Killer Instinct
Arcade

Killer Instinct

74
Critic Rating
#Fighting

About

Killer Instinct is a fighting game developed by Rare and published by Midway and Nintendo. It was released as an arcade game in the fall of 1994 and, the following year, ported to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and the Game Boy. The game's plot involves an all-powerful corporation organising a fighting tournament. The story was adapted in a limited comic book series published under the short-lived Acclaim Comics imprint. Killer Instinct features several gameplay elements unique to fighting games of the time. Instead of fighting enemies in best-of-three rounds bouts, each player has two life bars. The player that depletes the other player's life bars first wins the match. The game also introduced "auto-doubles", a feature which allows players to press a certain sequence of buttons to make characters automatically perform combos on opponents. Also featured in the game are "combo breakers", special defensive moves that can interrupt combos.

Storyline

Ultratech is a very powerful megacorporation which organises a tournament called Killer Instinct. Along with regular participants, experimental creatures created by Ultratech also fight in the tournament so their strength can be tested. Ultratech also discovers a technology to make bridges between dimensions, and releases a two-headed, one-eyed, satyr monster called Eyedol from this dimensional prison.

Playtime Estimates

Main Story2.4h
Main + Extra27.4h
Completionist333.5h
All Styles14.3h
Confidence: 100%Updated: 10/7/2026

Live Prices & Deals

Current store offers for selected market.

Source: No offers

Multiplayer

Local Max2 players

Languages

LanguageSupport
EnglishInterface
EnglishAudio

Similar Games

Game Info

Release Date10/28/1994
DeveloperRare
PublisherMidway
PlatformsArcade
GenresFighting
IGDB Rating74/100 (112)

Game Modes

Single player
Multiplayer

Themes

Action
Fantasy
Science fiction

Perspectives

Side view

Release Dates

ArcadeOct 28, 1994