Following the release of the Injustice: Gods Among Us story trailer, most gamers believed that the final DC superhero and evildoer roster was just about locked-in for launch. While the possibility of DLC characters down the line remained a likely possibility, fans had begun to accept that certain beloved DC Universe characters had not made the cut - and would not be seen in the upcoming Mortal Kombat-style fighting game.

NetherRealm Studios head Ed Boon tweeted out an image of Killer Croc (with The Riddler and The Penguin in the background) which you can see in-context in the video below, causing players to wonder what other characters might appear in the game (playable or cameo alone). We'll have to wait and see whether Killer Croc is actually playable (the complete list is expected to include over 20 fighters) but, in the meantime, the studio has unveiled another new brawler, Shazam, during their latest Battle Arena video.

First some context. For anyone unfamiliar with the Battle Arena video series, NetherRealm is allowing fans to decide the victor in simulated match-ups between members of the Injustice: Gods Among Us roster.

Here's the official description of the video series from the studio - followed by the introduction video:

The battle for DC supremacy begins here! For the next 10 weeks, new challengers will square off in the Battle Arena, and only YOU can determine who will walk out a champion.

As mentioned in the intro trailer, Super Fight #1 saw Bane take-on Batman and Wonder Woman face-off against Harley Quinn. Check out footage of each brawl below - including who was selected by fans as the respective winners:

Now, NeatherRealm is up to week two in the Battle Arena video series - which means a new series of combatants and the aforementioned Shazam reveal. Super Fight #2 sees The Flash vs. Shazam and Joker vs. Lex Luthor. Check out the footage of the characters below (including our first look at Shazam in-game). Make sure to stick around for a special appearance from the CW's Arrow, Stephen Amell, as well as a bit more Shazam footage:

Based on reactions from the interviewees it looks like The Flash will super-speed his way to victory in the Battle Arena fight this week but that doesn't mean that Shazam won't be a great addition to the Injustice: Gods Among Us roster. Longtime Mortal Kombat fans will no doubt recognize that the character is pulling a few pages from the Lord Raiden playbook for his fighting game repertoire - which could mean that Shazam will actually be a solid combatant. At this point, it's still unclear how the character will fit into the game's DC comic-like storyline as well as whether or not Shazam will be playable when the title launches on April 16, 2013. That said, given the anger often associated with DLC that is announced ahead of a game's release, expect Shazam to be a core roster character fully-playable out the gate.

Shazam-New-52-Injustice-Gods-Among-Us image

In case you missed it during the video, here's the Injustice: Gods Among Us breakdown for Shazam (apparently based on the New 52 version of the classic character):

  • Real name: Billy Batson
  • Super Powers: Flight, Strength
  • Favorite Weapon: Lightening
  • Super Move: High Voltage

Since there's still eight weeks left in the Battle Arena tournament, it's safe to assume that NeatherRealm still has a few more character reveals in the pipeline. Who else might be unveiled in the weeks leading up to release? Check out our list of 25 Characters That Need to Be in Injustice: Gods Among Us for a few more ideas. Some of our selections have already been revealed but there are still a number of characters we'd love to see!

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Injustice: Gods Among Us releases April 16, 2013 for the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii U.