I’ve gone on record multiple times that Mortal Kombat is my favorite video game series of all time. So it shouldn’t come as a shock that I am writing about it again.
Anyways, the music in Mortal Kombat has been a staple of my playlists ever since I can remember. Whether that was playing it on YouTube or more recently downloading them on Spotify. Recently I decided to listen to the soundtrack for each game and decide which one is the best. For the sake of time I am only ranking based on the music in the character select screen. And of course I’m a retro game guy so I will only be ranking MK1-MK9.
* I’m not including MK vs DC because I don’t consider it a full fledged MK game*
8) Mortal Kombat (2011)
MK9 was the weakest of the music for me. It’s just kind of there. I feel like this was the downfall of the music for the series. This signaled the end of the focus on quality and unique music and a shift toward focusing on the visuals. Which with the new hardware they had to play with I can’t fault them for choosing that path.
7) Mortal Kombat 1
The music here isn’t bad. In fact it’s a great start for the franchise. But looking back in retrospect the more Mortal Kombat games that came out the more this one seemed to get lapped in the music department.
6) Mortal Kombat 4/Mortal Kombat Gold
I feel like this theme was trying to be a combination of MK2 & MK3. Trying to convey the fear the player should be feeling at the hands of the fallen Elder God Shinnok, while also keeping the traditional martial arts aspect. It plays very well here and was a nice swan song for the arcade era of Mortal Kombat.
5) Mortal Kombat Armageddon
Mortal Kombat Armageddon. This select screen music was very simple and I actually like that approach. With over 60 fighters on the screen, anything more than the music here could’ve been seen as “too busy”.
4) Mortal Kombat Deception
I love the industrial sound Mortal Kombat Deception gave us with this select screen music. This music let you know that you were in for a ride as you worked your way towards fighting the Dragon King Onaga. The grittiness of the music was a warning for players that this game took everything you missed out on in the last game and cranked it up to 11. 2 fatalities per player, death traps, and hara-kiri’s.
3) Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance
This theme is the best in the 3D era. While the gameplay left a little to be desired the music here knocked it out of the park. The music captures the tone perfectly. Quan-Chi and Shang Tsung have killed former boss Shao Kahn & 3 time tournament champion Liu Kang and their deadly alliance seems unstoppable. The music here is telling the player “choose your fighter but we warn you it’s not going to be easy.”
2) Mortal Kombat II
This song built upon the groundwork that MK1 laid and made everything better. This theme retains the martial arts tone from the first game but makes it better in my opinion. The music back in the arcade day had to have the “wow factor” to catch people’s eyes and ears, and eventually their quarters, and this music did just that.
1) Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3/Mortal Kombat Trilogy
These two songs are what I think of Mortal Kombat. With these games taking place during the invasion of Earthrealm by Shao Kahn and Outworld. There is a sense of impending doom and this music (more specifically the slowed down version in MK Trilogy) captures this mood perfectly. It makes you feel like you’re choosing a character to send to the slaughter rather than enter a martial arts tournament. I was also a sucker for the music from UMK3 & MKT because I preferred the more modern take on the music.