Mortal Kombat's Brutal New Trailer Highlights More Returning Characters

Old faces, new look

by Liam Doolan Fri 7th Jul 2023

One of the most anticipated releases of the year, or at least the second half of 2023, is probably Mortal Kombat 1. The legendary fighting game returns with a "reimagined" universe and lineup of characters.

The latest story-driven 'Lin Kuei' trailer focuses on characters like Scorpion and Sub-Zero, while also reintroducing classic fighters such as Smoke and Rain. You can see how the action unfolds in the official Xbox video up above. Keep in mind that you may need to be signed into your account to view it, as it's rated "Mature 17+".

Other characters included in this footage include the "Kameo Fighters" Cyrax and Sektor. These fighters can provide the main character with assistance during a fight, expanding upon the gameplay.

Mortal Kombat arrives on Xbox Series X|S this September. What did you think of the latest trailer? Comment below.

Liam is a news writer and reviewer for Nintendo Life and Pure Xbox. He's been writing about games for more than 15 years and is a lifelong fan of Mario and Master Chief. He's also got a soft spot for Sonic the Hedgehog.

1
EvenStephen7
Fri 7th Jul 2023

I had lots of fun with the stress test beta; I think people are going to pleasantly surprised with how fun the Kameo fighters are — and how much depth they have.

Yesterday’s Kombat Kast (featuring this trailer and tons of gameplay videos and info) is worth looking up if anyone hasn’t seen it yet. What a year for fighting games.

2
Zochmenos
Fri 7th Jul 2023

@EvenStephen7 It feels like Kameos are going to be super busted at launch unless there's a hardwired combo limit. Did they mention anything like that in the KK?

3
Techno92LFC
Fri 7th Jul 2023

Favourite character is Cyrax so happy to see they have brought back his original design.

4
EvenStephen7
Fri 7th Jul 2023

@Kaloudz They’ve been allies far longer than enemies. They were only enemies in the first (and events leading up to it); since MK2 in 1992 they’ve been on good terms. Once Scorpion killed the first Sub-Zero (who was a horribly awful villain), he bonded with the new Sub-Zero, who is the younger brother who took up the mantle.

But further, this game is a canonical reboot and playing with everything in the lore. Here, they’re both members of the Lin Kuei clan, rather than competing gangs (they may also be brothers).

5
EvenStephen7
Fri 7th Jul 2023

@Kaloudz Ha, well there are actually a few cannons already. Besides some multiverse stories, the series rebooted in 2009 with “Mortal Kombat.” They ended everything with MK Armaggeddon in the game before; 2009 was a time-travel story that turned into an alternate universe when certain events changed.

So we’ll see where this new timeline fits in. Without spoiling the end of 11 that led into this, I have a gut feeling 1 is going to end with all of the realities/MK universes converging.

As for places to catch up on lore, check out Behind the Warrior on YouTube. Honestly YT is in general is great for lots of recap videos but BtW is really a deep dive. On the podcast side, check out The Realm Kast. And on the MK wiki is always a great resource.

But if you ever have a Q, hit me up! I’d be happy to chat about it/shed any light I can. Have to put this useless knowledge to use somehow

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EvenStephen7
Fri 7th Jul 2023

@Zochmenos I didn’t see anything about it in the video. The long combo (ahem, kombo) strings are definitely going to be an issue for some. It’s totally a throwback to older MKs and MKX. But the kameos can’t be spammed as much as assists in MK11; they have a limited burn meter. It fills pretty fast but you still need to be judicious.

Each Kameo has multiple moves though you can use in the heat of battle, including combo extensions, cancels, and reversals. So for every potential misuse there’s a way to use them for breaking long combos.

My biggest concern after the stress test is the unbalanced damage. At this point all 4 fighters could take off 3/4ths of a health bar in one kombo string with a special; Kenshi didn’t even need the special. But this has historically been part of early stress tests and betas for MK and they’ll presumably (hopefully) fix it, because a long combo string at this point can end a match in seconds.

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Zochmenos
Fri 7th Jul 2023

@EvenStephen7 I didn't know they had a use meter. I was seeing multiple calls per (k)ombo and getting a bad feeling NRS has no idea how to balance them.

Damage being wacky for some characters is a concern too, but that could wash out over time or with a few hotfixes. It's going to be wild watching NRS wrestle with this one. Overall, I'm glad (k)ombos are back, so I'll play through some growing pains.