The many realms and dimensions of Mortal Kombat have been filled with a diverse cast of characters over the course of the series’ 33-year-long history. From the stoic Thunder God Raiden to the monstrous winged vampire Nitara, players can embody fighters of all kinds throughout the many Mortal Kombat titles. While most Mortal Kombat fighters, such as Liu Kang, Scorpion, and Sub-Zero, went on to appear in several subsequent games, numerous other fighters only appeared in their debut title for a number of factors, including licensing issues, balancing issues, and fan popularity. However, with Mortal Kombat 1 being set in a brand-new universe, these forgotten fighters could reappear in new, surprising ways.
Every Fighter That Will Be Featured in Mortal Kombat's Legacy Kollection
While only a handful of games have been confirmed for the Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection, the compilation already includes a lot of fighters.
Mortal Kombat Fighters Who Only Appeared in One Game
Characters who only appear in one Mortal Kombat game can be divided up into two groups: original fighters created by Midway Games and NetherRealm Studios, and DLC fighters from separate pop culture films, shows, and other games. These fighters include:
- Taven
- Daegon
- Moloch
- Onaga
- Kollector
- Cetrion
- Torr
- Kung Jin
- Triborg
- Batman
- Captain Marvel
- Catwoman
- Darkseid
- Deathstroke
- The Flash
- Green Lantern
- Lex Luthor
- Superman
- Wonder Woman
- Dark Kahn
- Kratos
- Freddy Krueger
- Jason Voorhees
- Predator
- Alien
- Leatherface
- Spawn
- The Terminator
- RoboCop
- John Rambo
A majority of these fighters come from Midway’s final Mortal Kombat game, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, with the notable exception of The Joker, who is so far the only DC character to appear in two Mortal Kombat games thanks to his DLC inclusion in Mortal Kombat 11.
While it’s unlikely that most of the Mortal Kombat 2011, Mortal Kombat X, and Mortal Kombat 11 DLC fighters will reappear in future games, given the precedent of them not appearing in other titles, a few of them could reappear in new forms. For example, Mortal Kombat 2011 on the PlayStation 3 featured Kratos as an exclusive fighter based on his classic Greek God of War incarnation, but he could potentially reappear in future Mortal Kombat games based on his Norse incarnation, played by Christopher Judge. Similarly, future Mortal Kombat games could feature Darkseid and Deathstroke as DC DLC fighters as they’re historically known to be exceptionally violent, similar to The Joker.
This list does not include fighters who debuted in Mortal Kombat 1 as they haven’t had the chance to reappear in other Mortal Kombat games yet.
Mortal Kombat Fighters Likely to Return in Liu Kang’s Universe
In Mortal Kombat 1, Titan Liu Kang created a new universe in an effort to allow all living beings the opportunity to find peace. This resulted in distinct changes from the original Mortal Kombat timelines, such as Raiden being a humble young villager in Fengjian, Scorpion being Kuai Liang instead of Hanzo Hasashi, and Shao Kahn being a General instead of the dominating leader of Outworld. Due to changes such as these, the circumstances and background of several past Mortal Kombat characters appearing in this timeline will likely be different from their prior counterparts. For instance, Triborg was said to be the last remaining cyborg of the Lin Kuei Cyber Initiative, but it could be the first of Sektor’s new Cyber Lin Kuei in this new timeline.
Kollector in Mortal Kombat 1’s timeline appears to still be a Naknada from Outworld, but he only appears in Mortal Kombat 1’s Invasions mode as an NPC. While Kollector is described by Johnny Cage as his “personal shopper and lifetime pickleball teammate”, this background can easily be retconned in Mortal Kombat 2 and the Kollector could return as a loyal follower to General Shao’s rebellion. Onaga was only playable in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon but continues to play a pivotal background role in the new timeline. Long ago, Onaga was imprisoned by Shao’s ancestors, but Shao has sent Reiko to free and tame Onaga in an effort to overthrow Empress Mileena and take control of Outworld. Based on these events, Onaga may be the primary antagonist of Mortal Kombat 2.
Fighters Unlikely to Return in Liu Kang’s Universe
Due to the circumstances surrounding the creation of Liu Kang’s universe, a few Mortal Kombat characters will likely not return in Mortal Kombat 1 sequels unless they appear as invaders from other universes. For example, Cetrion was the Elder Goddess of Life, Virtue, and Light and the daughter of Titaness Kronika in the previous timeline, but she likely doesn’t exist in Liu Kang’s universe due to the lack of a Kronika in his timeline. Similarly, Taven and Daegon were the sons of the Edenian God Argus and brother to Rain, but Rain is no longer the son of Argus in Mortal Kombat 1 and Argus is now considered to be an Outworld God, making Taven and Daegon’s return unlikely or at least not in significant roles.
Mortal Kombat 1
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 87%
- Released
- September 19, 2023
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- NetherRealm Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Warner Brothers Games
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Fighting
