This has been an exciting week for Mortal Kombat fans. On Tuesday, a video that seemed to be a trailer for a new MK movie was uploaded to YouTube by a user called MortalKombatRebirth. The almost 8-minute long trailer was like nothing we’ve ever seen in the Mortal Kombat universe before. It was a darker, more realistic with a Saw feel to it. The video starts out with officer Jackson “Jax” Briggs as he begins to interview an inmate named Hanzo Hasashi. He begins to tell him about the backgrounds of known serial killers such as Reptile and Baraka. But these aren’t the same fighters we all grew up with.

Reptile was born with a birth defect that gave him scaled skin and inverted eyes, much resembling that of a reptile. Oh and he’s also a cannibal. Baraka was once a surgeon who accidentally killed a patient which gave him a thirst for murder. He then performed various operations on himself, altering his appearance. Officer Briggs brings up how the police hired the washed-up actor, Johnny Cage to go under cover and dig up all of the info he can on these psychopaths. After a 2-minute fight scene between Baraka and Johnny, Baraka ends up decapitating the action star. Jax continues to mention a mastermind behind these killers, Shang Tsung. He doesn’t say much about him other than he holds an underground tournament where the world’s deadliest killers fight to the death. We aren’t really told if he is an immortal or not.

Jax goes on to make an offer to Hasashi that he can go back out on the streets, but he must find out where this tournament is being held. Officer Briggs continues to tell him to kill all of the others and win the tournament; but the prisoner has no interest. Soon after, Officer Sonya Blade enters the room with files on Sub-Zero. We soon learn that Hanzo Hasashi was once the greatest assassins in the world. Sonya then tells him that he killed Sub-Zero’s brother and the real Sub-Zero is still very much alive. By this point, we start to realize who this Hanzo Hasashi really is. (If you didn’t already know.) This little bit of information get’s Hasashi interested and he gets up in a rage and walks to the door. As Jax calls his name, Hasashi turns around and states that Hanzo Hasashi is dead and demands to be called Scorpion. The trailer ends with the classic Scorpion catch phrase, “Get over here!”

Now I was very excited upon seeing this trailer. Mainly because I thought it was for an actual movie. But according to Jeri Ryan, the actress who played Sonya Blade and from Star Trek: Voyager fame; the trailer was nothing more than an idea from director Kevin Tancharoen. The trailer was made as a pitch to Warner Brothers, but we are not yet sure if they have accepted it or not. As a long time fan of the series, I really hope they do. I’m sure will make quite a few Mortal Kombat fanboys pretty upset, but I think a reboot is just what this once great franchise needs.

Check out the video for yourself!

A New Game

Speaking of Warner Brothers and Mortal Kombat, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has acquired the rights to the franchise and plan to bring it back to it’s former glory. The new game, simply titled Mortal Kombat is scheduled to be released in 2011 and is being developed by series creator Ed Boon with the newly named NetherRealm Studios. The new Mortla Kombat is said to be “the most brutal installment of the landmark fighting game to date for release on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360,” and it will have a Mature rating said to be pushing the boundaries just enough to keep from receiving an Adults Only rating.

The new Mortal Kombat is going back to the series’ 2D fighting roots with a brand new graphics engine. The game is said to have even gorier Fatalities than its predecessors and even Tag Team play as well as other yet-to-be-announced gameplay modes. This new chapter is also said to feature a deeper Story Mode than any other fighting game to date.

Official Quotes About the Upcoming Game

“We are bringing the Mortal Kombat franchise back to gamers with the talented NetherRealm Studios team creating the game fans long to play,” said Martin Tremblay, President, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “Re-establishing the brand with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Mortal Kombat innovates on past games while staying true to the brand’s legendary characters and fighting style.”

“We can’t wait for players to get their hands on Mortal Kombat,” said Ed Boon, Creative Director, NetherRealm Studios. “This game really is a response to what players have been demanding: mature presentation, reinvented 2D fighting mechanic and the best, most gruesome fatalities ever!”

Confirmed Characters

• Johnny Cage
• Kung Lao
• Mileena
• Nightwolf
• Raiden
• Reptile
• Sektor
• Shao Khan
• Sub-Zero

And I’m sure there’s many more to come.

Announcement Trailer