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Mortal Kombat still possesses numerous undisclosed elements and the ability to amaze, over three decades after its initial debut in coin-op establishments. This latest compilation spanning the series' initial period, comprising a quartet of arcade releases, various home ports, and related titles, transcends simply a faithfully reproduced collection of iconic titles including less celebrated releases — it functions as a detailed chronicle about the creation of the renowned brand.

Even as a lifelong Mortal Kombat fan who has paid close attention its development and progression, there was much to discover for me to learn and appreciate about the series.

What Makes the Historical Compilation

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection comparable to previous classic compilations from the development team Digital Eclipse, part documentary, part playable archive. The anthology contains emulated versions of the original arcade Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, Mortal Kombat 3, and Mortal Kombat 4, along with home system and portable adaptations of certain releases. The anthology additionally contains the series' ventures at spin-off titles, like action games Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero and Mortal Kombat: Special Forces — some of the brand's most criticized releases.

The Legacy Kollection is therefore not a “best of” collection, but a study of the series' formative period, when the creators at Midway and franchise originators the visionary developers were figuring out how to make a fighting game, digitized from footage of real actors, on the fly. Observing the archival material — which includes historical videos, contemporary discussions, and digital copies of vintage posters, comics, and even company memos — it's astonishing to observe how the series transformed from humble beginnings to a international craze. It's frankly astounding to watch a handful of pioneering developers, working with minimal planning or supervision, channel their pop-culture interests into birthing an iconic game franchise.

Documentary Portion

The educational segment of Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection charts the rise of the fighting series and the developers' professional journeys at the currently closed Midway. It then goes on to show how those same creators contended with how to routinely one-up themselves, encountering significant stress to duplicate their triumphs. It's a fascinating time capsule made from analog films and analog photographs and hand-drawn illustrations, which reveal the self-made character of Mortal Kombat's development and how personal recommendations helped spread its rumors and hidden aspects of Mortal Kombat in its golden era in coin-op establishments. Delivered in easily digestible portions, it's highly engaging collection of mini-documentaries that spans games, comics, films and even the silly live-action tour. The collection additionally features some unused moves and digital fighter representations among its previously unreleased material.

Playable Component

Placed within the five-segment historical film's chronology are invitations to experience the games themselves. At certain intervals, viewers can hop into a game of Mortal Kombat or a home system version to revisit its gameplay and visual presentation, emulated nearly perfectly on current technology.

I dedicated most of my time playing the arcade classics, particularly Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Many of the games here stand the test of time, particularly during direct competitive sessions. However, facing the artificial intelligence fighters in these releases is a testament to how primitive and unfair the programming was in the franchise's pioneering releases. Computer-directed fighters clearly employ dishonest tactics or are otherwise dumb as rocks. Lacking another person to compete with — network gaming is included in the majority of included games, but somewhat limited in options — you'll miss the full enjoyment.

Visual Options

The 23 playable Mortal Kombat games in the compilation, a blend of gaming hall, television, and mobile releases, are accurately emulated, though I've observed a few small quirks — mostly input lag and the occasional bug, especially with Mortal Kombat 4. Although the titles are mostly shown in their original form, developer Digital Eclipse has incorporated various clever convenience enhancements and visual presentation options. For instance, you can choose to show each character's special moves during gameplay and choose to enable endless periods to complete lethal techniques. There are also options for accessing hidden fighters, without having to perform some esoteric trick to access them.

Artistically, the releases can be played with a variety of visual enhancements and presentation styles. Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection provides highly authentic effects that reproduce the traditional television screens of coin-op establishments or household displays, or the greenscale screen of a Nintendo handheld. An especially welcome feature is the setting to activate gaming hall-style borders surrounding the screen, with the specific combat game you're playing faithfully and subtly duplicating against the faux black plastic borders. It's very artistically charming.

Bonus Elements

The collection includes numerous appreciated elements beyond the educational material and simulated classic games, including a music player that allows users to rediscover the music from multiple Mortal Kombat games excluding the sounds of combatants violently defeating each other. There are also combatant descriptions that feature histories and numerous narrative components shown through arcade games' attract mode screens and endings.

Lost Media Recovery

One of the biggest highlights for committed franchise followers is the opportunity to play a segment of previously unavailable content in the form of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Wavenet Edition. This specific release, a somewhat revised iteration of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, was an initial venture by the company at direct online competitive gaming in arcades. The Wavenet Edition of the game is practically indistinguishable to UMK3, but included the option to challenge online opponents and included some minor bug fixes and balance. But the Wavenet update failed to achieve popularity, in part