Getting UMK3+ working on MAME

[John Grizzly]

Anyone have any idea the steps required to get UMK3+ working on MAME? I have UMK3 working just fine but I'm dying to try out the patched version someone created. There is also a Plus version of MKII. I have the zip file downloaded but simply throwing it in my ROMs folder doesn't seem to work.

FYI - I'm doing this on my SteamDeck. I have installed a bunch of emulators installed via EmuDeck and I'm wondering if I have to use a different version of MAME for this patched version of UMK3.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Marinjuana]

I know practically nothing about mame, I hope someone who does respond to this but I'll use this thread to shout out UMK3 on fightcade. You can play these old games with online people! It's true, all of it

 

[John Grizzly]

I know practically nothing about mame, I hope someone who does respond to this but I'll use this thread to shout out UMK3 on fightcade. You can play these old games with online people! It's true, all of it

I spent hours last night trying to get it working. It tries to boot up and just crashes. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. If I end up figuring it out, I'll reply here. By the way, I believe there is a tutorial on YouTube showing how to get it to work on FightCade. I just want to try it out on MAME by myself.

 

[nwo]

I spent hours last night trying to get it working. It tries to boot up and just crashes. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. If I end up figuring it out, I'll reply here. By the way, I believe there is a tutorial on YouTube showing how to get it to work on FightCade. I just want to try it out on MAME by myself.

We use MAME++ 0.129 to play online, I'll send you a link.

 

[John Grizzly]

We use MAME++ 0.129 to play online, I'll send you a link.

Thank you so much!

 

[UMK3_TheUndisputedKing]

'UMK3 Plus' does not work on official MAME because it needs to load four additional files (i.e. umk-u114.bin through umk-u117.bin) that the official MAME is not programmed to do. so it's basically not possible to use the official MAME release. I tried to though as after patching the three files and loading UMK3 from terminal/command prompt (as this bypasses the hash check that stops the game from loading when using the typical UI) it gets stuck in a infinite loop during initial load screen. but it's because it's missing the four files (u114-u117) that the official MAME is not programmed to load.

'MK2 Plus' on the other hand does work on official MAME, but you have to start it from command prompt/terminal as this only works because there are no additional files it needs to load (like UMK3 does) and when you run from terminal/command prompt (i.e. 'mame mk2.zip' etc (that zip being modified with MK2+ data)) it bypasses the file hash check that when running through GUI does not and allows the game to start up and work as expected.

but for MK2+/UMK3+ (and other modified MK games), I use HBMAME... https://hbmame.1emulation.com/ ; I am using the newest one there which is currently 0.245.11 (64bit, GUI) from April 7th 2023. this works with many of the MK hack variations, as I got some setup, but some I can't find the files online, but I got enough of them working, which are... UMK3+ BETA 2/UMK3:TE 2.0.042/UMK3 Ultimate Cup Edition (April 30th 2021)/MK2+. but one I can't seem to find is 'Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (UC Edition, 2022-04-06)' as it's named 'umk3uk20220406' where as the one I did manage to get working is 'Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (Ultimate Cup Edition, 2021-04-30)' which is named 'umk3uc20210430'. I had to tweak file naming etc, but got it working. but there don't seem to be any places to download those online (at least nothing fairly easy like the usual stuff is) as I used the 'ips' files to patch original UMK3 v1.2 ROM files etc for the rest of those hacks pretty much.

but with HBMAME the file naming needs to be tweaked a bit vs regular MAME, but you can pretty much tell by the file naming on how to rename things as UMK3 loads 27 files (although the umk3.zip I downloaded had four more files (a total of 31 files) which are not needed for UMK3 v1.2 as you need to tweak the 'l1.2[snip].u54' etc NOT the ones that are 'l1.0' or 'l1.1' ending in u54/u63) on a modern 64bit MAME type of emulator. because even when I tried to load ones in HBMAME it shows a error screen showing what's missing and with that info it's easy enough to figure out how to rename things so it works (as the only confusing part is that it seems many umk3.zip ROM files online contain what I think are also older files for earlier builds that are not needed for v1.2 of UMK3 as this is what might be a little confusing until you learn a bit more).

basically a more modern 64bit MAME will basically require the following files for the stock UMK3 v1.2 to work (as this will be typical naming on downloads you can find online easily enough) (after the "=" is how the file has to be named for HBMAME to work with it)...

