New 'Mortal Kombat 11' Fighter Geras Can Control the Match Timer

Mortal Kombat 11's newest combatant, Geras, has an interesting move where he can take time off of the match timer to potentially lead to a quick and unexpected victory.

A move that's already being referred to as a troll ability or a "dumb timer scam," Geras can take 30 seconds off the match timer. Plenty can happen in a Mortal Kombat game within that timeframe with some matches not even lasting that long at times, so Geras' ability is already looking like it'll be a controversial one.

I'm uploading a 20 minute look into Geras right now, but first, check out this dumb timer scam setup (that would have been way more legit if I'd done the time skip BEFORE the gravity well but I didn't think about that until my recording session was over lol) #MK11 pic.twitter.com/9YNDR8BkrS

— Regular UltraDavid (@ultradavid) January 19, 2019

That's 30 seconds off the clock! What a wild mechanic. Will be interesting to see utilized in tournament play.

— baggetta🆒 (@baggettaboutit) January 19, 2019

The clip above shows Geras' time-changing ability in action with a gravity well being used before that to keep Baraka in place. Thirty seconds are knocked off the timer to bring it quickly down to less than 10 seconds in the match, and Geras immediately retreats backward as the timer ticks down.

Geras' move itself seems like a unique ability for a new character, but it's the defensive actions right afterward that might prove to be problematic and frustrating for competitive players. Winning by letting the timer run out with more health remaining is a viable strategy, though whether it's honorable or not may depend on who's asked.

By doing enough damage and immediately taking 30 seconds off the clock, Geras can snatch a victory away from his opponents if they're not prepared for the move. Without a way to run towards players in Mortal Kombat 11, players will also have less options to close the gap on a retreating Geras if he chooses to use this strategy. It's also been confirmed that Geras can add more time to the clock as well, so if he's in danger of being timed out, he can give himself a few more seconds to fight on.

It remains to be seen whetherthis will be a variation of Geras allowed in competitive play or if the ability will even ship as it is now when Mortal Kombat 11 releases. The ability currently changes the timer by 30 seconds, though it's possible that it'll be nerfed down to a different value before the game's release.