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[[File:mk2010_cover_001_5771.png|frame|[[Win Back the Crowd|ROUND TWO! FIGHT!]]]]
{{quote|''"[[The End of the World
''[[Pyrrhic Victory|The cost will be high.]] [[Heroic Sacrifice|The sacrifices, unthinkable.]] [[Kill'Em All|Many]] [[Anyone Can Die|will fall.]] [[Continuity Reboot|Our tale must be retold.]]"''|'''Intro movie, told by Raiden.'''}}▼
▲{{quote|''"[[The End of the World As We Know It|Our story has ended.]] [[Shoot the Shaggy Dog|Centuries of battle, meaningless.]] [[The Bad Guy Wins|Shao Kahn has consumed Earthrealm.]] [[Set Right What Once Went Wrong|His victory must be undone.]] [[Mortal Kombat Armageddon (Video Game)|Armageddon,]] [[Retcon|aborted.]] [[Reset Button|We will strike where he's vulnerable: the past.]]<br />
▲[[Pyrrhic Victory|The cost will be high.]] [[Heroic Sacrifice|The sacrifices, unthinkable.]] [[Kill'Em All|Many]] [[Anyone Can Die|will fall.]] [[Continuity Reboot|Our tale must be retold.]]"''|'''Intro movie, told by Raiden.'''}}
'''''[[Recycled Title|Mortal Kombat]]''''' is the eighth canonical installment of the ''[[Mortal Kombat]]'' [[Fighting Game]] series; it was released in 2011 for the [[Play Station 3]] and [[Xbox 360]], and a port for the [[Play Station Vita]] was released in 2012.
The game's story begins at the end of ''[[
The game's playable characters include:
* From ''[[Mortal Kombat (
* From ''[[
* From ''[[
* From ''[[Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub
* From ''[[Mortal Kombat
* Introduced in this game: ''[[For Want of a Nail|Cyber Sub-Zero]]'', ''[[Lady in Red|Skarlet]]'' ([[Downloadable Content|DLC]])
* [[Guest Fighter|Guest fighters]]: ''[[God of War (
These characters are unplayable bosses:
* From ''[[Mortal Kombat (
* From ''[[
''Mortal Kombat'' retells the events of the first three games of the franchise, but thanks to Raiden's timeline alterations, events occur much differently than before. The game also serves as a return to the series' roots (as it's a 2.5D fighter) while including numerous modern-day touches; new gameplay mechanics include the chance to use enhanced versions of special moves, [[Combo Breaker|Combo Breakers]], and a highly-damaging X-Ray move (which briefly shows the target's skeleton and other innards during impact). [[But Wait! There's More!|On top of that]], the [[Ludicrous Gibs|ludicrously]] [[Bloodier and Gorier|bloody]] [[Finishing Move|Fatalities]] ([[Everything Trying to Kill You|and Stage Fatalities]]) make their return
''Mortal Kombat'' also includes a tag-team mode, a Challenge Tower (where players must complete certain tasks in order to advance), and an online King of the Hill Mode akin to ''Super [[
The game received a positive critical reception
----
{{tropelist}}
* [[Affably Evil]]: Quan Chi and arguably Shang Tsung.▼
▲* Affably Evil: Quan Chi and arguably Shang Tsung.
* [[Barbie Doll Anatomy]]: In spite of all the detail put into the characters' models, X-Ray moves take this approach to the pelvic region.
* [[Beat Still My Heart]]: The fatalities of several characters involve punching into the opponent and ripping out their heart.
* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: Raiden finally kills
* [[Bloodier and Gorier]]: The goriest and bloodiest game in the series so far. [[Up to Eleven|And that's saying something
* [[Bonus Boss]]: Yep, they're back after a looong hiatus. They even have similar requirements for facing them.
** Klassic Reptile:
** Klassic Smoke:
** Klassic Noob Saibot:
** Klassic Jade:
* [[Call Back]]: Several throughout the game; several missions in the Challenge Tower are essentially a repeat of the plot of ''[[Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks
* [[The Cameo]]: Many characters from the series' entire (former) timeline can be spotted in the background of several stages.
** [[Mortal Kombat 3
** [[Mortal Kombat 3
** [[Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub
** [[Mortal Kombat 4
* [[Camera Abuse]]: Several characters' victory poses have them attack the camera. Some fatalities too.
