Mortal Kombat 4: The Most Unserious of Kombats

 Seeing as how the month is October, I wanted to cover something Horror. Or in this case, something Horror-adjacent. The first one that I landed on was Mortal Kombat. But not just any Mortal Kombat. I am going to cover the funniest entry, Mortal Kombat 4. A divisive entry for people as some can find the diamonds in the rough, while others simply can't stand it. For me, I love this game. I put it up there with SoulCalibur II as my favorite fighting games. Yet where SoulCalibur II succeeds on almost all of its fronts. From the presentation to the way that game feels and flows. It's why SoulCalibur II has always stood as a gold standard for me. This is especially true when you look at other iconic 3D Fighters. 

But Mortal Kombat 4 is not any of that. The game on its surface doesn't appear to be much different from its 2D predecessors. The major difference really just involves the new 3D stylings. So, you could absolutely arrive at this conclusion if you've only spent a few hours with the game, yet that misses the point. MK4 is not reinventing the wheel so much as it is delivering what a 3D MK would be like in the late 1990s. I think this distinction is important because MK4 and Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance offer drastically different experiences. 

That five year gap was enough time to change the tone in many ways, no matter what people may think. MK4 was goofy, and embodied the cheesiness that was present in the 1990s MKs. Whereas MK:DA kept most of that cheekiness to a minimum. And I think that this sentiment ebbs and flows throughout the rest of the series' entries, with some being goofier than others. But there's just something special about what MK4 was able to really accomplish. And that goal, unintended or not, was playing it as straight as possible and being unintentionally hilarious. 

It reminds me of how The Naked Gun operates. Every situation is being played with sincerity and seriousness. So, when the jokes land, they hit that much harder. It's all in the art of the performance, and could only be pulled off by people who truly believed in what they were doing. While a good chunk of this applies to the game's cutscenes, the Bonebreaker (A Throw performed with the LK input) and the standard Throws add to the spectacle. Not to mention, the gibberish that constantly comes out of characters in this game when they take and give damage. Like, it's a whole package where the pieces just fall into place. 

So generally, the Audio Design and Vocal Direction in MK4 is second to none. The fact that I can snap someone's neck or arm with a Bonebreaker and have them say something like, "Ow, My leg!", is just pure comedy. It doesn't make any sense, yet that is the appeal. It reminds me of how the Clayfighter series tried so hard to poke fun at fighting games, and then gets trounced by the ridiculousness of MK4. It's the difference between trying too hard and understanding what makes something work. The difference between cynicism and playfulness. 

With how the older MKs were known for their incoherent gibberish, I think that the claim to fame for MK4 would actually be the endings. I mentioned them a bit earlier, but now I really want to go into what makes them so memorable. And that is the cheesiness. They have those same feelings when you watch a B-Movie like Hard Ticket to Hawaii. Something that can only be made with the sincerity that what you are making is something special. Just watch any of the endings and you'll understand immediately. But I think the best example of this silliness is the Sonya, Jarek, and Jax Trilogy. 

With Sonya and Jarek being akin to route choices, Jax comes out on top as the True Ending. But context is needed as the scale and differences between the three are integral. They each start the same with Sonya and Jarek facing off on a mountain for some reason. And during this standoff Sonya says, "It's over Jarek. Shinnok's dead. The good guys won. You're coming back with me."  There's more back-and-forth before Jarek launches himself off the cliff, seemingly trying to spear Sonya or something, with gibberish and all. But the difference lies in what happens to Sonya. 

In Sonya's ending she completes a call via Walkie-Takie, or Handheld Radio, with Jax. The more boring of the endings when you've seen all 3, yet it's fun because of the previous exchange between Sonya and Jarek. However in Jarek and Jax's endings, Sonya is tossed off the cliff before completing the call. For Jarek, he climbs back up and crushes the Radio and then proceeds to laugh. Yet with Jax, the scene extends. And Jarek is instantly grabbed by the throat after laughing. Jax then proceeds to carry him back over to the cliff while Jarek pleads for his life. The audience is then treated to the magnum opus that is Jax's fatality line as he says, "Wrong Jarek. This is not a brutality. This is a fatality." Absolute cinema going on here, no notes.

