EDIT
As of March 2022 GOG doesn’t allow for you to edit reviews and has a character limit, so for now this edit is a Death Adder Reviews website exclusive.
MORTAL KOMBAT
Mortal Kombat Arcade 5/5
Mortal Kombat DOS 5/5
The Mortal Kombat series has been a favorite of mine since I was 10 years old, I still recall being a youngster at the video rental store when a random kid came up to me incredibly excited telling me that I needed to rent Mortal Kombat, I don’t remember his exact phrasing but he was very thrilled about all of the violence, so I was sold lol.
I had a great time playing Mortal Kombat on the Sega Genesis, I still remember pulling off my first fatality Kano’s Heart Rip, and I quickly took to Sub-Zero as my main, to this day he’s my favorite fighting game character across the fighting game genre. The 2 sequels that followed, combined with the 1995 Mortal Kombat movie, the entire country was swept up in Mortal Kombat fever.
As for the DOS version, the graphics and gameplay seem to be arcade perfect. The kollection would be worth getting for this game alone.
Pros:
-Pretty much a perfect port of Mortal Kombat from the arcade, FeelsGoodMan.
Cons:
-Once in a while you will experience slowdown during a move.
MORTAL KOMBAT II
Mortal Kombat II Arcade 5/5
Mortal Kombat II DOS 4/5
After Mortal Kombat came Mortal Kombat II, which was basically Mortal Kombat on steroids. You had better looking graphics, more fatalities, more characters, and I was most excited to finally be able to play as Reptile, the hidden character from the first Mortal Kombat. I still remember repeatedly gazing over the screenshots in Game Pro magazine over and over before the game hit arcades, I could not wait for this game to be released.
As for the DOS version, the infamous MK AI is remarkably fair in this version of Mortal Kombat II, even Shao Kahn isn’t that bad until he gets you trapped in a corner and starts spamming his Shoulder Attack. The real menace here is Kintaro, every other attack you throw at him results in him catching you, throwing you down, and eating up a huge chunk of your health. My best advice against him is to keep your distance and use lots of projectile attacks.
I played through the game with every character using the cheat “NO DAMAGE TO P1” just to remember how each character felt to play as, and to see every ending. It was a very satisfying experience other than Kintaro, no amount of cheat Kodes will make that nightmare chore of a character tolerable. I don’t remember him being this hard in the arcade version, you could easily spam Mileena’s Teleport Kick and take care of him.
Something I noticed while playing as Scorpion against the AI was that every single Spear I threw was blocked, and of the couple of dozen Leg Scissors Attacks I attempted, only one of them wasn’t blocked, I can’t remember if it was like this in the arcade or home console versions. I don’t play as Scorpion often, but I could see this being a huge problem for Scorpion mains playing single player.
Pros:
-Solid port.
-Cheat kodes available.
Cons:
-Once in a while you will experience slowdown during a move.
-Scorpion isn’t worth playing as in single player mode.
-Kintaro is a HORRENDOUS experience and drops the overall score to a 4/5.
MORTAL KOMBAT 3
Mortal Kombat 3 Arcade 4/5 (only because Ultimate improved on it so much)
Mortal Kombat 3 DOS 3/5
My childhood memories of Mortal Kombat 3 are also strongly tied to The Mortal Kombat Trilogy. I remember renting Mortal Kombat 3 in the twilight of my Genesis ownership and thinking that it was okay, but what I have really fond memories of was playing Mortal Kombat Trilogy on the PS1.
First you had Mortal Kombat 3, which was later buffed with more characters and better gameplay in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, then Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 was buffed again featuring characters from the entire trilogy in Mortal Kombat Trilogy, so they all kind of blend together in my mind. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 the arcade version using a PS1-PS3 controller is my most preferred way to play the many forms of this game.
All of that being said, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 is my favorite fighting game of all time, I even took a trek to meet Sub-Zero (John Turk), Sonya Blade (Kerri Hoskins), and Sindel (Lia Montelongo) from Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 at a convention. I’ve noticed people tend to fall into either 1 of 2 camps when it comes to what’s the best Mortal Kombat game, and it’s the Mortal Kombat II Camp and the Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Camp. I definitely fall into the Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 Camp as I prefer the combo system they added, it just feels so satisfying landing a big combo.
As for the DOS version, right out of the gate I’m just disappointed that it’s not Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, or that it’s not the Mortal Kombat Trilogy, which I looked it up and there is a Mortal Kombat Trilogy DOS version. Also, the AI even with the difficulty set to “wuss” is pretty brutal, and there is little room for error. I’d just recommend playing an arcade port of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 or some version of Mortal Kombat Trilogy over Mortal Kombat 3 DOS.
Pros:
-It’s still technically a Mortal Kombat game.
-Cyber Smoke, Shao Kahn, and Motaro are all playable.
Cons:
-Once in a while you will experience slowdown during a move.
-Even on the easiest setting the AI will eat your lunch.
-You’re better off finding another way to play UMK3 or Mortal Kombat Trilogy.
Kontroller Set Up Guide Using JoyToKey:
https://deathadderreviews.blogspot.com/2022/02/mortal-kombat-1-4-pc-joytokey-set-up.html
Screen Size Fix, Mortal Kombat 3 Select Screen Speed Fix, Cheat Kodes, Enable Cyber Smoke, Shao Kahn, and Motarto:
https://deathadderreviews.blogspot.com/2022/03/mortal-kombat-1-3-dos-kodes-and-game.html
