Mortal Kombat is being rebooted this September
Warner Bros. Games and NeatherRealm Studios have lifted the lid on the next game in the series, and it looks to be a total reboot of the entire continuity. Aptly titled Mortal Kombat 1, the new game will take place in a new universe, and is said to feature a new fighting system and game modes never seen before.
An announcement trailer, confirmed by the game’s FAQ page, shows that the new game is set in a brand-new universe created by the Fire God Liu Kang. Unfortunately, the trailer doesn’t show off any actual gameplay, instead being entirely CGI, but it does show off a bunch of redesigns for characters iconic to the series.
NeatherRealm has announced the following characters as being playable:
- Liu Kang
- Scorpion
- Sub-Zero
- Raiden
- Kung Lao
- Kitana
- Mileena
- Shang Tsung
- Johnny Cage
It also said that “many other” characters would be available, though who those characters could be is a mystery. Notably, Shang Tsung is apparently a preorder-exclusive character, and seemingly won’t be available to players who don’t preorder the game — at least not right away.
Mortal Kombat 1 will launch on September 19, 2023, but players who preorder the Premium Edition or the Kollector’s Edition will get to play it a few days early, on September 14. The game will be available on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and somehow Switch.
There are three editions of the game that will be available for purchase, but the most expensive is only for the PS5 and Xbox Series versions of the game. The base game will cost $69.99 on all platforms, while the Premium Edition will set you back $109.99, and the Kollector’s Edition will cost a whopping $249.99.
For that money, you’ll get the game, early access, exclusive Johnny Cage and Liu Kang skins, early access to six post-launch characters, a 16.5-inch Liu Kang sculpture, a steel case, three prints, and 2700 Dragon Krystals.
Perhaps most excitingly for some fans, Mortal Kombat 1 will feature rollback netcode, and it doesn’t seem to be restricted to next-gen consoles, so Switch may very well get it too — a rarity these days.
Mortal Kombat 1 features stiff competition though. Street Fighter 6 launches in just a couple weeks, and if our hands-on preview with the game is anything to go by, Mortal Kombat has its work cut out for it, and then some.
