The Jeff Gerstmann Hall of Fame 012 (Patreon)

Between its recent 30-year anniversary and the recent release of Mortal  Kombat 1, I've been thinking a lot about the original Mortal Kombat. It  seemed like a good time to revisit the game that launched the franchise,  something that hasn't aged all that well when compared to even its  immediate sequel, Mortal Kombat II. But its impact on gaming is  undeniable. Its impact on my career, weirdly enough, is similarly  undeniable. As someone who has been doing this for about as long as  there's been a Mortal Kombat, it's weird to think that MK has more or  less always been there, continuing to release sequels regardless of  whatever weirdness its parent company has been going through. The larger  story of the franchise is perhaps a topic for another day, but for now  lets take a long look at the arcade game and discuss its impact, both in and out of the home.

(You may need to click through to YouTube to get this to play properly, I swear, getting this uploaded to Patreon and/or YouTube has been a straight-up ordeal today.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79i73YP-PlY