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Mortal Kombat secret arcade menus surface after more than 20 years

Over 20 years later, secrets are still trickling out of the old Mortal Kombat arcade kabinets.

Ozzie Mejia

February 24, 2016 12:35 PM

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It's difficult to fathom that in the age of the internet and social media that anything could stay hidden from the masses for very long. If there's anything to be taken away from the modern age, it's that the masses are often either terrible at keeping secrets or the type to just spoil something "for the lulz." So imagine the insane idea that the original Mortal Kombat arcade cabinets, the ones that have been in existence for over 20 years, have some secrets that are only just now seeing the light of day.

The story is chronicled by the folks at Test Your Might (via Eurogamer) and notes that there was a series of secret menus that were said to be removed from the original games. However, as it turns out, those menus (called the EJB menus) are very much in existence and can be accessed from any MK, MKII, MK3, or Ultimate MK3 arcade cabinet.

By punching in P1 (5), P2 (10), P1 (2), P2 (1), P1 (2), P2 (3), P1 (4) on Mortal Kombat, P1 (5), P2 (10), P1 (2), P2 (8), P1 (2) on Mortal Kombat II, and P1 (5), P2 (10), P1 (3), P2 (1), P1 (2), P2 (2), P1 (3), P2 (4) on Mortal Kombat 3/Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, players can gain access to the EJB menus. These are essentially debug menus that preform diagnostic tests and such, but there are a few fun features, like the Galaga mini-game from Ultimate MK3.

It's a fascinating peek into an unlockable that has surfaced after over 20 years. To get a look at how this is done, YouTube poster YourMKArcadeSource outlines the steps in the video below.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?