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Mortal Kombat continues to hold many hidden mysteries and the ability to amaze, more than 30 years after its original launch in coin-op establishments. This latest compilation covering the series' initial period, which includes a quartet of arcade releases, multiple console adaptations, and derivative games, is more than simply a faithfully reproduced series of classics and not-so-classics — it functions as a comprehensive historical account about the development of the renowned brand.

Being a long-time Mortal Kombat fan who has carefully followed its origins and transformation, there was plenty new for me to understand and value about the series.

What Constitutes the Legacy Kollection

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection similar to other retro collections from the creators at Digital Eclipse, portion educational film, portion interactive museum. The collection includes simulated releases of the first arcade Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, Mortal Kombat 3, and Mortal Kombat 4, plus console and handheld ports of certain releases. This compilation also features the series' ventures at derivative games, like action games Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero and Mortal Kombat: Special Forces — two of the franchise's most criticized releases.

The Legacy Kollection consequently doesn't represent a highlight reel anthology, but an examination of the series' formative period, when developer Midway and brand founders the creative duo behind the series were discovering methods to make a fighting game, produced using film material of actual people, through experimentation. Watching the documentary — that features vintage recordings, new interviews, and reproductions of classic advertisements, comics, and even company memos — it's incredible to witness how the series transformed from humble beginnings to a international craze. It's genuinely amazing to observe several young game developers, working with minimal planning or supervision, focus their cultural enthusiasms into birthing an iconic game franchise.

Historical Section

The historical documentation of Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection documents the ascent of the fighting series and the founders' vocational paths at the currently closed Midway. It subsequently demonstrates how those same creators reckoned with how to routinely one-up themselves, experiencing considerable demand to replicate their triumphs. It serves as a compelling period piece composed of VHS tapes and film-based pictures and pencil sketches, which showcase the DIY nature of the series' creation process and how personal recommendations helped spread its rumors and hidden aspects of Mortal Kombat in its peak period in gaming halls. Presented in manageable segments, it's an eminently watchable collection of mini-documentaries that includes titles, illustrated stories, cinematic adaptations and even the comical physical events. The compilation also contains some never-implemented techniques and digital fighter representations among its cutting-room-floor content.

Interactive Experience

Distributed throughout the five-segment historical film's chronology are prompts to play the games themselves. At various points, users can directly access a game of Mortal Kombat or one of its home console ports to rediscover its combat system and graphics, emulated nearly perfectly on modern hardware.

I allocated the majority of my time experiencing the original arcade titles, particularly Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Many of the games here remain enjoyable, notably with local multiplayer matches. Yet competing with the artificial intelligence fighters in these releases is a reminder of how crude and unfair the development approached in early Mortal Kombat games. CPU-controlled opponents clearly employ dishonest tactics or are otherwise dumb as rocks. Without having someone to play against — network gaming is included in most titles in the collection, but too light on features — the experience will be incomplete.

Display Features

The 23 playable Mortal Kombat games in the anthology, a blend of gaming hall, television, and mobile releases, are precisely simulated, though I detected a handful slight anomalies — mostly input lag and intermittent errors, particularly in Mortal Kombat 4. Even though the releases are primarily displayed authentically, developer Digital Eclipse has included some smart convenience enhancements and display customization choices. For example, you can choose to show each character's special moves on the display and choose to enable endless periods to execute finishing moves. Also included are choices for revealing concealed combatants, removing the requirement to complete obscure techniques to access them.

Graphically, the titles can be experienced with numerous filters and visual treatments. Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection includes remarkably accurate effects that reproduce the cathode-ray tube displays of coin-op establishments or home televisions, or the monochrome green display of a Nintendo handheld. A particularly nice touch is the setting to activate coin-op-inspired frames surrounding the screen, with the specific combat game you're playing faithfully and subtly duplicating against the artificial ebony plastic frames. It's very artistically charming.

Bonus Elements

There are plenty of appreciated elements beyond the documentary and emulated arcade classics, including a music player that allows users to rediscover the music from multiple Mortal Kombat games absent the noise of combatants violently defeating each other. There are also character profiles that include bios and the various bits of lore displayed via arcade games' attract mode screens and conclusions.

Lost Media Recovery

A particularly notable inclusion for committed franchise followers is the opportunity to play a segment of previously unavailable content in the format of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Wavenet Edition. This particular edition, a moderately improved edition of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, was an early attempt by Midway at one-on-one internet-based play in gaming halls. The online-enabled release of the game is virtually identical to UMK3, but featured the capability to challenge online opponents and contained several small error corrections and adjustments. Yet this online edition never gained traction, in part