Mortal Kombat 1 Preview: Ushering in an Exciting New Era

Mortal Kombat 1 is awesome. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise given that each new entry in the hyper-violent fighting game series finds a way to be incredibly fun in its own way. Rather than finding more typical joy in Mortal Kombat 1's over-the-top gore or ridiculous Fatalities, what I've been left most impressed by is all of the overhauls that NetherRealm is looking to implement this time around. During a hands-on session at Summer Game Fest, I was able to check out roughly an hour of what Mortal Kombat 1 will have in store when it launches later this year.

My demo allowed me to play as four of the game's fighters which included Liu Kang, Kenshi, Kitana, and Sub-Zero. Despite being set within a new version of the Mortal Kombat universe, all four characters felt pretty similar to their previous incarnations while also having some fresh ideas baked in. Even though he's now the Fire God, Liu Kang's moveset continues to center around fast-paced strikes and high-flying kicks. Kenshi also still comes equipped with his iconic sword, but he can now summon a phantom version of himself to fight alongside him during battles. All four of these fighters felt familiar while also being very much unique to MK1. 

Kameo fighters are the biggest mechanical change to Mortal Kombat 1 and they definitely aren't a novelty as I initially thought they might be. Unlike Mortal Kombat 11, MK1 is introducing assist elements in the form of these "Kameo" characters. These additional fighters are integral to how you play the game as you'll be prompted to choose your Kameo partner immediately after selecting your primary combatant. It's not yet known just how many permutations this will make for, but the experimentation this system will allow is part of MK1's allure. 

Kameo fighters can be summoned at certain points during a match to deal out damage in various ways to opponents. For instance, Kano can be called in to fire a laser from his eye, hurl knives at foes, or launch his iconic spinning attack. And while this alone might not seem like a big deal, it's the manner in which Kameo characters integrate seamlessly into larger combos that feels like a major change to how Mortal Kombat 1 will function when compared to previous games. By the end of my time with MK1, I felt like I was only beginning to scratch the surface of understanding how Kameo fighters will work. I'm also greatly excited to mix and match these supporting characters with those on the main roster to find my own preferred tandems. 

One of the other biggest departures seen in Mortal Kombat 1 involves air combos. Mortal Kombat as a series has never placed a large emphasis on chaining together attacks while in the air, but that doesn't hold true in MK1. Of the four characters that I played, there was a pretty noticeable focus on moves that would launch opposing fighters into the air to then begin a more extensive combination of attacks. It's clear that 80-90% of MK1 matches will still primarily play out in ground combat, but this added focus on air combat is something that even the most seasoned Mortal Kombat vets will have to learn how to manage. 

When taking into account both Kameo fighters and the additional air moves, Mortal Kombat 1 seems like it's going to allow for more inventive and extensive combos than the series has ever seen. In some ways, this makes me a bit nervous as it might make the game a bit harder to approach. But even as a relative fighting game novice, I didn't find myself overwhelmed by the number of mechanical elements that Mortal Kombat 1 is looking to include. Those who want to button-mash their way through fights should get just as much out of this game as those who are wanting to try to compete at EVO. 

Perhaps the thing I was most stunned by with Mortal Kombat 1 is just how amazing it looks. The stages, in particular, have some of the most intricate designs the franchise has ever seen and boast a staggering amount of depth. These locales really show the jump that NetherRealm has been able to take by bringing Mortal Kombat into the next generation of consoles. Even though I've only seen a handful of the stages that will be present in Mortal Kombat 1, I'm just as excited to see what each of these levels will look like as I am getting a look at the finalized roster of fighters. 

NetherRealm has been putting out winner after winner for over a decade at this point and it doesn't seem like Mortal Kombat 1 is going to end that hot streak. Outside of simply shaping up to be another fantastic fighting game, though, what makes Mortal Kombat 1 so enticing is just how fresh it feels. This isn't simply a sequel/reboot that looks to expand slightly on what was seen in Mortal Kombat 11 and is instead a game that is looking to chart a new course for a series that has been around for 30 years. It remains to be seen if all of these big changes are for the better, but based on my own brief experience, it looks like Mortal Kombat 1 is finding a perfect balance between the new and the familiar. 

Mortal Kombat 1 launches later this year on September 19 and will be coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.