Mortal Kombat 1 introduces new character histories and Kameo fighters

Mortal Kombat 1, NetherRealm’s reboot of the fighting franchise, made waves in the recent Summer Games Fest with a new trailer. This time, we get a few more teasing looks at the roster of characters and their Kameo counterparts. Check out the Mortal Kombat 1 gameplay reveal trailer care of Gamecheck. And as usual, beware — there will be blood.

A world of a difference

When Liu Kang took on the powers of a Fire God, he altered the origins of every character in the realms. We got a look at this new timeline in the first trailer, but the new one gives us a few more intriguing details.

For instance, eternal rivals Sub-zero and Scorpion are now brothers with a more cordial relationship. Thunder god Raiden is no longer a god but retains his lightning powers. 

The most interesting of all is Mileena. Mortal Kombat 1 makes up for her absence in Mortal Kombat 11 by having her front and center, although this time, she is no longer a creation of Shang Tsung but an actual biological sister of Kitana. However, Mileena is suffering from some kind of illness that makes her manifest Tarkatan features, which pushes her to a fractured mental state and paranoia towards Kitana.

As for Johnny Cage, he is thankfully still the same Hollywood airhead.

Calling all fighters

As stated before, there will be two groups of characters: the main roster and the Kameo fighters. Players choose a fighter from the main roster then select a Kameo as their backup for the round. You summon them by pressing a single button and moving the directional pad to command them to perform a specific move, like signature attacks, throws, and even fatalities. Here are the first few confirmed Kameo fighters, each a younger version of their previous incarnations:

• Goro
• Jax Briggs
• Kano
• Kung Lao
• Scorpion
• Sonya Blade
• Stryker
• Sub-Zero

More characters will be added in future Kombat packs.

MK1’s lead designer Derek Kirtzic has this to say:

‘The goal for MK1 was to make sure players had fun engaging in free-flowing combos and the expanded aerial combat, which is something I’m extremely excited about,’. ‘The new Kameos allow people to explore this game more – to give them more freedom with mixing things up and finding that fun.’

In case you missed it, there will be a Mortal Kombat 1 stress test next week, from Friday, June 23 at 11 a.m. EDT / 10 a.m. CDT / 8 a.m. PDT until Monday, June 26 at 11 a.m. EDT / 10 a.m. CDT / 8 a.m. PDT. The game itself is set for release on September 19, 2023 for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch. You can get Mortal Kombat 1 at great prices from our comparator.