Mortal Kombat 1 might be the “rebirth” of the franchise in terms of content and gameplay, but players will be happy to know many classic characters have already been confirmed to return at launch. However, they might not be exactly how fans remember them.
While Scorpion and Sub-Zero will be back, and will likely have many of their iconic moves too, their personalities and the lore behind them will be different to some extent.
NetherRealm Studios is treating MK1 as “a new beginning” for Mortal Kombat and has worked to create an original storyline that will play with classic characters in a new way. Beyond that, there are gameplay systems that will make interactions between those fighters even more meaningful too.
Part of the systems included will be the differentiation between playable characters and Kameo Fighters. If a character is playable, it will be fully fleshed out and usable just like in any other MK title. At the same time, Kameo Fighters are “partner characters” that can be called to assist the main fighter during a match—turning MK1 into an assist-based fighter game in the same vein as Marvel vs. Capcom.
All this means is there will be more characters and different classifications for some of those fighters, but fans will still see plenty of new and returning faces when MK1 launches.
Mortal Kombat 1: All playable characters
Mortal Kombat 1 will have a sizable base roster when the game launches and DLC has already been confirmed to be on the way as part of the returning Kombat Pack post-launch roadmap.
When the game releases, classic characters will be the main focus since this is a reimagining of Mortal Kombat through the lens of a new reality. There will be some surprises too, but don’t expect too many flashy additions until DLC starts rolling in.
- Baraka
- Johnny Cage
- Kenshi
- Kitana
- Kung Lao
- Li Mei
- Liu Kang
- Mileena
- Raiden
- Rain
- Scorpion
- Smoke
- Sub Zero
- Tanya
- Shang Tsung (preorder bonus)
- Ermac (Kombat Pack)
- Quan Chi (Kombat Pack)
- Takeda Takahashi (Kombat Pack)
- Homelander (Kombat Pack, The Boys)
- Omni-Man (Kombat Pack, Invincible)
- Peacemaker (Kombat Pack, The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker)
Mortal Kombat 1: All Kameo Fighters
Kameo Fighters will be the main focus of the game’s assist feature, and will also be a way for NRS to introduce certain characters in a new way without needing to make them fully playable.
Following NetherRealm Studio’s Comic-Con panel on July 22, the list of main roster Kameo Fighters expected in MK1 includes:
- Cyrax
- Erron Black
- Frost
- Goro
- Jax
- Kano
- Kung Lao
- Kurtis Stryker
- Scorpion
- Sektor
- Sonya Blade
- Sub Zero
- Ferra (Kombat Pack)
- Johnny Cage (Kombat Pack)
- Khameleon (Kombat Pack)
- Mavado (Kombat Pack)
- Tremor (Kombat Pack)
