Another day at E3 means another big day for Mortal Kombat X. We got a close look at two of the game's new "kharacters" yesterday, but just as we thought we had 'em figured out, NeatherRealms Studios head Ed Boon took to the show floor to introduce two other new kombatants, as well as shed some light on the previously revealed D'Vorah and Torr/Ferra.
The gentleman with the glowing eyes above is Kotal Kahn, and you may have seen a brief glimpse at him exploding a heart with his fist quicker than the Mountain squashed the Red Viper's head. Yep, I just worked in a Game of Thrones reference in Mortal Kombat, not sure it gets much geekier than that.
But who is this new Khan? The answers came straight from Boon himself during a PlayStation LiveCast, the entirety of which you can check out at the bottom. Khan is an Aztec warrior, and given that society's fondness for human sacrifices, he should make a nice fit for Mortal Kombat.
Get Over Here And Check Out Scorpion's New Design for Mortal Kombat X
Before we introduce the fourth new character, let's first address a small plot element. This new Mortal Kombat isn't just set during the next tournament after the one featured in the MK reboot. Granted, that's where it starts, but the story spans up to 25 years past that.
That being said, 25 years is a lot of time for things to happen, like for MK familiars Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade to knock boots and make a tourney winner all their own - Cassie Cage, seen below, who sports moves similar to her famous fighting parents. So maybe she'll split punch someone in the babymaker before using her ankles to break their neck?
This might be the biggest change to Mortal Kombat -- while past games like Deadly Alliance would let players switch fighting styles on the fly, in Mortal Kombat X, players will choose one of three different styles, which will effect the types of moves and kombos they'll be able to pull off in-game. For example, as seen above, Scorpion players can choose from Ninjitsu, Hellfire, and Inferno.
Boon explains Ninjutsu incorporates swords into his style, while Hellfire allows the ninja spectre to manipulate hellish flames, and Inferno features demon summoning. But even with the styles, Scorpion still sports trademark moves like the spear and hellfire flip kick, but his new styles have given him new moves, like a Milleena styled teleport kick that sees the spectre summon a fellow Shirai Ryu to nail his opponent with a quick kick from the sky, before disappearing in a burst of hellfire. It'll be an interesting change to things, for sure.
Other new additions include interactive environments for the stages. Boon specifically cited a tiger and tarp that players could bounce off of as an escape in the Outworld Market stage, as well as a little old lady that players could hurl at each other. The other stage, Cove, had its own share of environmental goodies, like dead bodies washing ashore that could be tossed old lady style, or an anchor chain players could swing from.
When asked who the big villain of the game will be - Ed was cagey: 'It's gonna be a fun surprise returning character.' If you immediately thought you knew who that meant, Boon throws a little doubt into the mix: "Not a lot of people will see it coming."
We can expect to see a few more familiar faces in the future, with aged kombatants a distinct option. Scorpion is, of course, a returning icon, but it's too soon to assume the same is true of Sub-Zero -- a character whose backstory includes a lineage of seven generations of kori warriors with that same name.
The energy meter for x-rays, kombo breakers, and enhanced special moves has also been refined, but Boon didn't go too far into detail on how exactly it's been refined. It's all there in the video below, so make sure to check it out. And special advice, head on to the 10:10 mark for a stunning "homage" trailer from Sub-Zero.
Mortal Kombat X is due out later this year for both current and last generation platforms: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One, in addition to Windows PC. The game will feature, according to Boon, "a ton of new, over the top characters."
