The casual appeal of the Mortal Kombat franchise cannot be understated. It's up there with Super Smash Bros. in terms of bringing together massive crowds with every entry. People don't need to be into fighting games to appreciate the spectacle of Mortal Kombat, and its expected over-the-top violence is complemented by above-average storytelling and a plethora of side modes. This trend has arguably become Mortal Kombat’s greatest legacy, with Mortal Kombat 9’s story mode being held up as the model that AAA fighting games should aspire to.
MK9’s cinematic story impressed many with its adaptation of the first Mortal Kombat trilogy’s characters, weaving their stories together into a coherent plot. Plenty of new elements and teases for the future were set up, launching what amounts to an interactive superhero film franchise. Yet working fights and cutscenes together like this was not the only acclaimed story mode to come out of Mortal Kombat. During the sixth console generation, adventure-style modes briefly became the norm for MK, and they contributed a lot to their success in an otherwise slow fighting game era. When Mortal Kombat 12 is revealed, it should update this style of adventure gameplay for a new generation.
The History of Adventure Modes in Mortal Kombat
As fighting games became more focused on consoles, Midway decided to add a proper story mode to Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance in addition to the arcade ladder mode. This led to the invention of Konquest, a mode that appeared in all three mainline MK titles during the PS2 and original Xbox era. In Deadly Alliance, Konquest was little more than a glorified training mode where players took on missions that were separated by the visual of a monk walking across a map. While a bit underwhelming, this mode still taught players how to play Deadly Alliance, and it would carry this intent into the next game.
When Mortal Kombat veterans think of the Konquest mode, they are likely remembering Mortal Kombat: Deception. This iteration teaches players the intricacies of the playable cast once again, but it does so in the form of a universe-spanning story. Players take the role of Shujinko, the apprentice of Bo' Rai Cho and a fighter from Earthrealm, who is tasked with gathering the mystical Kamidogu from all six realms and gifted the power to absorb other fighters' abilities. This transformed Konquest mode into an open-world RPG where players could customize their character, take on side quests, and fight characters from across the MK universe. Its world would be considered flat and uninteresting by today's standards, but this was revolutionary at the time, and made Mortal Kombat: Armageddon’s beat ’em up Konquest pale in comparison.
Mortal Kombat 12 Should Bring Back Konquest
Konquest mode has been absent from the franchise since Armageddon. The Mortal Kombat reboot trilogy focused on cinematic story modes, filling out the rest of its single-player offerings with things like a mission mode or the Towers of Time. No one can accuse NetherRealm Studios of laziness in any of these endeavors, but now that MK is experiencing another soft reboot, it's a good time to change things up. A new kind of story mode, one that feels like a grand adventure, would go over well. Giving Mortal Kombat: Deception’s Konquest another look might be what the franchise needs.
It falls to Mortal Kombat 12 to introduce a brand-new take on the MK universe, and what better way to do that than to give players free rein over key regions in each realm. There may be a particular realm like Outworld or Earthrealm that receives extra focus, but the format would allow players to quickly immerse themselves in the story and events. Players could take control of a new character, a custom character, or someone established like Liu Kang or Kung Lao. With other games like Street Fighter 6 looking at an adventure approach for their story modes, Mortal Kombat needs to remind everyone that it went there first.
How Adventure Mode Could Work in Mortal Kombat 12
The number of ways to implement this mode are immense, and MK12 has plenty of inspiration to draw from. The two most recent Mortal Kombat games, 10 and 11, both featured interactive Krypts that players could explore using a first or third-person avatar. MK10’s Krypt employed some quick-time events, while MK11’s Krypt brought back some 3D action elements from Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. Both of these show off what exploring a location in the Mortal Kombat world could feel like, providing a more interesting take than Deception could muster. While the old weekly schedule may not return, the concept of a world with towns and dungeons that have plenty of loot and Easter eggs should not be dismissed.
This mode can also go back to teaching newcomers how to play Mortal Kombat. A custom character, or a rotating team of fighters, would allow players to experience the roster in a safe place. There's potential to make things easier with stat upgrades and new moves, and missions requiring particular handicaps or mid-fight goals could still test any build. After their adventure is complete, players can bring rewards to the Krypt, which might even be a location in the wider Konquest mode. Their custom characters would be perfect for special versus modes, especially if they can be displayed in 3D multiplayer lobbies. Mortal Kombat 12 has everything to gain by embracing Konquest, and hopefully it brings fans the best premium fighting game experience yet.
Mortal Kombat 12 is rumored to be in development.