Ermac missed the cut for the playable roster in Mortal Kombat 11, but makes a noteworthy cameo in The Krypt mode. The appearance includes a new design for the enigmatic fan-favourite, which the artist responsible shared in more detailed art for the gestalt soul-man. Take a look:

Alex Troufanov is a Senior Character Modeller at Warner Brothers Games Montreal, and shared the rendered design art [above] to his personal portfolio, last month. The image shows a clear front & back view of Ermac's new design, which adapts classic motifs with the addition of extensive gold trim, and paneled layers in his trademark black and red.

Perhaps anticipating the response of eager fans who've hoped Ermac might make a downloadable return, the artist elaborates on his status: "Ermac’s model was one of the characters I created for MK11 while working on the project . Unfortunatly he is not part of playable characters but you can find him dead in the krypt.".

Ermac can be discovered by navigating the subterranean halls of Goro's Lair, to eventually reach the outdoor bottom of The Pit, where his corpse lies impaled upon a spike. Players acquire an amulet from the body that will grant their avatar powers of telekinesis, and the ability to open soul canisters. The amulet can be seen on Ermac's chest in the design art.

Ermac has been a popular subject for concept artists to share: Bernard Beneteau revealed concept art for the 2011 reboot, as well as his own tattered design that caused a stir in 2014. MK Online also exclusively shared Mortal Kombat X concepts thanks to Justin Murray.

What do you think of Ermac's new look and grim fate? Share your thoughts about the design with us in the comments below. Then join more discussion on the Mortal Kombat 11 forum.

In 1997, MK4 took the franchise into the 3D realm of polygonal graphics -- but a second release that same year also gave the series one final extravagant digitized hurrah. Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero expanded the mythos with a platforming adventure that opened the Book of Destiny in live-action cut scenes. Some of its lost pages have been freshly unearthed to reveal the prop's secrets! Take a look:

Former Raiden actor and NetherRealm Studios motion capture artist, Carlos Pesina, posted the rarely seen original documents to Instagram. The three pages appeared in the opening scene of MK Mythologies, playing the part of an ancient tome containing the history of Mortal Kombat, and the conflict between good and evil gods.

The pages include Sub-Zero and Quan Chi line art drawn by John Tobias, with kanji text, and an "Asian esoteric symbol" that appears similar to a feng shui compass.

An exact translation of the Japanese text isn't available, but Pesina did provide greater context for the pages while explaining his technique for aging the final art: "Scanned in line art from Tobias, the MK symbol and an Asian esoteric symbol with kanji text. I had to dye the pages with black tea and burn the edges to get that ancient weathered look. These are the original unvarnished undyed pages, I didn't want to ruin them. Enjoy!" See the finished product in the intro video below.

Raiden possesses the Book of Destiny, which alludes to his struggle with the fallen elder god Shinnok. The thunderer enlists the help of Sub-Zero (aka; Bi-Han) in MK Mythologies to prevent Quan Chi freeing Shinnok, who appears as the final boss of Mortal Kombat 4. This storyline also informed the backstory of Mortal Kombat X.

Was the Book of Destiny everything you imagined it was? Share your thoughts about this lost kontent in the comments below and discuss more MKMSZ nostalgia in the 2D Kombat Klassics forum!

As tensions simmer across the United States, and around the globe; some of the world's top Mortal Kombat 11 players are taking action with a weekend tournament to raise funds for change. Kombat Against Injustice will feature a line-up of familiar top players to raise proceeds for the fight to reform law enforcement legislation in America. Read on for more info:

The tournament was announced by Console Gaming League via Twitter, with a bracket of sixteen top competitive players [pictured below]. The battle will be headlined by superstar reigning Evo World Champion and outspoken supporter for several causes: Dominic "Sonic Fox" McClean.

The action will stream live to Twitch on Saturday, June 6th starting at 5:00PM EST, with a $1,000 prize purse provided by Console Gaming League to go to the charity of the Top 4 finalists choosing. Additional donations from the public will go to Campaign Zero: an advocacy group campaigning for data-driven policy solutions to reform policing practises in the United States. Use the promo code Kombat when donating to Kombat Against Injustice and Matcherino will contribute $0.50.

The reported murder of George Floyd while in police custody has been an inciting event for protests in Minneapolis -- where the May 25th death occurred -- as well as other cities across the United States, and around the world. The outpouring of support has been in response to an alarming rate of African-American deaths in police custody. Floyd was suspected of the non-violent crime of passing a counterfeit $20 bill.

Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon has been one of the celebrity voices lending his support to the social movement. On May 30th he tweeted three words across three lines: 'Black. Lives. Matter.' He joined a chorus of acknowledgment that also included another long time Chicago resident: Barack Obama.

Black.

Lives.

Matter.

— Ed Boon (@noobde) May 30, 2020

The Mortal Kombat franchise has a long history of attracting a diverse global fanbase, with strong representation for African-American players found throughout the top competitive ranks. Few have been as dominant or recognized as Sonic Fox, who also raised over $20,000 last year for the prevention of suicide in the LGBTQI community.

The newly released Retrocade is one of the most unique arenas in Mortal Kombat 11, adding multiple meta-textual twists to the already impressive Tournament stage. Beyond its MK franchise deepcuts lies a background filled with Midway Arcade Treasures. These are the games remembered:

Retrocade left: Klassic Reptile and Ermac cutouts from 2011 decorate the arcade.

Primal Rage
Released August 1994; Primal Rage launched a fighting game franchise developed by Atari Games. It featured a post-apocalyptic future overrun by seven playable prehistoric creatures of peace and chaos. Each is worshipped by primative human clans who survived the cataclysmic meteor strike that plunged "Urth" into a new Stone Age.