* [[Canon Name]]: The bios and vignettes reveal at least three of the Lin Kuei's real names: Bi-Han (Sub-Zero the elder/Noob Saibot), Kuai Liang (Tundra/Sub-Zero the younger) and Tomas Vrbada (Smoke).
* [[Canon Shadow]]: All of the DLC characters have their own Arcade Ladder endings, but aren't actually involved in the story. A few of them cameo at best (see below).
* [[Combat Stilettos]]: All of the ladies, barring Sheeva, who goes for [[Foot Focus]] instead.
▲* [[Combo Breaker]]: You have to burn two bars from your Super bar to use it, though.
* [[The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard]]: Being ''[[Mortal Kombat]]'', the series behind the [[Perfect Play AI|Perfect Play AIs]], it's expected, although at least it's not to the extent of some of the older games.
** [[SNK Boss]]: The three bosses (Goro, Kintaro
* [[Convection, Schmonvection]]: The hell stage has lava which has no effect on the fighters until someone performs its stage fatality.
* [[Creator Cameo]]:
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** Netherrealm Studios's logo is spotted in the Subway and Rooftop stages.
* [[The Dev Team Thinks of Everything]]: Just look at [http://www.mortalkombatonline.com/content/forum/showmessage.cds?id=141402 this forum thread] for a list.
* [[Downloadable Content]]: In the form of extra characters, fatalities
* [[Excuse Plot]]: [[Zig-Zagging Trope|Zig-zagged]]. There is an actual plot and some respectable storytelling and voice-acting, but some dialogue is clearly just to [[Let's You and Him Fight|get characters punching each other]]. Even when people are ''on the same side'', talking solves nothing. [[Violence Is the Only Option]]. Somewhat [[Justified Trope|justified]] since this is a [[Fighting Game]].
* [[Fan Disservice]]: The game certainly is [[Hotter and Sexier]], but usually by the end of a match, your character will be covered in their opponent's blood, along with any horrific injuries they may have picked up during the fight.
* [[Funny Background Event]]: The billboard for Johnny Cage's ''Ninja Mime'' in the city stages ("He's silent, but deadly
** The cameos fighting on The Pit and Shang Tsung's Garden.
** The newspapers that fly when a train passes by in the Subway are a Funny ''Foreground'' Event: if you pause the game at the right time, you can see the headline is about Shao Kahn's invasion, and it reads "WE ARE SCREWED".
* [[Gorn]]: It ''is'' ''Mortal Kombat'' after all.▼
** There's even an achievement that says "It's Not Mortal Kombat Without Blood!" (which is actually the [[Recursive Translation]] of the Brazilian Portuguese name to the "There Will Be Blood!" achievement)▼
* [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]]: Averted with on Kitana's battle-damaged models. The concept art showed, among the usual lacerations and bruises, a bloody handprint on her rear. Apparently, that was too much, as said handprint doesn't appear in-game.
▲* [[Gorn]]: It ''is'' ''Mortal Kombat'' after all.
* [[Grievous Harm With a Body]]: Several fatalities feature this.▼
▲** There's even an achievement that says "It's Not Mortal Kombat Without Blood!" (which is actually the [[Recursive Translation]] of the Brazilian Portuguese name to the "There Will Be Blood!" achievement).
* [[Groin Attack]]: Not just Johnny Cage this time. Striking the groin is also a part of some characters' X-Ray moves (like Sindel's and Jade's). Sonya also kicks the opponent between the legs as part of her throw.
* [[Half the Man He Used To Be]]: Various fatalities, again.
* [[High-Pressure Blood]]: In glorious ''Mortal Kombat'' tradition. To drive the point home, there is actually an achievement/trophy for spilling 10,000 pints of blood. You will earn it ''quickly''.
* [[Hotter and Sexier]]: More boobage and less clothing was the order of the day for all the female characters. {{spoiler|Which is even more jarring considering the sequel goes in the exact opposite direction and occasionally has flashbacks to ''Mortal Kombat 9'''s events, where that's still true}}.
* [[How Much More Can He Take?]]: Since the character models have been designed with painstaking detail to show the damage inflicted on their bodies, both external ''and'' internal, expect to see a lot of fighters look like they've packed up for a trip to the morgue ''before the end of the first round''. Particularly nasty are the characters who lose an eyelid when busted up. Yes, their eye is just barely hanging there completely exposed.
