Mortal Kombat: Every Game Ranked From Worst To Best
6. Mortal Kombat 1
Mortal Kombat returned in 2023 with Mortal Kombat 1, the first set in Fire God Liu Kang's "New Era", following the time-altering shenanigans of MK11, and its DLC "Aftermath".
Being the second reboot of the series, MK1 features reimagined heroes and villains, with Scorpion and Sub Zero being brothers, Shao Kahn now as General Shao and former henchmen like Baraka and Reptile getting the spotlight as good guys. The roster also brings back numerous 2000s/3D Era characters that fans have clamored for, such as Havik and Reiko.
From a gameplay perspective, MK1 features some of the best fighting in the series. Aside from your standard fare, players can now perform air combos while the Kameo system can provide offensive and defensive buffs that can help turn the tide of any battle.
Despite these major upgrades, Mortal Kombat 1 can often feel disappointing at times. Story Mode starts off interesting but its second half soon devolves into unnecessary fan service. Numerous quality-of-life features are also missing while microtransactions are handled worse compared to MK11.
Negative aspects aside, Mortal Kombat 1 is a solid, fun game to play, and with future updates and DLC, it can (hopefully) only get better.