If you ever happened upon an old-school arcade or tracked down the first Mortal Kombat recently, you’d know how hilariously dated the seminal 1992 fighter is. The ultra-violent title that spurred one of the longest-running franchises of our time is a stone-cold classic, so I guess it was always inevitable that it’d be remade entirely at one point.
That’s exactly what developer NetherRealm Studios has announced this week, officially revealing that a substantial Mortal Kombat 1 remake will be coming to the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC on September 19.
However, it looks like the project won’t exactly just reboot the original game. Essentially, this is both a remake and another sequel. Rather than take on the expected Mortal Kombat 12 title, Mortal Kombat 1 will be an origin story blended with the “New Era” timeline established by Liu Kang after he, according to the complicated lore, ascended to godhood in 2019’s Mortal Kombat 11.
While there will be changes and new ideas for the Mortal Kombat 1 remake, much of what made the original title so straightforward and addictive will be carried over here. There’ll also be a story mode, a new roster of characters, and rejigged mechanics that are previewed in a teaser trailer. This includes a system called “Kameo Fighters,” which allows players to call on an assist from another champion on the roster, which kind of makes it sound like the tag-team concept introduced in 2011’s Mortal Kombat 9.
NetherRealm is yet to confirm the full Mortal Kombat 1 roster but we do know that, so far, we’ll be getting Liu Kang, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Raiden, Kung Lao, Kitana, Mileena, Shang Tsung, and Johnny Cage.
In related news, recent reports have indicated that Johnny Cage may be portrayed by The Boys actor Karl Urban in the forthcoming Mortal Kombat movie.
Mortal Kombat 1 will drop on September 19, 2023 for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
