP  Johnny Cage throws a fireball across the screen. Shadow Kick  LK  Johnny Cage slides forward while kicking. Split Punch + HK  Johnny Cage does the splits and punches his opponent in the crotch. Fatality  HP  (close) Johnny Cage does an uppercut that decapitates his opponent.
	Kano
	A mercenary and member of the notorious Black Dragon organized crime cartel. He enters the tournament with the hopes of looting Shang Tsung's palace. Move list Name Command Description Knife HOLD  BL  Kano throws a knife across the screen. Cannonball HOLD  BL D-Pad in a 360° rotation Kano hurls himself toward his opponent like a flying cannonball. Fatality  LP  (close) Kano rips his opponent's still-beating heart from their chest.
	Liu Kang
	A Shaolin monk, once a member of the secretive White Lotus Society. He has entered the tournament to represent the Shaolin temples and defeat the despised Shang Tsung. Move list Name Command Description Fireball  LP  or  HP  Liu Kang shoots a fireball across the screen. Flying Kick  HK  Liu Kang launches himself across the screen in a kicking pose. Fatality HOLD  BL D-Pad in a 360° rotation (half screen away or closer) Liu Kang does a cartwheel and then uppercuts his opponent.
	Rayden
	A mystical thunder god believed to have been personally invited to the tournament by Shang Tsung. Move list Name Command Description Lightning  LP  or  HP  Rayden shoots a bolt of lightning across the screen. Flying Thunderbolt Rayden flies across the screen, grabbing and slamming his opponent against the wall. Teleport Rayden teleports in front of his opponent. Fatality  HP  (close) Rayden sends a lightning bolt that causes his opponent's head to explode.
	Scorpion
	A mysterious ninja believed to have been defeated by members of the Lin Kuei clan and seeking revenge. Move list Name Command Description Harpoon  LP  or  HP  Scorpion throws a harpoon across the screen, then uses it to pull his opponent toward him. The opponent is momentarily stunned. Decoy Punch  HP  Scorpion teleports to the other side of the screen, flying in with a punch. Fatality HOLD  BL  (half screen away) Scorpion removes his mask, revealing a demonic skull, and incinerates his opponent with his fire breath.
	Sonya Blade
	A member of a top-secret special forces unit. She was pursuing the criminal Kano when she was ambushed by the forces of Shang Tsung, who has taken her compatriots hostage, and forced into the tournament. Move list Name Command Description Sonic Rings  HP   HP  Sonya Blade throws sonic rings across the screen. Leg Grab + LP + LK  (sweep distance) Sonya Blade does a handstand and uses her legs to grab and slam her opponent against the ground. Square Wave Punch  HP  Sonya Blade jumps into the air and shoots across the screen with her fist extended. Fatality  BL  Sonya Blade blows a kiss that incinerates her opponent.
	Sub-Zero
	A male ninja who possesses cryokinesis. His identity is unknown, but he is believed to be a member of the Lin Kuei clan, a legendary clan of ninja assassins. Move list Name Command Description Deep Freeze  LP  or  HP  Sub-Zero shoots a burst of ice across the screen, freezing his opponent on contact. Hitting an already frozen opponent "backfires" and freezes Sub-Zero while unfreezing his opponent. Slide + LK + HK  Sub-Zero slides forward with a leg sweep. Fatality  HP  (close) Sub-Zero tears off his opponent's head, ripping out the spine with it.

Bosses

	Goro
	A 2,000-year-old half-human, half-dragon with four arms and a massive stature. He has been the undefeated champion of the Mortal Kombat Tournament for 500 years. He is the game's penultimate boss.
	Shang Tsung
	An evil sorcerer who steals the souls of his opponents. He can shapeshift into the form of any other fighter. He has hosted the tournament for 500 years, and he is the game's final boss.

Hidden

Reptile was omitted from the 8-bit versions.

Main article: Mortal Kombat/Hidden content.

	Reptile
	A green ninja who has the movesets of Scorpion and Sub-Zero. Reptile can be fought if the player gets double flawless victories, never blocks, and finishes with a Fatality against the computer when certain objects are seen in the Pit stage.

Stages

Main article: Mortal Kombat/Comparisons.

The stages are played in order (and loop around after the last one). The Goro's Lair stage is always used for the boss fights with Goro and Shang Tsung.

The Pit stage has a stage-specific Fatality where the opponent is uppercutted into a bed of spikes at the bottom of the pit. If found, Reptile is fought at the bottom of the Pit.

The Courtyard

Palace Gates

Warrior Shrine

The Pit

Throne Room

Goro's Lair

History

Release

Sega's success with the Mega Drive version of the game prompted Nintendo to change their somewhat strict policies put forward in the late 1980s, and the Super NES version of the sequel, Mortal Kombat II, features red blood. Sega's Videogame Rating Council was also criticised for rating the Mega Drive version of the game a MA-13, implying that the game's content in its non-censored state was suitable for 13-year-olds. Mortal Kombat and other games such as Night Trap would inspire the creation of the ESRB, which would cover all game consoles in North America and remains in place to this day.

