The next Mortal Kombat entry is here and ready to unleash more hardcore violence onto PC and consoles everywhere. Continuing the events of Mortal Kombat X, Mortal Kombat 11 follows a much more hardened Raiden and the warriors of Earth Realm as they defend the human world against the forces of the Netherealm who have enlisted the aide of the mysterious Kronika; a time controlling being whose strength and influence overtakes even the Elder Gods and who also happens to be the mother of Shinnok.

Mortal Kombat 11 is a 2019 fighting game, it is developed by NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. It is currently available on PC, Playstation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Editor’s Note: Near complete to complete spoilers for Mortal Kombat 11’s story mode may be present within this review. 

Klassic kombat returns in Mortal Kombat 11.

Following the ending of Mortal Kombat X, Mortal Kombat 11 starts us off with Red Lightning Raiden torturing Shinnok for his evil misdeeds. After beheading Shinnok he goes to Earth Realm to gather his forces to finish off Nether Realm for good. Unbeknownst to him however they have help in the form of Kronika a being whose power and influence outweighs even the Elder Gods.

Mortal Kombat’s story remains one of the most impressively competent ever to be told within a fighting game.

THE GOOD: Mortal Kombat’s story has always been my favorite among the fighting game genre. It never borders on the ridiculous (to the point of being bored or lost anyways) and it’s quite easy to follow. Not to mention it’s enjoyable as hell to boot. I have no idea why so many fighters have such a tough time developing a solid story and decent world building, but Mortal Kombat has never really had this issue and it’s one of the reasons why people will never forget it’s existence regardless of generation or era.

The spirit of Mortal Kombat remains mostly intact in Mortal Kombat 11.

Gameplay at it’s core is the same as the more recent entries with certain button combinations unleashing powerful combos and attacks. X-ray moves are back and reworked as a new mechanic which deals extra damage when in a tight spot. There’s also the Fatal Blow attack which gives losing players a chance to real major damage for a last character effort at victory. However, this can only be used once per fight which will require some much needed consideration for use.

The past and present collide in Mortal Kombat 11.

Following the events of MKX, Raiden is ready to end Nether Realm. Consumed by anger and rage due to the influence of Shinnok’s amulet he sends Earth Realm’s forces to destroy Nether Realm. This ends up costing them present day Sonya Blade and putting Cassie Cage in charge of Earth Realm’ s defenses. Meanwhile, Kronika has manipulated time to bring back dead & undead warriors to their former glory. This includes Lui Kang, Kung Lao, Shao Khan, the aforementioned Sonya Blade, and many more. Kronika gathers her forces as present day Raiden is replaced by the more pure hearted past Raiden who aides Earth Realm. After going to war with Kronika, Lui Kang’s present self merges with his past self which leads past Raiden to sacrifice his Elder God status to revive Lui Kang’s pure form in addition to turning him into an Elder God putting an end to Kronika’s centuries long manipulation of time. Depending on how many rounds it takes the player to defeat Kronika either past Raiden or past Melina will help Elder God Lui Kang rebuild the world.

The poorly managed Krypt of Mortal Kombat 11 where loot is obtained.

THE BAD: Mortal Kombat suffers from a massive progression issue with it’s loot drop system. You have multiple load outs for each character and each load out requires specific material for said gear in order to improve and advance the character’s gear and abilities. You have the option to buy the necessary gear with real world money for said gear, but it’s usually timed. Most of the loot is also RNG based and you won’t always be able to get the character’s gear you want.

Mortal Kombat’s complex gear system is it’s biggest issue, and it’s complicated for all the wrong reasons.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Mortal Kombat 11 is a fantastic fighting game with some grind issues. However, those can still be rectified with time. That being said it doesn’t stop the latest in the long running fighter from being a must play for fans of the franchise and genre it represents.