Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon recently shared some fan art of the cyborg ninja assassin Cryax’s faceplate exploding, revealing the human behind the cold machine. Boon has been a constant presence on social media over the years, dropping cryptic hints about the next DLC guest characters coming to his long-running fighting game franchise and teasing fans about future projects NetherRealm Studios might be working on. He’s also provided many interesting tidbits about Mortal Kombat, such as the origins of Scorpion’s iconic “Get Over Here” catchphrase.
One of the many Mortal Kombat characters Ed Boon has helped create is Cyrax, a cybernetic member of the icy Lin Kuei assassin clan that made his first appearance in 1995’s Mortal Kombat 3. Cyrax was part of a clandestine experiment by the Lin Kuei to create more efficient killers by transferring their warriors’ brains into mechanical bodies, and his first mission as the yellow-hued LK-4D4 was to track down and eliminate former Lin Kuei member Sub-Zero. As the Mortal Kombat series went on, Cyrax would regain his humanity and become an ally of the Special Forces in their mission to protect Earthrealm. He would play a minor role in Mortal Kombat 11’s story mode, but Cyax’s last playable appearance to date was in Mortal Kombat X as part of the DLC character Triborg alongside fellow robots Sektor and Cyber Smoke.
Earlier today, Ed Boon shared an impressive fan animation of Cyrax on Twitter, done by noted freelance artist FlavioLuccisano. This brief clip sees Cyrax’s faceplate blow apart, revealing his still-human face underneath as music from the Rooftop stage of Mortal Kombat 3 plays in the background. Aside from Cyrax, FlavioLuccisano has drawn several characters from Mortal Kombat’s large roster of playable characters, including fan-favorites like Reptile and Johnny Cage.
This stunning Cyrax animation comes as rumors of NetherRealm already beginning work on Mortal Kombat 12 spread across the internet, fueled by the studio recently announcing that they are done adding new content to Mortal Kombat 11. Fans are already speculating about MK 12’s hypothetical roster of playable fighters, with some wishing for a massive cast on par with past titles like Mortal Kombat Armageddon and others requesting guest fighters like WWE legends Mick Foley and Kane.
Given the timeline-shattering events of the Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath DLC that paved the way for MK 12, Cyrax could return as a playable fighter in either his robotic form or having regained the humanity he came to miss so sorely in later Mortal Kombat games. In any case, it’s great to see fans like FlavioLuccisano capture the memorable characters of Mortal Kombat through drawings and animations, as much as it is to see these talented artists be recognized for their work by the very people who first brought one of gaming’s most iconic fighting game franchises.
