More than 30 years after it debuted in arcades, it’s clear why Mortal Kombat is the highest-selling fighting game franchise of all time. The spectacle of watching humans, demons, robot ninjas and other otherworldly creatures fight to the death has never gotten old with each iteration. Adding to Mortal Kombat’s pop culture dominance over the past several decades were comics, television series, blockbuster films and a techno theme song that haven’t escaped any gamer who grew up in the ’90s. This is what makes the 12th mainline entry in the franchise so special.
Mortal Kombat 1 manages to ride a fine line between paying homage to the past while making extremely radical changes to almost every corner of its identity. Picking up after the events of 2019’s Mortal Kombat 11, series lead Liu Kang is now a god attempting to make a perfect universe. All of that gets threatened by a reimagined Shang Tsung and Quan Chi, who form a “Deadly Alliance” for a mysterious figure. This leads to a single-player campaign that takes the series in some bold directions as characters (and their motivations) are switched around in clever ways. Meanwhile, the story takes some wild turns and leads to one of the most bonkers climaxes in video games this year.
The core of Mortal Kombat 1 is its fighting mechanics, and developer NetherRealm Studios focuses on two specific things. Between the Kameo system, aerial combat and a faster pace, the game feels like a more blood-soaked take on Marvel vs. Capcom. Of course, each match can end with over-the-top fatalities that are even more gut-wrenching than ever. Beyond single-player content like Invasions mode, Mortal Kombat 1 has online play that extends to tournaments as well.
Mortal Kombat 1 is available now for Premium Edition owners and on Sept. 19 for standard edition owners across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S, Nintendo Switch and gaming PCs. After playing for roughly 20 hours, here are our thoughts on the bloody fighter.
The 12th main installment in the storied fighting game franchise, Mortal Kombat 1 makes some grand changes to its core fighting mechanics through the Kameo fighters system while delivering a single-player story campaign and plenty of online multiplayer.
What we liked about it
A deep combat system that’s incredibly approachable
Mortal Kombat 11, while fantastic, received a lot of flak for the overwhelming amount of mechanics in its fighting system. This time around, Mortal Kombat 1 strips away things like environmental attacks, separate offensive and defensive meters, rolling after falls, wake-up attacks and crushing blows. That doesn’t mean that certain holdovers from Mortal Kombat 11 like momentum-shifting Fatal Blows or Flawless Blocks don’t make a comeback. Things have just been streamlined better to make the combat deep enough but not difficult for casual players. Most importantly, Mortal Kombat 1 is significantly faster than Mortal Kombat 11, as mentioned during our Summer Game Fest preview in June.
As mentioned previously, the two main additions to the fighting system are the Kameo fighters. Right now, there are about 20 Kameo fighters who can serve various functions, including combo extension, teleportation, projectiles, extra defense and much more. If a player has a full Kameo and a bar of meter, a combo breaker can even be initiated to get you out of trouble. The best thing about Kameos is that they do a great job of making up for the main fighter’s potential weaknesses. They can also deal fatalities. Between the 20 Kameo fighters and 22 core fighters, there are some interesting match-ups for players looking to get as meta with the combat as possible.
Though juggling is still possible, aerial combat has been expanded in general. Beyond each playable character having their own options while in the air through attacks and combos, nearly everyone has some type of launcher that will let you set up some flashy midair sequences. Mortal Kombat 1 does a great job of making combat in the air just as thrilling as on the ground. Adding to the broader appeal is the inclusion of options for simplified inputs in both special moves and fatalities, which makes combat even more accessible.
Outstanding single-player content
Rival series ranging from Street Fighter to Tekken have all offered enough things for players who prefer gaming solo. However, none of them have come close to anything MK has offered when it comes to single-player combat — and Mortal Kombat 1 isn’t much different. When it comes to single-player content, most of that will be split between the story campaign and the new Invasions mode. Regardless of which mode players jump into first, the intent is to make players a better fighter.
The five- to six-hour story campaign mode fits the beats of the last several games in the series. Each chapter will have players play various characters, including Reptile, Baraka, Johnny Cage, Li Mei and more.?Between fights, expect the usual plot that balances melodrama, camp and laugh-out-loud humor. There aren’t any quick-time moments or character selection branches outside of moments where players engage in long-standing minigame Test Your Might. The final chapter flips the more modern Mortal Kombat campaign ideas on its head in a ludicrous way that’s incredibly effective.
Building off the concept of Mortal Kombat’s own multiverse, Invasions is a progression-based single-player mode. Players select a character alongside their Kameo fighter and explore various interconnected maps that are populated with hundreds of nodes. Invasions’ overworld map blends the best of the previous game’s Konquest mode with a structure that’s reminiscent of Super Mario Bro. 3’s overworld map.
Players can only go up, down, left and right as they land on nodes. Each node leads to various challenges, such as fights with augmented fighters, minigames and more. It’s the main way players will unlock rewards like currency, costumes, fatalities and other unlockables. A light role-playing system also has your selected character upgrade various attributes from health points to attack and agility alongside various upgradable equipment items. There are more challenges planned for Invasions, as it’s built on a themed six-week seasonal schedule. Players looking to get good without overusing the arcade tower and embarrassing themselves online will have much to appreciate here.