463_mk3_ultimate.u64
l1.2_mortal_kombat_3_u54_ultimate.u54 = umk3plus20220307.u54
l1.2_mortal_kombat_3_u63_ultimate.u63 = umk3plus20220307.u63
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u122_game_rom.u122
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u123_game_rom.u123
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u124_game_rom.u124
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u125_game_rom.u125
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u126_game_rom.u126
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u127_game_rom.u127
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u128_game_rom.u128
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u129_game_rom.u129
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u130_game_rom.u130
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u131_game_rom.u131
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u132_game_rom.u132
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u133_game_rom.u133
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u3_music_spch.u3
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u4_music_spch.u4
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u5_music_spch.u5
l2.0_mortal_kombat_3_u2_ultimate.u2 = umk3plus20220307.u2
umk-u110.bin
umk-u111.bin
umk-u112.bin
umk-u113.bin
umk-u118.bin
umk-u119.bin
umk-u120.bin
umk-u121.bin

basically with the 'UMK3P_BETA_2.zip' (which you can find online) it comes with three 'ips' files and four additional bin files which you copy the bin files to your UMK3+ folder...

umk-u114.bin = umk3plus.u114
umk-u115.bin = umk3plus.u115
umk-u116.bin = umk3plus.u116
umk-u117.bin = umk3plus.u117

but the 'Lunar IPS' program (which is easy to use) is used to load the 'ips' file and then output it to the correct .bin file. you are only patching the u54/u63/u2 files (you can easily reason out which ones they are by how things are named above) with Lunar IPS as the rest are as they already are.

then (for HBMAME) I just create a folder called 'umk3plus20220307' in the 'roms' folder with those files in it. note: alternatively I think you can zip those files and name it 'umk3plus20220307.zip' etc.

now HBMAME works without issue on UMK3+ BETA 2 (from March 7th 2022).

for MK2 (newest stock game version L3.1) to MK2 Plus (newest one from Dec 2018) (it uses 7 'ips' files) for use on HBMAME as there are twenty files one needs (along with the HBMAME file naming after the "=" part)...

l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug14.ug14
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug16.ug16 = mk2s04.ug16
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug17.ug17
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug19.ug19
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug20.ug20 = mk2s04.ug20
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug22.ug22
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj14.uj14
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj16.uj16 = mk2s04.uj16
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj17.uj17
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj19.uj19
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj20.uj20 = mk2s04.uj20
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj22.uj22
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u2.u2 = mk2pb2.u2
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u3.u3
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u4.u4
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u5.u5
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u6.u6
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u7.u7
l3.1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug12.ug12 = mk2s04.ug12
l3.1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj12.uj12 = mk2s04.uj12

on HBMAME I put those files in the 'mk2s04' folder in the roms folder. but like I was saying, alternatively one can start MK2+ from the official MAME if you do it from a command prompt/terminal with say 'mame mk2.zip' (or I think 'mame mk2' will work if it's in a mk2 folder instead of zip). but it's probably more convenient through a nice GUI which is why HBMAME (and a small amount of others online) is probably easier.

also, fairly recent MAME versions use XML files for cheats which is nice as you can easily access the EJB Menu by simply enabling it (through MAME's 'Cheat' menu), then pressing 'block' button on Player 1 as trying to do that with the more official 29 buttons presses of block in a certain order is probably not going to happen for many people (I doubt I could do it as the speed and accuracy required is too fast for me).

but to enable the 'Cheat' to show up in MAME (when pressing 'Tab' key after game is loaded up) you got to have the 'mame.ini' file as on Linux (which I imagine is similar to your Steam Deck(?)) from terminal, using official MAME, I just did 'mame -cc' from terminal which creates configuration files in your home directory then you can edit and scroll down to 'core misc options' and where it says 'cheat' change '0' to '1' and save. in HBMAME it's a bit easier as you can enable 'cheats' through it's GUI (or edit the ini files in 'ini' folder) and then just create a 'cheat' directory where 'hbmameui.exe' runs from and store your xml fles here (or alternatively, compress them to a 'cheat.zip' should work to).

also, on Linux... by default the system installed MAME (apt install mame) will look for roms in ones home folder at "/home/user/mame/roms". you will basically have to create both folders.

as a bonus with more recent MAME versions is the controls configuration screen is named properly with 'High Punch' etc instead of 'Button 2' etc which makes it much less confusing to configure it vs the old way. but those on the older MAME versions the button config is like...

Button 2 = High Punch
Button 5 = Block
Button 3 = High Kick
Button 1 = Low Punch
Button 6 = Run
Button 4 = Low Kick

on my X-Arcade stick (I got the old dual stick model with serial port but I bought USB adapter for it a long time ago now. I bought this sometime in the 2000's decade) I programmed the 2 SLOT (using PS/2 keyboard) so that I only got to program the 'run' button once and it take effect for both run buttons (basically top center and very bottom left button) so I don't have to program more than one key in MAME basically.

but just as a quick test with my wireless XBox360 controller the official MAME see's my button presses. so one should be able to use a fairly modern controller without issue.

