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After a gazillion versions of Mortal Kombat games, it's got us thinking: is Mortal Kombat the greatest fighting game of all time?

We can't answer that, but you – our dear readers – can. Tell us what you think the greatest fighting game series of all time is by voting in our poll!

Here's some more info on each of the contenders.

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Tekken

The first Tekken was released in 1994, although it wasn't until Tekken 2 that the King of the Iron Fist Tournament captured the public's affection.

Tekken was, for many the people, the first 3D fighting game they ever played and it remains one of the best. The zenith was arguably Tekken 3, which is the 2nd highest selling fighting game of all time (although it did introduce us to button-basher's favourite Eddie Gordo). In total, the series has sold 44 million games.

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Street Fighter

First released in 1987, no game has had quite the same cultural impact as Street Fighter. Even if you've never played the game, you'll no doubt be familiar with Ryu, Ken and the Hadouken. Or, if you're really unlucky, you might even have seen the terrible film starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Kylie Minogue.

Street Fighter II is our personal favourite, although given that there's about a million versions of it, we couldn't tell you which one we played when we were younger!

With over 35 million units sold, the series is still going strong – the next game is due out in 2016.

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Mortal Kombat

Mortal Kombat is best-known for one thing: fatalities. These ultra-violent finishing moves saw players kill each other in a number of ridiculously gruesome ways; in fact, they were so gruesome that the game was partially responsible for the creation of ESRB ratings!

That didn't stop Mortal Kombat becoming one of the biggest games franchises on the planet, with over 30 million copies sold to date. With its combination of pioneering graphics and memorable characters (Scorpion and Sub-Zero being the pick of the bunch), Mortal Kombat is one of the best fighting games ever. But is it the best?

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Super Smash Bros

Super Smash Bros pits Nintendo's finest characters against each other in combat, which automatically makes it a brilliant game: where else can you see Link from Zelda kick seven bells out of poor lovable Kirby?

Fortunately, the combat more than matches up to the concept. While it doesn't boast Street Fighter levels of complexity, the anarchic arena battles are arguably much more fun.

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Soul Calibur

Fists are for wimps; real men (and women) fight with oversized swords. The Soul Calibur series swaps fists for weapons, making it one of the more interesting games in the genre. There's nothing quite as satisfying as having an epic sword duel and winning with a single hit of life left.

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Dead or Alive

Released in 1996, Dead or Alive is renowned for its focus on…erm, 'certain aspects' of its female characters.

Beyond the obvious attempt to appeal to teenage boys, though, there lies quite a complex fighting game with a strong focus on counters. Honest.

Oh, and there was also a volleyball spin-off released a few years ago. A rare treat for video gaming's volleyball enthusiasts, obviously…

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Virtua Fighter

Virtua Fighter was the first 3D fighting game ever, and has been recognised by the Smithsonian Institute for it's contribution to field of arts and entertainment.

However, Virtua Fighter has never been able to hit the heights of its competitors due to the fact most of the games were released on the Saturn and Dreamcast – two excellent consoles that ultimately flopped. It's a shame really, because Virtua Fighter is a complex-yet-rewarding fighter that more than holds it own against the genre's biggest games.

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So, what is your favourite fighting game? Cast your vote now!

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