For fans who discovered Mortal Kombat in its earliest days, the voice of Steve Ritchie is definitive.

Ritchie's taunts emanated across the arcade floor with the release of Mortal Kombat II. The sequel took players into the purple-hued arenas of Outworld, where Ritchie presided over battle as the voice of Emperor Shao Kahn.

Kahn was physically portrayed in the game's live-action digitized sprites by bodybuilder Brian Glynn, whose impressive physique loomed over other characters. Great Big Story have illuminated the less visible half of the Shao Kahn creation in a short video spotlight. Watch it below:

Ritchie echoed many of the phrases made famous by the first game, but as the ultimate final boss, he also assaulted the confidence of players with a barrage of insults! Like his predecessor, he had praise for the strong during standard fights, but when the first round of the final battle began, players were promised death and failure.

The unique blend of modulated bass and smooth vocal qualities in Ritchie's performance gave Shao Kahn a real sense of character, but that wasn't the only villain he was known for. As the Great Big Story profile highlights; Ritchie's main body of work continues to bellow over the rattle and clang of pinball machines!

Pinball ties with Midway Entertainment date back as early as 1982, when Bally merged with the developer/distributor. Midway absorbed in-house pinball development in 1991 from Wililams, housing some of the arcades most successfull properties under one house!

Several of Mortal Kombat's earliest contributors worked on pinball projects. It was from that downstairs/upstairs divide that Steve Ritchie was recruited, becoming one of the best known voices in the Mortal Kombat legacy!

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