Mortal Kombat is a classic gaming franchise. Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, the brutal fighting game series has been blessing fans of gory brutalities for a long time. However, ever since the franchise's soft reboot came about with Mortal Kombat (2011), NetherRealm has been pushing the boundaries with the more recent games, adding in new characters and changing up a lot of the series' lore. By the time Mortal Kombat 11's story concludes, it seems that NetherRealm is looking to completely reset the timeline for the next game in the franchise.
As well as changing up a lot of mechanics and lore, the more recent Mortal Kombat games have also introduced some customization options for players. These were first shown through Mortal Kombat X's variations, which allowed a player to choose from three different combo presets for each character. This was then expanded in Mortal Kombat 11, which not only had the gear customization options seen in Injustice 2, but also gave players the opportunity to deck out each character with their own custom moves from a set list. It doesn't seem too farfetched to believe the next step for Mortal Kombat's customization would be to introduce a custom character.
Why It Makes Sense to Have a Custom Character in Mortal Kombat 12
Mortal Kombat has been playing with the idea of customization for some time now, and so the final evolution of these ideas seems to be to include a character that the player creates on their own. With the host of gear options that were introduced in Mortal Kombat 11, which could make characters look entirely different from their regular model, it seems viable for there to be a player-created character that can have their own unique set of weapons and equipment.
This would allow the player to feel as though they've got a fighter that they can truly call their own, something that would feel cool for many especially when battling it out against some of Mortal Kombat's most iconic faces. In Mortal Kombat 11, players can already feel a sense of ownership over their own customized Scorpion, utilizing his Demon Breath and Demon Dash abilities for a fire-based build, for example. However, the effort that could go into creating a completely custom character could give a gamer that extra level of connection as they fight with their own avatar.
Also, the Mortal Kombat series has already seen its own character creator feature, through the "Kreate a Fighter" mechanic introduced in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. Released in 2006, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon was supposed to act as a final battle for a lot of the fighters in the series, and for such a momentous occasion in the lore Midway added in the ability for players to make their own character. It was possible to customize the face, hair, lower and upper body, and the clothes of a fighter, as well as give them different fighting styles that each came with their own combos and special moves. Since "Kreate a Fighter" has already been in the Mortal Kombat games of the past, it makes sense that NetherRealm should look to include the feature at some point in the franchise's future, especially after it has given so many other customization options in its recent titles.
How a Custom Character Could be Implemented in Mortal Kombat 12
While it would be interesting to see a customizable character in Mortal Kombat 12, something that this fighter cannot do is detract from the other iconic faces in the game. A lot of fans would be irritated if a favorite character that hasn't been seen in years like Smoke or Reptile didn't make it into Mortal Kombat 12 because a custom fighter took their slot. In the past, NetherRealm has stated that it includes characters it would find interesting rather than working solely from fan feedback, and Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon does love to troll fans on Twitter over fighters. Still, a custom character taking a slot from a highly requested combatant would cause some controversy, so a customizable fighter should act as an addition to, and not a subtraction from Mortal Kombat 12's roster.
Mechanically, it would be incredibly complex to give players whatever moves they want, and so a Mortal Kombat 12 character creator should work in a similar way to that of MK: Armageddon or Soul Calibur, where the fighter is given different combos and attacks depending on previously created movesets and the equipment they wield. This would prevent the customizable character from becoming overly complex without taking away from players feeling like what they've made is truly their own.
Of course, above all else, a Mortal Kombat 12 character creator needs to be fun. While it should allow for players to be competitive with their own creation if they wish, thanks to all the other games that have customizable player characters, it's clear to see fans love to make as strange of a character as they can. The internet loved it when the Street Fighter 6 beta allowed fans to get a look at its character creator, as social media was full of memes and images showing off the strange and out-of-proportion beings that were going to be stepping up against the likes of Ryu and Chun-Li.
Mortal Kombat 12 is a title shrouded in mystery, with a lot of fans unsure NetherRealm is even working on it. However, recently Ed Boon did make a comment saying that 3D era Mortal Kombat characters could make a return in the latest game, and if the newest entry in the beloved franchise is going to hail the comeback of some fighters from those games, this could mean that a customizable combatant is on the way too.
Mortal Kombat 12 is rumored to be in development.