Mortal Kombat (also known as Mortal Kombat 9 (MK9)) is a 2011 fighting game developed by NetherRealm Studios and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. It is the ninth main installment in the Mortal Kombat series and a soft reboot of the series. The game was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 systems in April 2011, and a PlayStation Vita port was released in May 2012. An expanded version of the game, titled Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition, was released for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in February 2012 and for Microsoft Windows in July 2013.

Although beginning during the events of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, the plot is a retroactive continuity to the earliest period in the Mortal Kombat series: the events of the first three games (Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat II and Mortal Kombat 3, as well as the third game's two updates Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Mortal Kombat Trilogy). The storyline involves the divine protector of Earth, Raiden, attempting to change the aftermath of the events of Armageddon by contacting his past self as he faces defeat at the hands of the evil emperor of Outworld, Shao Kahn. While having characters and levels rendered in three-dimensions, the gameplay distances itself from the 3D graphics style seen in the last five games, bearing closer resemblance to that of the 2D era of the series, using a camera that is perpendicular to the two-dimensional playing field. Colloquially this is called 2.5D.

Upon release, Mortal Kombat received very positive reviews and won several awards for fighting game of the year. It was also a commercial success, selling one million copies in the first month alone. Due to its extremely violent content, the game was banned in Australia due to the lack of appropriate ratings category and South Korea and it has been reportedly indexed in Germany, the Australian ban was later lifted due to the introduction of an R18 classification and the game was released with many other R-rated games in May 2013. A sequel, Mortal Kombat X was released in 2015 with another direct follow-up, Mortal Kombat 11, releasing in April 2019.

Principal gameplay involves one-on-one 2.5D-style fighting. Mortal Kombat uses a single two-dimensional fighting plane (at 60 frames per second),^[5][6] although characters are rendered in three-dimensional fashion,^[7] intended to give depth and range to portrayals of various projectiles.^[8] Unlike previous Mortal Kombat games, four buttons on the game controller represent attacks and are each linked to a corresponding limb.

A new feature is the "super meter", which can be charged by various actions during battle such as performing special moves, getting blocked by the opponent, or getting hit by them.^[8] The super meter can be charged to three levels, each of them enabling a different action to be performed. At the first level, it can be used to deliver an enhanced version of one of the character's special attacks; two levels can be used to interrupt a combo attack, and the full three levels allow for the delivery of a special attack called an "X-ray move". The X-ray move unleashes a series of attacks during which the game provides an internal view of the character being attacked, which shows their bones and organs being broken or ruptured.^[8][9]

Extra features include a story mode during which the player plays as multiple characters,^[10] a Fatality training mode (allowing players to practice executing finishing moves),^[11] the Challenge Tower, tag team fighting, and an online mode. The Challenge Tower mode is a single-player option that includes 300 specific challenges of various difficulties providing currency rewards upon completion; players have the option of using in-game currency to bypass other difficult challenges, completing them later.^[8][11] Among the various challenges are "Test Your Might" (rapidly pressing buttons and using specific timing to destroy blocks of varying difficulty), "Test Your Sight" (following an object hidden under a cup or skull and revealing the object after a shuffle), "Test Your Strike" (destroying a specific block in a stack) and "Test Your Luck" (fighting under certain conditions, such as no jumping^[11]). The four-player tag-team feature is an original feature, allowing two players to play together.^[12] During tag gameplay, two new types of attacks become available. The first of them is the "tag assist" attack, in which the off-screen character temporarily jumps in and performs certain attacks during the active character's combo. The other is the "tag kombo", in which the active character performs a combo that is finished by the off-screen character as they enter the fight.^[8]

The online mode includes a "King of the Hill" option, where up to eight players can act as spectators and play the winner of a fight. Spectators may also rate the fights and use the "forum" to determine how to perform various combos or moves observed during a fight.^[10] A single-use online pass is also included with the game which is mandatory to access the online components. Online passes are also available from the PlayStation Store and Xbox Live Marketplace.^[13] There is also a PlayStation 3-exclusive 3D display mode, for which 3D glasses are not necessary.^[14]

The game's director, Ed Boon, described it as an altered re-telling of the events of the first three Mortal Kombat games (Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat II and Mortal Kombat 3):

"Raiden is about to be killed by Shao Kahn, and just before he delivers the last blow, Raiden sends a mental message to his earlier self by saying that he must win, and the camera rewinds back to Mortal Kombat 1. The Raiden from Mortal Kombat 1 then gets the message and experiences a premonition. The game then spans Mortal Kombat 1, 2, and 3, retelling the story with an enlightened Raiden, who has changed the course of events. Eventually, everything the player has seen happen before — Liu Kang winning, Lin Kuei turning into cybernetic ninjas, has been altered. You might see a cybernetic character who wasn't before, and a different version of events."^[15]

During the Armageddon war, all warriors from the realms have been killed, leaving only Raiden and Shao Kahn remaining. Having defeated Blaze, Shao Kahn is imbued with godlike power and easily overpowers Raiden. In a final attempt to stop Shao Kahn, Raiden casts one last spell to send a message to his past self through his shattered amulet, with the vague message "He must win" before Shao Kahn delivers a killing blow on him.

