Midway started the 21st century at a crossroads, as the tried and testedMortal Kombatformula had begun to wear thin by the fourth entry. With the fighting series at risk of growing stale, the developer set out to revitalize the license through spin-offs and, ultimately, a jump to 3D visuals.
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Around the same time,Metacriticestablished itself as a review aggregator site, ensuringMortal Kombat’s rather turbulent post-2000 era is forever represented through easy-to-digest scores. WhichMortal Kombatgarnered the best rating on Metacritic? Which ranks as the worst? Find out below!
Disclaimer:Only the highest-scoring versions of each game will be considered, which includes complete editions and handheld ports(Mortal Kombat:Unchained, for example).Due to Metacritic not existing back then, none of the games up to and includingMortal Kombat: Goldwill be featured.
12Mortal Kombat: Special Forces (2000) - 28
Published in 2000,Special Forcesstars Jax in a third-person brawler that offers none of the qualities that helped putMortal Kombaton the map. The combat is clunky, the violence is unmemorable, and the story feels more like fanfiction than a genuine release.
Mortal Kombatdoes not have a particularly great track record when it comes to spin-offs, butSpecial Forcesstands alone as the worst game to ever be associated with the franchise.
11Mortal Kombat Advance (2001) - 33
Mortal Kombathas struggled to seamlessly adapt to handheld platforms, perhaps due to many of the games starting out as ports of console titles.Mortal Kombat Advanceis a stripped-down version of the SNES’Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, which was already more than half-a-decade old by the time of the port’s release.
As Nintendo has a family-friendly image to contend with,Mortal Kombat Advancelimited the fatalities and greatly reduced the gore. This would not be too bad if the gameplay survived the transition intact; unfortunately, quite a few basic moves had to be cut and the gameplay is far more sluggish than the console games.
10Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection (2011) - 62
Sadly, the original trilogy only features on this list through 2011’s mediocre compilation. Compiling the arcade versions ofMortal Kombat,Mortal Kombat II, andUltimate Mortal Kombat 3,Arcade Kollectionis one for the fans and, as such, does a serviceable job of presenting these arcade staples in a more accessible format.
That said, these arearcade gamesdesigned to be greedily difficult rather than fair; consequently, this collection is not the ideal way to experience these classic titles.
9Ultimate Mortal Kombat (2007) - 73
Ultimate Mortal Kombatis a handheld port ofUltimate Mortal Kombat 3done well, largely thanks to the heightened processing power provided by the Nintendo DS.Ultimate Mortal Kombatsupports multiplayer, a blessing since single-player matches tend to get frustrating due to the cheap AI.
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For a touch of variety,Ultimate Mortal Kombatalso includesMortal Kombat: Deception’s “Puzzle Kombat” minigame. For those looking to experienceUltimate Mortal Kombat 3on a handheld console, this game is the one to pick up.
8Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe (2008) - 76
Known as the game published right before Midway Games wentout of business,Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universewas an ill-fated attempt to introduce the gory fighting franchise to a new audience. AlthoughDC’s storylinescan get quite dark and even vicious, the comics were way too mainstream to permit Midway to deliver the experience (or variety in content) thatMortal Kombatfans had come to expect.
While functional,Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universewas a neutered fighting game that did little to bring in new players while also alienating the franchise’s core audience.
7Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (2006) - 77
Armageddon’s most damning critic is that 2006’s sequel plays too similar to the previous two main entries in the series,Deadly AllianceandDeception. The gameplay is practically identical, with new addition revolving around customization options and side content.
Yes, players could finally create new fighters and even put together unique Fatalities. Combined with a well put together Konquest Mode and a silly kart racing minigame,Armageddondefinitely does not lack for variety, even if the core combat mechanics remain largely unchanged fromDeception.
6Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks (2005) - 77
WhileMortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zerodoes have its moments and fans, 2005’sShaolin Monkscomes the closest to delivering a genuinely fantasticMortal Kombatspin-off. ConsideringShaolin Monkswas released during the 6th generation of gaming, it mostly maintains an equivalent level of quality to the franchise’s main entries released during the same period.
The fluid combat system is designed specifically to deal with multiple enemies, while Liu Kang and Kung Lao’s moves can be upgraded through a primitive but functional progression system.Shaolin Monksis not going to turn any heads but it won’t instantly fill someone with buyer’s remorse like some otherspin-offsin the series.
5Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance (2002) - 79 & 81
Funnily enough,Deadly Alliance’s GBArelease earned a higher score than the PlayStation 2 version, scoring an 81 to the latter’s 79. There was also a second GBA game calledMortal Kombat: Tournament Editionthat continued the story ofDeadly Alliance, although that game only managed a75 on Metacritic.
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Deadly Alliancebrought the mainline entries into the modern era, taking the franchise into three-dimensions. A graphical change was not the only innovation on display, as the basic fighting mechanics were revamped to allow each fighter to feel unique rather than replicas with distinctive special moves.
4Mortal Kombat: Deception (2004) - 81
Opting to mostly fine-tune and rebalanceDeadly Alliance’s already enjoyable fighting mechanics,Deceptionis the bestMortal Kombatgame to spawn out of the PS2 era. Now, in all truth, Midway’s 6th generation trilogy does not hold a candle to the franchise’s ’90s entries or anything published after NetherRealm Studios' creation.
Nevertheless, if someone wished to play a single entry from this era,Deceptionwould be a solid pick. In order to create a more balanced playing field, Midway introduced a combo breaker as a new defensive option.
3Mortal Kombat 11 (2019) - 86
Bar none,Mortal Kombat 11hasthe best combat in the series. Along with the fantasticInjusticegames, Netherrealm Studios has ironed out the ideal mechanics to craft impactful but strategic matches.Mortal Kombat 11removes the run option to further emphasize the importance of approaching battles tactically, while the newly added Flawless Block mechanic further rewards players for mastering the combat’s timing.
A time-consuming and frustrating progression system reduces some ofMortal Kombat 11’s shine, but the base game is still nothing short of fantastic.
