Was the last game in the series to be released at the arcade.
First game in which the character Quan Chi is playable. He previously appeared in the cartoon Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (1995) and the adventure game Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero (1997).
Noob Saibot was going to be added to the roster but was eventually turned into a secret character. This can be seen in an issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly magazine which features early developmental work for the game.
Although this was the first "traditional" MK game to feature Shinnok, he actually appeared prior to this in the adventure game, Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero (1997).
The first Mortal Kombat game to be in full 3D, ditching the digitized realistic characters and sprites from the previous series.