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    Mortal Kombat II

    Game » consists of 27 releases. Released Jun 25, 1993

    The second installment of one of the most violent fighting game franchises of all time, providing a smoother fighting system while adding new fighters, Fatalities, babalities, friendships, and much more.

    Short summary describing this game.

    Mortal Kombat II last edited by reverendhunt on 05/18/23 05:41AM View full history

    Overview

    Advertisement featuring four of the new playable characters
    Advertisement featuring four of the new playable characters

    Mortal Kombat II is a 2D fighting game developed and released by Midway in 1993 for arcades. Like the previous game, it was ported to numerous fourth-generation consoles (and some fifth-generation ones).

    It is the direct sequel to the original Mortal Kombat, adding new characters and content while revamping the fighting system for a smoother, faster experience. The game introduced multiple Fatalities (gruesome finishing moves) per character, Babalities (finishing moves that humiliates the opponent by turning their character into a baby), and Friendships (finishing moves that trade brutal punishment for a friendly gesture). The game introduces more easter eggs, including a playable version of Pong and the iconic "Toasty!" sound clip. The score system from the original (as well as the Test Your Might! minigame and endurance matches) has been removed in favor of a tally system that tracks the number of consecutive matches won.

    Taking place sometime after the events of the last Mortal Kombat tournament, the story shifts the location to an alternate realm called Outworld, where it's emperor, Shao Kahn, plans to take over Earthrealm by defeating the warriors of Earth in a tournament (with the help of his half-tiger, half-human bodyguard, Kintaro, and the restored Shang Tsung). Other sub-plots involve Liu Kang's plan for revenge for the assault of his Shaolin monastery (with the help of his close friend, Kung Lao), Jax's mission to rescue the captured Sonya and Kano, and the tensions between female ninja assassins Kitana and Mileena.

    Gameplay

    Mortal Kombat II builds upon the original Mortal Kombat's gameplay. The five-button layout (in an "X" formation) returns, with four attack buttons (High Punch, High Kick, Low Punch, and Low Kick) and a dedicated Block button. Some normal attacks have different attributes (for example, roundhouse kicks now launch opponents into the air, whether they are on the ground or not), and crouching punches have been added (in the original game, crouching and pressing either punch causes the character to throw an uppercut).

    Finishing Moves

    Baraka performing a gruesome new Fatality: the Blade Lift.
    Baraka performing a gruesome new Fatality: the Blade Lift.

    One significant addition to Mortal Kombat II is the expansion of each character's arsenal of finishing moves. Each of the twelve playable characters now has two Fatalities (glorified execution moves) instead of one (with the exception of Shang Tsung, who has three). Three stages have special Stage Fatalities: The Dead Pool, The Kombat Tomb, and The Pit II. Unlike the original Mortal Kombat (where the Stage Fatality is done with a simple uppercut), Stage Fatalities must be performed with a unique button combination. The button combination for both The Kombat Tomb and The Pit II are unique for each character, with the button combination for The Dead Pool being universal for all characters.

    Mortal Kombat II introduces two alternate types of finishing moves: Babalities and Friendships. Babalities humiliate the opponent by turning their character into a baby, while Friendships makes the character show a friendly gesture (from autographing a picture to giving a gift). Both can only be performed if the winning player does not press any of the punch buttons during the winning round.

    Characters

    No Caption Provided

    The game includes twelve playable characters, two unplayable bosses, and three unplayable secret characters. All of the previous cast returns except Goro, Kano, and Sonya (though Kano and Sonya are seen as chained prisoners in Shao Kahn's Arena). Most of the cast have received new appearances, special moves, and Fatalities. This is the first game where Reptile and Shang Tsung are playable.

    After choosing a character, the player progresses through the game by defeating all twelve playable characters (with Shang Tsung always being the last opponent), and then battle the two new bosses: Kintaro and Shao Kahn. Unlike the previous game, there are no "endurance matches" or special mini-games.

