Merry Christmas! Feliz Navidad! Joyeux Noël! Froehliche Weihnachten! Srozhdestovm Kristovim! Buon Natale! Allow Mortal Kombat Online to send best wishes and seasons greetings to everyone enjoying the holidays across the Earthrealm! There's been a heckuva lot to celebrate in Mortal Kombat this year, and we're grateful to all the mortals who've enjoyed it with us. To the readers, commenters, and social media ambassadors who've truly supported us - we send extra thanks!
There was, of course, no bigger moment in 2014 than the June unveiling of Mortal Kombat X!
The pure CG trailer [embedded above] gave us a deceptive abundance of information to speculate upon. Much of it proved entirely representative of the gameplay that soon followed - part of a stunning reinvention of kombat fundamentals! The Scorpion & Sub-Zero trailer topped charts across various outlets in 2014, and continued to garner distinction late into the year!
The hype train was filled to capacity in June thanks to a teaser campaign and subsequent worldwide trend. By the time NetherRealm Studios showed off their first demo at this year's E3 -- Mortal Kombat Online was recording a new single day traffic high of 1,771,979 hits! After a two year hiatus for Injustice: Gods Among Us - we were excited to welcome back the home team!
This explosion of excitement ultimately built on the renewal of interest earned by 2011's hugely successful pseudo-reboot: Mortal Kombat. At the time, we saw that game as another nostalgic tour of the series' greatest hits - a do-over in conjunction with 20th anniversary of 2012. Looking ahead, we now see it as a transition point. The literal rewriting of MK history under Warner Bros. allowed them to take full ownership of it. With Mortal Kombat X, we now benefit with a bold step forward into largely unknown territory!
The intrigue of a story set up to 25 years in the future has captured our imagination in ways that recall aspects of Mortal Kombat II and Deadly Alliance. New characters Kotal Kahn, D'Vorah, Ferra/Torr & Cassie Cage have already begun to earn die hard fans as the first-wave of this new generation! We think their staying power will be bolstered by the realization of Mortal Kombat X as a fully former multimedia franchise.
2011 saw WB return MK to the licensing avenues it had conquered in the past, in some cases, with the partners utilized by Midway. In 2014, we were given a map to the next phase in this cultural restoration, which sees Mortal Kombat X undergo key upgrades. Mezco Toys previewed their high quality action figures, while a new division of WB films came with the announcement of an all-new MK webseries! Better still - Mortal Kombat has finally come home to comic books thanks to the announcement of a new series from DC! These announcements ensured there was no shortage of excitement for diehard fans, who will have plenty of MK to enjoy come 2015!
The future certainly looks bright, but it hasn't meant forsaking the past. Mortal Kombat Online has been eager to embrace MK's return to general pop culture significance, and the maturing of retro kombat! The past has been on our minds with MKX inspired reflections, and the gradual movement of our extensive video archives to YouTube.
Likewise, we enjoyed exploring the tumultuous saga that has been Mortal Kombat HD - an aborted project finally illuminated by our own investigation, and the release of behind-the-scenes photos! We watched with intrigue as series director Ed Boon teased interest in a similar project, and the Internet Archive revived ports of the original games as free-to-play resource materials!
Boon helped keep the recent past in mind, as well, sharing revelations about MK2011 guest characters. Mortal Kombat Online played a part, too, sponsoring the unofficial 2014 Evo World Championships in an exciting testament to the staying power of modern MK and its fans! The resurgence continued thanks to MKX. We're sure it will continue in 2015!
Stay with us as all the major developments unfold in 2015! It promises to be a massive first quarter - with the next big reveals less than a week away! The staff and contributors to Mortal Kombat Online will continue to strive to ensure the highest quality dedicated content that reflects our status as one of the most visited and trusted outlets in the world! We're also hard at work at improving the general experience, hoping to transform the kommunity with a much needed revamp in the coming months!
For everyone at Mortal Kombat Online, we once again wish you a very Merry Christmas! Enjoy the break - you're gonna need it!
