The celebrated Mortal Kombat series, which is popular among gamers for its flamboyant action and immersive storyline, is known for being a little whimsical. Apart from narrating the story of gods and humans fighting an unabating war for the world, the combat series is peppered with tongue-in-cheek phrases intended to bring a smile on the players' faces.
The very popular phrase "Toasty!" is an example of how funny things can get inside this game amongst serious bloodshed. What is more intriguing is how this winsome phrase was born out of a whoopsie moment.
The History Of "Toasty!"
Dan Forden, the Mortal Kombat sound designer, is the creator of this iconic line. As per Screenrant, when Dan and his co-worker, Ed Boon, played Super High Impact against one another, he would say, "I predict toast!" in other words, "I predict you'll lose!"
In due course, the phrase became an in-joke turning into "I predict toasty!"
Boon recommended that Dan should appear in the game with his trademark taunt. The team found it hilarious, and thus "Toasty!" became a part of Mortal Kombat Legends.
When Did Players First See "Toasty!"
What started as a joke made its way into the game as an image of Dan appearing in the right bottom corner of the screen shouting "Toasty!" in a falsetto accent whenever a player performed a particularly vicious uppercut.
The "Toasty!" joke soon became a trademark, evolving with every iteration of the iconic video game.
The Evolution Of "Toasty!" Over The Years
In Mortal Kombat 2, "Toasty" triggered a fight with a secret character. When players used Scorpion's fire-breathing fatality in the game, Forden's taunt set off, but he did not appear in the bottom corner.
The ''Toasty'' remark was also there in Mortal Kombat 3, but with several new twists on its classic form. When players used Sub-Zero's powers to freeze enemies, Forden occasionally emerged on the bottom corner and taunted, "Frosty!" in the same falsetto as "Toasty!"
''Toasty'' next emerged in Mortal Kombat 4, where Dan would say "Toasty 3D!" highlighting that Mortal Kombat 4 was the series' first game to use 3D graphics. In Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, the players are taunted with "Toasty!" on failing a minigame.
Henceforth, the phrase has appeared in some form or other in most of the franchise's games.
"Toasty!" In The Pop Culture
The phrase ''Toasty'' was introduced to the internet in 2011 by the website Toasty It.
It allowed the visitors to replicate the "Toasty" easter egg from Mortal Kombat on a website of their choice. Once replicated, Dan embraces the bottom-right corner of the screen, screaming "Toasty!" to make internet surfing more fun.
This quotation also appeared multiple times in Skrillex's song 'Reptile.' The rapper SpaceGhostPurrp also uses the line in his song Been Fweago on many occasions. It also finds a mention in one of the lines of Starbomb's song 'Mortal Kombat High.'
It's fair to assume that Dan and the "Toasty!" taunt will continue to feature in Mortal Kombat games in the future; the only question is - how will the easter eggs evolve?
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