The latest game in theMortal Kombatfranchise,Mortal Kombat 1, has been an interesting study on the current state of the classic American fighting game series. Serving as a soft reboot after the prior universe ended inMortal Kombat 11,Mortal Kombat 1has attempted to reinvent the franchise in several ways while also calling back to many of the characters and concepts that made it popular in the first place. Celebrating the history ofMortal Kombatwhile also trying to build on it has proven to be divisive, but it hasn’t been a totally fruitless effort.
Rumors of whetherMortal Kombat 1will see more DLC after its second Kombat Pack are clashing with vague statements from director Ed Boon and the currently-absent Jade’sMK11voice actress, Mela Lee. The nextMortal Kombat, if that’swhat NetherRealm Studios’ next game is, may already be in production, and it has a lot of fan feedback it can take fromMortal Kombat 1. Many suggestions, like de-emphasizing the new multiverse, reverting from Kameo Fighters back to a 1v1 fighting system, and exchanging the randomized loot for another Krypt, all sound like calls for a return toMortal Kombat’s heyday, and one recentMK1addition proves that.
Mortal Kombat 1’s New Secret Ninja Is A Blast From The Past
Floyd’s Nostalgic Appeal Grabbed MK1 Players’ Attention
As part of the Conan the Barbarian update forMortal Kombat 1, a new secret boss fight was also added. Players slowly unraveled what was akin to an in-game ARG over the next few days, spurred on by the occasional appearances and references toa new pink ninja named Floyd. This Pink Floyd reference was ultimately found to be the final opponent after players cleared ten random challenges in Versus mode or the Towers of Time, and beating his best-of-color ninja moveset unlocked a whole new stage and a set of cosmetics.
It all sounds like a fun bonus to sweetenMortal Kombat 1’s later years, but fan response has been something else. The onlineMortal Kombat 1community came together in a flurry of activity that isn’t normally seen around aging NRS titles. Steam player numbers didn’t set any records or even match prior DLC drops, but social media and forums were abuzz with people researching, experimenting with, and theorizing about Floyd. All of this sprang fromMortal Kombat 1referencing secret fightsfrom its past, which is too much forMK’s future to ignore.
What Future Mortal Kombat Entries Can Learn From Floyd
Mortal Kombathas long maintained a tongue-in-cheek, self-referential style, but Floyd’s impact proves that there’s plenty of nostalgia left for the franchise to cash in on. Floyd being modeled after the secret characters and stages that have been in the series ever sinceReptile appeared insideMK’s Pit stageworked wonders, especially because there hasn’t been anything truly like that for a while. For all the nostalgic cheat codes, unlockables, and general content thatMortal Kombat (2011)boasted, it just recycled old hidden fights. What worked in the past, done in a new way, may be the secret toMortal Kombat’s success.
Leaning On Nostalgia Works For Mortal Kombat
For its next game, NetherRealm Studios needs to identify all the little touches that playersloved aboutMortal Kombatback in the 90s, and bring forward as many as possible. It’s done it before withMortal Kombat (2011)to great success, and it could do so again if secrets like Floyd are in the nextMKat launch. Nostalgia has a lot of sway over the drive to play games, and hidden features and unlockables tapping into it can motivate players to stick around for much longer than they otherwise would have.Mortal Kombat 1has made some mistakes, but it could be forgiven for uncovering a path back toMK’s roots.
