The Mortal Kombat series is infamous for its bloody fatalities, even they don’t quite cause the stir they once did. Mortal Kombat 1’s finishing moves, the ones we’ve seen, dial the gore up to 11. But the biggest surprise about Mortal Kombat 1 is that every single fatality in the fighting game comes with full audio description. And it’s absolutely, utterly amazing.
Despite the name, Mortal Kombat 1 follows on from Mortal Kombat 11 and serves as a soft-reboot for the series. The Mortal Kombat 1 release date is set for September 19 but, up until yesterday, there was a beta open to those who had pre-ordered the game.
Plenty of blood was spilled but players also discovered that, nestled amongst the game’s accessibility options, is the ability to have each fatality painstakingly described. It’s aimed at supporting those who have visual impairments, but I’m absolutely going to to turn it on every time I play.
Does this make me a terrible person? Probably, yes, but I never get tired of hearing the narrator describe the on-screen bloodshed. She doesn’t skimp over a thing, either. Here’s how she describes Sub Zero’s fatality.
“Sub-Zero throws an ice boomerang that slices through the victim’s abdomen. Sub-Zero spin kicks their upper body to face backwards. The ice slams into their head and their torso slides to the ground.”
Not all of Mortal Kombat 1’s audio descriptions are quite that detailed. But, since the narrator sounds like a real person, versus an AI voice, it does make me wonder how or indeed if she described her day to anyone who asked.
While the beta’s now over, GamesHub has helpfully compiled footage of all those fatalities, with audio description. But be warned, these are not safe for work and, thanks to the narration, there’s an even greater chance your boss will spot you.
If you’re eagerly awaiting the release of Mortal Kombat 1 and are wondering who you’ll get to play as, here are all of the revealed Mortal Kombat 1 characters. And if you want to know if your PC can handle it, check out our rundown of the Mortal Kombat 1 system requirements to make sure your fatalities look as good as the narrator makes them sound.