I figure this might help you a bit, or potentially someone else who finds this post in the future

p.s. I am on Linux Mint 21.1-Xfce (with a i5-3550 CPU and a 1050 Ti 4GB GPU) and HBMAME works through Wine. but the official MAME build currently offered on Linux Mint 21.1-Xfce through software repositories is MAME 0.242 (i.e. 'apt install mame' from terminal). I also played around with 'FinalBurn Neo' on Linux and got MK2+/UMK3+ working but it's older and is not up to more current standards etc I guess one could say.

EDIT (May 10th 2023): mortalkombatplus.com ; you can get the Lunar IPS program and the 'ips' patch files from there (no ROM data is there so it should be safe for me to link here). the Lunar IPS program is found by clicking 'OTHER RESOURCES'. but the UMK3+ and MK2+ 'Patches' links take you to Google Drive and then you just click the 'Download' link near top right area to download "UMK3P_BETA_2.ZIP" for UMK3+ and "MK2P_BETA_2.ZIP" for MK2+. with these programs and basic info here you can modify the original MK2/UMK3 ROM's, which you have to find yourself online (not hard to do).

for UMK3+... the basic idea with Lunar IPS is start up the program, click 'Apply IPS Patch', load 'l1.2_mortal_kombat_3_u54_ultimate.ips', then it will show 'Select File to Patch' and then simply guide it to the proper ROM file (which is not difficult to figure out given the file naming of the ROM files and what I mentioned above). then do that same process the two remaining files (i.e. u63/u2) and write it to the proper ROM files of correct naming. if you mess up and are not sure, you can start over from clean UMK3 ROM files.

 

[John Grizzly]

'UMK3 Plus' does not work on official MAME because it needs to load four additional files (i.e. umk-u114.bin through umk-u117.bin) that the official MAME is not programmed to do. so it's basically not possible to use the official MAME release. I tried to though as after patching the three files and loading UMK3 from terminal/command prompt (as this bypasses the hash check that stops the game from loading when using the typical UI) it gets stuck in a infinite loop during initial load screen. but it's because it's missing the four files (u114-u117) that the official MAME is not programmed to load.

'MK2 Plus' on the other hand does work on official MAME, but you have to start it from command prompt/terminal as this only works because there are no additional files it needs to load (like UMK3 does) and when you run from terminal/command prompt (i.e. 'mame mk2.zip' etc (that zip being modified with MK2+ data)) it bypasses the file hash check that when running through GUI does not and allows the game to start up and work as expected.

but for MK2+/UMK3+ (and other modified MK games), I use HBMAME... https://hbmame.1emulation.com/ ; I am using the newest one there which is currently 0.245.11 (64bit, GUI) from April 7th 2023. this works with many of the MK hack variations, as I got some setup, but some I can't find the files online, but I got enough of them working, which are... UMK3+ BETA 2/UMK3:TE 2.0.042/UMK3 Ultimate Cup Edition (April 30th 2021)/MK2+. but one I can't seem to find is 'Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (UC Edition, 2022-04-06)' as it's named 'umk3uk20220406' where as the one I did manage to get working is 'Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (Ultimate Cup Edition, 2021-04-30)' which is named 'umk3uc20210430'. I had to tweak file naming etc, but got it working. but there don't seem to be any places to download those online (at least nothing fairly easy like the usual stuff is) as I used the 'ips' files to patch original UMK3 v1.2 ROM files etc for the rest of those hacks pretty much.

but with HBMAME the file naming needs to be tweaked a bit vs regular MAME, but you can pretty much tell by the file naming on how to rename things as UMK3 loads 27 files (although the umk3.zip I downloaded had four more files (a total of 31 files) which are not needed for UMK3 v1.2 as you need to tweak the 'l1.2[snip].u54' etc NOT the ones that are 'l1.0' or 'l1.1' ending in u54/u63) on a modern 64bit MAME type of emulator. because even when I tried to load ones in HBMAME it shows a error screen showing what's missing and with that info it's easy enough to figure out how to rename things so it works (as the only confusing part is that it seems many umk3.zip ROM files online contain what I think are also older files for earlier builds that are not needed for v1.2 of UMK3 as this is what might be a little confusing until you learn a bit more).

basically a more modern 64bit MAME will basically require the following files for the stock UMK3 v1.2 to work (as this will be typical naming on downloads you can find online easily enough) (after the "=" is how the file has to be named for HBMAME to work with it)...

