The original trilogy isn’t merely devoted to Star Wars, though in all fairness there is only one thing that can be called ‘the trilogy’. Back to the point, the first three Mortal Kombat (MK) releases gained much praise for their gruesome action and simple, satisfying combos. Naturally, fatalities were the biggest selling point, but the action prior to that was equally shattering, with never before seen live action, combined with pounding audio. The campaign stating: “So real, it hurts,” was fairly accurate for that day and hence, MK earned its place on the top rank of fighters.

Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection (MKAK) tries to revive the pinnacle of MK success, by rereleasing the first three iterations in a pack, together with online functionality and all that jazz. Graphically, people shouldn’t expect the world, as it’s actually a good thing that the game sticks to the glory of live action. Yet, this is already where the tower seems to wobble, due to horrible screen tearing and constant framerate drops, making it hard to play on judgment alone. It seemed like nostalgia just painted the game of old off wrong, but after inspecting the original versions, it was clear the problem lies within the Arcade Kollection.

Also, for some reason, the sound seems to be off. Perhaps it’s from a remastered sound, but the characters sounded strange and outwardly, with a strange pitch. Most strikes and blow however still land with the same vigor, though the sound timing seems to be a tick off its mark and many sounds get cut. In all, the presentation of MKAK leaves a slumping first impression, complete with ridiculous filters, which make the game look more ridiculous than anything else.

Midway couldn't have foreseen that this slogan would turn out so wrong now.

Luckily, not a lot can go wrong from the core gameplay, since it was set in stone ages ago, when Midway still had cash. Starting from the first Mortal Kombat with a very simple, satisfying move set, players can work their way to the third iteration, which in this compilation is actually Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. The latter games are offer a faster pace, more moves and wider selection in finishers, making them more appealing, even though the first is a monument in fighting existence and shouldn’t be overlooked. Certainly considering the classic difficulty from the series, it is advised to get a good feel of things, before moving forward. Even on novice difficulty, the opponent never holds back, which makes completing a game in one fell swoop a challenge on its own.

Unfortunately, here again the slowness returns as input seems to be a tick off once more, making moves hard to land, if at all. Naturally, it’s a bit harder to create these moves on a modern controller, so playing with an arcade stick would seem the best option to play. But not even that could balance the fact that there is a slight anticipation needed to play. Especially in the 2 later iterations, this becomes troublesome to work around.

The Mortal Kombat Arcade filter tries to revive nostalgia, but ends up looking stupid

And since singleplayer is already sluggish at best, one can imagine that the online experience, which would be the vantage point of this game, will not be enjoyable. Well, there isn’t much more to say than it isn’t. Aforementioned problems only get exacerbated and other than being able to relive the first Mortal Kombat over, there isn’t much to see here. Slow reaction, lag, tears and more problems will make it hard to enjoy, if at all. The best option is to play locally, which seems to be ridiculous, but nostalgic in a sense. Even then, expect a numerous amount of issues with the lovely compilation.

It’s impossible to fail Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection, as it offers the first 3 games of the series, which were by far the high point. But the compounding issues that soil the overall presentation and slow down gameplay make it heart-breaking for any fan and a gamble for casual interests. This rerelease has all the elements of a lazy port, slapped on to ride the coattails of the earlier released 2011 reboot. It’s not a bad game, but it’s trying to be. This deserved better.

Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed. (@Daavpuke)