Our first look at gameplay from Mortal Kombat 1 is just days away as part of a world premiere reveal at the upcoming Summer Game Fest, but that doesn't mean Ed Boon isn't letting a few tasty morsels of info out to whet our appetites. The Chief Creative Officer teased returning characters and moves in a series of tweets hyping up the coming reveal.

Tearing attention away from the freshly released, forward-thinking Street Fighter 6 is no mean feat, but Boon is giving MK fans plenty to chew on as they scramble to decipher hidden meanings from a Mortal Kombat 1 announce trailer that may've got some looking a little farther back into the series' thirty-year history than is necessary.

The title of the twelfth core installment may sound like its returning to the roots of the first Mortal Kombat, but in a quoted tweet replying to Summer Game Fest host Geoff Keighley, who hyped "Ed Boon 'bout to blow the roof off the YouTube Theater on Thursday", the MK1 head referenced "Kameos & Kombos & Breakers" -- Breakers being a defensive move that made their debut in Mortal Kombat: Deception.

He also used the Mortal Kombat 4 character select screen to tease fans with the prospect of some returning favourites from the transitional 1997 arcade fighter: "Some making their way back into action.."

Arch-villains Shinnok and Quan Chi reprised major roles in Mortal Kombat X, and appear to factor into the soon to release story-driven mobile RPG Mortal Kombat: Onslaught. They also had major roles in the prequel spin-off Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero, which established pre-MK lore leading up to the Shaolin tournament and Scorpion's revenge on the elder Sub-Zero, and could be relevant to a retelling of earlier events in the series, despite their recency.

Fujin returned with a compelling design update as part of the Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath downloadable content package in 2020, while Tanya made a fully fleshed out downloadable return in the Mortal Kombat X Kombat Pack. Both also appear as playable characters in the long-running Mortal Kombat Mobile game.

More compelling are the lapsed kombatants who debuted in MK4: White Lotus fighter Kai was conspicuous by absence in MKX's retelling of MK4, last seen in Armageddon and ripe with potential for reinvention. Reiko cemented a cult following with cunning portrayal in MKX tie-in comic books, advancing his appearance in Armageddon. Black Dragon thug Jarek had a small appearance in the aMKX comic books and Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind animated feature.

In recent fan Q&As Ed Boon noted he's more hyped for Reiko than Shao Kahn, also describing a Mortal Kombat 4 remake as unlikely, but a "bucket list" item. Perhaps returning characters will have to do for now -- but which ones?

Do you think we'll see some of MK4's less frequent fighters? Will they be more than mere Kameos? Share your hopes & thoughts in the comments below and make sure you save the Summer Game Fest date by dowloading the MKO App via App Store or Google Play! Use it to find & discuss more news & rumors in the Mortal Kombat 1 forum!