Mortal Kombat: The Goro Myth That Ended Up Coming True
The Mortal Kombat franchise is rife with secrets and odd quirks, which helps keep rumors going and players wondering. This is especially true for the ever evolving roster of "Kombatants". While some character additions ended up being a hoax, one of the first rumors in the franchise's history ended up finding some legs — or perhaps some arms.
Before the first Mortal Kombat movie was uppercutting box office records, Goro was eating quarters in arcades as a sub-boss in the original Mortal Kombat.
While Goro became an instant fan favorite when the first Mortal Kombat hit arcades in 1992, his original character mockup had a different name and half as many arms. He definitely stood out amongst the roster, which helped increase that fan base. Goro ultimately ended up as a non playable character, but rumors spread that there was a way to play as the Shokan warrior.
Eventually, this long desired myth became reality — but not in the way many had hoped.
Goro on the go
Mortal Kombat was ported to numerous home consoles in 1993, including the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis. However, this would not be the stage for the playable debut of Goro. Players were finally able to select Goro, albeit with a cheat code, in the Game Boy version.
Besides the obvious lack of color, the Game Boy version ran significantly slower and suffered from unresponsive controls and the highly pixelated graphics the system was known for. Players would have to wait for Mortal Kombat Trilogy in 1996 to play as Goro in a much better way.
The most recent occurrence of a playable Goro was in 2015's Mortal Kombat X. In Mortal Kombat 11, a deceased Goro appears both in the Krypt and in the "Goro's Lair" stage. He is also brought up by several characters during MK 11's story mode, with some even claiming he actually is dead in the game's convoluted timeline.
If the Mortal Kombat franchise has taught us anything, it's that anything is possible and myths do come true.