463_mk3_ultimate.u64
l1.2_mortal_kombat_3_u54_ultimate.u54 = umk3plus20220307.u54
l1.2_mortal_kombat_3_u63_ultimate.u63 = umk3plus20220307.u63
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u122_game_rom.u122
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u123_game_rom.u123
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u124_game_rom.u124
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u125_game_rom.u125
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u126_game_rom.u126
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u127_game_rom.u127
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u128_game_rom.u128
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u129_game_rom.u129
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u130_game_rom.u130
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u131_game_rom.u131
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u132_game_rom.u132
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u133_game_rom.u133
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u3_music_spch.u3
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u4_music_spch.u4
l1_mortal_kombat_3_u5_music_spch.u5
l2.0_mortal_kombat_3_u2_ultimate.u2 = umk3plus20220307.u2
umk-u110.bin
umk-u111.bin
umk-u112.bin
umk-u113.bin
umk-u118.bin
umk-u119.bin
umk-u120.bin
umk-u121.bin

basically with the 'UMK3P_BETA_2.zip' (which you can find online) it comes with three 'ips' files and four additional bin files which you copy the bin files to your UMK3+ folder...

umk-u114.bin = umk3plus.u114
umk-u115.bin = umk3plus.u115
umk-u116.bin = umk3plus.u116
umk-u117.bin = umk3plus.u117

but the 'Lunar IPS' program (which is easy to use) is used to load the 'ips' file and then output it to the correct .bin file. you are only patching the u54/u63/u2 files (you can easily reason out which ones they are by how things are named above) with Lunar IPS as the rest are as they already are.

then (for HBMAME) I just create a folder called 'umk3plus20220307' in the 'roms' folder with those files in it. note: alternatively I think you can zip those files and name it 'umk3plus20220307.zip' etc.

now HBMAME works without issue on UMK3+ BETA 2 (from March 7th 2022).

for MK2 (newest stock game version L3.1) to MK2 Plus (newest one from Dec 2018) (it uses 7 'ips' files) for use on HBMAME as there are twenty files one needs (along with the HBMAME file naming after the "=" part)...

l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug14.ug14
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug16.ug16 = mk2s04.ug16
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug17.ug17
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug19.ug19
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug20.ug20 = mk2s04.ug20
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug22.ug22
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj14.uj14
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj16.uj16 = mk2s04.uj16
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj17.uj17
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj19.uj19
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj20.uj20 = mk2s04.uj20
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj22.uj22
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u2.u2 = mk2pb2.u2
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u3.u3
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u4.u4
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u5.u5
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u6.u6
l1_mortal_kombat_ii_sound_rom_u7.u7
l3.1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_ug12.ug12 = mk2s04.ug12
l3.1_mortal_kombat_ii_game_rom_uj12.uj12 = mk2s04.uj12

on HBMAME I put those files in the 'mk2s04' folder in the roms folder. but like I was saying, alternatively one can start MK2+ from the official MAME if you do it from a command prompt/terminal with say 'mame mk2.zip' (or I think 'mame mk2' will work if it's in a mk2 folder instead of zip). but it's probably more convenient through a nice GUI which is why HBMAME (and a small amount of others online) is probably easier.

also, fairly recent MAME versions use XML files for cheats which is nice as you can easily access the EJB Menu by simply enabling it (through MAME's 'Cheat' menu), then pressing 'block' button on Player 1 as trying to do that with the more official 29 buttons presses of block in a certain order is probably not going to happen for many people (I doubt I could do it as the speed and accuracy required is too fast for me).

but to enable the 'Cheat' to show up in MAME (when pressing 'Tab' key after game is loaded up) you got to have the 'mame.ini' file as on Linux (which I imagine is similar to your Steam Deck(?)) from terminal, using official MAME, I just did 'mame -cc' from terminal which creates configuration files in your home directory then you can edit and scroll down to 'core misc options' and where it says 'cheat' change '0' to '1' and save. in HBMAME it's a bit easier as you can enable 'cheats' through it's GUI (or edit the ini files in 'ini' folder) and then just create a 'cheat' directory where 'hbmameui.exe' runs from and store your xml fles here (or alternatively, compress them to a 'cheat.zip' should work to).

also, on Linux... by default the system installed MAME (apt install mame) will look for roms in ones home folder at "/home/user/mame/roms". you will basically have to create both folders.

as a bonus with more recent MAME versions is the controls configuration screen is named properly with 'High Punch' etc instead of 'Button 2' etc which makes it much less confusing to configure it vs the old way. but those on the older MAME versions the button config is like...

Button 2 = High Punch
Button 5 = Block
Button 3 = High Kick
Button 1 = Low Punch
Button 6 = Run
Button 4 = Low Kick

on my X-Arcade stick (I got the old dual stick model with serial port but I bought USB adapter for it a long time ago now. I bought this sometime in the 2000's decade) I programmed the 2 SLOT (using PS/2 keyboard) so that I only got to program the 'run' button once and it take effect for both run buttons (basically top center and very bottom left button) so I don't have to program more than one key in MAME basically.

but just as a quick test with my wireless XBox360 controller the official MAME see's my button presses. so one should be able to use a fairly modern controller without issue.