    The new playable characters include Kung Lao (a Shaolin Monk and friend of Liu Kang), Jax (a U.S. Special Forces major who is sent to rescue Sonya), the Tarkatan creature Baraka, and the female ninjas Kitana and Mileena. The two boss characters include Shao Kahn (the evil emperor of Outworld) and his bodyguard, Kintaro. Much like the original Mortal Kombat, the game includes three secret opponents that are palette swaps of either the male or female ninjas: Jade (who can only be fought by winning a round using only the Low Kick button in the match before the "?" symbol), Smoke (who can only be fought by waiting for the "Toasty!" indicator on The Portal stage and pressing down on the joystick and the Start button), and Noob Saibot (who can only be fought by winning 50 rounds in a row).

    Liu Kang

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Ho Sung Pak
    Fatality 1: Liu Kang morphs into a screen-high dragon before biting down on his opponent, leaving behind only a standing pair of legs.
    Fatality 2: Liu Kang revisits his non-lethal fatality from the original Mortal Kombat, executing a butterfly-kick into the opponent before uppercutting him or her into the air.

    Kung Lao

    No Caption Provided
    (not available in the Game Boy, Game Gear, and Sega Master System versions)
    Actor: Anthony Marquez
    Fatality 1: Using a downward slash, Kung Lao bisects the victim with the brim of his hat. The victim falls to his or her knees before splitting apart down the center in two opposing directions.
    Fatality 2: Kung Lao throws his hat from a distance with a slight upward arc, catching the victim just under the neck and decapitating him or her.

    Johnny Cage

    No Caption Provided
    (not available in the Game Boy, Game Gear, and Sega Master System versions)
    Actor: Daniel Pesina
    Fatality 1: Cage rips the torso off of his victim and tosses it away, leaving only a pair of standing legs.
    Fatality 2: Cage revisits his fatality from the original game, using an uppercut to decapitate his victim. A special button combination can be executed during the fatality to guarantee that two more heads are punched off (out of thin air, natch).

    Reptile

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Daniel Pesina
    Fatality 1: Reptile removes his mask, revealing his true reptilian face. He then opens wide, snaring the opponent's head with his long tongue, rips it clean off, and eats it.
    Fatality 2: While invisible, Reptile pops his victim's torso up into the air and away from the legs.

    Sub-Zero

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Daniel Pesina
    Fatality 1: Sub-Zero freezes his victim in showers of ice. He then executes a powerful uppercut which causes his victim to explode in a shower of guts, legs and arms. Note: This requires two separate inputs: one for the ice shower, and one for the uppercut. The ice shower can be executed and followed up by any other move, including Sub-Zero's other fatality, if so desired.
    Fatality 2: Sub-Zero generates an "ice grenade" in his hands, hurls it towards his victim, and waits as the grenade blows his victim's torso into pieces--leaving nothing but a pair of standing legs.

    Shang Tsung

    No Caption Provided
    (sub-boss)
    Actor: Philip Ahn M.D.
    Fatality 1: Shang Tsung enters his victim's body via the ear canal. Shortly thereafter, he "bursts out" of his victim, causing the body to explode.
    Fatality 2: Shang Tsung lifts his victim into the air with one hand, sucking out the victim's soul into the other hand. What remains of the victim is a shriveled, desiccated body.
    Hidden Fatality: Shang Tsung morphs into Kintaro and, with one powerful punch, knocks his victim's torso clean off of his/her legs.

    Kitana

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Katalin Zamiar
    Fatality 1: Kitana whips out her razor-sharp fan and decapitates her victim.
    Fatality 2: Kitana plants a lovely kiss on her victim which in fact causes the victim's body to expand to the point of explosion.

    Jax

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: John Parrish
    Fatality 1: Jax claps both of his hands on the victim's head, causing it to shatter into pieces.
    Fatality 2: Jax grabs ahold of both of his victim's arms and rips them off with one yank. The victim then stands in shock as showers of blood gush through his/her arm sockets. The victim doesn't immediately die (of blood loss).

    Mileena

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Katalin Zamiar
    Fatality 1: Mileena pulls out both of her sai and, in rapid-fire style, repeatedly stabs her victim in the torso, leaving behind a massive spray of blood.
    Fatality 2: Mileena removes her mask, revealing Tarkatan teeth. She then inhales her victim, then turns around and spits out a plethora of shiny bones.

