Mortal Kombat 4

***Mortal Kombat 4*** (***MK4***) is the fourth main installment in the *Mortal Kombat* series of fighting games developed by Midway Games. Released to arcades in 1997, *Mortal Kombat 4* is the first title from the series, and one of the first made by Midway overall, to use 3D computer graphics. It is also the last game of the series to have an arcade release. Eurocom (who had previously developed the Sega Saturn version of *Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3*) later ported it to the PlayStation, Nintendo 64, PC, and Game Boy Color during 1998. An updated version titled *Mortal Kombat Gold* was released exclusively for the Dreamcast the following year.

The gameplay system of *Mortal Kombat 4* is similar to that of the previous games; one of the most notable additions is the use of weapons and objects during fights. The storyline chronicles the attack from the corrupted Elder God Shinnok against his former comrades who trapped him in the Netherealm many years prior to the beginning of the series. The other 17 playable characters take part in the battle between good and evil, with the forces of light trying to stop Shinnok and the forces of darkness from conquering all the realms.

While developing the game, the Midway staff had problems making the graphics as it was one of the first 3D fighting games they developed. Co-creator Ed Boon commented that the staff wanted to make *Mortal Kombat 4* more violent than its predecessors, removing the comical finishing moves featured in them. Since its release, the game received generally positive response from critics, with the exception of the Game Boy Color port.

## Development

*Mortal Kombat 4* saw a handful of revisions in its arcade lifetime.

The first incarnation of the game was toured around America to hype the game's official release. The game was noticeably incomplete, featuring many bugs and a relatively small selection of playable characters. The selectable characters were comprised of Shinnok, Fujin, Scorpion, Raiden, Sonya, Liu Kang, Sub-Zero (masked but missing his scar), Quan Chi and Noob Saibot, along with 6 "?" character slots. Each character had a weapon and two Fatalities.

The first version of the game to officially enter arcades was Revision 2. In this version, Noob Saibot was completely removed, but Kai, Reptile, Jarek and Tanya were added to the selectable characters while retaining 3 "?" character slots. This version was later modified (though still referred to as Revision 2), bringing back Johnny Cage and Jax while introducing Reiko, as well as editing Sub-Zero's appearance to include his scar and changing his 2p outfit to a look resembling his *MK3* appearance. Several characters receive new weapons, such as Sub-Zero's Ice Scepter.

The final version of *MK4* to appear in arcades was Revision 3. Revision 3 added a new second Fatality for every character, further fixed existing bugs left over in Revision 2, changed more character weapons and added the secret character Meat as an alternate skin to the selectable characters. This version also introduced several new costumes for the existing playable characters.

## Plot

Thousands of years before the setting of the first game, Shinnok, one of the Elder Gods who control the six realms in the *Mortal Kombat* universe, attempted to become the conqueror of them all. Thunder god Raiden fought and defeated Shinnok in a war that spanned hundreds of years, sending him to the Netherrealm, where he would be trapped forever. Now, Shinnok has managed to escape from the Netherealm with help from the sorcerer Quan Chi, and seeks vengeance against the Elder Gods who banished him. In his plan, he first conquers the realm of Edenia, with the aid of a traitor, Tanya, while he prepares to attack the Elder Gods. In order to stop Shinnok's menace, Raiden requests help from the Earthrealm warriors who saved the realms from Emperor Shao Kahn in previous titles.

## Gameplay

*Mortal Kombat 4* is played in a similar way to the previous titles from the series with some changes. *MK4* introduces a limited weapon system, allowing each character to take out a special weapon using a set button combination. Once equipped, the weapons are primarily used through the punch buttons. This includes swinging, clubbing or even tossing the weapons. The weapons can also be purposely dropped, in similar fashion to the arena objects such as severed heads and rocks; if an opponent's weapon is dropped, the other character is able to pick it up and use it.

*MK4* added a "Maximum Damage" cap to the game's combo system, automatically breaking combos if they deal over a set amount of damage to a player and, thus, preventing infinite combos (although this cap can be removed with a code). Unlike *Mortal Kombat Trilogy* which contained multiple finishing moves of various kinds, *Mortal Kombat 4* only has two Fatalities per character and two Stage Fatalities that can only be done in certain arenas and involve the character throwing the opponent to part of the arena where he or she dies. Unlike the first three games, this game does not include unplayable boss characters except Goro from the home versions.

## Kombatants

* **Fujin**
* Goro
* **Jarek**
* Jax Briggs
* Johnny Cage
* **Kai**
* Liu Kang
* Lord Raiden
* **Meat**
* Noob Saibot
* **Quan Chi**
* **Reiko**
* Reptile
* Scorpion
* **Shinnok**
* Sonya Blade
* Sub-Zero
* **Tanya**

## Arenas

* Elder Gods' Arena
* Goro's Lair - When an opponent is defeated on this stage, he/she can be uppercutted into the spikes on the ceiling. In the Home Version of the game, Goro is fought here.
* Ice Pit
* Living Forest
* Reptile's Lair
* Shaolin Temple
* The Prison - When an opponent is defeated on this stage, he can be tossed into the large metal fan, which proceeded to chop them into bits.
* The Tomb
* Fire Well
* Wind World