Five hundred years ago, an ancient and respected Shaolin fighting tournament was corrupted by an evil sorcerer named Shang Tsung . Shang was accompanied by Prince Goro, a warrior of the Shokan race. Knowing that if ten tournaments in a row were won by the Outworld champion, the Earth Realm would be conquered by evil and fall into darkness, Shang entered Goro in the tournament and had him defeat the great Kung Lao. Goro has been reigning supreme as the undefeated fighting champion for five hundred years now. As the last tournament required draws near, Raiden, Thunder God and protector of the Earth Realm, enacts a plan to tip the scales in the humans' favor, Seven fighters step into the arena on Shang Tsung's mysterious island: Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, Kano, Johnny Cage, Sub-Zero, Scorpion, and Raiden himself.
Mortal Kombat is a side-scrolling fighting game. Fighting is set as one-on-one combat, allowing each player to perform a variety of punches, kicks, and special moves in order to defeat their opponent. When the opponent faces their second round loss, the winner can perform a finishing move called a "Fatality" on the loser. The Fatality is a move unique to each fighter that graphically kills the loser in a blood-soaked finale.
Mortal Kombat began its life as a 2-player arcade title. It is notable for its use of digitized actors to represent the game's fighters, as well as its use of copious amounts of blood during gameplay.