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The Mortal Kombat series still possesses numerous undisclosed elements and the power to astonish, well past its 30th anniversary after its first appearance in coin-op establishments. This latest compilation spanning the series' initial period, featuring a quartet of arcade releases, multiple console adaptations, and derivative games, is more than simply a faithfully reproduced series of classics including less celebrated releases — it additionally serves as a detailed chronicle about the creation 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 Makes the Legacy Kollection

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection is, like previous classic compilations from the creators at Digital Eclipse, part historical documentation, section playable historical record. The collection includes digitally recreated editions of the original arcade Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, Mortal Kombat 3, and Mortal Kombat 4, plus console and handheld ports of some of those games. The collection even includes the franchise's attempts at spin-off titles, like action-oriented titles Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero and Mortal Kombat: Special Forces — two of the franchise's least successful installments.

The Legacy Kollection thus isn't a greatest hits compilation, but a study of the franchise's initial era, when the creators at Midway and series co-creators Ed Boon and John Tobias were figuring out how to create a combat title, digitized from footage of live performers, as they went along. Viewing the historical footage — that features historical videos, contemporary discussions, and digital copies of vintage posters, comics, and even interoffice faxes — it's astonishing to observe how Mortal Kombat went from modest origins to a global sensation. It's truly remarkable to observe several young game developers, working with minimal planning or guidance, focus their cultural enthusiasms into birthing an iconic game franchise.

Educational Component

The historical documentation of Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection traces the growth of the fighting series and the developers' professional journeys at the no-longer-operating Midway. It further illustrates how these identical developers addressed how to consistently surpass their achievements, experiencing considerable stress to duplicate their triumphs. It serves as a compelling period piece composed of analog films and film-based pictures and manual drawings, which demonstrate the hands-on approach of the franchise's production method and how oral tradition helped circulate its mysteries and undisclosed elements of the series in its golden era in coin-op establishments. Delivered in easily digestible portions, it's an eminently watchable set of brief historical films that spans games, comics, films and including the humorous real-world tour. The compilation also contains some never-implemented techniques and game character images among its archived development assets.

Playable Component

Distributed throughout the five-part documentary's timeline are prompts to play the original releases. During specific moments, users can directly access a game of Mortal Kombat or a home system version to rediscover its combat system and graphics, simulated with remarkable precision on current technology.

I dedicated most of my time engaging with the vintage coin-op games, specifically Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat 2, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. Numerous titles here stand the test of time, particularly during local multiplayer matches. But playing against the artificial intelligence fighters in these releases is a demonstration of how basic and unfair the coding existed in the series' initial installments. AI-managed characters blatantly cheat to win or are otherwise dumb as rocks. Lacking someone to play against — network gaming is included in most titles in the collection, but too light on features — the experience will be incomplete.

Visual Options

The two dozen available combat games in the anthology, a combination of coin-op, home system, and portable titles, are faithfully recreated, though I've observed a handful slight anomalies — mostly input lag and the occasional bug, notably within Mortal Kombat 4. And while the games are primarily displayed authentically, the creators has included some smart convenience enhancements and graphical adjustment settings. For example, players have the option to display fighter-specific techniques during gameplay and select to activate endless periods to execute finishing moves. Additionally available are settings for unlocking secret characters, eliminating the need to execute obscure techniques to access them.

Graphically, the titles can be played with a variety of filters and visual treatments. Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection offers very realistic options that simulate the CRT monitors of gaming halls or home televisions, or the limited color monitor of a Nintendo handheld. A notably appreciated element is the setting to activate coin-op-inspired frames framing the gameplay, with the MK game of your choice precisely and gently mirroring against the faux black plastic borders. It's very artistically charming.

Bonus Elements

There are plenty of welcome features besides the historical footage and recreated vintage titles, featuring an audio component that lets you revisit the soundtracks of different fighting releases absent the noise of fighters brutally eliminating opponents. Additionally included are combatant descriptions that include bios and multiple story elements displayed via the demo sequences of coin-op titles and endings.

Archival Discovery

One of the biggest highlights 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 early attempt by Midway at head-to-head network battles in coin-op establishments. The Wavenet Edition of the game is virtually identical to UMK3, but featured the capability to battle network competitors and featured various slight glitch repairs and refinements. However, this network version failed to achieve popularity, in part