The vast catalog of fighting games contains many titles, but statistically, none are apparently more popular in the United States than theMortal Kombatseries. Specifically, bothMortal Kombat1oand11top the list of popular games–and it looks like one might overtake the other for first place, given time.
Of course, theMortal Kombatfranchise has hadplenty of time to establish itselfand gain a fanbase; the firstMortal Kombatreleased in 1992, about 28 years ago now. So when NPD analyst Mat Piscatella was asked to rank the top-selling head-to-head fighting games per platform, his resultsdiddiffer by platform, but all roads still led toMortal Kombat.
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Firstly, the top three most popular fighting games for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One areallNetherRealm games, though not of the same franchise nor in the same order.Mortal Kombat 10is number oneon both lists, definitively both platforms' most popular fighting game.Mortal Kombat 11then takes second place on the PS4 list followed byInjustice 2in third, whereas the Xbox One results are switched, withInjustice 2pulling ahead. Still, it’s clear that in terms of dollar sales, these three games dominate the genre.
Things are different on the Nintendo Switch, whereMortal Kombatstatistically performed a bit worse, butMortal Kombat 11being number four out of the top five Switch games still isn’t bad.Super Smash Bros. Ultimateoccupies the number one spot there (to nobody’s surprise).
Interestingly, the other two in the PS4 and Xbox One’s lists areDragon Ballgames, meaning the developers behind the industry’s most popular fighting games are all part of two different companies. It’s also possible thatMortal Kombat 11will overtake10for the top spot on each list,given some time to do so, since it was 2019’s top-selling game for quite a while–all the way untilCall of Duty: Modern Warfare’s release. Plus, players are still buzzing over the latest DLC fighter added to the game, the dark queen Sindel, and her wildlypowerful damage-dealing abilities. That’s just the power of theMortal Kombatfranchise, it seems.
Despitea few technical issues withMortal Kombaton release, NetherRealm has a good formula going for the franchise and has done so for that past two title releases. When gamers are craving a good, up close and personal fight, a whole lot of them go toMortal Kombatfor their fun.
The latest (and most popular) twoMortalKombattitles are both available to play on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with11playable on the Switch as well.
