NetherRealm’s Mortal Kombat 1 runs on Unreal Engine 4, and none of the game’s Kemeos will be available as playable characters.
Speaking during the latest episode of The Jeff Gerstmann Show, Mortal Kombat 1 Director Ed Boon stated that the game runs on Unreal Engine 4. Due to switching the newer engine prior to the pandemic, the added delay would have resulted in a 7-year gap between Mortal Kombat 11 and Mortal Kombat 1, had the team also worked on Injustice 3. The development team felt that this would be too lengthy a period. Therefore, they decided to skip working on Injustice 3 for now and focus on Mortal Kombat 1 instead.
Boon mentioned that moving to Unreal Engine 4 was a challenging process that required the team to think and act differently to integrate the engine’s tools into their fighting game engine. The switch to UE4 was inevitable, but the decision was made just as the pandemic hit.
He revealed that there are undisclosed game modes and a plethora of new characters that have yet to be announced. According to him, the development team is going deep into the last few games in order to surprise fans with the game’s attention to detail. He said that Mortal Kombat 1’s roster is getting more obscure, especially with the inclusion of Kameo fighters.
Character choices will have more important role to play here than in prior entries, and the game’s story dictates who is part of the main roster and who is a kameo character. For example, Cassie and the other Kombat Kids are not born yet in the game’s timeline.
Mortal Kombat 1 will feature Klassic Kameo fatalities, including some obscure ones. Boon shared that team-up fatalities were considered but ultimately scrapped because they felt too generic and reminiscent of Armageddon.
Realms play a significant role in Mortal Kombat 1’s timeline, allowing for the use of old and ancient settings rather than Earthrealm’s contemporary setting. Outworld has transformed from a dark and dingy place to a visually appealing realm. The development team is aiming to make things familiar yet different, altering elements such as realms in order to achieve this.
According to Boon, character stories will reintroduce moments that establish their new backgrounds and relationships. The reboot’s story was drafted during the development of Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath. The single-player mode will include a tutorial-like section that introduces the concept of kameos.
Boon also teased a brand new mode for Mortal Kombat 1 that he believes will make a great addition to the game.