* [[Idle Animation]]: In contrast to the older games, the fighters will now do something when standing still long enough, usually stretching a body part to keep from stiffening up, such as Scorpion punching the air with both arms, Ermac who will move his arms back and forth and rotate his wrists, or interestingly, Skarlet who will do a sexy hip swing if she stands still too long.
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* [[Leg Cling]]: When Shao Kahn wins a match, one of his slave girls crawls up and clings to his leg.
* [[Luck-Based Mission]]: The aptly-titled "Test Your Luck" minigame: [[Betting Minigame|slot machine reels]] determine what rules are added to the match, from silly stuff like rainbow blood and zombie mode to major changes like armless combat, magnetic floors, disabled super meters, and so on.
* [[Made of Iron]]/[[Made of Plasticine]]: In gameplay, the combatants can fight unhindered even with shattered skulls, broken ribs, or (in extreme cases) after having major organs frozen and shattered ''while they're still inside of them''. Once you hear the good old "Finish Him!" command
* [[Nostalgia Level]]: Many of the game's arenas. Two of them, The Pit and Shang Tsung's Garden, even shows various post-''
* [[Only a Flesh Wound]]: The X-Ray attacks make surviving a battle in this game more unfathomable than in any other game in the ''[[Mortal Kombat]]'' franchise. Characters getting broken spines, eyes stabbed out or destroyed internal organs are a slap on the wrist.
** The most notable one probably being Baraka's X-Ray, in which he impales his opponent through the neck and spine with his arm-blade, and then again through the eye and straight through the skull and brain, before simply kicking them off his blade. Assuming they have health left, they'll get up as if nothing particularly injurious happened. Freddy Krueger's is also certainly fatal, but slightly less obvious, as his first attack during it jams his blades in-between his opponent's ribs and impales their internal organs; his second attack, which would typically be unnecessary at that point, is literally nothing more than a slap to the face with his right glove, but does identical damage.
▲* [[Nostalgia Level]]: Many of the game's arenas. Two of them, The Pit and Shang Tsung's Garden, even shows various post-''MK3'' fighters duking it out in the background, much more dynamically than Blaze and "Hornbuckle" did in ''MK2''.
* [[Overdrawn At the Blood Bank]]
*
* [[Secret AI Moves]]: Shang Tsung can morph into everyone in the game, but not in the player's hands. The closest thing would be when Tsung morphs into his opponent upon hitting them with Soul Steal.
** Also, when you fight him in the Arcade Ladder, he can morph into two other characters at random, in addition to your own. This is because the game's engine does not support more than four different fighters for each battle.
* [[Shout-Out]]: Check [[Mortal Kombat
* [[Shown Their Work]]: All of Freddy's attacks and combos are named after the many puns and one-liners he used in his movies.
* [[Shows Damage]]
* [[Stripperiffic]]: All of the female characters in this game wear outfits that are so sheer that you can't help but wonder how their boobs don't fall out. At one point in the campaign, {{spoiler|Mileena (when she's introduced in the story) fights wearing nothing but bandages that barely cover her crotch and her nipples. She also fights wearing them in the final Tower Challenge and, if you beat this challenge, you can use this outfit with her
* [[Teleport Spam]]: Many of the faster-teleporting characters can do this, but Smoke is the most popular example. This is also the recommended method to beating the bosses.
* [[Victory Pose]]: All characters have three different types, depending on the context. Between rounds, after a victory, they'll either do something short and sweet (like Jax kissing his biceps, Cyrax adjusting a bomb in his chest, and so on) or, if they're too close to the fallen opponent, they'll perform a show-off action that puts them back at a fair distance from the recovering opponent (the cyborgs like to hover on jets from their hands back to a safe distance, Baraka does a [[Sword Drag]], Smoke smokes away, and so on). In non-Story Mode battles, finishing off an opponent without using a Fatality has them do some other unique pose or action.
* [[Video Game Remake]]: The game was approached in this fashion with regards to ''[[Mortal Kombat 3
* [[Vomit Indiscretion Shot]]: Noob Saibot's X-Ray move finishes with a side kick to the victim's stomach, rewarding him with a gush of olive-drab spew. Even if the victim is wearing a mask. Or is a robot. Or Reptile.
** [[Squick|And the puke stays on his leg.]]
* [[When Trees Attack]]: The Living Forest returns, and yes, there ''is'' a Fatality where you feed your defeated opponent to the trees.