The release of the game caused big controversy in Germany. Initially, all versions of the game went on sale in Germany due to the fact that they were censored. USK detected that the Sega version of the game have a code to unlock the blood so it was decided to withdraw all copies of the game from Germany and banning the game. In 2005, the game disappeared from the list of banned games.

Legacy

Mortal Kombat was followed by Mortal Kombat II in the following year, and continues to see sequels to this day.

Versions

Mega Drive version

The Mega Drive version was a mini-success story for Sega. This is because the Super Nintendo version, at the time in direct competition with Sega's console, opted for strict censorship, removing blood, toning down fatalities and creating a far less "violent" product. The Mega Drive version was considerably more faithful to the arcade original, and was the preferred choice at the time by consumers.

The music was also rearranged by Matt Furniss, this arrangement being unique to this port.

Mega-CD version

The Mega-CD version was rated MA-17 in North America and was therefore subject to less criticism. In fact, there is actually a code to turn the gore down in the Mega-CD port: .

As well as a CD audio soundtrack (which is essentially a recording of the arcade version), the game contains a grainy version of the famous "Mortal Monday" TV commercial. Some tracks play in the wrong stages, though there are some bonus remixes that can be heard if the game is played on a regular CD player.

The Mega-CD version is otherwise identical to the Mega Drive version, though load times can mean that Shang Tsung is open to attack while transforming. Curiously, this version uses fighting music track from Amiga port when fighting Shang Tsung.

Master System and Game Gear versions

Predictably the Master System version is toned down for the weaker hardware, and is censored until a cheat code is inputted. Kano and Reptile have been omitted from this version, presumably to save space. It includes only Goro's Lair and The Pit stages, the latter having stage fatality removed. The music is based on Allister Brimble's arrangement, the arrangement shared with PC floppy and Game Boy ports. Like all Master System games after 1991, this version was not released in North America.

The Game Gear version is almost identical to the Master System port, except for the smaller screen size.

Production credits

Mega Drive version

Mortal Kombat Cast of Characters

• Daniel Pesina as Johnny Cage
• Richard Divizio as Kano
• Carlos Pesina as Rayden
• Ho Sung Pak as Liu Kang
• Daniel Pesina as Scorpion
• Daniel Pesina as Sub-Zero
• Elizabeth Malecki as Sonya
• Goro Character Design: John Tobias
• Stop Motion Miniature: Curt Chiarelli
• Ho Sung Pak as Shang Tsung

Mortal Kombat Design Team

For Probe Software

• Software: Paul Carruthers
• Additional Software: Richard Costello
• Graphics: Lee Ames
• Producer: Gary Liddon
• Music and Sound: Matt Furniss, Shaun Hollingworth
• Testing: James, Simon, Barg and Tim
• Special Thanks to: Dave Spangle

Acclaim Development by the Grey Team

• Producer: Rob Leingang
• Associate Producer: Stacy Hendrickson
• Analysts: Tyrone Miller, Joe Libertella, Tom Rademacher, Jim MK Fink
• Special Thanks to: Eric, Alex and Tony, Ed and John at Williams

Source:

In-game credits

Mega-CD version

Mortal Kombat Cast of Characters

• Daniel Pesina as Johnny Cage
• Richard Divizio as Kano
• Carlos Pesina as Rayden
• Ho Sung Pak as Liu Kang
• Daniel Pesina as Scorpion
• Daniel Pesina as Sub-Zero
• Elizabeth Malecki as Sonya
• Goro Character Design: John Tobias
• Stop Motion Miniature: Curt Chiarelli
• Ho Sung Pak as Shang Tsung

Mortal Kombat Design Team

For Midway Manufacturing

• Design and Software: Ed Boon
• Design and Graphics: John Tobias
• Music and Sounds: Dan Forden
• Background Graphics: John Vogel

For Probe Software

• Software: Paul Carruthers
• Graphics: Lee Ames
• Producer: Adrian Curry
• Sound Effects: Andy Brock
• QA Technicians: Tim Bradstock, Simon Bland, James Stewart, Ashley Fawkes
• QA Manager: Barg
• Special Thanks to: Greg Michael, Bob Armour, Richard Costello, Gary Liddon, Dave Dootson, Dave Spangle, Rusty Chestnut, Dr Helmutt Moss, Mr Fish

Acclaim Development by the Grey Team

• Producer: Rob Leingang
• Associate Producer: Stacy Hendrickson
• Analysts: Alex DeLucia, Joe Libertella, James Johnson
• Special Thanks to: Eric Samulski, Wang Lee, -

Source:

In-game credits

Master System and Game Gear versions

Mortal Kombat Cast of Characters

• Daniel Pesina as Johnny Cage
• Carlos Pesina as Rayden
• Ho Sung Pak as Liu Kang
• Daniel Pesina as Scorpion
• Daniel Pesina as Sub Zero
• Elizabeth Malecki as Sonya
• Goro Character Design by: John Tobias
• Stop Motion Miniature by: Curt Chiarelli
• Ho Sung Pak as Shang Tsung

• Programming by: Keith Burkhill
• Backgrounds by: Lee Ames
• Other Graphics by: Keith Burkhill
• Music by: Allister Brimble
• Produced by: Gary Liddon
• Quality Assurance by the Probe Quality Assurance Department Who Are: Simon Bland, Barg, James Stewart, Tim Bradstock

Acclaim Development by the Grey Team

• Producer: Rob Leingang
• Associate Producer: Stacy Hendrickson
• Analysts: Tyrone Miller, Joe Libertella, Tom Rademacher, Jim MK Fink
• Special Thanks to: Eric

Source:

In-game credits

Magazine articles

Main article: Mortal Kombat/Magazine articles.

