I loved MK4 :(.

I hated DA but loved Deception.

But you might be on to something.

Yeah, I definitely think all this is a matter of opinion. Especially MK:D being the "pinnacle of the 3D era."

And for me any timeline that purports to explain the quality of MK games goes something like this:

2000: John Tobias leaves Midway.
2010: Midway is purchased by Warner Brothers.

Armageddon was a rushed mess. I don't see how anyone could argue that Deception wasn't the best out of DA and Arm. Maybe it's just me.

MK will get better and better from now and beyond. The only crap game was and will forever be is MKvsDCU.

This is definitely the pattern I've noticed as well. Hopefully the rest of the games after x will be great though As long as we don't have another T rated mk, or another rushed anthology, we'll be fine. I hope after mkx we get another cooperative story beat 'em up similar to mksm

I generally agree with that pattern. I also think it's pretty interesting how a lot of the things that are selling points for MKX "Three styles for each character / robust online options / greater story depth" are all sort of things they've used in the past to sell MK games. History really does repeat itself.

We can always look at the past to search for patterns, but that doesn't necessarily mean the future will continue with that pattern. In my personal opinion I think NRS has really found their groove with creating fighting games and the MK franchise will continue to improve with each entry. NRS being purchased by WB was the best thing that could have happened to MK. Now NRS has all the means necessary to create the games they want to make without the financial stranglehold they were under with Midway. And knowing how Ed Boon always likes to challenge himself and his team to out do themselves with each proceeding sequel, I assume that MKXI will be even better than MKX. The future looks bright my friends

So what you're saying is, we should expect the next game to be a colossal fuck up?(ps I love MK3) Also, if we are going by NRS time line wouldn't Injustice be the departure game and shouldn't MKX count as the experimental?

MK4 was awesome.

Good post TC. I agree.

Ever since Boon said he hasn't been THIS nervous about a Mortal Kombat since Mortal Kombat 2, I knew MKX was going to be god-tier status and have the same profound impact that MK2 had.

Funny how the direct sequel of a hit is pure gold in gaming but pure shit in movies. Number 2 of any good franchise is dank, 3rd is usually milk and then you get a reboot. Generally speaking.

Wow, i never would have thought about taking this perspective on the series. But I agree with you...clever work on organizing the information and finding a pattern.

I have always felt that MKX is what Mk2 was to Mk1...bigger, better, and more badass...

It played better than MKA, MKD, and MKDA.

Can't argue with you on that. Say what you like about MKvDCU, its gameplay was the best we'd seen from an MK game in years.

I agree. MK vs DC was far better than those three gameplay wise. I don't get why everyone thought MK vs DC was bad, it was actually pretty fun and it helped flesh out MK9 with gameplay mechanics. Its online was fucking awful though

They are bashing MK vs DC because it marked the first time that an MK title was given a "T" rating, and thus striping it from it's trademark mature content (gory fatalities). Although it did have very good gameplay mechanics and it introduced a story mode that was very interesting to watch, MK fans didn't appreciate, or even didn't expect, that the game would have to be accommodating towards the DC IP and tone down it's blood and gore significantly. Even though there was much interest in having a crossover game with MK, many didn't like that the that the crossover would occur with a franchise that was very tame to mk.

Ed boon even acknowledged that this title created a huge thirst for an "M" rated MK game during the early interviews when he was promoting mk9.

However, as an MK fan, I can definitely appreciate that the MK vs DC game opened a huge door for the franchise. First, it was the first to introduce a story mode, which was very much a novel idea that brought substance to the title, which has been carried over and refined over the past few titles. Second, during a tough time for Midway that was struggling to stay afloat, the deal to work with WB was a blessing in disguise for the MK franchise, because although it divided MK fans for the reasons stated above, WB noticed the game's potential despite the backlash the "T" rating gave the title. Thus, the decision for them to purchase the Mortal kombat property was the best thing that could ever happen. MK was finally in the hands of a good developer that allowed for the team to explore even more ideas, which eventually lead to the decision of treating MK and DC as to separate titles. Remember, warner brothers offered the idea to have the inclusion of story mode to explain how the two worlds collided. Thanks to that, we will have a very interesting story mode in MKX.

So, thanks to MK vs DC, we got MK9 and an even better MKX.

I LOVED Trilogy and MK4.

MK4 was so amazing, at the time of its release. Yes, even the kute and funny 3D endings.

MK4 introduced Tanya, she had her debut there, so yes, another reason to like the game. Her game ending was hilarious.

Of course, if you play MK4 just now for the first time.. it'll seem quite messy.

Great post. Couldn't agree more.

MK4 was brilliant for its time when it came out. I was in the 4th or 5th grade I believe. Had lots of fun and the tone was pretty dark I thought.

I remember Subby's fatality til this day because it was the first one that I could actually pull off. Back, back, down, back HP

Thank you for your compliment on my previous post.

And yes, MK4 was a fantastic game during its time. Not only was it the first title to take a chance in experimenting with a new graphics engine and environment in which to fight in, it offered video endings for each character that, to this day, have not been reimplemented (unless they bring it back for MKX, but then again, we have story mode for that). So Mk4 stands out as a unique MK title for these reasons. and I remember having so much fun with the dreamcast version of it..."MK Gold"

....why must you mention the creation of mk vs dcu
...heroic "Brutalities"
I just hope the same team that made it aint making the brutalities for mkx