Now nearly three decades old, theMortal Kombatfranchise has naturally spawned a plethora of spin-off content. It has seen movie adaptations, cartoons, toys, and spin-off games. The movies and cartoons are fairly well known, especially the most recent move adaptation and theMortal Kombat Legendsanimated movie that has a sequel on the way soon. Some of the spin-off games are a bit lesser-known but some of them have some interesting impact on the overall lore ofMortal Kombat.
Now thatMortal Kombat 11has officially ended its run of DLC, some fans are looking back to the series' past for new games to check out to further flesh out their knowledge ofMortal Kombat’s brutal in-game history. While there are a few entries to chew on, their place in the overall story has been thrown into flux sinceMortal Kombatrebooted its storyline with time travel back in 2011 duringMK9. Three major entries define the history ofMKspin-off games:Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero,Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, andMortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks.
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Sub-Zero Kicked Off Mortal Kombat Spin-Off Games
Mortal Kombatwas a cultural explosion when it released in the early 90s. The game blended some elements of the fighting genre already in place fromStreet Fighterwith its signature digitized art style and over-the-top violence. This trend towards bloodshed continues today withMortal Kombat Legends. Part infamy and part critical success, the series was fueled further into the decade and culminated in the success ofMortal Kombat 3. Naturally, the series' success led to its creators desiring to expand on both the games' popularity and its story. This led to the creation ofMortal Kombat Mythologies:Sub-Zero.
Sub-Zerowas one of the series' immediately popular characters alongside his counterpart Scorpion. Fleshing out his story and creating a unique blend ofMortal Kombat’s mechanics, such as those of classic beat em' ups and adventure games likeFinal FightandCastlevania,was an intriguing concept to many fans. Sub-Zero was already massively popular, so focusing an adventure game around the Lin Kuei made sense. The game received mixed reviews at the time but is notable for its implementation of 3D graphics and introducing the majorMortal Kombatvillain Shinnok alongside Fujin, the Wind God. Shinnok would go on to serve as a primary villain forMKXand his influence on the overall story has been huge.
FollowingMK MythologieswasMortal Kombat: Special Forces,debuting on the original PlayStation back in 2000.Special Forceswasn’t well-received due to some development issues where a large chunk of the original team left Midway before the game was completed. Notably, though, it is the first game in the chronological order of theMortal Kombatmythos. The game centered on Jax and the struggle with Kano’s Black Dragon gang prior to the events of the first game. Unfortunately, the series' popularity waned sincethe 1995Mortal Kombatmovieand the mixed reaction to the fourth entry in the mainline series.
The final true spin-off game wasMortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks. This PS2/Xbox game had released late in 2005 after the fairly well-receivedDeadly AllianceandDeception. Of all the spin-off games to come fromMortal Kombat,Shaolin Monkswas considered the most fun by many players. The game allowed for co-op play where players controlled Liu Kang and Kung Lao through the events ofMK2and the original game’s immediate aftermath. The game’s adaptation of combat and fatalities led to its critical and commercial success and has many fans hoping foraShaolin Monksremaster.
TheMortal Kombatfranchise is long and storied, and its spin-offs have done a lot to expand on those narratives. While not every game holds its own today, most are still worth exploring now for diehardMortal Kombatfans.