* [[World of Buxom]]: See
==
* [[Adaptation Distillation]]: The story mode is basically the plot of the first three games condensed into one, while cutting the fat away. While there are changes (some quite major) because of the [[Timey-Wimey Ball]], most of the stuff that happened in the old games still happens in this one.
* [[Adaptation Expansion]]: Some characters get the most character development they've ever had in this game. The Lin Kuei who are not Sub-Zero in particular (Smoke, Cyrax
* [[All Myths Are True]]: Or, at least, some of them. Nightwolf, one of the few spiritually aware denizens of Earthrealm, identifies Raiden as Haokah, the spirit of thunder and lightning in Lakota mythology. He explicitly calls him such a few times during the course of the story, and Raiden responds to him without hesitation.
* [[Anyone Can Die]]: If a sequel is made, it'll be an achievement to fill up the character select screen.
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* [[Back-to-Back Badasses]]: {{spoiler|Liu Kang and Kung Lao}} when taking down {{spoiler|Sheeva and Noob}} in Story Mode.
* [[Badass Creed]]: The Lin Kuei gets one. Becomes ironic when you consider their status as [[Highly-Visible Ninja|technicolor]] [[McNinja|McNinjas]].
{{quote|
'''Smoke''': ''...
** This possibly also serves as a dialogue-related version of a [[Dark Reprise]]
▲'''Sektor''': ''We are the Lin Kuei, more stealthy than the night, more deadly than the dawn!'' }}
*
▲** This possibly also serves as a dialogue-related version of a [[Dark Reprise]]; Smoke and Sub-Zero, who are shown reciting the creed, are human. Later, Sektor gives the modified version after {{spoiler|becoming a cyborg}}.
* [[Big Screwed-Up Family]]: [[Badass Family|As badass as they may be]], we see some ''serious'' family issues between {{spoiler|Younger Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot}} and {{spoiler|Kitana and Sindel}}. Both involve [[Kick the Dog|extensive amounts of puppy-kicking]] from Person B, and the latter example {{spoiler|actually culminates with the ''death'' of Person A
* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: Yay! {{spoiler|Armageddon was prevented}}! The [[Big Bad]] is dead! [[Pyrrhic Victory|Yet]], {{spoiler|most of the main cast in the good guys' side}} were killed in the process, several of them meaninglessly and senselessly. {{spoiler|Liu Kang, practically [[The Messiah]]}}, dies cursing {{spoiler|Raiden}}'s name, [[Faith Heel Turn|completely disillusioned]]. [[It Got Worse|And not long after]] the [[Big Bad]]'s defeat, {{spoiler|Shinnok}}'s forces are poised to strike both Earthrealm and Outworld, armed with the enslaved souls of the dead good guys and probably other demons and people, while Earthrealm's forces are only composed of {{spoiler|three able but battered warriors}}.
* [[Bloodless Carnage]]: During most of the Story Mode, despite still suffering the horrifying effects of the various X-Ray attacks, none of the fighters show any physical damage during the fights. Fatalities are also a no-no, though the reasons for this should be obvious; Shang Tsung does call out the trademark "[[Finish Him!|FINISH HIM]]!!" in a few cinematics (when Johnny Cage defeats Baraka and when Cyrax beats Johnny)
* [[Book Ends]]: {{spoiler|Subverted
** The ''
* [[Call Back]]:
*
* [[Call Forward]]: Mixed in with a [[Mythology Gag]]. When Kung Lao faces Shang Tsung and Quan-Chi in a two-on-one match in his story mode chapter, Quan Chi remarks that Kung Lao won't be able to stop "this [[Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance (Video Game)|Deadly Alliance]]".▼
** When Smoke introduces himself to Raiden, he simply says, "I am called Smoke". This is actually a rather specific line to use as an introduction: it may be a reference to Smoke's arcade debut in ''Mortal Kombat II'', in which the developers revived the gag of secret characters randomly appearing at rare times to give players hints on how to find them and to stoke the rumor mill; "I am called Smoke" is verbatim one of his lines in that game. It helps that Smoke, in the game released 18 years later, gives this line during the ''Mortal Kombat II'' storyline.
