With Mortal Kombat 1 looking to be more of a soft reboot, itās useful to know whatās happened in the Mortal Kombat series story to date. Thatās why Iāve cast my eye over the whole series, spinoffs aside, to bring you up to date. So here is a full summary of the main Mortal Kombat game franchise story so far.
A Story Summary of Each Main Mortal Kombat Game
If you just want to know about the new continuity, the one that leads up to Mortal Kombat 1, you can skip ahead. Mortal Kombat 1 will be the seriesās second soft reboot, since 2011ās Mortal Kombat also went that route.
Additionally, since the first few games have different endings depending on which character you play, Iām going by confirmed canon or generally assumed canon. But game by game, here are the Mortal Kombat game story elements you should probably know about. Iāve omitted Mortal Kombat Trilogy because itās a compilation game.
Mortal Kombat (1992)
Mortal Kombat is a tournament thatās fought every 50 years or so, hosted by the soul-stealing sorcerer Shang Tsung, on his private island. This tournamentās participants are Liu Kang, Thunder God Raiden, Scorpion, Sonya Blade, Sub-Zero, Johnny Cage, and Kano.
However, itās not just an ordinary tournament. Itās a way of preventing the forces of Outworld (a none-too-pleasant fantasy-style realm) from taking over the earth. Shang Tsungās champion, the four-armed Goro, has won nine tournaments, and if he wins a tenth, Outworld can invade.
Liu Kang, a Shaolin monk, is the victor. He defeats Goro and Shang Tsung, saving the Earth.
Mortal Kombat II (1993)
Despite his defeat in the last game, Shang Tsung convinces his emperor, Shao Kahn, to hold the next tournament in Outworld. There they will face the emperor himself and, if all goes according to plan, get their heads smooshed by a big hammer.
No, itās not been 50 years and itās not clear why Raiden, self-proclaimed protector of Earthrealm, doesnāt just tell Shao Kahn to shove it. But throughout the series, the Elder Gods, who are above Raiden, are shown as being unwilling or unable to intervene.
Liu Kang once again wins the tournament, defeating Shao Kahn.
Mortal Kombat 3 / Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (1995)
Shao Kahn is back, despite Liu Kang turning him to rubble. He resurrects his late wife, Queen Sindel, on Earth, letting him open a portal and invade the world. Thereās an awful lot of loopholes involved in this Mortal Kombat business. Heās defeated, Earth is saved, and Shao Kahn exits the series, for now.
Mortal Kombat 4 (1997)
A new threat arises in the form of rogue Elder God Shinnok. Originally defeated by Raiden, he was imprisoned in the Netherrealm, the franchiseās fiery underworld. Aided by his own sorcerer, Quan Chi, and enabled by the defeat of Shao Kahn, he attempts to conquer pretty much everywhere.
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance (2002)
Quan Chi and Shang Tsung team up and kill series hero Liu Kang. Their combined powers allow them to go toe to toe with the series regulars, also killing the surprisingly-still-alive Shao Kahn. The ending is a little muddy, but the beginning of the next game suggests they succeed in defeating the heroes.
Mortal Kombat: Deception (2004)
Shang Tsung and Quan Chiās alliance crumbles, their actions resulting in the resurrection of Onaga, the Dragon King, a long-dead Outworld ruler. He serves as the gameās main antagonist, but as with Shao Kahn and Shinnok before him, he is ultimately defeated.
Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (2006)
Each Mortal Kombat has been adding more fighters, to the point where Mortal Kombat: Armageddon features over 60. Armageddonās story is that the sheer number of fighters is in danger of destabilizing all the realms.
And so, an Elder God constructs a giant pyramid, with the promise of ultimate power to whoever wins this final Mortal Kombat tournament. The canon ending, according to the next game, is that, while many fighters die, Shao Kahn wins, beating Raiden to within an inch of his life.
The series also contains more lore and character stories than you can shake a stick at. Thereās the ongoing rivalry between undead ninja Scorpion and his ice-hurling rival Sub-Zero, perhaps the most famous characters apart from Liu Kang himself.