I figure this might help you a bit, or potentially someone else who finds this post in the future

p.s. I am on Linux Mint 21.1-Xfce (with a i5-3550 CPU and a 1050 Ti 4GB GPU) and HBMAME works through Wine. but the official MAME build currently offered on Linux Mint 21.1-Xfce through software repositories is MAME 0.242 (i.e. 'apt install mame' from terminal). I also played around with 'FinalBurn Neo' on Linux and got MK2+/UMK3+ working but it's older and is not up to more current standards etc I guess one could say.

Thank you so much for all this information. When I get a chance, I'll sit down and try to get this working. I am dying to try that version of the game.

 

[UMK3_TheUndisputedKing]

I found a bit more stuff since my initial post above as I got the UMK3 'Team Edition' (Aug 9th 2021) running and UMK3 UK to start up on HBMAME. but it's not a easy thing to find as it seems to have some special link to the 'facebook.com/umk3uk' page as just going there it does not seem visible to download it (I don't have a Facebook account personally. I don't if this matters or not.) on the Sep 10th 2018 post when scrolling down (even though I do have a specific facebook link with that same date and same facebook page that does show working download links). but there is a certain link, which links to that same site, that shows three ways to get it... 1)'the easiest way - download full installer', 2)'the alternate way - download full package here' 3)'the roms for FB NEO' with links that work (as it's how I got a hold of Team Edition and UK one which are not easy enough to find/setup like say MK2+/UMK3+ are). but I am not sure what I am allowed to post here in this regard so I won't post the exact Facebook link that shows those three downloads here for now since it gives you the stuff basically ready-to-use pretty much with the actual roms which I don't think we can post here on this site. EDIT: I pretty much found that general info from a YouTube video named "How to Improve at UMK3: How To Install" by RC00.

anyways, while the 'Team Edition' starts up on HBMAME without any obvious issue, as the hashes match, the 'UK' version, while I got it to startup, it complains about different hashes which is not surprising given the one I tried using apparently was modified in Jan 2023 and the version HBMAME is programmed to work with has a different file hash since it's from about April 6th 2022 since the general naming of it is like 'umk3uk20220406' etc.

so while this 'newer' (Jan 2023) UK version appears to still work on HBMAME, reading the PDF file that comes with it, you will be missing some features in the game that only work with their custom MAME download (MAME++ 0.129, which a specific facebook page link shows(which I did not link)) that those come with as you can even see when you start the game through HBMAME it warns you about it as it's lacking the 'Extended graphics space support' as you will lose support of a additional seven things in the UMK3 UK game without running their custom MAME (MAME++ 0.129) that has the 'Extended graphics space support' (which HBMAME apparently acts like a more typical MAME in this regard as when you start up the game it specifically tells you lack this), which I would say the best things of those seven that I would like to have are 'extra arenas' (which is ten of them) and two stage fatalities (The Pit II/The Star Bridge), maybe 'Classic Sub-Zero Fatality 2' also, as that would be nice seeing MK2's Pit II stage fatality in UMK3 which is probably my favorite stage fatality between MK2/MK3/UMK3 as alot of it's magic is the scream/yell that plays during it as that's one thing MK2/MK3/UMK3 have that's clearly the best is the announcer etc.

still, besides those seven things, of which I would say two to three are most beneficial, you still got everything else the mod has. so some might still want to use it anyways on other MAME versions like HBMAME etc.

so while I have not played around with the alternatives much so far besides MK2+/UMK3+, I suspect the MK2+ and UMK3+ are probably what ill generally use especially on single player. but who knows, we got the other options to

I even got a hold of the "Pugsy's cheats" (easy enough to find the site online) and extracted the MK2/UMK3 XML files out of the large main file for potential use as they do show up when I load up the MK2/UMK3 etc through HBMAME once I put the XML files in the HBMAME directories 'cheat' folder and rename it as 'mk2s04.xml' (for MK2+) and 'umk3plus20220307.xml' (for UMK3+), with cheats enabled through ini/HBMAME, and then you can access it through the usual 'Cheat' menu within the game through the TAB button section. I noticed another post on these forums mention, in regards to MK2, they preferred the cheat to stop the CPU from throwing them as it gives them more options to fight the CPU as even though they said the CPU is still cheap but it's not as cheap without the throws (so I suspect ill play around with this at some point). plus, I read another post on these forums where a user said playing on the Player 2 side on MK2 is a bit easier as they tend not to mess with you as much when jumping as long as you are not attacking (I have not tried this yet though but I just assumed they know what they are talking about).

