Mortal Kombat has been around for so long, it’s easy to take it for granted. NetherRealm’s newer fighting games have hit so consistently, setting the standard for what fighting games could be in terms of competitive contests and single-player stories. Older generations may have forgotten the series’ humble beginnings, while younger players may not even be aware of them at all.

**Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection**, from Atari and Digital Eclipse, tells the story of the franchise’s earliest days and does so in a way that’s informative, honest, and fun. The games may not be what they once were, but they’re still a blast to revisit, some of them made better by a few slight quality-of-life tweaks.

### Primitive Kombat

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection features a mixture of classic games from the arcade, home console, and handheld devices. While Digital Eclipse is familiar with the idea of taking games from a past generation and presenting them for a new audience, there was a unique challenge in place with the Mortal Kombat series.

There are some games presented as a “warts and all” package, which is fascinating from a historical perspective. This is especially true of the earlier games, which had multiple versions across arcade and consoles. For instance, the original Mortal Kombat had voices on the Super Nintendo, while the Sega Genesis version featured blood, which was hidden behind a code. Mortal Kombat II’s visual presentation also differed noticeably across arcade, Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, and Sega 32X. The differences extended to gameplay as well.

One gameplay aspect that stood out in the older fighting games was loading speed. The Super Nintendo version of Mortal Kombat II, specifically, would have a noticeable stutter whenever each round started. They all felt distinctly slower, especially compared to their arcade counterparts. In many ways, that’s part of their charm. In the 90s, that was the bar, and the hard-hitting violence and over-the-top finishers often exceeded that standard.

There were other instances where Digital Eclipse stepped in and made improvements. This is most true of the PlayStation versions of Mortal Kombat Trilogy and Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero, where loading times were optimized and gameplay flowed much better as a result. There’s even a Rewind feature for titles like Mythologies, which goes a long way toward addressing inherent flaws without compromising the original game.

While it’s great to have a version of the PlayStation Mortal Kombat Trilogy that feels more playable, it did leave me feeling conflicted over a sense of inconsistency with performance improvements. Part of me would have loved to see similar optimizations in the older titles, but there’s a certain charm in seeing the old games just as they were.

### Quality-of-Life Improvements and Extras

Where the games in this collection benefit the most is with quality-of-life options. There are features like on-screen move lists, Fatality timers, and various cheats. Some of the game-to-game features even veer into historical curiosities, like unlocking developer options in the arcade versions.

Of course, one can’t talk about Mortal Kombat gaming history without mentioning the various secret characters from the earliest games. This collection allows players to access the Reptile fight from Mortal Kombat and the Smoke, Jade, and Noob Saibot fights from Mortal Kombat II without having to fulfill the original myriad of conditions—a fun bonus for anyone who grew up with these games.

There are even unlockables that I didn’t know existed, like the ability to play as Goro in the Game Boy version of Mortal Kombat. For as much as I love the mixture of arcade, console, and handheld titles in Digital Eclipse’s collection, there are a few other games from this era I would have loved to see included.

The arcade version of Mortal Kombat 4 is a strong inclusion to spotlight the end of the series’ original 2D era, but I would have also loved to see the Sega Dreamcast port. Similarly, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 is represented by arcade and Super Nintendo versions, but the Sega Saturn version would have been interesting for comparison. Although the PlayStation Mortal Kombat Trilogy shines in this collection, having the Nintendo 64 version alongside it for CD/cartridge juxtaposition would have been neat.

Still, what’s here is a strong collection of amazing fighting games, flawed platformers, and handheld curiosities—each worth checking out at least once to grasp their historical significance. Yes, even Mortal Kombat: Special Forces.

### A Documented Legacy

A majority of the collection features five-to-ten-minute vignettes telling the story of the original Mortal Kombat development team. It’s one thing to recognize Mortal Kombat as an all-time, top-level franchise, but it’s another to see the origins of Ed Boon, John Tobias, John Vogel, and Dan Forden and their humble beginnings at Williams Bally/Midway.

There’s an early introduction video where the four introduce themselves in a manner reminiscent of The Beatles, and the story is a rare insight in today’s video game landscape. Digital Eclipse assembles a full-blown 1990s time capsule with initial pitches, original press releases, TV commercials, magazine clippings, and behind-the-scenes footage from various events.

The documentary doesn’t just tell the story of the Mortal Kombat games; it conveys what a massive pop culture phenomenon the series was. While today’s games sell more units and make more money (a point Ed Boon notes by the documentary’s end), Digital Eclipse’s timeline expresses the degree to which Mortal Kombat took over the world in its early years.

### Honesty and Humility

While it’s easy to craft a “rah-rah” tale of flawless victories, the Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection documentary has a refreshingly honest tone as it concludes. Celebrating early wins is natural, but the tail end deals with the franchise’s biggest turning point with sincerity.

Though Mortal Kombat 4 is looked back on as a fun novelty in 2025, the original development team talks about the risks of transitioning to 3D, the fast-shrinking arcade culture, and how MK4 became a jumping-off point for audiences. There was real turmoil during that time—and this documentary doesn’t shy away from the merits and flaws of the late 90s, post-MK3 games.

The timeline sputters somewhat at the finish line, offering only brief summaries of the 2000s and 2010s MK games without additional context or behind-the-scenes content. One could argue the collection isn’t about those games, but it raises the question of why they were even included when starting from the 3D era might have felt like a more natural conclusion.

That said, the final vignette—revisiting nearly everyone featured—is genuinely heartwarming and worth watching.

### Round 1: Final Thoughts

As fighting games, it’s obvious that nothing in Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection compares to what NetherRealm is creating today. The earliest MK games can feel downright jarring with their slower speed and primitive presentation. Fundamentally, however, the games hold up, especially when playing locally with friends, and showcase the building blocks that led to today’s Mortal Kombat.

The quality-of-life and optimization improvements for certain games—especially Mortal Kombat Trilogy—make gameplay flow much smoother than on the original PlayStation hardware. There are even practice tools and training features for several titles, helping both newcomers and veterans sharpen their skills.

With classic games and a heartfelt documentary, Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection continues to show that there’s nobody better at this type of compilation than Digital Eclipse. Whether you’re an old-school fighter or looking to teach your kids what MK looked like in the old days, this is the best way to do it.
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