35. "Mortal Kombat" (franchise)
Original release date: September 13, 1993
Platform: Nintendo 64, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One
"Mortal Kombat" started as an arcade game, but its reputation of bloody violence — especially those brutal finishing moves called “Fatalities” — spawned countless sequels and spin-offs set in the fantasy-horror-fighting genre. The colorful characters, like Johnny Cage and Scorpion, were also carried over into two movie adaptations in the mid-90s, “Mortal Kombat” and “Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.” Fun fact: The Fatalities in “Mortal Kombat” were a big reason for the creation of the ESRB video game rating system, which assigns age and content ratings to video games.