Mortal Kombat. The series responsible for making us expect a plot in fighting games. Sure, these games have always had stories, but the movie-nature storytelling they’ve got started here. And thus, with a trilogy that just came to an end,Mortal Kombat 1brings us a soft reboot, though it works pretty well as a sequel - if you’re playing it for the story, we’d recommend playing the previous ones.
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Regardless, you’ve probably finished the game already if you’re here, as we’re about to discuss its plot and our favorite moments. From returning baddies to wholesome family moments and reunions, there are quite a few highlights to talk about.
Spoilers ahead
10Lin Kuei Introduction
It’s just nice to see our Ninjas returning. The Lin Kuei appear right at the beginning as fake-out antagonists for the game, toying with our knowledge of Bi-Han and his personality. With Smoke, Scorpion, and Grandmaster Sub-Zero attacking Madame Bo’s place, they essentially act as a crime family.
Of course, that was a test made by Fire God Liu Kang to see if Kung Lao and Raiden were ready for the tournament - hence the fake-out antagonists - but it was a nice moment either way and a fun way to get the characters acquainted.
9Raiden As The Chosen One
With Liu Kang as the protector of Earthrealm, they had to go all the way with the role reversal, right? And though the tournament itself doesn’t last long, and it’s very tame compared to previous versions - as you’d expect from a dimension created by Liu Kang - having Raiden as the chosen one was a fun experience.
We get to see many interesting moments, such as Raiden’s pure personality, his powers finally showing up thanks to his amulet, and many character re-introductions, making his whole chapter one of the best.
8Mileena’s First Turn
Is it wrong to say that Kenshi having his eyes pierced was a fantastic moment? The first time Mileena transforms - a ‘gift’ from herTarkat disease- was a thrilling moment in the story. Not only do we get to see her fangs for the first time, but the fight against her and the damage she causes is brutal.
And, as mentioned, it culminates with her using her kunai and blinding Kenshi, which will eventually lead to him becoming the blind swordsman we’re used to - another great moment in the game, as we’ll talk about soon.
7Baraka’s Reintroduction
Baraka has been around for almost the entire series, being a true Klassic member of the roster and one of its signature faces. Still, he has never been much more than a minion for the baddies, so you have someone to fight against before getting to the big ones, like Goro and Shao Kahn. Well, no more.
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With Tarkat, this game gave Baraka a much-needed depth in his character and a rather tragic situation, too, as a merchant who lost his family and is waiting for death to take him as well. Besides, having him helping the good guys, with a chapter dedicated to him, was excellent, showing off his strength and honored personality to us.
6Reptile’s Reintroduction
Reptile also got a much better treatment here. Not only with a backstory change, as a shapeshifting Reptilian but the way he’s introduced - a ‘baddie’ who serves Shang Tsung in hopes of saving his family (who’s already dead) - is just tragic.
His misguided actions, along with the realization of his family’s death, created a great moment for him and between him and Baraka, who understood him and chose to accept him. It’s a shame they aren’t that relevant after their respective chapters.
5Kenshi Gets His Blade
In general, Johnny and Kenshi’s bromance is a highlight, as these characters' interactions are pretty amazing. Still, their back-and-forth over Sento, Kenshi’s legendary blade that is currently in Johnny’s possession, shows where they currently are in their personal character arcs.
Thus, with Kenshi exposing himself to danger to save his friend - which costs him his eyes - and Johnny finally giving Kenshi his blade, only for Kenshi’s ancestors to help him out when he feels powerless to continue, makes one of the best moments in the game, as our magnificent blind swordsman is finally born.
4Scorpion Vs. Sub-Zero
Predictable? Yes. But just because something is expected doesn’t mean it’s bad. After all, evenwith the changed dynamicbetween these two characters, they were always meant to antagonize one another - Bi-Han is just not a good person, and Kuai Liang wasn’t going to accept his betrayal, after all.
Thus, the great animosity between them begins, As Kuai Liang maintains his vision to serve and protect Earthrealm while Bi-Han desires to lead it. We can’t wait to see this fight intensify in future installments.
3Jerrod As Ermac
Now, let’s talk about a less predictable moment. For those who follow the series for a while, Jerrod is not a new figure at all. He was an essential part of Edenia’s lore, as well as Sindel and Kitana’s backstories. But, aside from arcade endings, he never really showed his face. And technically speaking, still hasn’t, as he appeared as a soul within Ermac.
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Still, having Jerrod in the story, helping out his family using his new Ermac powers, was a true highlight. Even later, as Sindel dies, he stores her soul alongside his and stays to help out his daughters, which means we’ll get more of him in the future. And we’ll get more of Sindel, as Ermac, too - probably.
2The Second Timeline Revealed
With such an interesting new timeline ahead of us, going back to timey wimey shenanigans wasn’t as entertaining - especially with the whole crisis on infinite earths at the end - but a few highlights come from this multiversal battle. The first is the confirmation that both endings from Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath were canonical, and we had a distorted timeline with Shang Tsung as their creator.
With stakes so high that even our versions of Shang Tsung and Quan Chi become allies, things go haywire from there, with some intense moments following this reveal, such as the aforementioned death of our Empress Sindel.
1Liu Kang And Kitana’s Reunion
Another great moment from all the multiversal clashes is the old versions of our characters reuniting, which hits extra hard if you played the previous games. After eons, Liu Kang gets to see his friends, the ones he fought side by side (and against) when dealing with Shao Kahn, Shinnok, and Kronika. Seeing old Raiden is also a big plus in this regard.
Still, with the suckers for romance that we are, having Liu Kang reunite with Kitana - the one he fell in love with - was a beautiful tender moment during the whole fight, creating a nice moment of joy before having to deal with Shang Tsung once again.