There's some inflection in the vocal performances, but for the most part they are said in the most bizarre ways. Like, Jarek feels like someone who is about to get tossed off of a cliff, while Jax sounds like he's reading the news on a teleprompter. It's just so inconsistent and could not be replicated no matter how hard you try. As a huge fan of this game for almost twenty years, I always love trying to mimic this game's vocal direction. I thought it was genuinely cool as a kid, but now I like it for how fun it is. I would love to have been in the recording booth for this game, it's just that fucking weird. 

However, there is much more fun to be had with the game outside of the tomfoolery. And yes, I do mean the gameplay. MK4 is a fast paced fighter that is reliant on specials and weapons to form the combos. Combine that with stage interactable and the occasional side-step, and you get decent attempt at a 3D Fighter. Like I said earlier, it's no SoulCalibur, Tekken, Virtua Fighter, Dead or Alive, etc.. But it makes up for that with the character diversity that MK excels at. While normals are standardized, that doesn't mean each route plays out the same. 

For me, I like using Tanya, Scorpion, and Reiko. Each character offers something fun and unique. With Tanya, she's got great specials and one of the easiest infinites in any game that I've ever seen. This all comes off of her Drill Kick special that picks characters up off the ground. So, this means that Tanya gets a full combo when she knocks you down. Sweep, Uppercut, anything that knocks down. This makes Tanya incredibly cheap, and it means she pretty much rules over the game competitively. What's funny is that she also has a pretty fast Straight Fireball and Downward Air Fireball, along with a Rolling Splits Kick. So, she has Fireball specials from Akuma and an improved Split Kick from Chun-Li in Street Fighter essentially. I am not even mentioning that her weapon is a boomerang. Like, she's one of the only characters who can throw their weapon and it will return on hit. Absolutely insane character. 

With Scorpion, he plays pretty much the same as previous entries. He's got Spear, Teleport Punch, and Air Throw, with the only new move being Flame Breath. It is cool to have Flame Breath, but it really only works for ending combos or stopping pressure.. His weapon though is pretty funny. It's just a Long Sword, yet he can spin while using it. So, you can totally just spin at someone like a Beyblade. The only other notable aspect to Scorpion in this game is his Alternate Costume. A Grey Color, but he has a Skull for a Head. Pretty wicked if you ask me. 

Last not but not least is Reiko. One of the cooler characters in this game for me as his specials just look so cool in motion. He's got a Flip Kick that can launch or extend combos. His Teleport Slam is a hit grab that can be used effectively in his combo routes. He even has Ninja Stars that act as his Fireball. And they're surprisingly effective because he ends up throwing like ten of them. So, they cover a good chunk of the screen . Forcing people to block or side-step. However, he has one more special that I actually forgot about. Reiko's Quick Spin Behind does exactly what you think it does. He spins all the way to the back of the opponent. The big reason why this move is so forgettable is because it opens Reiko up to punishment. Why use it after a knockdown when you can just run? The opponent can very easily punish you for using it. It simply sucks. But Reiko himself is really fun to play around with, especially with his Spiked Club weapon that also builds into his combo routing. And if you have high enough execution, you can pull off an infinite. 

Overall, MK4 is a funny and chaotic mess of a game. There are no five star matches here. Just a lot of nonsense, hilarity, and the occasional nutty combo. They truly don't make MK like this anymore. The closest iteration would be MKX, but that game is better off without the bullshittery of an MK4. Yet, that is why MK4 is so special. There's nothing quite like it, and it shows that imitators cannot replicate the maelstrom known as MK4. Shoutouts to Dan Forden for the sounds throughout the years. Can't wait to get my hands back on MK4 with the new collection.

And remember to Free Palestine, Free Congo, Free Sudan, Free Venezuela and to Free Lebanon from the onslaught of their oppressors. Never stop talking about them. They think that we don't care, but we see everything. Never forget that. They are trying to suppress our voices because they matter, remember that. There may have been a ceasefire in Gaza, but Palestine still needs to be completely free.