Highlights
- Mortal Kombat 1 is rebooting the timeline with significant changes to the backgrounds and origins of the characters, including monumental shifts in dynamics.
- The new universe sees Scorpion and Sub-Zero as biological brothers, while Raiden is now a farmer and Mileena is Kitana's twin sister.
- Outworld is different, with Sindel as Empress and Shao Kahn as a general, and the Tarkatans suffering from a disease led by Baraka. Reptile is now part of a shape-shifting reptiloid race called Zaterran, too.
For the second time in the franchise's 30-year history, Mortal Kombat 1 will be rebooting the timeline once again. Picking up after the end of Mortal Kombat 11's Aftermath DLC, when Fire God Liu Kang decided to reset the universe in order to usher in a new age of peace, Mortal Kombat 1 is set to put a fresh new spin on some classic Mortal Kombat plot beats and characters.
In order to keep the peace in his universe, Fire God Liu Kang has apparently manually tweaked the backgrounds and origins of just about every Mortal Kombat character. And while some of these changes are so subtle that even long-time fans probably won't notice a difference, some are monumental shifts that could end up flipping some traditional Mortal Kombat dynamics on their head.
Every Major Character Change In Mortal Kombat 1 Revealed So Far
While NetherRealm has released a handful of trailers for Mortal Kombat 1, with each one showcasing at least two fighters, their movesets, and a bit of their new story, it's Mortal Kombat 1's official website that actually provides the most information on each Kombatant since everyone gets their own distinct bio. Naturally, the series' main protagonist Liu Kang is listed first, with his bio confirming that he became the new Fire God and restarted the timeline in an effort to maintain peace.
In the process, Liu Kang has caused some major changes in fan-favorite characters, and some of the most obvious are with Earthrealm's usual warriors. While Kung Lao is pretty much identical to his usual portrayal, Raiden is completely different, as he is no longer an Elder God but just a mere mortal working as a farmer. Johnny Cage remains pretty much the same, though he seems to lack his green magical powers. And Kenshi is also fairly similar to his past versions, though his backstory is much more fleshed out, stating that the swordsman wishes to free his family from a centuries-long enslavement to the Yakuza.
One of the biggest character changes in Liu Kang's new universe is that Scorpion and Sub-Zero are now biological brothers, with the former not being Hanzo Hasashi, but Kuai Liang, traditionally the second Sub-Zero in the previous continuity. Sub-Zero leads the Lin Kuei, and Scorpion acts as his right-hand man, right alongside Smoke, who was raised alongside the two brothers as the original grandmaster's surrogate son. The Lin Kuei face many threats in this new universe, including Rain, who is no longer a fellow ninja but a powerful mage.
Moving over to Outworld, things look a little different from how they usually have. Sindel reigns as Empress of Outworld in Mortal Kombat 1's new universe, and Shao Kahn is Kahn no longer, instead taking on the role of general of Outworld's armies. Rather than being a mutated clone, Mileena is Kitana's biological twin sister in Mortal Kombat 1, and she's next in line for the Outworld throne, though her recent contraction of the Tarkat disease could impede that. Rather than being a race of people, the Tarkatans in Mortal Kombat 1 are simply Outworld citizens suffering from a horrific disease, and Baraka is their gallant leader, trying to better their living conditions. Reptile is another classic character who's undergone a bit of a change in Mortal Kombat 1's new universe, no longer being a ninja or lizard-man but instead part of a reptiloid race known as the Zaterran, capable of shape-shifting in and out of human form.
Mortal Kombat 1 will release September 19th for PC, PS5, Switch, and Xbox Series X/S.
