Collection essentials #418: Mortal Kombat 4 (N64)

3D graphics were all the rage as the end of the millennium drew near, and so it’s no surprise that the fourth Mortal Kombat installment would feature them. However, they would keep the gameplay mostly intact, with fights taking place on a 2D plane as usual. Mortal Kombat 4 still feels very much like the games before, with a couple little additions such as the ability to sidestep for dodging purposes, and the introduction of weapons and throwable objects littered around certain stages. Every character in this game has a special controller input that lets them pull out a weapon, and they are strong, but the problem with them is that one hit from the opponent will knock them away.

Mortal Kombat 4 features new antagonists for the series, the evil Shinnok who has just escaped his imprisonment in the “Netherrealm” and his sorcerer sidekick Quan Chi from said realm. There are several new fighters released as well. However, the new characters in this game, in my opinion, are generally not the same level of quality as the characters from previous games. And I think I’m not the only one, as it seems most of them aren’t as often or fondly remembered by people in general, and in the next few installments don’t feature them very much aside from Quan Chi.

 I like MK4, but the problem with it is that it feels a little inferior to what came before in most ways. Mortal Kombat 3 had introduced a combo system where each character could perform combos by pressing certain buttons in quick succession when up close, and each character had their own unique combos. But in 4, everyone has the same basic combo inputs, which I don’t like as much. There are also fewer finishing moves, as “animalities,” “brutalities,” and the humorous “friendships” and “babalities” are now gone, leaving only “fatalities.” 

New to Mortal Kombat 4 are cinematic endings for when characters clear the single-player arcade mode. In previous games you would get a series of images along with text letting you know what happened after your specific character won the tournament. But in this game, you get to actually watch a scene play, complete with voice acting. The acting is super cheesy, and to some it may come off as awful, but to others the cheese is actually kind of charming!

My family rarely ever rented video games back in the day, but Mortal Kombat 4 is one game that I specifically remember renting once. I certainly played and enjoyed it during my peak of Mortal Kombat fandom. I think the problem this game suffers from now is…why revisit it when you could play Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Mortal Kombat Trilogy instead? Not that there aren’t any reasons, but I think for most people those games carry more appeal. Still, as a fan of the series, this game definitely belongs in my collection.