Promotional material

Main article: Mortal Kombat/Promotional material.

Physical scans

Mega Drive version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source Game Players (US) 90 GamesMaster (UK) 92 №8, p34-36 Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK) 95 №13, p28-31 92

	92
Based on 4 reviews

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score 1700 igr dlya Sega (RU) 70 Aktueller Software Markt (DE) NTSC-U 76 Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J 60 Consoles + (FR) 92 Cool Gamer (RU) 80 Computer & Video Games (UK) 90 Electronic Games (1992-1995) (US) NTSC-U 92 Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U 83 Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 1 (RU) 80 Entsiklopediya luchshikh igr Sega. Vypusk 10 (RU) 100 Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide (UK) 90 Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J 73 GameFan (US) NTSC-U 87 Game Power (IT) PAL 91 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 88 Gamers (DE) 60 GamesMaster (UK) 81 Hippon Super (JP) NTSC-J 50 Hobby Consolas (ES) 93 Hyper (AU) 88 Joker (SI) 93 Joypad (FR) 93 MAN!AC (DE) PAL 74 Mega (UK) PAL 82 Mega Action (UK) PAL 90 Megablast (DE) 73 Mega Force (FR) 94 Mega Fun (DE) PAL 85 Mega Power (UK) PAL 80 MegaTech (UK) PAL 90 Micromanía (segunda época) (ES) 92 Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL 79 Player One (FR) 93 Power Up! (UK) 85 Power Play (DE) 73 Sega Magazin (DE) 85 Sega Power (UK) PAL 83 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 93 Sega Zone (UK) PAL 81 Sega Force Mega (UK) PAL 94 Sega Mega Drive Review (RU) 86 Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J 66 Todo Sega (ES) PAL 89 Tricks 16 bit (RU) 87 Video Games (DE) PAL 80 VideoGames (US) NTSC-U 70

	83
Based on 46 reviews

Mortal Kombat

Mega Drive, JP
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, US
Cover
Cart Manual PCB

Mega Drive, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, FR
Manual

Mega Drive, SE rental (HENT orange)
Cover

Mega Drive, PT
Cover

Mega Drive, AU
Cover
Cart Manual

Mega Drive, BR
Cover

Mega-CD version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source GamesMaster (UK) 67

	67
Based on 1 review

Sega Retro Average

Publication Version Score Beep! MegaDrive (JP) NTSC-J 73 Consoles + (FR) 92 Digitiser (UK) 78 Electronic Games (1992-1995) (US) NTSC-U 25 Electronic Gaming Monthly (US) NTSC-U 63 Famitsu (JP) NTSC-J 73 FLUX (US) 80 Game Players (US) NTSC-U 72 GamePro (US) NTSC-U 35 Hobby Consolas (ES) 91 Joypad (FR) PAL 86 MAN!AC (DE) PAL 78 Mega (UK) PAL 78 MegaTech (UK) PAL 69 Mean Machines Sega (UK) PAL 80 Player One (FR) 89 Sega Magazine (UK) PAL 58 Sega Power (UK) PAL 85 Sega Pro (UK) PAL 93 Sega Zone (UK) PAL 65 Sega Saturn Magazine (JP) NTSC-J 80 Todo Sega (ES) 90 Video Games (DE) PAL 81 VideoGames (US) NTSC-U 60

	74
Based on 24 reviews

Mortal Kombat

Mega-CD, JP
Cover
Spinecard Disc Manual

Mega-CD, US
Cover
Disc Manual

Mega-CD, EU
Cover
Disc Manual

Mega-CD, UK
Cover
Disc Manual

Mega-CD, PT

Mega-CD, AU
Cover

Mega-CD, BR
Cover
Manual

Master System version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source Consoles + (FR) 60 52

	56
Based on 2 reviews

Sega Retro Average
Publication Version Score

	N/A
Based on 0 reviews

Mortal Kombat

Master System, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Master System, PT
Cover

Master System, AU
Cover
Cart

Master System, AU (Hotline sticker)
Cover
Cart

Master System, BR
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear version

Sega Retro Average
Publication Score Source Consoles + (FR) 60 Game Players (US) 82 73

	72
Based on 3 reviews

Sega Retro Average
Publication Version Score

	N/A
Based on 0 reviews

Mortal Kombat

Game Gear, JP
Cover
Cart

Game Gear, US
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear, EU
Cover
Cart Manual

Game Gear, FR (Blister pack)
Cover

Game Gear, PT

Technical information

Main article: Mortal Kombat/Technical information.