Mortal Kombat 12 will open a new chapter in the series' story, but it shouldn't leave one of its most recent antagonists behind. While the Mortal Kombat series has always had a good selection of villains to choose from, especially as the roster grew, few have managed to create a spectacle similar to what happened in Mortal Kombat 11. Mortal Kombat 12 has a whole world of directions that its story could potentially go, including some possible new antagonists of its own. However, it would not be the best move to leave the recent past behind entirely.
The story of Mortal Kombat 11's antagonist Kronika was one of the wildest parts of the Mortal Kombat universe's history to date. A goddess of time, Kronika used her powers over the timeline to intervene when she believed that the heroes were too successful in their battles against evil. Scarily, it would be revealed during the story that Kronika had been manipulating the entire history of the series to ensure that everything happened the way that she intended it. That level of power made her a frightening figure, with the ability to do even more damage than Mortal Kombat's primary villain Shao Khan.
Kronika Is Too Good A Mortal Kombat Antagonist To Only Appear Once
Kronika has only appeared in Mortal Kombat 11's story, and seemed to quite definitively die at the end, but she has too much potential to simply be discarded immediately after one game. Her introduction to the series raised a lot of questions, and she hasn't had enough time to answer all of them. There are several points in the timeline where she could have physically intervened, but never did so until Mortal Kombat 11. With her being as much of a mastermind as Shang Tsung, her machinations are too vast to simply be described briefly. For her plots to be shown in further detail, she would need to return.
One of the most memorable aspects of Kronika's antics in Mortal Kombat 11 was her making the protagonists encounter their past selves. In addition to providing some comedy with the two Johnny Cages, this power along could be enough to make her a serious threat. There's no telling how far apart versions of a person have to be for her to summon them, so she may be able to summon an army of Goros, or bring back characters right after they die by pulling them from an earlier point in the story. Mortal Kombat 12's story could benefit from showing off the full extent of her abilities.
Despite her death in Mortal Kombat 11, there's reason to expect Kronika to be one of Mortal Kombat 12's returning characters. First, there is the fact that that game's story ended with Fire God Liu Kang seeming set to remake the timeline after all the damage that had been done to it. Theoretically, this would include reviving characters who had died, including Kronika. In addition, provided they could be considered canon, pre-battle lines in other modes imply that fellow immortals Cetrion and Geras came back from their on-screen demises, so a goddess like Kronika could possibly return from her death as well.
Mortal Kombat 11's story was a wild ride largely due to the schemes and powers of Kronika. Although Mortal Kombat 12 has been confirmed, details are scarce at the moment, so there's no telling who could be the main villain. Although old standbys like Shao Khan and Shang Tsung are likely candidates for the spotlight, Kronika has a strong argument to make her own return to villainy. As effectively an evil counterpart to the thunder god Raiden, she has plenty of stories that she could still tell. Kronika could be a dark horse candidate for Mortal Kombat 12's villain.
Mortal Kombat 12 is in development.