digitized graphics get no respect whatsoever. it's hilarious. they're the graphics upon which this entire franchise is built; they're the reason that mk9 can even have a "back to basics come to jesus moment" and yet, they get no love. mk2 and umk3 still hold up to this day, while mk4-all the 3d mk games look dated. 3d computer graphics do not hold up, because there's always an upgrade that's inevitable. it's like how every generation falls in love with old hand drawn 2d animation disney movies, and the old star wars movies, and all the older 3d animation and star wars prequels look terrible now.
mk1-umk3 were crafted by actual artists and sculptors and it shows. it's the same way that the old star wars movies have life, because there's puppets, handcrafted models and everything is "REAL" in a made-up universe; and the new movies are all sterile, lifeless cgi created environments and creatures. sadly, i feel like mk uses 3d graphics just so they can have those elaborate cutscenes. it's like how yoda turned cgi just so he could have an elaborate fight. like we all needed that.
there really is a charm to the original mk trilogy, and for the old fans, at least for me, that charm has grown because it's been 20 years, and no game has ever looked like--or played like-- those games. it's just a record of those cool 5 years where mk was still mk. just think about that.
1991-1996. the mortal kombat franchise is 20 years old, and the only games that are even respected cover a tiny 5 year span. that means that midway wasted 15 years making worthless games. by contrast, capcom spent 20 years making sf2, sf2 c.e., hyper turbo, super, super turbo, alpha, alpha 2, alpha 3, sf3, third strike, cap vs snk, cap vs snk2, mvc, xmen vs sf, mvc2, mvc3, sf4, ssf4, and they're bringing back third strike. LOL. imagine if ed and co. had given us even 2 more digitized mk games before they went 3d. what would mk be like today? it's just a shame. we never even got mk alpha.
and no, mk trilogy does not count. lol.