NetherRealm Studios is currently working on its next fighting game. Mortal Kombat 12 in particular has been the topic of escalating discussion over the last four years, especially once NetherRealm skipped the last two-year launch interval without explanation. With the previous game setting up a reboot of the Mortal Kombat storyline, Mortal Kombat 12 could provide a fresh experience compared to its immediate predecessors.
This should happen regardless of whether any DC superheroes from the Injustice titles tag along. After the unpopular crossover title Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, 2011's MK9 introduced smaller guest appearances with God of War's Kratos and Nightmare on Elm Street's Freddy Krueger. As of the most recent entry, Mortal Kombat has hosted everyone from Todd MacFarlane's Spawn to RoboCop, and will most likely continue to add guests in future DLC. The abundance of comic book, action film, and horror flick characters might be getting a bit stale, so a future Mortal Kombat might want to draw from a new medium like anime for a future crossover.
Mortal Kombat Should Aim For Impossible Guest Appearances
Mortal Kombat owes a lot of its distinct style to Westerners interpreting Eastern martial art films. Its reference pool has grown to involve a wide variety of popular blockbusters over the years, but for Mortal Kombat's biggest crossover yet, it should lean into its martial arts inspirations and ask one of its lead Japanese competitors for help. Mortal Kombat's lack of availability in Japan might make getting T-rated Street Fighter or Tekken characters difficult, but adding the right Japanese icon could still be a hit in the rest of the world.
In the name of reaching as high as it can possibly go, NetherRealm Studios could ask Bandai Namco and Toei Animation for a Dragon Ball crossover. This sounds ridiculous at first, especially considering Dragonball Evolution's disastrous attempt at translating the series' manga style into real life, but a Dragon Ball Z guest character could work well in Mortal Kombat. With the right balance of ki techniques, martial arts, and wrestling moves, the result could be both fun to use and extremely popular.
How Dragon Ball Could Manifest in Mortal Kombat
The big question is which Dragon Ball character should appear in Mortal Kombat, and Goku is the obvious answer. Thanks to Mortal Kombat's preliminary fight dialogue, comparisons of everything from Dr. Gero's Androids and the Cyber Lin Kuei could follow Goku in and out of battle. In addition, Goku is no stranger to dying and has even been on the receiving end of a nut punch courtesy of the Super Android 13 movie, so there should be few tonal issues in exposing him to Fatalities.
Dragon Ball's various aliens may also work better in Mortal Kombat's photorealistic art style, but there is one other option. The tale of the Monkey King Sun Wukong, known as Son Goku in Japan, has been retold countless times - including through the original Dragon Ball run. With a new universe in play, Mortal Kombat has plenty of room to try its own. Complete with attacks and outfits directly referencing Dragon Ball, adding a take on the original Son Goku could get past MK and DBZ's inherent style clash while allowing Dragon Ball material to seep in. Whatever the case, there's never a bad time to secure a Dragon Ball crossover, and with Budokai Tenkaichi 4 primed to be another huge Dragon Ball video game, now is the right time for Mortal Kombat to give it a shot.
Mortal Kombat 12 is set to release in 2023.