As if the Mortal Kombat 1 roster couldn’t get any better, it literally just did. Two of the fighting game‘s age-old titans have been added to the fray, joining the likes of Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Mileena on the battlefield. But just who are they? Given they’ve both been on the bench for a while, you’re forgiven for scratching your head over Mortal Kombat 1‘s new additions.
First up is Smoke, a character who debuted as a secret fighter in 1993’s Mortal Kombat 2, then made a reappearance in Mortal Kombat 3 before being benched for 16 years until Mortal Kombat 2011. He’s back 12 years later in human form to blow up the planet in MK 1, and we see him tearing through enemies as the Lin Kuei attempt to besiege a mysterious mountaintop temple.
Although we don’t see any world-explosions, we do see him dart around, turning into smoke on a whim. He summons fan-favorite Cyrax as a Kameo, who proceeds to attach two grenades to his enemies’ head whilst driving a saw into their chest. Smoke then promptly uses the explosion’s stun to fire an explosive kunai into their opponent’s heart and impale their head upon the floor. Not going to lie, he looks pretty damn fun.
Joining him on the roster is demi-god Rain, whose last appearance was in 2019’s MK11 as a DLC character – not that many people remember it, sadly. A master of all things aquatic, we see him take on Scorpion using a vast array of ranged water-themed attacks, including whirlpools and lightning storms. He can also use portals, which is bound to cause absolute chaos.
During the closing fight, we see fellow Lin Kuei Frost join the fight as a Kameo character, but we see glimpses of Sektor earlier in the trailer, too. More importantly, Scorpion is also available as a Kameo, seen during the first fight with Sub-Zero.
As someone who absolutely loved playing Smoke back in Mortal Kombat 2011, I am absolutely overjoyed to see him make a reappearance. While there’s no world-ending that I can see, the fluidity of his kit is exactly what I’ve been looking for in a character. Pair him with Frost, and that’s a bloody chef’s kiss.
If you’re looking to brush up on your Mortal Kombat history, we have a list of all the currently known Mortal Kombat 1 characters for you to peruse ahead of the Mortal Kombat 1 release date later this year.