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The Mortal Kombat series still possesses many hidden mysteries and the power to astonish, more than 30 years after its first appearance in coin-op establishments. This latest compilation including the brand's formative years, featuring four original arcade titles, multiple console adaptations, and spinoffs, is more than only a accurately simulated collection of iconic titles including less celebrated releases — it's also a detailed chronicle about the making of the legendary series.

As a dedicated Mortal Kombat fan who has closely monitored its origins and transformation, there was much to discover for me to learn and appreciate about the series.

What Constitutes the Legacy Collection

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection similar to other retro collections from the creators at Digital Eclipse, part historical documentation, section playable historical record. The anthology contains simulated releases of the pioneering arcade Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, Mortal Kombat 3, and Mortal Kombat 4, along with home system and portable adaptations of several of these titles. The anthology additionally contains the franchise's attempts at spinoffs, like action games Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero and Mortal Kombat: Special Forces — among the series' least successful installments.

The Legacy Kollection thus isn't a greatest hits compilation, but a study of the franchise's initial era, when the development team Midway and franchise originators the creative duo behind the series were figuring out how to make a fighting game, produced using film material of real actors, on the fly. Observing the archival material — that features archival footage, recent conversations, and reproductions of classic advertisements, illustrated stories, and including internal communications — it's remarkable to see how the series transformed from simple starts to a global sensation. It's genuinely amazing to watch a handful of pioneering developers, operating with virtually no plan or guidance, direct their entertainment passions into creating a legendary video game series.

Historical Section

The historical documentation of Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection traces the growth of the combat franchise and its creators' careers at the no-longer-operating Midway. It then goes on to show how those same creators reckoned with how to consistently surpass their achievements, encountering significant stress to duplicate their triumphs. It represents an intriguing historical record composed of analog films and traditional photos and manual drawings, which demonstrate the hands-on approach of the franchise's production method and how personal recommendations helped spread its rumors and undisclosed elements of the series in its peak period in gaming halls. Presented in manageable segments, it's highly engaging collection of mini-documentaries that spans games, comics, films and even the silly live-action tour. It also includes some unused moves and game character images among its previously unreleased material.

Interactive Experience

Interspersed along the five-part documentary's timeline are opportunities to engage with the actual titles. At certain intervals, viewers can hop into a game of Mortal Kombat or a console adaptation to rediscover its combat system and artistic style, simulated with remarkable precision on current technology.

I allocated the majority of my time engaging with the vintage coin-op games, specifically Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Numerous titles here remain enjoyable, particularly during direct competitive sessions. However, facing the artificial intelligence fighters in these releases is a testament to how primitive and unbalanced the development approached in early Mortal Kombat games. Computer-directed fighters obviously use unfair advantages or are otherwise dumb as rocks. Without having someone to play against — network gaming is included in the majority of included games, but too light on features — you'll miss the full enjoyment.

Visual Options

The 23 playable Mortal Kombat games in the collection, a blend of gaming hall, television, and mobile releases, are precisely simulated, though I have noticed a few small quirks — mostly input lag and intermittent errors, especially with Mortal Kombat 4. And while the games are largely presented as-is, the development team has added several intelligent quality-of-life features and display customization choices. For example, players have the option to display fighter-specific techniques on the display and opt to have infinite time to perform a Fatality. Additionally available are settings for revealing concealed combatants, without having to perform obscure techniques to obtain them.

Artistically, the releases can be played with a variety of graphical effects and display options. Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection includes remarkably accurate filters that mimic the CRT monitors of gaming halls or household displays, or the limited color monitor of a Game Boy. A notably appreciated element is the choice to enable gaming hall-style borders surrounding the screen, with your selected Mortal Kombat title accurately and softly reflecting against the simulated dark plastic edges. It's remarkably visually appealing.

Bonus Elements

The collection includes numerous nice touches beyond the historical footage and recreated vintage titles, featuring an audio component that enables players to reexperience the music from multiple combat titles without the din of two kombatants viciously slaughtering each other. There are also combatant descriptions that feature histories and multiple story elements presented by arcade games' attract mode screens and endings.

Lost Media Recovery

A particularly notable inclusion for hardcore Mortal Kombat fans is the ability to access a segment of previously unavailable content in the form of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Wavenet Edition. This version of the game, a moderately improved edition of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, was an pioneering effort from the developer at one-on-one internet-based play in gaming halls. The Wavenet Edition of the game is almost exactly the same to UMK3, but featured the capability to compete against internet adversaries and included some minor glitch repairs and refinements. Yet this online edition failed to achieve popularity, in part