Mortal Kombat II on SNES is where the series really hit its stride—way smoother than the first one, and the blood (or sweat, if you're playing the censored version) actually looks decent this time. You've got new faces like Baraka and Kitana joining the roster, and the fatalities? Oh man, they're gloriously over-the-top. Scorpion's "Toasty!" move still cracks me up every time.

The controls feel tighter, combos actually flow together, and the AI doesn't just spam cheap moves like in the arcade version. That said, good luck beating Shao Kahn without throwing your controller. This is the port where you could finally pull off those ridiculous uppercut juggles without the game slowing to a crawl. Still holds up if you're into pixelated brutality.