Scorpion believes Sub-Zero killed his family and clan, so he kills Sub-Zero. Sub-Zeroās brother then becomes the new Sub-Zero and continues this rivalry, unaware that Quan Chi actually killed Scorpionās clan. Thereās also the story of Kitana who is the ātrueā ruler of Outworld, her toothy clone sister Mileena, and Sindel whoās revealed to be her mother. But if I attempted to cover all that Iād be here till Mortal Kombat 1 came out.
A Story Summary of the New, Reboot Mortal Kombat Continuity
As of 2011ās Mortal Kombat 9 ā called just Mortal Kombat ā series continuity has been reset. Hereās what happens in this new trilogy.
Mortal Kombat / Mortal Kombat 9 (2011)
Mortal Kombat 9 begins where Armageddon ended, with Shao Kahn about to kill thunder god and Earthrealm protector Raiden. Raiden sends a cryptic message to his past self, āHe must win!ā Past Raiden receives this message through his now cracked amulet. He also starts having fractured visions of the future and so tries to avert Shao Kahnās victory.
His efforts to prevent armageddon go horribly, horribly wrong. The game revisits the events of Mortal Kombat 1 ā 3, including the invasion of Earth. Many fighters die, including Liu Kang and Kitana until Raiden realizes, almost too late, that āHe must win!ā refers to Shao Kahn.
By letting Shao Kahn win, without a formal tournament, the Elder Gods are able to assist Raiden. With the additional power they grant him, he defeats Shao Kahn. Itās a victory but one with a terrible, terrible cost.
Mortal Kombat X (2015)
As in Mortal Kombat 4, Shao Kahnās death helps banished Elder God Shinnok get a foothold on Earth, which is still suffering the effects of the Outworld invasion. Many of the characters who died in Mortal Kombat 9 are brought back as revenants, under the control of Shinnok and Quan Chi.
Shinnok is defeated and banished by former Hollywood actor Johnny Cage who, shocker, has actually gone through some character development. Those who were resurrected return as their normal, living selves, though not without some psychological damage.
After Shinnok returns, the Earthrealm and Outworld heroes band together to stop him, including Scorpion and Sub-Zero, who make peace. Shinnok is defeated by Cassie Cage, daughter of Johnny Cage and series regular Sonya Blade.
Raiden, who has been corrupted by dark energy, removes Shinnokās head. He presents it to the revenant Liu Kang and Kitana (who currently rule the Netherrealm) as a warning to stay the hell away from Earthrealm.
Mortal Kombat 11 (2019)
This entry in the series has time travel all over the place. Shinnokās mother, Kronika, can control time using her hourglass, and sheās not happy about her sonās death. So, as this gameās villain, she joins forces with revenant Liu Kang and revenant Kitana alongside other villains, past and present. Her plan is to create an entirely new reality, which she calls her New Era.
Past and future are slammed together and characters meet other versions of themselves, with dramatic results. Ultimately, Raiden gives his powers to Liu Kang and merges past Liu Kang with present revenant Liu Kang to create Fire God Liu Kang. Fire God Liu Kang defeats Kronika and prepares to create his own, new timeline.
Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath continues the story, with Shang Tsung attempting to take Kronikaās crown that is required to use her hourglass. But ultimately (as confirmed by the Mortal Kombat 1 trailer) Liu Kang defeats him, and using the crown, he creates a new reality.
Do You Need to Know All This to Play Mortal Kombat 1?
You donāt have to know the entire Mortal Kombat chronology, new and old, to play Mortal Kombat 1, but itās clear that youāll get more out of this soft reboot if you do. The new game takes place in Fire God Liu Kangās reality, and so in order to really appreciate how things have changed, youāll need to know how events unfolded in at least one of the timelines.
That summarizes the full main Mortal Kombat series story so far, so you have a working knowledge to start Mortal Kombat 1.
Published: May 19, 2023 12:52 AM UTC