During the events of the first tournament from the first game, the past Raiden sees visions of the future due to the message he received and notices his amulet has been damaged. Raiden concludes that Liu Kang must win the tournament to save Earthrealm. During the tournament, Liu Kang becomes the only remaining Earthrealm contender, due in part to Scorpion's murder of Bi-Han, better known as Sub-Zero, in retaliation for the latter's massacre of the former's Shirai Ryu clan including Scorpion's wife and infant son some years earlier. Raiden pleads with Scorpion to spare Sub-Zero in exchange for asking the Elder Gods to resurrect Scorpion’s clan. Scorpion reluctantly agrees, but Quan Chi produces false visions in Scorpion’s mind, enraging him and causing him to slay Sub-Zero as he did in the original timeline. Liu Kang is successful in defeating the Shokan Prince Goro, as well as the crafty sorcerer Shang Tsung. Raiden's amulet, however, cracks further, a sign that future events remain unchanged. Disappointed with the sorcerer's failure, emperor Shao Kahn orders Shang Tsung's execution, but is convinced otherwise when the sorcerer suggests holding a second tournament in Outworld with different stakes: if Earthrealm wins, Outworld will leave them alone forever, but if Outworld wins, they will be allowed to invade Earthrealm uninhibited. Though he initially refuses, Raiden relents when Tarkatans invade Earthrealm as part of Shang Tsung's blackmail against Earthrealm.

During the second tournament, Bi-Han's younger brother Kuai Liang decides to become the new Sub-Zero, and he and his friend Smoke arrive to avenge his brother. They are followed by Lin Kuei cyber assassins Sektor and Cyrax who are tasked with retrieving the rogue warriors for cybernetic conversion. Raiden changes the timeline by rescuing Smoke from being converted, at the cost of Kuai Liang being taken away. Kitana, the adopted daughter of Shao Kahn, chooses to join Earthrealm's fight after learning of the existence of her half-Tarkatan clone Mileena, created by Shang Tsung on Shao Kahn's orders, with Kitana's childhood friend Jade, joining her later. In a bid to save Earth, Raiden substitutes Kung Lao in place of Liu Kang during the tournament. Following his victory over Shang Tsung, the ruler of Netherrealm, Quan Chi, and the fire-breathing Kintaro, Kung Lao's neck is snapped by Shao Kahn while his back was turned, killing him, with Liu Kang retaliating and mortally wounding the emperor in a fit of rage. Raiden's amulet continues to deteriorate and he becomes increasingly concerned.

Shao Kahn is healed by Quan Chi, at which point the two realms enter into an alliance. Quan Chi also revives and brainwashes Shao Kahn's long-dead wife, Sindel. In doing so, the ward that prevents Shao Kahn's physical access to Earthrealm is nullified and a full-scale invasion is now possible. Raiden saves Johnny Cage from certain death by slaying the centaurian Motaro. Joined by police officers Stryker and former Black Dragon member Kabal, the Earthrealm fighters attempt to stop Kahn's invasion. Kintaro severely burns Kabal but he is revived by Kano, which greatly increases Kabal's speed. Kahn dramatically enhances Sindel's power by sacrificing Tsung, taking the souls he has stolen for centuries and infusing them into Sindel.

Raiden and Liu Kang travel to appeal to the Elder Gods, requesting they stop Shao Kahn's invasion. The Elder Gods refuse, saying that Kahn's invasion does not violate their laws, and that only attempting to merge Earthrealm into Outworld (without winning a Mortal Kombat tournament) would be a violation.

While Raiden and Liu Kang are away, Sindel leads an Outworlder attack on the heroes. During the ensuing battle, Jax, Jade, Sub-Zero, Kabal, Stryker and Smoke are easily defeated and killed by Sindel, and Kitana is brutally beaten. Before Sindel can kill her, Nightwolf intervenes and sacrifices himself in order to kill her. Raiden and Liu Kang return soon after, and Kitana dies of her wounds after sharing her final words with Liu Kang, leaving Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade as the only survivors, but both of them are too injured to continue fighting.

