We’re lucky that the latest Mortal Kombat games have turned out to be so excellent. There was a stretch during the 90s when the series wasn’t as good—and it’s hilarious to look back on all of it now.
In the last month, a particular Mortal Kombat clip has been floating around on the internet. In it, you can see one of the endings available in Mortal Kombat 4—and boy, is it terrible:
[Source: MkMaster13]
The cringe-worthy dialogue delivered in the most stilted way possible, the constantly-repeating animations, the terrible twist, the corny as hell line about fatalities, and the awful graphics: all of this combines in a really hilarious way. Thing is, this isn’t an isolated incident. Most of the endings in Mortal Kombat 4 are this bad, if not worse. Let’s take a look, shall we? Note that most of these will be for the N64 version of the game, but a few will be from the PlayStation version.
Scorpion’s Ending
[Source: MkMaster13]
Ah, yes. The eternal rivalry between Sub-Zero and Scorpion. Should make for a good storyline, right? Well...not so much, apparently!
What I like best about this ending is all the gesticulation. Scorpion points VERY INTENSELY as he tells Sub-Zero about his revenge:
He must really mean what he’s saying, huh?
You gotta love this close-up, too:
Sub-Zero’s ending
[Source: MkMaster13]
This ending is the inverse of the Scorpion ending: instead of having Sub-Zero on the ground while Scorpion points dramatically, Scorpion is on the ground and Sub-Zero points angrily:
I actually love the twist in this scene, but only because having Quan Chi come out of nowhere and punch Sub-Zero in the back of the head is pretty funny.
But the best part about this scene is that it ends in a bizarre whisper from Sub-Zero. ARRIGHT.
Reptile’s Ending
[Source: MkMaster13]
Many of the endings in this game clearly have a formula: two people argue about something, and then a third party appears out of nowhere to fuck shit up. In this case, it’s Shinnok stopping Reptile from elongating every word with an S in it.
This part is definitely the clincher:
Quan Chi’s Ending
[Source: MkMaster13]
Okay, the dialogue here is actually great. The nerve, giving someone a prize that’s just “yeah, you can continue to exist!”
Quan Chi’s face after hearing Shinnok say that is the best:
Really, all of his expressions are killer:
Jarek’s Ending
A variation of the Jax ending, this 14-second clip ends with Jarek’s weird laugh.
Raiden’s Ending
[Source: Jorban123]
Raiden gets to ascend into heaven, where the great gray man in the sky bestows him with elder godhood. Seems legit.
I think a large part of what makes some of these clips good is that the N64 can barely handle the graphics:
Amazingly, this one ALSO ends with arright. According to TV Tropes, this arright thing only happens in the N64 and arcade versions of the game—not on PlayStation. Curious!
Tanya’s Ending
[Source: Jorban123]
I love how Shinnok just sort of floats in the background—it almost looks like he’s struggling to maintain his balance:
Liu Kang’s Ending
[Source: Jorban123]
Potentially the most awkward ending of them all, here’s an emotional moment that falls flat almost immediately.
What gets me the most about all of these endings is that I distinctly remember playing through the game as a kid and thinking nothing of them. This was just how how the game was; if anything, I thought it was all serious and dramatic back then. How things change!