It could be quite a while before even so much as the faintest teaser forInjustice 3comes to pass, butMortal Kombat 12could tide fans over until the next iteration of the brutal DC fighting game releases. Announced nonchalantly during a WB earnings call,Mortal Kombat 12will be out at some point in the near future. Now, with a long and successful track record of DLC fighters from popular IPs gracingMortal Kombat, it only makes sense that NetherRealm would go to the well of DC for the next batch of Kombat Packs.
On May 10, the officialMortal KombatTwitter handle released a teaser videoshowing a clock advancing its hour hand past 12 and straight to one, signaling thatMortal Kombat 12may represent another massive departure for the acclaimed series. Nothing in the way of gameplay or in-game cinematics has surfaced online yet, but between coded messages from the developers and the aforementioned announcement, fans' excitement has grown to a fervor, prompting speculation that a fully fledged announcement trailer is right around the corner.
RELATED:Though Mortal Kombat 12 Has Not Been Revealed, One Thing Already Seems Obvious
NetherRealm’s Two Franchises Share Enough DNA for a Proper Collaboration
The DLC fighters released throughKombat Packs for the last severalMortal Kombattitleshave contained some truly insane crossovers, mostly to the delight of fans who celebrate the outlandish nature of NetherRealm’s premier franchise. Between original characters andMortal Kombatveterans making a comeback are cherished names from cult cinema such as Freddy Krueger, John Rambo, and RoboCop.
Most are plucked from slasher flicks and shoot-em-ups, making them natural fits for the hyper-stylized violence thatMortal Kombatis known for. WithMortal Kombat 12on the horizon, some fans are already brainstorming their far-flung wishlists for future Kombat Packs, imagining what cherished IP NetherRealm will pull from next.
Injustice 2launched in 2017, splitting the four-year gap betweenMortal Kombat XandMortal Kombat 11. But while it carved its own niche in the fighting game landscape, it kept NetherRealms’s unmistakable flavor, opting for the bombastic and high-flying PG13 brutality of DC’s cast of superheroes and villains in lieu ofMortal Kombat’s gore and viscera.
BothInjusticegames had their fair share of fans, though some contested that they were more closely akin to an offshoot ofMortal Kombatthan a separate entity. Even still,the desire for anotherInjusticegameis there, especially with DC’s continued relevance in the realms of other mediums of entertainment.
Injecting Some Injustice Into Mortal Kombat Would be a Win-Win
The precedence forMortal Kombatto bridge the gap between the two franchises has already been set with the release of The Joker as a DLC fighter forMortal Kombat 11. NetherRealm already has the usage rights to an incredible stable of established icons from the DC universe, and it would not be the most surprising decision if the studio opted to break out a few of thosecharacters for aMortal Kombat 12Kombat Pack.
Its advantages are apparent, not just from a monetary standpoint, but also as a gift toInjusticefans who have gone six years without a new entry in the series. The Venn diagram ofMortal Kombatfans andInjusticefans has a ton of overlap but is not one-to-one, so a DC-themed Kombat Pack could sway the latter to giveMortal Kombat 12a try when they previously might not have.
No matterNetherRealm’s plans forMortal Kombat 12and beyond, its millions of fans are waiting with bated breath for more information on the new entry to the historic franchise. A DC DLC crossover could be a slam dunk, but just to know thatMortal Kombat 12is relatively close at hand is a thrilling prospect for even casual fans of the series, especially given the latest teaser’s indication that the new title will mark an evolution for the franchise.