Raiden attempts to ally with Quan Chi, offering the souls of the deceased heroes as payment (and his own soul if he dies). Quan Chi declines, and reveals he already has possession of the heroes' souls, promised to him by Shao Kahn in exchange for his allegiance to the emperor, and has turned them into undead "revenants". Quan Chi's words make the dismayed Raiden realize that "He must win" refers to Shao Kahn himself; should Kahn conquer Earthrealm without victory in Mortal Kombat, the Elder Gods will punish him. Liu Kang, angered by the seemingly pointless deaths of their allies, blames Raiden and goes to attack Shao Kahn alone. Raiden tries to stop Liu Kang, but accidentally kills him when Liu Kang's fire mixes with Raiden's lightning, burning Liu Kang alive. Overcome with guilt, Raiden surrenders to Shao Kahn, at which point, the Elder Gods intervene, imbuing Raiden with their power, which he then uses to defeat and kill Shao Kahn for violating the Mortal Kombat code.

After Shao Kahn's death, Raiden vows to rebuild Earthrealm with Cage and Blade. Quan Chi, now shown to be an agent of Shinnok, the exiled Elder God of darkness, reveals that the destruction of Shao Kahn and the weakening of Earthrealm by the death of their fighters was part of their plan to conquer all the realms for their own bidding.^[16]

The game had 28 playable characters at launch. Four other fighters were DLC characters. The playable characters in bold are new to the series, while the italicized ones represents guest characters.

Cyber Sub-Zero and Quan Chi are secret characters in the original PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions, however they are unlocked in the Komplete Edition. Goro, Kintaro and Shao Kahn are non-playable boss characters. Kratos from the God of War series is a PlayStation exclusive. Sweet Tooth from the Twisted Metal series was considered to be the PlayStation exclusive before Kratos was chosen. Marcus Fenix from the Gears of War series was considered as a potential character for the Xbox 360 release.^[17] Tremor is included in the PlayStation Vita version, only in some character challenge towers. Motaro and Shinnok appear in a few cutscenes in the story mode.^[18]

In a November 2008 interview, Ed Boon stated that game sales for Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe would dictate what features would appear in "the next game".^[19] In 2009, Midway Games Chicago filed for bankruptcy and was purchased by Warner Bros. Interactive.^[20] This led the game to be developed by NetherRealm Studios,^[21] becoming the first installment in the series to be published exclusively under the Warner Bros. label.^[22][23] On June 18, 2009, Boon confirmed on his Twitter page that developers were performing motion capture for the game and that it would not feature superheroes.^[24] Dan Forden was also expected to return as the music composer for the game.^[25] In late 2009, Boon stated that the franchise was returning to its bloody origins^[26] and that the production team were aiming for a "Mature" rating, as opposed to the "Teen" on the previous game. Boon also showed concern about content being classified under the "Adults Only" rating.^[27][28]

Mortal Kombat was officially revealed on June 10, 2010, with a release for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2011.^[5] It was revealed at the Sony E3 press conference that Mortal Kombat would be 3D compatible,^[29] and Boon said that in dealing with the 3D capability, more attention to detail was required so as to not obstruct the gameplay.^[30] Boon said that the extra mode from previous games ("The Krypt") would return with an "elaborate and sophisticated unlocking system"^[31] and put "the other games in the series to shame."^[10] He also said they intended for Mortal Kombat to be accessible to the casual player^[32] and more "engaging",^[8] with experts on the fighting genre consulted.^[33] New features were made to create a deeper fighting experience.^[34] Some mild humorous elements were also included, such as the Babality finishing moves.^[35] At the time, Boon said that the production team were considering a PC port of Mortal Kombat as "there seems to be a market for [PC games] in Europe."^[36]

Mortal Kombat runs on a heavily modified version of the Unreal Engine 3, similar to the engine used by its predecessor, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe.^[6] Developers recreated the entire fighting engine so that it was restricted to a two-dimensional plane of fighting,^[12] with senior producer Hans Lo stating at Gamescom 2010 that the change from 3D gameplay to 2D was advantageous for Mortal Kombat, as it increased graphical detail for characters and arenas^[10] and improved gameplay speed.^[37] Another new mechanic is the inclusion of "blood physics" (blood loss is portrayed as being more natural and being clearly visible on characters or surroundings).^[38] Developers stated that online gameplay for Mortal Kombat would be a main priority,^[26][39] declaring interest in capabilities to link the player's progression feed to their accounts on social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter, and recreate the feel of socializing with players in an arcade.^[8]

According to Dave Pindara, one of the lead artists for Mortal Kombat, environments were developed to create active objects and effects such as "scripted cinema events", "dynamic lighting effects" and "characters and objects that animated and reacted to the fights." Arena development began with 18 arenas, but development of environments with different times of day and original arenas related to the plot scaled up arena development to roughly 30 arenas.^[40] One unique feature is included with each stage^[10] such as "The Desert" which has a "sand tech", allowing for realistic sand motion during characters' interaction.^[38] Dan Forden, lead sound designer, said the intent was to create a "cinematic game audio experience". Sound effect design included use and enhancement of the "bone-crunching audio design" of previous titles and, while the "dynamic experience" was vital, small details such as the "rustling of fighter's clothes" and background sounds were also included. Music for each stage was similar to previous games but with "a completely new arrangement".^[41]

