Right now, for the first time in a while, NetherRealm Studios' future seems a little unclear. For a while, the developer had fallen into a pattern of releasing a Mortal Kombat game, followed by an Injustice, and then back again. But according to NetherRealm Studio head Ed Boon, that cycle has been broken. While some have theorized that the developer's next project is going to be something completely different, with a Marvel fighting game supposedly being on the cards, others believe that Mortal Kombat 12 is the developer's next title.
With Mortal Kombat 11 being such a critical and financial success, with a whole slew of paid DLC being released long after the game's initial release date, it seems likely that Mortal Kombat 12 is on the way - even if it may not be NetherRealm's next game out the door. But when Mortal Kombat 12 does finally release, fans can expect a brand-new roster. While it's sure to feature the old favorites, there are a few characters that are likely to make a return from previous games, likely kicking a few of Mortal Kombat 11's fighters off the roster.
Kollector
One of the newest additions to the Mortal Kombat roster, Kollector was first introduced in Mortal Kombat 11, but he might be an unlikely fighter to appear in a sequel. While his general appearance and character design fits in perfectly with Mortal Kombat's Outworld aesthetic, Kollector's gameplay design doesn't offer much room for exploration.
Where characters like Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and the rest of the returning cast all have abilities that allow for constant reiterations and creativity, Kollector's powers are quite simple. Rather than an elemental power with seemingly unlimited potential, Kollector is just a guy with four arms and a backpack.
In Mortal Kombat 11, players can already use a mace, bolas, shotels, and a sickle as Kollector. There isn't really much room to expand on this character's moveset, as MK11 has already covered quite a bit. Kollector is also quite a replaceable character, with sorcerer abilities that don't set him too far apart from the like of Ermac or Quan Chi, who fans are already hoping to see make a return.
Kabal
Kabal has a pretty inconsistent history with the Mortal Kombat franchise, appearing for one or two consecutive entries before disappearing for a few and making a return once again. With Kabal appearing in Mortal Kombat (2011), taking a break from Mortal Kombat X, and then cropping up in Mortal Kombat 11, it seems likely that he'll pass over an appearance in Mortal Kombat 12.
Although his abilities are always fun to use, and NetherRealm is still finding fun and creative ways to use the character, his story is pretty much finished at this point, having switched sides more times than any fan can count. But then again, if Mortal Kombat 12 is resetting the timeline once more, then there could be room for Kabal to make a bold new appearance in some way.
Kronika
Though she isn't playable, Kronika was a pretty good antagonist for Mortal Kombat 12. A Titaness capable of merging and restarting timelines, Kronika's abilities made for a fun boss fight and served as a good backdrop to the story, but the odds of her becoming a playable character in Mortal Kombat 12 are fairly slim.
Simply put, Kronika is just too overpowered to be a regular fighter on the Mortal Kombat roster. To defeat her in the main story of Mortal Kombat 11, Liu Kang had to become a literal Fire God. In order to make her playable, NetherRealm would have to strip back her powers significantly, at which point she loses much of what made her a fun character to begin with.
Geras
With Kronika not being a likely candidate to return in Mortal Kombat 12, Geras' days are also numbered. Despite being an extremely well-designed character, with some truly unique powers stemming from his ability to manipulate the sands of time, Geras doesn't really have a purpose outside of Kronika.
Being originally created as an immortal artificial construct to aid Kronika in her time manipulating ways, Geras doesn't have much going on without his master. That being said, it would be neat to see Geras make a return in some form in Mortal Kombat 12, even if it would require a pretty substantial rewrite of his character.
Kotal Kahn
Ever since his debut in Mortal Kombat X, Kotal Kahn has garnered a fair few comparisons to the more iconic Kahn of the Mortal Kombat franchise, Shao Kahn. Whether these comparisons are completely fair, they're not entirely wrong. While the two are completely different characters, their actual movesets and general abilities do overlap a little.
Shao Kahn's heavy hammer strikes do bear a fairly close resemblance to Kotal Kahn's Macuahuitl swings, and their shared super-human strength and large stature might blend into one for newcomers to the Mortal Kombat franchise. If Shao Kahn is taking center stage again in Mortal Kombat 12, like some fans believe, then Kotal Kahn may end up getting sidelined.
The New Special Forces Recruits
Some of the most engaging elements of the last two Mortal Kombat games have been the new Special Forces recruits, Cassie Cage, Jacqui Briggs, Takeda Takahashi, and Kung Jin. With direct familial ties to some of the most beloved Mortal Kombat characters, this new generation of fighters has served both a story and gameplay purpose, breathing new life into old ideas, and allowing for more creativity.
But while these new characters have added quite a lot to the Mortal Kombat ecosystem, the story of Mortal Kombat 12 may have them taking a break from the fight. If Mortal Kombat 12 does reset the timelines, and fans are treated to another retelling of the first Mortal Kombat tournament, then it wouldn't make much sense to have Cassie and the crew in the game.
DLC Fighters
This is a fairly obvious inclusion, but one worth mentioning nonetheless; it seems pretty unlikely that most of Mortal Kombat 11's DLC fighters will make the roster for the sequel. While the DLC characters from the Mortal Kombat universe, like Sindel, Sheeva, Shang Tsung etc. could certainly appear in Mortal Kombat 12, the fighters from other corners of pop culture history are very unlikely to make the transition.
This means that the likes of The Joker, The Terminator, Spawn, Robocop, and Rambo are all probably done for. Mortal Kombat 12 is likely going to bring in its own variety of wider pop culture icons, and could even throw in a few characters based on other video game franchises, like Kratos' inclusion in the PlayStation versions of Mortal Kombat 2011. As such, fans should not expect to see these DLC characters on the Mortal Kombat 12 roster.