Visual and audio presentation is best in genre
As the first Mortal Kombat game to be released exclusively for ninth-generation consoles (outside of the Switch version), Mortal Kombat 1 stands as one of the best-looking and -performing fighting games this year. The most notable thing about the art direction is how bold and colorful everything is compared to the darker colors of Mortal Kombat X and Mortal Kombat 11.
The world-building done in Mortal Kombat 1 starts with how wonderful the stages look. From Johnny Cage’s beachside mansion to the gaudy Great Hall and frozen Ying Fortress, the stages are a highlight in themselves. In a cool touch, many of the stages have an alternative time of day, which feature different lighting touches.
All of the characters and Kameo fighters look and animate fantastically during fights. Thanks to NetherRealm’s customized Unreal 4 engine, cloth physics and fluid simulation looks jaw-droppingly great. Blood is translucent and leaves long trails that can hit objects on the stage and also players. By the time the match ends, stages and characters look like a mess depending on what went on during a bout. The game really looks best during the real-time cutscenes that pop up during the story campaign. To be honest, the direction of the cutscenes could be considered the best this year.
When it comes to more technical performance, Mortal Kombat 1 shines. Regardless of which version you buy, you’re going to get a 60 frames-per-second (fps) experience. Both higher-tiered Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 deliver native 4K gameplay with some dynamic resolution, according to Digital Foundry. Like Mortal Kombat 11, pre-match cinematics, Fatal Blows and Fatalities are reduced to 30 fps, given their richer detail. That being said, we haven’t gotten a chance to test the Nintendo Switch version — and given that system’s hardware limitations, you likely won’t have close to the same experience as you will on PlayStation, Xbox or PC.
Audio is top tier as well between the bone-crunching sound effects, epic orchestral score and voice acting. Fights sound incredibly painful during bouts, and the sound effects team deserves kudos for the gory sounds during Fatalities. There are also some notable voice casting choices, including Kelly Hu as Li Mei and Megan Fox as Nitara.
What we didn’t like about it
A complete lack of new playable characters
Mortal Kombat 1 does a fantastic job of reintroducing series favorites, such as Sub-Zero, Scorpion and Mileena, and in clever ways. There’s a level of familiarity yet freshness that works so well in establishing the new timeline this iteration takes place in. Even characters from Deadly Alliance and Deception make a return, including Ashrah and Havik. Without giving too many spoilers, the various modes also feature special appearances from characters throughout the series history.
With that said, it would have been nice to see some new characters introduced into the series like MKX and MK11. Sure, the MK universe has well over 70 playable characters, and this same approach was taken in the 2011 reboot. It simply would have been great to see some fresh blood added into the mix.
Once DLC is released for Mortal Kombat 1, there are some guest characters that players can play as, such as Omni Man from comic book turned animated Amazon Prime Video show Invincible and Peacemaker (yep, John Cena himself) from the hit Max series. However, the base game spends so much time finding new ways to recycle existing fighters that the possibilities feel slightly stunted.
The Krypt is gone
Since MK Deadly Alliance, the Krypt has been used as a way to unlock everything from new costumes to artwork and the like. The mode saw a nice expansion in MK11 through a third-person adventure mode that featured puzzle-solving and a clever crafting mechanic. Taking place on Shang Tsung’s island, the mode even had light combat.
For Mortal Kombat 1, players will earn new treats through Invasions and currencies available earned from either that mode, fighting or microtransactions. Though Invasions does add replay value to the game, it feels more of an extension of the Towers of Time that was introduced in MK11 mixed with Deadly Alliance’s Konquest mode. As a replacement for The Krypt, not so much.
A lack of robust multiplayer options (so far)
Like any modern fighter worth its salt, online play is an important aspect for anyone looking to compete against players from around the world. Thankfully, the core gameplay of online is buttery smooth and works without issue, thanks to rollback netcode. That said, the online multiplayer offerings feel noticeably bare compared to previous games. There isn’t anything similar to Co-Op Tower or Factions at the moment. As of launch, only ranked, kasual (with Versus and King of the Hill)?and private matches are available. There is a Warrior Shrine mode that is currently locked as “coming soon.”
The biggest problem with Mortal Kombat 1’s online offerings is the lack of cross-play at launch. With a game spread across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and PC, not being able to play against friends on different platforms makes the game feel a bit behind the times. NetherRealm has confirmed that cross-play will be coming eventually in an update, but no date was given for that.
Bottom line
Mortal Kombat 1 doesn’t feel like the same huge leap given in the 2011 reboot or as robust as the games that followed. That doesn’t matter too much, as the bloody fighter has a lot going for it in a year where classic revivals of beloved fighters are all the rage.
The fighting system is accessible yet smart, the single-player story mode takes the series in some bold directions and the presentation is top tier. Just understand that multiplayer options are limited at the current moment, and the earning extras feel a bit wonky. Regardless, Mortal Kombat 1 still manages to stand tall as one of the best games to be released this year.
