Mortal Kombat 3 is a 1995 arcade fighting game developed by Midway Games and first released into arcades in 1995. It is the third main installment in the Mortal Kombat franchise and a sequel to 1993's Mortal Kombat II. As in the previous games, it has a cast of characters that players choose from and guide through a series of battles against other opponents. The game avoids the tournament storyline of its predecessors, as various warriors instead fight against the returning Shao Kahn, who has resurrected his bride Sindel and started an invasion of Earthrealm. The third installment of Mortal Kombat retains the blood and gory attacks that defined the series. It introduces new types of Fatality finishing moves, including Animalities. Other features new to the series were combos, predefined sequences used to perform a series of consecutive attacks. The new "Run" button allows players to briefly dash toward the opponent, and the new "Kombat Kodes" system allows players to enter various symbols before two-player matches to unlock certain additional features of the game. Mortal Kombat 3 was a commercial success and received generally positive reviews, but drew criticism for omitting several popular characters from previous games. It is the only main installment to not feature franchise mascot Scorpion. Characters omitted from this game were included in the two titles produced to update it, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (1995) and Mortal Kombat Trilogy (1996). Gameplay Mortal Kombat 3 builds further on the gameplay of the previous game. A "Run" button, accompanied by a corresponding meter, was introduced. This was primarily to address concern from fans who thought that the previous games gave too much of an advantage to the defending player. The Run meter is drained both by running (the character cannot run backward, only forwards) and by performing combos. "Chain combos", also known as pre-programmed combos (labeled "dial-a-combos") were also introduced. Chain combos are button sequences that cannot be interrupted once one hit connects; some chain combos end with an uppercut or another move that knocks the opponent into the air so that more damage can be dealt via a traditional juggle combo. To please players of various skill levels, a "Choose Your Destiny" screen appears in the single-player mode to allow player-selectable difficulty. For the first time, certain levels were interactive by allowing characters to uppercut each other through the ceiling where both characters would continue the battle