Highlights
- Mortal Kombat 1 embraces the franchise's troubled 3D era, bringing back characters and storylines that were largely forgotten by fans.
- The game features a roster of remade 3D fighters with new movesets that highlight their unique characteristics, adding depth to the gameplay experience.
- The story mode of Mortal Kombat 1 directly remakes the plots of previous games from the 3D era, paying homage to the franchise's history and providing fans with a nostalgic celebration.
PLEASE NOTE: This article contains MINOR SPOILERS for Mortal Kombat 1.The Mortal Kombat franchise has been around for over 30 years now, and as is the case with all long-running video game franchises, Mortal Kombat has undergone several different phases in its lifetime. Of course, the first Mortal Kombat phase was its classic arcade days, where the original Mortal Kombat trilogy thrived alongside some of the greatest early 1990s arcade titles. Then there was the transition to home consoles in the late 1990s, and the start of the NetherRealm era in 2011, which all culminates in the most recent entry, Mortal Kombat 1.
But right between the transition to home consoles and NetherRealm's era is Mortal Kombat's more troubled phase, known largely as the 3D era. Beginning with Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance in 2002, the franchise's 3D era saw a shift in tone and gameplay that wasn't very well received at the time, and in the two decades since, much of it has been largely forgotten about by even the most die-hard Mortal Kombat fans. But being a celebration of all 30 years of the franchise's history, Mortal Kombat 1 doesn't shy away from its 3D era and instead makes the impressive decision to embrace it.
Mortal Kombat 1 Gives the Series' 3D Era the Love it Deserved
Though it certainly has its fans, Mortal Kombat's 3D era is widely regarded as the series' low point, especially looking back now in the wake of excellent entries like Mortal Kombat 2011, MKX, and Mortal Kombat 11. Though some of its modes were fun, Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, Deception, and Armageddon all put an emphasis on quantity over quality, and that was definitely the wrong decision, leading to some extremely clunky and repetitive gameplay that doesn't hold a candle to even the earliest entries in the series. But that doesn't mean that Mortal Kombat's 3D era didn't have its fair share of good ideas.
For the most part, NetherRealm's Mortal Kombat series has largely forgotten about the franchise's 3D era. Though Mortal Kombat 2011 technically begins with the events of Armageddon, it's mostly used just as a jumping-off point, and though one or two 3D-era characters have been mentioned, the vast majority have been completely left out of the reboot continuity. But Mortal Kombat 1 makes the bold decision to not only reference the series' 3D era, but bring it back in full force.
Mortal Kombat 1 brings back a slew of 3D fighters for its main roster, including characters like Ashrah, Havik, Reiko, Nitara, Li Mei, and Tanya. Mortal Kombat 1's Kameo roster also includes a few 3D faces, with Sareena, Darrius, and Shujinko all making appearances in the game. Each one of these characters has been painstakingly remade from the ground up to fit with Mortal Kombat 1's modern aesthetic and visual style, and they've all been given brand new movesets that really embrace their unique character qualities.
NetherRealm's sudden passion for the 3D era of the franchise doesn't stop there. Mortal Kombat 1's story mode embraces the 3D era fully, essentially redoing a handful of the games' plots. Without spoiling too much, Mortal Kombat 1's story mode directly remakes the plot of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, and even has a grand final battle like the one in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. To ensure that fans know that these are direct references, NetherRealm has even named these story chapters after their respective inspirations. It's great to see these ideas and characters get reworked in Mortal Kombat 1, and it really helps to cement the feeling that this entry is meant to be a celebration of the franchise's entire 30-year history, warts and all.
Mortal Kombat 1 is available now on PS5, Xbox X, Nintendo Switch and PC.