Boon said that there was a focus on including characters from the first three Mortal Kombat games and that "if you have a favorite character from those games, you're probably going to see him or her in the game."^[6] The game's developers stated that the characters had been designed with the intent to make each character unique – each having his or her own individual stance, victory pose and Fatality with no shared animations.^[42] Lead designer John Edwards said that characters are differentiated by features such as power and speed.^[8] Producer Shaun Himmerick said that the internal and external character design required "two months or ten weeks".^[38] Boon said that an exclusive character was planned for the Xbox 360 version, but "unfortunately, the circumstances didn't allow us to make a 360 exclusive."^[43] Boon also said they were in talks to include Sweet Tooth from Sony's Twisted Metal franchise.^[44]

On April 5, 2011, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and NetherRealm Studios announced Mortal Kombat was finished and ready for mass production, with pre-orders having gone "gold".^[45] Asked what would be the correct way to call it, for example "MK9" or "MK2011", Boon answered he would say "The Mortal Kombat game they rebooted in 2011."^[46]

Improving upon the introduction of a film-inspired "Story mode" in Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, Netherealm Studios greatly increased the number and sophisitcation of staff working on Mortal Kombat's story mode. Ed Boon motivated the development team to tell the " [...] stories that we've been telling through text, endings in the arcade, and other not as sophisticated forms of media [...]" through a cinematic lense similarly to how they crafted the "Story Mode" of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. According to Marty Stoltz, from the beginning of development, storyboard artists and animators were involved with every aspect of the game at some level:

"It's a large team for sure. It's almost like half a studio, I think, [in terms] of everybody that touches something in it, [...] From the beginning, we're going to work with storyboard artists. We go to the next stage, which will be to board-o-matics. And then I'll start working with the animation team at some point, right before we're ready to shoot...and down the line, it's going to be effects people, audio people, composers are brought in to do the music. And we have a team that goes and shoots just the Vcams itself. So we have handheld modern-looking camera that has to be shot. Pretty much all the cinemas are reshot with a comparable weighted Vcam that gets the style we want. So there's another crew that comes in. So that's a pretty massive endeavor."

Ed Boon, who initially pitched the story mode to his team during the development of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, viewed the single-player mode as a major source of appeal to casual fans who would have otherwise not paid attention to a fighting game.^[47]

On August 31, 2010, a teaser trailer "Shadows" debuted on IGN, featuring a track "Another Way to Die" from the band Disturbed's album Asylum.^[48][49] On September 28, 2010, the slogan "Kombat Begins In ..." appeared with a clock counting down on the Mortal Kombat official website, the countdown ending on Monday October 11, 2010.^[50] At the conclusion of the countdown, a link to the Facebook page was added to the website and an accompanying Facebook application was also released that showcased a teaser trailer for the game.^[51][52]

On October 4, 2010, the "Environment Bio" trailer of the Mortal Kombat arena, The Pit, was released to explain the in-game backstory on its origins and evolution.^[53] Similar videos featuring The Living Forest,^[54] the Dead Pool,^[55] and Kahn's Coliseum^[56] were released afterward, also explaining background information on the stages. In a similar fashion, character profile videos were released for Scorpion,^[57] Sub-Zero,^[58] Mileena,^[59] Liu Kang^[60] and Raiden.^[61] In April 2011, Playboy models Jo Garcia and Brittney Palmer (dressed as Mileena and Kitana, respectively) promoted the game in a sponsored vlog advertisement.^[62][63] In April 2011, Bespoke Arcades created a series of arcade machines to promote the game at the Gadget Show Live 2011.^[64] In April 2012, two live-action cosplay trailers featuring Rachelle Glover (Kitana)^[65] and Danni Levy (Mileena)^[66] were released;^[67][68] they were later combined into one commercial video titled "Fight Anywhere".^[69]

On March 8, 2011, a demo version of the game was released for download globally, initially exclusively for PlayStation Plus members. The demo (an arcade ladder with single- or two-player capability) showcases four characters (Johnny Cage, Mileena, Scorpion and Sub-Zero) and the stages The Living Forest and The Pit.^[70] Performance Design Products sponsored the inaugural National Mortal Kombat Championship, which took place in Las Vegas in May 2011.^[71] Mortal Kombat was also internationally presented in the 2011 Evolution Championship Series (Evo), being recognized as a "main tournament fighting game".^[72][73] "Professional gamers" Justin Wong (winner of the PDP championship) and Carl 'Perfect Legend' White (the Evo 2011 champion) spoke positively of Mortal Kombat's place in future tournament events.^[74]

A sequel for the game, Mortal Kombat X, was developed by NetherRealm Studios for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One and was released in April 2015.