You can’t tell us Midway didn’t have a sneaking suspicion that it wouldn’t inspire countless angered column inches with its comically gory beat-‘em up.

And by including so much blood in the original MK, it hit the jackpot where the likes of Death Race (reckless motoring in 1976) and Custer’s Revenge (rape in 1982) had failed – alerting the attention of the national press.

However, the tactic eventually backfired quite spectacularly: US Congress was alerted, leading to the formation of the ESRB ratings system. Midway was immediately struck from Rockstar’s Christmas Card list.

To read the next entry in our list of the biggest controversies in the history of gaming, click here.