p.s. for the record... I used to play MK2/MK3/UMK3 in the arcades in what was likely between 1994-1997 time frame (with my cousin who's 2.x years younger than me) as I was in my teens back in those days (I am not much under mid-40's now). looking online it shows MK2 arcade release date of Nov 1993 as I am pretty sure I never played MK2 in arcade until sometime (probably spring/summer area) in 1994 though. but I would say a large portion of my play in arcades is probably between 1994-1996, but I suspect some could have been in 1997 though. but beyond that it would have been minimal to nothing in terms of playing on a real arcade machine as most of playing those in the "good ol' days" (i.e. 1990's) would have been these five systems Gameboy/Gamegear/Genesis/SNES/Sega Saturn/N64 (I think that's it off the top of my head as far as consoles I used in the 1990's with the 2D MK games. which I think are much better/more fun than the 3D ones by the way as MK ain't the same when it changed to 3D (even though I did play a fair amount of the 3D ones many years ago)). then eventually, after some years passed, I got a hold of MAME which would have been sometime in the 2000's, but probably no earlier than 2001 (as in 2001 I got a PC with a AMD Athlon 1.2GHz CPU and I am pretty sure I never played any MK games on MAME prior to that) but I would guess roughly 2003-2006(?) when I first played MK games on MAME as by March 2006 I built a PC with a AMD Athlon 64 3500+ 2.2GHz CPU and I know I used MAME on that setup at some point and it had to be before 2010 for sure. I have been on my current motherboard for 11 years now and counting which is the longest I ever used a primary use PC.

but as for where my cousin and I played in the 'good-ol-days'... it was a local eat-in pizza type of place were we both primarily played as outside of that there would have only been three other places in total I played at the arcades, two being different malls and one a bowling alley. so a total of four different locations. although if you count my cousin I think he would have played in one additional location I never played at which that business shut down a long time ago now.

 

[Jynks]

You want to use a version of mame that allows modded roms... try MamePLus and a launcher of some kind.

 

[nwo]

I found a bit more stuff since my initial post above as I got the UMK3 'Team Edition' (Aug 9th 2021) running and UMK3 UK to start up on HBMAME. but it's not a easy thing to find as it seems to have some special link to the 'facebook.com/umk3uk' page as just going there it does not seem visible to download it (I don't have a Facebook account personally. I don't if this matters or not.) on the Sep 10th 2018 post when scrolling down (even though I do have a specific facebook link with that same date and same facebook page that does show working download links). but there is a certain link, which links to that same site, that shows three ways to get it... 1)'the easiest way - download full installer', 2)'the alternate way - download full package here' 3)'the roms for FB NEO' with links that work (as it's how I got a hold of Team Edition and UK one which are not easy enough to find/setup like say MK2+/UMK3+ are). but I am not sure what I am allowed to post here in this regard so I won't post the exact Facebook link that shows those three downloads here for now since it gives you the stuff basically ready-to-use pretty much with the actual roms which I don't think we can post here on this site. EDIT: I pretty much found that general info from a YouTube video named "How to Improve at UMK3: How To Install" by RC00.

anyways, while the 'Team Edition' starts up on HBMAME without any obvious issue, as the hashes match, the 'UK' version, while I got it to startup, it complains about different hashes which is not surprising given the one I tried using apparently was modified in Jan 2023 and the version HBMAME is programmed to work with has a different file hash since it's from about April 6th 2022 since the general naming of it is like 'umk3uk20220406' etc.

so while this 'newer' (Jan 2023) UK version appears to still work on HBMAME, reading the PDF file that comes with it, you will be missing some features in the game that only work with their custom MAME download (MAME++ 0.129, which a specific facebook page link shows(which I did not link)) that those come with as you can even see when you start the game through HBMAME it warns you about it as it's lacking the 'Extended graphics space support' as you will lose support of a additional seven things in the UMK3 UK game without running their custom MAME (MAME++ 0.129) that has the 'Extended graphics space support' (which HBMAME apparently acts like a more typical MAME in this regard as when you start up the game it specifically tells you lack this), which I would say the best things of those seven that I would like to have are 'extra arenas' (which is ten of them) and two stage fatalities (The Pit II/The Star Bridge), maybe 'Classic Sub-Zero Fatality 2' also, as that would be nice seeing MK2's Pit II stage fatality in UMK3 which is probably my favorite stage fatality between MK2/MK3/UMK3 as alot of it's magic is the scream/yell that plays during it as that's one thing MK2/MK3/UMK3 have that's clearly the best is the announcer etc.

still, besides those seven things, of which I would say two to three are most beneficial, you still got everything else the mod has. so some might still want to use it anyways on other MAME versions like HBMAME etc.

so while I have not played around with the alternatives much so far besides MK2+/UMK3+, I suspect the MK2+ and UMK3+ are probably what ill generally use especially on single player. but who knows, we got the other options to

