Mortal Kombat II: 32X vs SNES

[Barone]

I saw this video today and, while very short, it brings up some details missing in the SNES version which usually no comparison talks about.
The idle animation one is something I've been talking about for years but haven't seen a direct comparison like that before.

[ComradeOj]

I thought it was a pretty good comparison video. I really like how they did super close up side-by-sides.

I would love them to do more games like Toy Story, Street Fighter II, and even some 5th gen games. I know Saturn and PS1 shared a decent amount of 2D games.

[goldenband]

Never noticed the sprite breakup on the uppercut before! Very interesting.

That said, I still prefer the SNES version. I wish I didn't, as I was really looking forward to the 32X version, but I'm more affected by the missing sounds and the gameplay discrepancies* than the graphical upgrade vs. the SNES.

*There's been a lot of back-and-forth about this, but all I can say is that in the 1990s, moving back and forth between the SNES version and the arcade game felt very natural to me, whereas the 32X version feels all wrong -- at least with Jax, and especially with his aerial combos. Perhaps the SNES and 32X are just synced to different revisions of the arcade ROM, and I prefer the earlier one.

[cleeg]

It's such a shame the 32X version is a bit half arsed. They really should have redone all the backgrounds as well as the sprites. Lazy.

[OverDrone]

It's such a shame the 32X version is a bit half arsed. They really should have redone all the backgrounds as well as the sprites. Lazy.

And the music. Good old Probe.

[MrTechnoSqueek]

I actually really like the genesis/32X music for MK2 it is very dark and creepy type sounding

[OverDrone]

The Genesis music is pretty good, but nowhere near as dark as the original arcade compositions. The bass from the cabinet is awesome, the Genesis version sounds twangy and softcore in comparison IMO.

The SNES port captures the arcade soundtrack better, but on the flip side of the coin it's kind of let down by the in-game voice FX, which are pitched way too high.

[cleeg]

I agree about the music, I think it's as good as the original in its own right and was a good move to remake it like this to suit the MD's sound system. But there is no excuse apart from laziness (Good old Probe as mentioned) for not making it more close to the arcade's soundtrack. They really should have made the backgrounds better too.

[goldenband]

The SNES port captures the arcade soundtrack better, but on the flip side of the coin it's kind of let down by the in-game voice FX, which are pitched way too high.

But at least it's got Liu Kang's "You're-the-only-one-with-Mummy-on-the-site" (among other transcriptions). The absence of that from the 32X version -- instead he just says "Wassupwassupwassup" -- is downright tragic. Tragic, I tell you.

[zetastrike]

Wow, that was really cool. I wish I could give you rep. Is it just me, or does Liu Kang's fireball look transparent on the 32X?

[OverDrone]

^Yeah, I noticed that too. Can't say I noticed when I had the game BITD.

But at least it's got Liu Kang's "You're-the-only-one-with-Mummy-on-the-site" (among other transcriptions). The absence of that from the 32X version -- instead he just says "Wassupwassupwassup" -- is downright tragic. Tragic, I tell you.

Too true. Just another one of Probe's bullshit mistakes. Now typically I don't like to rail on a dev's work from the past because I understand the adversities (unrealistic deadlines etc) they had to work through. I prefer to focus on the positive aspects instead.

But the way the MK games were handled just infuriates me. More so the fact they kept repeating the same mistakes, and even when given more suitable hardware they still couldn't get it right (Saturn MK II). The Mega CD version of MK1 plays the music on the wrong stages, I mean if that doesn't scream laziness I don't know what does.

[doomguy]

It's a bit half arsed but i would still take it over the Saturn and Ps1 version, the advantages just aren't worth the load times

[cleeg]

Interestingly the Sega controller in the video is a wireless Saturn pad.

[The Coop]

I actually really like the genesis/32X music for MK2 it is very dark and creepy type sounding

Sounded more like club music to me, rather than dark and foreboding music.

[saturndual32]

Wow, that was really cool. I wish I could give you rep. Is it just me, or does Liu Kang's fireball look transparent on the 32X?

Yeah i wonder how they did that fireball transparency effect.