Essentially Mortal Kombat with dinosaurs; Primal Rage put a unique twist on standard fighting games of the time, introducing inverted button & directional inputs for special moves, and a mechanic for devouring worshippers to gain mid-match bonuses. Like MK, it became a target for parties concerned with the depiction of violence in video games. Home console ports were handled by Probe and Bitmasters. The arcade cabinet is prominently displayed on the far left of the Retrocade.

Defender
In Defender the objective was to rescue humans in an early multi-buttoned arcade space adventure. Released in 1981, it revolutionized the arcade shooting of Space Invaders by turning it on its side, and adding horizontal scrolling in both directions. A mini-map at the top of the screen helped players navigate the simple landscape as they hunted down alien invaders. Fail to save captured astronauts and they return as hostile mutants out for revenge!

Eugene Jarvis led development on the landmark laser-firing arcade klassic, which was released by Williams. You can see the arcade machine tucked away in the background of the left side of the Retrocade, next to a poster for Hydro Thunder and behind the Ermac cutout.

Rampage World Tour
Fans of giant-monster movies got their first taste of kaiju carnage in 1986 with the initial arcade release of Rampage. Players took control of George the giant gorilla, Lizzie the giant lizard, or Ralph the giant werewolf, razing metropolitan battlefields while fending off the attacks of the military, and other passing vehicles.

Midway's Rampage was everything the title suggested, spawning an unstoppable franchise of sequels and home ports, as well as the 2018 live-action adaptation starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson! Humans were definitely back on the menu in the 1997 World Tour sequel, as were other power-ups that could be discovered while climbing and smashing through buildings across the entire globe! The arcade cabinet is nestled beside Defender, partially obscured by the Retrocade projection screen.

The Grid
A game that needs no introduction to old school MK fans! Developed by the MK team for arcade release in 2001: The Grid was a third-person arena shooter that could support up to six players with linked arcade machines. Similar in tone to Smash TV, it presented the deadly run & gun action as a major league bloodsport of the future with an over-the-top host, and tongue-in-cheek violence.

The Grid is not only fondly remembered for its early take on multiplayer battle arena style gameplay, but also its incorporation of MK4 inspired guest characters: Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Noob Saibot. The neon green Grid logo can be seen on two arcade machines pressed up against the back of the Retrocade's right side.

Joust
Another deeply nostalgic retro cut; Joust was a Williams Electronics cabinet released in 1982. The platforming arcade klassic gave players control of a knight riding a flying ostrich who must defeat rival enemies on buzzards across a rock and lava laden 2D arena. The game included two-player co-op mode and can be seen influencing various memorable titles, including Nintendon's Mario Bros. It was part of the original Midway Arcade Treasures collection, and can be seen on the far right of the Retrocade, behind the speaker and change machine.

Retrocade right: Deception Scorpion cutout, The Grid, Joust, and a slushee on the change machine.

Courts approved the sale of Midway Games and its library of video games and intellectual property to Warner Brothers in July, 2009 [full story]. The acqusition most visibly led to a relaunch of Mortal Kombat in 2011, but these MK11 references highlight the broader possibilities of the Midway catalogue.

Retrocade, Dead Pool, Soul Chamber, and Kronika's Keep arenas are all part of a free update released to Mortal Kombat 11 last week! Take a closer look at the meta-stage and tell us what you think of the arcade easter eggs in the comments below. Find and discuss more from Aftermath on the Mortal Kombat 11 forum!

In the immortal words of Christophe Lambert's Raiden: "The essence of Mortal Kombat is not about death - but life". A new sense of brotherhood has swept over Mortal Kombat 11 with the free release of Friendships. These festive finishers offer 30 seconds of kinship, but one of them demands a more epic presentation, which NetherRealm Studios has has provided. Watch:

Watch: 11 Hr Epic Jax Guy | 10hr Epic Sax Guy | SunStroke Project - Run Away

Why 11 hours of "Epic Jax Guy"? Some might argue the unique resonance of the saxophone is justification enough. A woodwind instrument, if played just right - with the appropriate octave, uniquely tuned to speak to the very soul. A truth unto itself, but not the inspiration behind this particular meme.

Its deepest origins are appropriately military in nature, but it wasn't the product of US Special Forces developing cybernetic enhancements. It all began one fateful day in Moldova, when a soldier on field exercise suffered heat stroke. Inspired by the experience, Anton Ragoza and Sergey Stepanov formed a band called SunStroke Project.

The group would go on to represent Moldova in the Eurovision Song Contest: an annual event that invites the nations of Europe to participate in a three night competition filled with singing, spectacle, and 10-15 minutes of public voting. Competition rules dictate that song entries are roughly 3 minutes, but it only took 15 seconds for Sergey Stepanov to achieve internet immortality.

His saxually charged performance during "Run Away" was an immediate shock to the system for any one watching the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest live. White rimmed sunglasses and intense pelvic thrusting soon led a YouTube uploader to repeat the isolated section for 10 hours, dubbing him the viral "Epic Sax Guy" embraced by the world.

[Related Article: Watch Kano & Noob Perform Friendships in Mortal Kombat 11]

Watch the looped Jax tribute in the embedded video above, and use the links to load the original clips that inspired the finisher. Friendships are part of the latest free update to MK11 and can be performed right now. Did you know the story behind Epic Jax Guy? Tell us about your favourite friendship in the comments below and discuss more on the Mortal Kombat 11 forum!