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Hype for Mortal Kombat X seems to be growing by the day, and a new story trailer released by NetherRealm Studios earlier this morning looks set to intensify things even further. The clip gives us a glimpse at what to expect from the game's main plot, as well as unveiling several more new Kombatants and showcasing some bone-crunching action.

While the single-player modes of fighting games can sometimes take a back seat to multiplayer, 2011's Mortal Kombat demonstrated that it's possible to deliver an excellent story mode within the confines of the genre. Mortal Kombat X picks up 25 years after the events of that game, and looks set to be a very worthy successor.

The game's plot centres around a conflict in Outworld, with franchise veteran Mileena and newcomer Kotal Kahn engaging in a bitter conflict for ultimate control of the region. Four humans — Cassandra Cage, Kung Jin, Takashi Takeda and Jacqueline Briggs step in to ensure that this dispute doesn't spill out into Earthrealm.

Those four characters are all linked to iconic series stalwarts; Cassandra is the daughter of Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage while the others are descended from Kung Lao, Kenshi and Jax respectively. All of these new characters seem to have inherited a few of the traits of their ancestors, but are certainly unique enough in their own right.

However, these aren't the only characters revealed in the trailer. We're also given our first in-game look at Erron Black, the gunslinger first revealed in the title's tie-in comic book. We also see older versions of Scorpion and Sub-Zero, who will likely act as mentors to the new fighters at the core of the game's story mode.

One character conspicuous by his absence is Johnny Cage. Just yesterday, franchise co-creator Ed Boon was on Twitter teasing the character, leading many to believe that he would be present in this trailer. However, there is a human male with a similar haircut present in the background of one scene in the trailer — could that be Cage?

All in all, this trailer is a resounding confirmation that Mortal Kombat fans have plenty to look forward to. The mix of new and old characters looks great, and the game's plot calls to mind the hugely enjoyable Mortal Kombat movie from 1995. Fighting game fanatics will certainly be hoping that the next six weeks goes by quick.

Mortal Kombat X is set to release on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC on April 14, 2015.