There are a lot of directions NetherRealm Studios can take Mortal Kombat 12‘s story after the way Mortal Kombat 11 ended. Recently, the company released Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath, a story-based DLC addition to the base game which not only changed Mortal Kombat 11’s ending but also left the developers with two possible outcomes to choose from when moving forward with the next entry in the Mortal Kombat franchise.
Mortal Kombat games, as ridiculous and convoluted as their plots may be, have always stuck to the same canon storyline which was first introduced in the original Mortal Kombat title. This story progressed in a linear fashion up until the very beginning of the ninth game in the franchise, Mortal Kombat (2011), which saw Shao Kahn dominating over Raiden at the end of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, causing him to send a message back to his former self (during the events of the original Mortal Kombat game) and allowing fans to replay through the timeline once more, albeit with rapidly-growing differences.
By the time Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath comes to an end, the board had been wiped clean once again. Depending on the choice players make at the very end of the game, either the timeline has once again been reset back to the era of The Great Kung Lao, or Shang Tsung is ruling over all the realms with an iron, evil fist. Since it’s unlikely NetherRealm will choose to follow the latter path in Mortal Kombat 12, it’s safe to assume they’re planning on once again building a new timeline from the ground up.
What Mortal Kombat Characters Should Return In MK12
By the end of Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath, Liu Kang has taken on Raiden’s role as protector of Earthrealm and has chosen The Great Kung Lao as his champion, presumably so that he may train him to represent Earth in the next Mortal Kombat tournament. According to the original Mortal Kombat game, the first Kung Lao was a great warrior who had won multiple tournaments over the years, but was finally vanquished by Prince Goro, who then held the title of champion until Liu Kang defeated him.
If Mortal Kombat 12 plans to continue along this path, it means many of the characters fans of the franchise are familiar with, such as Sub-Zero, Scorpion, and Sonya Blade, haven’t even been born yet, and won’t be for many years. There are some Mortal Kombat characters who do not age nearly as quickly as humans, however, and fighters such as Quan Chi, Shang Tsung, Sindel, Shao Kahn, Kitana, and, of course, Goro himself, likely will be around. The Great Kung Lao and Fire God Liu Kang will also likely be playable, as well as an assortment of new characters. However, one of the biggest problems the Mortal Kombat series has is an over-reliance on its own past stories and structure, and it would be much better if the game tried to go in as new a direction as possible for Mortal Kombat 12.
How MK12 Can Introduce New Fighters
The Mortal Kombat series has no shortage of fighters available, with many of them only having appeared once or twice throughout the franchise. However, players have likely grown tired of playing as the same old characters over and over again, and it would be good if NetherRealm Studios chose to eschew a roster filled with familiar faces and instead used the slate-wiping aspects of Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath to introduce some new blood into Mortal Kombat 12.
Taking the game’s story back to the time of The Great Kung Lao means players could step into the shoes of other Mortal Kombat characters only hinted at or briefly shown in previous titles. Instead of playing as Sub-Zero, players could instead don the robes of the Lin-Kuei’s current Grandmaster, perhaps the same one which was featured in Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero. Apep, whose descendant is Mortal Kombat 11’s Krypt explorer, could also make an appearance, as well as the oft-derided Shujinko from Mortal Kombat: Deception. Mortal Kombat 12 could lean into the fantastical elements of the series more at the same time, taking players back to places like Chaosrealm and Orderrealm for the first time since the PS2 era. Players do not need to return to Shang Tsung’s island ever again, especially after the past three games.
Edenians live thousands of years, and many of the monsters roaming the NetherRealm (which have been sorely ignored in recent Mortal Kombat titles) are ageless. Drahmin, Moloch, Havik, Onaga, and other chaotic and demonic creatures could all return as well, but the one thing Mortal Kombat 12 should definitely not do is try and re-tell the same story again. It’s been done in the games, in the movies, in the TV shows, and in the comics, and it’s time for something new.
