Take a look at this old Mortal Combat commercial

Remember when Mortal Kombat was considered the most violent game in existence? Those were such quaint times. Nowadays, video games are more graphic than ever, with enough gore to make Dahmer blush. Although the Mortal Kombat series might have lost its spot as the pinnacle of violence in the video game realm, it's still a pivotal cornerstone that helped establish the medium's ability to tell any story.

As a kid in the 90s and early 00s, Mortal Kombat still possessed its legendary edge. Catching anything Mortal Kombat related on television- including news segments- felt like getting away with murder. Which, in retrospect, might have actually been my parent's concern. Hell, I even remember having to go to my friend's house to watch a copy of the first movie on VHS. Consequently, commercials like the one linked above acted as my 30-second gateway into the counter culture. The commercial functions similarly today, but the portal instead serves as a bridge to my nostalgia. Too bad Mortal Kombat: Deception ended up being a crappy game.