San Diego Comic-Con has begun, and yesterday, some big announcements from DC Comics, Marvel, and beyond were featured. Today will be no different, as many panels are set to happen, and that includes one for Mortal Kombat 1. Ed Boon of NetherRealm Studios already teased that this panel was coming a while back, but things have evolved since then. Specifically, he made another post on Twitter about the panel, stating that there would be some bit reveals happening. For example, he promised that they would be showing the next part of the story for the game while also confirming some new fighters and a few “big surprises.”
The first two reveals aren’t too surprising, given recent history. In the last game, NetherRealm did a massive expansion story called “Aftermath,” which directly set up Mortal Kombat 1 with its two canon endings. The question here is what kind of story will be told and whether it’ll do a similar build-up to the next game whenever that comes around.
As for the second part, fans have been eagerly anticipating the news of the second “Kombat Pack,” as the first one was a big success. The last fighter from that pack, Takeda, is officially in the game, and so it’s time to get hyping up for who’s next.
As for who’s next, there have already been teases and leaks, including a pair of cyborg ninjas, the T-1000 Terminator, Ghostface, and even Conan The Barbarian! All of these would be huge additions to the game, and if there are some “Big Surprises” in store, perhaps the leak wasn’t fully accurate or didn’t have all the details, and Ed Boon is readying himself to “drop the hammer” and unveil something truly epic. Only time will tell, but we won’t have to wait that long, thankfully, as the panel arrives later today.
One of the other reasons why this panel is important is that NetherRealm Studios hasn’t been having the best of months. They announced recently that they were laying off their entire mobile division and even shutting down the mobile titles they had, including one that came out just last year. That’s not to say that the studio as a whole is in danger, but this was a huge blow to them and the momentum they had built up over the last several years.
Being among the fanbase and getting to unveil new content will likely be the “pick me up” that this developer needs after a blow like that.