    Baraka

    No Caption Provided
    (not available in the Game Boy, Game Gear, and Sega Master System versions)
    Actor: Richard Divizio
    Fatality 1: Baraka decapitates his victim with one swipe of his arm blades.
    Fatality 2: Baraka unleashes both of his arm blades and impales his victim through the chest. As the victim struggles and slowly dies, his/her body slides down the blades before stopping and hanging in the air.

    Scorpion

    No Caption Provided
    Actor: Daniel Pesina
    Fatality 1: Reprising his original Fatality, Scorpion removes his mask, revealing only a ghastly skull. He then breaths a ball of fire at his victim, who then bursts into flame--flesh burning away instantly--before exploding into a shower of flaming bones.
    Fatality 2: Scorpion takes the blade of his spear and slashes open his victim's jugular. As a long river of blood spurts through the neck, Scorpion then follows it up by slicing and separating his victim's torso from the legs.

    Raiden

    No Caption Provided
    (known as Rayden in some home versions, not available in the Game Boy, Game Gear, and Sega Master System versions)
    Actor: Carlos Pesina
    Fatality 1: Raiden unleashes a powerful uppercut which shatters his victim's body into pieces.
    Fatality 2: Raiden grabs ahold of and shocks his victim until the body explodes.

    Kintaro

    (sub-boss, unplayable)

    Shao Kahn

    (boss, unplayable)


    Actor: Brian Glynn

    Jade

    (secret opponent, unplayable)


    Actor: Katalin Zamiar

    Smoke

    (secret opponent, unplayable)


    Actor: Daniel Pesina

    Noob Saibot

    (secret opponent, unplayable, not available in the Game Boy, Game Gear, and Sega Master System versions)


    Actor: Daniel Pesina

    Arenas

    There are nine playable stages, which are built into a simple, looping rotation. However, Shao Kahn's Arena is always the stage in Kintaro and Shao Kahn matches. The stages that include special Stage Fatalities are The Dead Pool (where the player uppercuts the opponent into acid), The Kombat Tomb (where the player uppercuts the opponent into previously hidden ceiling spikes), and The Pit II (where the player uppercuts the opponent off the side of the bridge and into the rocky ground below).

    Versions and Ports

    The original release of Mortal Kombat II on the Midway T-Unit arcade board went through four released revisions (1.1, 1.4, 2.1, and 3.1). While revisions 1.1 and 1.4 were available to the public, they were considered unfinished, missing some Fatalities, some special moves, all endings, all Friendships, all Babalities, all secret opponents, and all Stage Fatalities. Revision 3.1 is the final version, featuring all Fatalities, special moves, endings, Friendships, Babalities, secret opponents, Stage Fatalities, and bugfixes. The arcade release was considered a smash hit, with special guards on the arcade machines to protect the arcade board from being stolen.

    Almost a year later, the game was ported to various consoles. Home versions hit the market on “Mortal Friday” September 10, 1993 for the Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, Nintendo Game Boy, and Sega Game Gear. The SNES version of the original Mortal Kombat was criticized for its lack of blood, so blood was included in the SNES version of MKII. It was featured in the launch library for the Sega 32X when it launched in November 1994. Versions for the PC and Amiga were released in late-1994 as well. Rare versions of the game were released for the Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn in 1996. The PlayStation version was released only in Japan, and featured excessive loading times. For example, if Shang Tsung morphed into another character, the game would pause mid-match to load this new character, then pause for each consecutive move that required new animations or sound to load in.

    The original arcade release was later included in Midway Arcade Treasures 2 for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox, Midway Arcade Treasures Deluxe Edition for the PC, Midway Arcade Treasures: Extended Play for the PlayStation Portable, and Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection for the Xbox 360 (via Xbox Live Arcade), PlayStation 3 (via PlayStation Network), and PC (via Steam). The game was also included as an unlockable in Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox.

    On April 12, 2007, the game was released on the PlayStation 3 as a downloadable title on the PlayStation Network for $4.99, featuring online play.

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