Mortal Kombat: EVERY Game Ranked From Worst To Best

For nearly three decades, Mortal Kombat has been one of the most iconic fighting franchises due to its inventive characters, creative gameplay, and... oh, who am I kidding?

It's all about the bone-crunching, skeleton-ripping gore! And with the highly-praised Mortal Kombat 11 turning the violence up to... well... 11, it's never been more popular.

But what made MK11 also stand out was its time-travel-oriented plot, which had the kombatants encountering and fighting younger versions of themselves. When you see how different the characters look and act from the original timeline compared to the current one, it's impossible not to feel nostalgic for the series.

Which is why now feels like the perfect time to look back at the saga as a whole. Were the original games as good as we remember or are we looking at them with rose-tinted glasses? Was Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe as bad as everyone said it was? (The short and only answer is "yes.")

Some of the games are disappointing while others are among the greatest beat-em-ups of all time. But the big question is - which of them is the best of the best?

Okay, how did Midway genuinely think gamers were going to react when they learned Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe contains the most watered-down killings possible? You can't build your entire franchise on over-the-top slaughter and then release a game with violence that is tamer than the original Mortal Kombat.

Now, because of DC Comic's strict policy on how it portrays its characters, you can understand why the game couldn't have images of Sub-Zero ripping out Wonder Woman's spine or the Flash murdering someone. Even though the lack of decapitations and entrails is a let-down, you could forgive the game somewhat if it made up for it in other ways. But it doesn't.

The roster only contains 22 characters, which is nearly one-third the amount of the previous game. The hit boxes are tiny, the combos are imprecise, and the story is half-baked.

The graphics were great for the time and the moves of the DC cast are inventive but that's not enough to save it. In the words of Hans Moleman, "We paid for blood!" Without the gore, Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe doesn't work, making it the weakest main entry in the franchise.