I even got a hold of the "Pugsy's cheats" (easy enough to find the site online) and extracted the MK2/UMK3 XML files out of the large main file for potential use as they do show up when I load up the MK2/UMK3 etc through HBMAME once I put the XML files in the HBMAME directories 'cheat' folder and rename it as 'mk2s04.xml' (for MK2+) and 'umk3plus20220307.xml' (for UMK3+), with cheats enabled through ini/HBMAME, and then you can access it through the usual 'Cheat' menu within the game through the TAB button section. I noticed another post on these forums mention, in regards to MK2, they preferred the cheat to stop the CPU from throwing them as it gives them more options to fight the CPU as even though they said the CPU is still cheap but it's not as cheap without the throws (so I suspect ill play around with this at some point). plus, I read another post on these forums where a user said playing on the Player 2 side on MK2 is a bit easier as they tend not to mess with you as much when jumping as long as you are not attacking (I have not tried this yet though but I just assumed they know what they are talking about).

p.s. for the record... I used to play MK2/MK3/UMK3 in the arcades in what was likely between 1994-1997 time frame (with my cousin who's 2.x years younger than me) as I was in my teens back in those days (I am not much under mid-40's now). looking online it shows MK2 arcade release date of Nov 1993 as I am pretty sure I never played MK2 in arcade until sometime (probably spring/summer area) in 1994 though. but I would say a large portion of my play in arcades is probably between 1994-1996, but I suspect some could have been in 1997 though. but beyond that it would have been minimal to nothing in terms of playing on a real arcade machine as most of playing those in the "good ol' days" (i.e. 1990's) would have been these five systems Gameboy/Gamegear/Genesis/SNES/Sega Saturn/N64 (I think that's it off the top of my head as far as consoles I used in the 1990's with the 2D MK games. which I think are much better/more fun than the 3D ones by the way as MK ain't the same when it changed to 3D (even though I did play a fair amount of the 3D ones many years ago)). then eventually, after some years passed, I got a hold of MAME which would have been sometime in the 2000's, but probably no earlier than 2001 (as in 2001 I got a PC with a AMD Athlon 1.2GHz CPU and I am pretty sure I never played any MK games on MAME prior to that) but I would guess roughly 2003-2006(?) when I first played MK games on MAME as by March 2006 I built a PC with a AMD Athlon 64 3500+ 2.2GHz CPU and I know I used MAME on that setup at some point and it had to be before 2010 for sure. I have been on my current motherboard for 11 years now and counting which is the longest I ever used a primary use PC.

but as for where my cousin and I played in the 'good-ol-days'... it was a local eat-in pizza type of place were we both primarily played as outside of that there would have only been three other places in total I played at the arcades, two being different malls and one a bowling alley. so a total of four different locations. although if you count my cousin I think he would have played in one additional location I never played at which that business shut down a long time ago now.

If you're going to play online with MAME then you should be on MAME++ 0.129. It has almost all of the hacked MK roms, including Team Edtion and 60fps hacks. If you're on a very old PC or have bad internet then Fightcade is probably your best option.

Team Edition could never be ported to HBMAME or FB NEO (fightcade) because much of the code is in the MAME++ 0.129 emulator itself.

I sent you a private message with a download link.

 

[Jynks]

Or use the MK Mugan app.. it plays well online and is based on MK3 and has a gigantic roster. It might not be "official" but it is the best 2D MK game artound imo.

 

[ded]

Mugen? Seriosly lol

 

[UMK3_TheUndisputedKing]

If you're going to play online with MAME then you should be on MAME++ 0.129. It has almost all of the hacked MK roms, including Team Edtion and 60fps hacks. If you're on a very old PC or have bad internet then Fightcade is probably your best option.

Team Edition could never be ported to HBMAME or FB NEO (fightcade) because much of the code is in the MAME++ 0.129 emulator itself.

I assume there is no site that more officially hosts 'MAME++'? ; because taking a quick look online it does not appear there is any site that has it.

I have heard about Fightcade, as I downloaded it on Linux a little while ago now, I just never played around with it so far. I suspect I will at some point in the future.

in regards to that '60fps' version... I assume it's sort of like MKT? ; because I 'obtained' the GOG version of MKT not long ago (running Windows version on Linux through Wine), which is apparently the PC port of it (since there was no arcade version of MKT), and it seems to feel a little faster than UMK3 (and the like) on arcade/MAME, which I assume is the small frame rate differences between arcade and a typical home version since I think UMK3 arcade is about 54.x fps.

anyways, graphics on that GOG of MKT look noticeably worse than running the MK games through MAME for sure. then again I got OpenGL etc on with UMK3 (through HBMAME as even official MAME seems to use similar by default) which makes overall image look noticeably better (basically it smooths out the image) vs no graphics enhancements at all.

