Mortal Kombat series creator Ed Boon Q&A

20 Most Influential People in Gaming: #19 - Ed Boon

GamePro senior editor Sid Shuman chats with Ed Boon, co-creator of the Mortal Kombat franchise and number #19 on our list of the 20 most influential people in gaming from 1989 to 2009.

Ed Boon

20 Most Influential People in Gaming: #19 - Ed Boon

Ed Boon (left) with Sid Shuman (right)

"The Populist"

Key games: Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat II, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe

Midway Games may be struggling, but Ed Boon is nestled calmly within the eye of the storm. "In the midst of everything going on around us," Boon said in a recent interview with GamePro, "we're still focusing in on our next game... We want to make it the game that we want it to be." For this creator of the ground-breaking Mortal Kombat series, pleasing the masses has always been the central goal. Mortal Kombat never earned as much technical praise as its longtime rival Street Fighter II.

But in many ways, Mortal Kombat was a more essential, and more important, moment in the nascent 90's-era videogame industry. The blood-drenched brawler served as a lightning rod for violence-in-games controversies and signaled a significant shift in game design away from esoteric button-tapping exercises and towards mass-market acceptance.

Game design hallmarks of Ed Boon: Over-the-top action; simple control schemes; mass-market appeal

Sid Shuman: What game made you want to be a part of the video game business?

"For me, there were three pivotal games. The game that made me want to be in the business the most was probably Pac-Man. At the time, as a teenager, I was playing Defender and Missile Command. But with Pac-Man, suddenly girls were playing - I was noticing that videogames were more than a fad, it was becoming a phenomenon. Pac-Man intrigued me because it was so simple and so accessible; you just put your hand on a joystick and that's it. With Missile Commander and Defender, I loved the games and wanted to become a better player. But with Pac-Man... I wanted to study it and learn why it was so big."



What's an up-and-coming game developer to watch? Indie, established, or otherwise.

"When I find out about a new developer, it's usually because they worked with Sony or Microsoft and they're splitting now to form [a new studio]. I don't look at those guys as being new because they've already made some big hit.

To me, the ones who have stood out are the stories of, say, iPhone game developers. Somebody who worked on his own, part-time, and ended up making a million dollars on some puzzle games. These are the guys who, if they take more and more aggressive approaches to game development, I could see them going to the consoles.



20 Most Influential People in Gaming: #19 - Ed Boon
What was the biggest high point of your career?

"I've been lucky enough to have a few of those. One that stands out was when I was in the Acclaim booth at CES. They were preparing to release the first Mortal Kombat to the home consoles. They told me they were planning to spend 10 million on advertising, run the game commercial in theaters - something that was unheard of that time - and they were going to hold an event called "Mortal Monday" and open stores at midnight. I remember thinking, 'these guys are expecting way too much out of this [game launch].'

Then I saw the commercial that they made, the one with the kids standing in New York yelling "Mortal Kombaaat!" The production values behind it...I remember it as a goosebump moment, it had taken on a life of its own. It had gone so far beyond an arcade game made by four guys. That was a big moment for me, seeing something take off like that."



On the flip side, what was a low point in your career?

"We released Mortal Kombat 4 before it was done, in the arcades. There was this road tour going on...the stage was set so far in advance, and dates had been picked and all that. But it was new hardware - this was the first 3D Mortal Kombat we had made - and we had no wiggle room in terms of the date. But I made the decision to adhere to that date, and to adhere to those expectations. I always took our responsibility very highly, but in retrospect, I would have waited. I would have called earlier and said, 'this thing isn't done, we need to hold onto it.' It would've ruffled some feathers, but in the long run we would've won."

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