When you’re something that has endured for 30+ years, you’re doing something right. Oh, and we’re not meaning that you did something 30 years ago, and some people still remember that thing. We’re talking about how you started something and then kept following it up time after time until thirty years had passed. In the gaming industry, that’s how you know you’ve really “made it” as a legendary franchise. You weren’t just a one-off. You were an entity that generations have played and continue to enjoy. Those words perfectly encapsulate Mortal Kombat, which endures to this day in many forms.
Last year was the start of the 30th-anniversary celebration for the franchise, and we’ve seen many things released from NetherRealm Studios and co-creator Ed Boon to celebrate. We’ve gotten behind-the-scenes facts, showcases of the game’s music, returning actors showing their love for the games and movies, etc. But today, the team at NetherRealm decided they would show their appreciation to the fans for keeping the franchise alive. While the group wasn’t the ones who helped start the series three decades ago, they have been the ones keeping it going since the reboot started. So they have plenty of effect on what’s going on nowadays.
But be sure to keep watching the video to the end, as Ed Boon wisely notes that they’re just getting started:
Yep, that is officially the first tease for Mortal Kombat 12. The game was already confirmed to be koming, er, coming, and was even slated to arrive in 2023. However, the team never confirmed anything themselves as it was Warner Bros Discovery who shadow-dropped the news.
However, that all changes now, and that teaser has more meaning than you likely think. It’s easy to think of it as simply a shot of sand exploding, but it’s not. Instead, it’s sand through an hourglass, a reference to time. Time was the key factor in the series’ last game as we met Kronika, the Titaness of Time and mother of some of the Elder Gods. She used her mastery of time to try and “right the ship,” which led to numerous things happening within the series, both past and present.
In the epilogue, we saw a new person take the role of timekeeper, which is likely to be the focal point of the next game.
Hopefully, we won’t have to wait long for a trailer or a release date announcement.
