Mortal Kombat 1 impressions: A massive fighting game with a meaty story

Six hours into my time with Mortal Kombat 1, I’ve barely scratched the floor — I haven’t battled towards a human opponent but, and I’ve solely seen a fraction of its formidable story mode. But it’s the brand new Invasions mode that’s stealing most of my time proper now, and doubtlessly making me miss my deadline for pre-launch impressions of NetherRealm’s new fighting game.

All of which is to say that Mortal Kombat 1’s single-player parts are extravagant. The marketing campaign — or “Kampaign” — is beefy, partially due to well-produced, very expensive-looking cutscenes that play between clusters of precise fights. Many of those storytelling cinematics can run as much as 10 minutes, as heroes Raiden, Kung Lao, Johnny Cage, and others encounter new enemies and allies alike in Outworld. There’s an immense quantity of exposition and dramatic justification for characters fighting, however little of it feels compelled.

Even higher: After greater than a decade of video games with a persistently cinematic storytelling type, the story of Mortal Kombat 1 feels contemporary once more. The game’s narrative is the newest reset of the Mortal Kombat timeline, this time with Liu Kang doing his greatest to chart the course for a extra peaceable model of historical past. This signifies that beforehand well-established characters like Raiden (not a god!) and Sub-Zero and Scorpion (not mortal enemies!) have very totally different tales and motivations this time round. Some characters, like Johnny Cage, are experiencing the occasions of a Mortal Kombat event for the primary time, typically to hilarious impact.

According to my PlayStation 5 save, I’m about midway via the game’s epic reimagining of Mortal Kombat lore, so I count on the marketing campaign to run about eight to 10 hours. I’m genuinely excited to see the place NetherRealm leaves the state of the universe at MK1’s conclusion.

Thanks to single-player Towers, I’ve already seen a second slice of Johnny Cage’s new storyline. These stacks of fights are mainstays of Mortal Kombat, throwing a character towards a set quantity (and even an infinite quantity) of foes. Defeating a Tower’s price of opponents offers you an arcade game-style ending; I picked Johnny Cage’s and it doesn’t disappoint. (Spoiler alert: He takes half in Mortal Kombat not simply to satisfy his future, as impressed upon him by Liu Kang, however to make use of Outworld as inspiration for a new cinematic universe he’s pitching. NetherRealm is, as all the time, having a ton of enjoyable with Johnny as its principal supply of comedian reduction.)

Mortal Kombat 1’s Invasions mode tells a totally different kind of story altogether: seasonal, multiversal yarns the place gamers, once more on the route of Liu Kang, should defeat a main menace via a sequence of fights. There’s little exposition right here past an preliminary animated intro: The first season is about a very offended and jealous alternate-reality Scorpion who plans to destroy a complete timeline as a result of his useless spouse bought married to another person.

Image: NetherRealm Studios/Warner Bros. Games

We’ve already previewed Invasions, a mode that sends gamers on a board game-like dungeon-crawler, however I’m shocked at how shortly it’s hooked me. It helps that Johnny Cage is your very humorous information via the way it works, and that NetherRealm showers you with rewards after fights. I’ve unlocked a first rate quantity of in-game foreign money, skins, weapon variants, fighter coloration palettes, and different perks in simply a few hours with Invasions. The mode has a robust “OK, just one more battle” gravitational pull, and it already looks as if the proper place for gamers who’re shy about taking part in Mortal Kombat 1 on-line however nonetheless need to get years’ price of playtime out of the game. (It’s price noting that there’s no battle cross in Mortal Kombat 1, and every little thing you earn is only beauty.)

There’s a ton of content material to unlock via a number of means. There are Koins, which you’ll be able to earn in a number of modes and spend on the Shrine, the place you principally pull a slot machine deal with to unlock in-game stuff. My first pull gave me idea artwork of a royal Edenian carriage and my second unlocked paintings of a man who works in Madame Bo’s restaurant. Later, I used to be rewarded with in-game currencies and a palette swap for Rain. In different phrases: Expect highs and lows on the Shrine.

Other unlockables come from Mastery development, on a per-fighter (and per-Kameo fighter) foundation. I’m at the moment within the means of leveling up my Sub-Zero, unlocking coloration palettes, title playing cards, brutalities, and extra as I earn XP in varied modes. Thankfully, the content material you do unlock via Mortal Kombat 1’s Mastery ranges applies to the character you’re taking part in as — you received’t unlock stuff for Li Mei whereas taking part in as Scorpion, for instance. There are premium, paid unlocks too. Through an in-game retailer, gamers can spend Dragon Krystals on fancier character and weapon skins. Dragon Krystals may be earned in-game as effectively, however count on them to be fewer and additional between than the opposite currencies.

Image: NetherRealm Studios/Warner Bros. Games by way of Polygon

For lapsed Mortal Kombat gamers or newcomers, there’s additionally loads of tutorial and coaching content material to dig via. NetherRealm has refined its onboarding with Mortal Kombat 1, with fast classes that designate the fundamentals, like blocking and enhanced particular strikes, in addition to extra superior methods, together with the way to perceive body knowledge and positioning. (And guess what? Completing tutorials unlocks foreign money, too, paying out 1000’s of Koins to spend on stuff on the Shrine.)

If you simply want the single-player aspect of Mortal Kombat, there’s a deep effectively of content material for non-competitive followers of the franchise to dive into. The story is already shaping as much as be one in all NetherRealm’s greatest, with months’ and doubtlessly years’ price of seasonal content material to maintain you coming again, unlocking goodies, and perhaps even bettering at fighting video games writ massive alongside the best way.

Mortal Kombat 1 might be launched on Sept. 19 on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X. The game was reviewed on PS5 utilizing a pre-release obtain code offered by Warner Bros. Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These don’t affect editorial content material, although Vox Media could earn commissions for merchandise bought by way of affiliate hyperlinks. You can discover further details about Polygon’s ethics coverage right here.