The Mortal Kombat franchise has developed a truly baffling roster of fighters over its thirty-year history. From Raiden to Reptile, dozens of kombatants have spilled blood in the gory fighting series. Mortal Kombat 1 sees the return of many obscure and familiar faces, many of which have completely new origin stories. With the beginning of Fire God Liu Kang's new era, NetherRealm Studios has gone back to square one with many of its fighters, trimming a lot of the fat that had accumulated in previous entries. It's a bold decision after so many years of storytelling, but Mortal Kombat 1 manages to pull it off.
Mortal Kombat 1 delivers a refreshing blend of tried and true fighters, and characters who haven't featured in an MK game in many years. From Reiko to Nitara, many of these kombatants haven't appeared since MK's 3D era, but NetherRealm successfully reintroduces them while adding much more depth than they ever had before. In doing so, however, Mortal Kombat 1 casts more notable fighters aside. While they likely still exist in Fire God Liu Kang's new era, these popular characters are still unaccounted for in Mortal Kombat 1's canon.
Kabal
Kabal has been around since Mortal Kombat 3, and since then, he's made frequent appearances until his absence in Mortal Kombat 1. In previous lore, Kabal was a member of the Black Dragon, Kano's infamous gang that often allies with Shao Kahn. He was also a police officer along with MK1 Kameo fighter Stryker as of MK9, yet MK1 has no signs of him or his previous allegiances. It's possible that a sequel or future story DLC for MK1 could introduce Kabal and the Black Dragon, but for now the speedy hooksword specialist is nowhere to be seen.
Nightwolf
Another fighter introduced in Mortal Kombat 3, Nightwolf is a powerful Native American warrior. He has been a frequent force for good in Mortal Kombat lore, using his signature green tomahawks to take down foes. It's entirely possible he's still with his tribe as of the events of Mortal Kombat 1, and a sequel or future DLC could explore how he gets his powers. Nightwolf is also typically a close ally of Raiden, so NetherRealm may be setting up their first meeting that leads to each character relying on the other in a new storyline. Whatever the case, Nightwolf would be a welcome addition for many longtime MK fans.
Jade
Jade is a fan-favorite fighter who has been around since the early days of Mortal Kombat. In previous lore, she's been closely connected to Kitana and Shao Kahn, as the best friend of the former and an assassin for the latter. If she were to come to Mortal Kombat 1, she could receive some significant revisions to her origin. One possible angle would be to still have her aligned with the now General Shao, and have Jade serve as an ally as Shao attempts to take control of Outworld. Jade could still find herself in a relationship with Kitana, but this time around it could be much more antagonistic.
Mortal Kombat 1 demonstrated a considerable amount of creativity with its new canon. From the swapped roles of Liu Kang and Raiden to the risks taken with Sub-Zero and Scorpion's relationship, most of these risks managed to stick the landing. It's hard to say exactly where NetherRealm will take the franchise after MK1's momentous final act, but if one thing is certain, it's that the developer isn't afraid to switch things up. Now it's just a matter of waiting for MK1 story DLC or a sequel to the dynamic fighting game to learn about various other characters, including this big three.
Mortal Kombat 1 is available now for PC, PS5, Switch, and Xbox Series X/S.
