It has been a busy week for NetherRealm Studios as the developer prepares to launch its latest entry into the long-running Mortal Kombat franchise. Even though Mortal Kombat 11 officially launches next week, some fans have already managed to get their hands on the game as spoilers have since leaked all over the internet regarding the story, secret characters, and more. The pre-order fighter Shao Kahn was officially revealed yesterday, while the launch trailer was packed full of nostalgia, inside jokes, brutal fighting, and a surprise appearance of more classic MK fighters.
In a clever homage to the franchise, the stylish Mortal Kombat 11 launch trailer features an impressive remix of the classic theme by The Immortals. To go along with the beat, the trailer showcases plenty of story moments and fight scenes from all of the previously revealed characters. Kronika, the Keeper of Time and main antagonist in this instalment, intends to rewind time in order to restart history causing all sorts of chaos with the timeline. As players will discover, multiple versions of characters are brought together in the story, such as a pre-corrupted Kitana and a younger Johnny Cage.
While the trailer doesn't show off the last confirmed fighter on the base roster, it does show off multiple unannounced classic fighters. The first is the red cybernetic ninja Sektor, who is shown using a flamethrower against the ice blast of Sub-Zero. Later on, Cyrax appears with a small group of cybernetic ninjas declaring that they're there to defend Kronika as she re-writes history. Eagle-eyed fans have also spotted Sheeva, who appears in a blink and you'll miss it style moment.
It's unclear if any of these fighters will be added to the roster either as secret characters unlocked inside of the crypt or as DLC. It's also entirely possible that they're simply there for story purposes considering that characters like Baraka, Rain, and Smoke who were in the MKX story were not eventually added to the roster. Another complication is that the cybernetic ninjas were previously added into Mortal Kombat X as DLC in the form of Triborg. With one final pre-launch Kombat Kast scheduled for next Monday, fans expect to see some sort of hints or news as to which fighters are joining Shang Tsung in the first Mortal Kombat 11 DLC pack.
If there are secret characters waiting to be unlocked inside of The Krypt, players will want to ensure they have an online connection as it was revealed yesterday that some modes and content will be locked for those playing offline. Specifically, offline players have discovered that the Towers of Time and The Krypt are inaccessible, a point driven home from a Tweet by a NetherRealm developer. Without access to the Krypt, this also means that more than a few gear pieces and customization items will be locked away as well.
Mortal Kombat 11 will launch on April 23 for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Source: YouTube