I used to have MKT on N64 back in the late 1990's but I sold the N64 system likely in the year 2000 or 2001.

as for my internet line... it's probably okay as long as nothing else is running on it (as I have not played any games online in a rather long time now so it's hard to say how it fairs in online play) as I am sure in terms of download speed it's pretty safe to say my internet line is definitely slower than a typical internet line nowadays (i.e. 400KB/s or so (420KB/s MAX) and upload I think is around 50-60KB/s).

I sent you a private message with a download link.

Thanks. I got it.

Or use the MK Mugan app.. it plays well online and is based on MK3 and has a gigantic roster. It might not be "official" but it is the best 2D MK game artound imo.

While I never played with a 'Mugen' type of version of the MK games yet, from what I hear they are so-so, at least from more of a proper MK game perspective as things are altered a bit too far from the original MK games (MK1-UMK3) (although I suppose they can be okay just to experiment with for fun on the side). because I don't know about you but I would say, off the top of my head, I would prefer things to be more UMK3 like in overall play/feel but with any exploits fixed like overly high combo's that should not be in the game since it's kind of cheap that way given someone could potentially take you out with one mistake as I am of the mindset that any combo's should probably never be higher than about 45% damage (maybe rare exceptions, like if the character in general is weak to help so they are not too disadvantaged) as this way it gives people a bare minimum of two mistakes with a little room left over.

 

[Jynks]

yeah I disagree... I mean sure.. if you want a "pure" experience.. then use mame... I mean even the remakes and stuff are not as "pure" as that... but the Mugan games are fun and super awesome. I do not care if it is a perfect replication... it is close enough for me and a lot of fun. Basically, they (the good ones) are just a "new" game you have not played before. I do not think they are trying to emulate the arcade game so much, but they are in the same style. No one complains that MKX is different from MK9 or MK11.. they are just all different types of MK games and mugan is pretty much the same thing.

Also 100% free.. so just try it and see. Takes like a few mins to setup. There is no reason on earth why you should just try it out and see if you like it,.

Mugen? Seriosly lol

Yeah.. it is like a opensource 2D fighting game engine of sorts... there are some extremely good mods for it. There are a a lot of MK mods.. so might take you a while to find a good one.

There is also arcade rom hacks as well.

Just some random YouTube i picked as it has a large roster.

Ketchup did a video form the perspective of a purist. He chooses really wacky mods though... many of the good MK Mugans only have official character and not stuff like Homer Simpson and stuff.

This is a new project.. It was not out last time I looked at mugan.

 

[UMK3_TheUndisputedKing]

I watched some of those videos and while I can see how one could argue in their favor on some level, at the same time some stuff is just... off (especially the stuff that drifts too far from more normal standards).

also, while I realize it's largely personal preference, I am generally not a fan of MK characters past the 2D generation of MK games (i.e. basically anything beyond MKT) as to me those are more of the true MK characters as eventually they just kept adding more and more characters and it gets kind of silly after a while and I always consider Shao Kahn to be the real boss of the MK games to as after him things just ain't as interesting from that aspect.

characters like 'Meat' are just plain bad and too out of touch with MK in general. and like you said, all of those off-the-wall types of characters definitely detract from the games overall feel/style as that's why I definitely would try to keep things in the ball park of more typical 2D MK variations as once you venture too much outside of that, it's definitely a bad thing, at least for those of us who consider UMK3 (and thereabouts) as pretty much the peak of the entire MK series like myself (for the record... I have not played a MK game newer than MK9 (2011). but I am in no rush because at this point it's obvious to me the old days were the peak as those stand the test of time for me unlike the 3D era)

but sort of like mentioned a bit in that second video in the 'final verdict' part, it's basically always been pretty much the gameplay in why UMK3 (and the like) stands the test of time over the rest of the series and other fighting games basically. because I think if something is not similar to this, the odds are against me liking it. anyways, he went on to say if someone expects more UMK3 like, they might be disappointed. but if they see it as it's own thing, they might appreciate it as he liked the MK Project the most and, at least based on watching it there, I would probably agree with him as the other two shown are just a bit too different from your typical UMK3 standards.

but I assume the 'Mortal Kombat Project' is this one named "Mortal Kombat Project Ultimate Revitalized 2.5"? ; because I see that on YouTube user 'MKA' for download from April 2022 as looking at the video they have there it seems the characters are pretty much just MK variations. because I think the one you linked to (your first video you posted), is the same project, just a older version. but as I am downloading it, it's 1.9GB zip file which is very large for a 2D MK game.

 

[Jynks]

I'm just saying... if you are going to use a modded rom... you may as well use mugan... otherwise use the actual rom. As you have already chosen something "different".