▲* [[Call Forward]]: Mixed in with a [[Mythology Gag]]. When Kung Lao faces Shang Tsung and Quan-Chi in a two-on-one match in his story mode chapter, Quan Chi remarks that Kung Lao won't be able to stop "this [[Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
* [[The Cameo]]:
** [[Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
** [[Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
** [[Mortal Kombat: Deception
** Skarlet and what appears to be Khameleon (in her original ''[[Mortal Kombat 3
** [[Freeze
** [[Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance
** [[Mortal Kombat 3
** [[Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub
* [[Creator Cameo]]: Ed Boon, Steve Beran, and John Vogel are mentioned in {{spoiler|Cyber}} Sub-Zero's chapter, when {{spoiler|he's trying to get information from Sektor}}, and we see a map with the Subway station, (Boon-Beran) and an university called Vogel.
* [[Cue the Sun]]: After Shao Kahn is destroyed for {{spoiler|not adhering to the rules of Mortal Kombat}}. It really drives home the [[Bittersweet Ending]].
* [[Cutscene Power to
** Also, {{spoiler|Kabal is permanently scarred and needs a respirator mask after getting hit with Kintaro's fire breath}}, which usually just takes off a chunk of your life meter.
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Most of the heroes get their turn to snark at the situation, their enemies and even each other with Johnny Cage being the main instigator/target for it.
* [[Deal
* [[Demoted to Extra]]: Motaro is the only character from ''Mortal Kombat 3'' who is not a fighter in this game. {{spoiler|[[Plotline Death|He is killed by Raiden in a cut-scene and later appears as a dead body]]
* [[Deus Exit Machina]]: {{spoiler|The battle against Sindel might have gone a bit more smoothly had not Raiden and Liu Kang conveniently been away at that moment
▲* [[Demoted to Extra]]: Motaro is the only character from ''Mortal Kombat 3'' who is not a fighter in this game. {{spoiler|[[Plotline Death|He is killed by Raiden in a cut-scene and later appears as a dead body]].}}
* [[Diabolus Ex Machina]]: Near the end of the ''[[
* [[Downer Beginning]]: Remember the intro cinematic to ''Mortal Kombat Armageddon'', with the battle royale between the Forces of Light and the Forces of Darkness? We're treated to an eerily silent battlefield here, [[Kill'Em All|with corpses of all the combatants littering the Edenian southlands around Argus' pyramid]]. The only two fighters let alive at the time are Raiden and Shao Kahn, the latter of whom has the upper hand by a substantial margin.
* [[For Want of a Nail]]: Two major examples:
** In the original timeline, when the Lin Kuei set about [[Unwilling Roboticization|turning their assassins into cyborgs]], Sub-Zero escaped while Smoke was forced to become a cyborg. In this new timeline, {{spoiler|Raiden saves Smoke from being captured, only for Sub-Zero to be roboticized in his place
** In the original timeline, Motaro served as one of Shao Kahn's best soldiers and leader of the extermination squads that overran Earth during his invasion. In the new timeline, {{spoiler|Raiden kills Motaro, preventing Johnny Cage's original death}}. This has the side effect of {{spoiler|Shao Kahn deciding to sacrifice Shang Tsung to empower Sindel, who then slaughters her way through the majority of the heroes}}.
* [[Freeze
** This trope also reveals the individual fates of some characters the aftermath of the Battle of Armageddon. Most of the deaths seen in ''Mortal Kombat Armageddon'''s intro did indeed happen. Additionally, a long chain of deaths involves {{spoiler|Noob Saibot being killed by Scorpion who was killed by Sub-Zero who was killed by Baraka who was killed by Kung Lao who was killed by Shinnok's clone
* [[Gameplay and Story Segregation]]: As mentioned elsewhere, the broken bones and destroyed organs detailed in various X-Ray moves don't seem to impair anyone at all. This is particularly interesting in that there's not even a [[Fade to Black]] or [[Wipe]] between rounds; the defeated [[Insistent Terminology|kombatant]] just gets right back up, the life bars refill, and we're back at it.
** To a lesser extent, Kenshi lost his invulnerability to Sonya's Kiss of Death move which he had in ''Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance'' onwards. Likewise, he's affected by Stryker's X-Ray, which can only be [[Hand Wave|handwaved]] by assuming the flashlight is physically burning him by being a very high wattage bulb.
* [[Godzilla Threshold]]: Essentially the crux of {{spoiler|Raiden}}'s plan at the end of the game; letting the [[Big Bad]] win finally caused {{spoiler|the Elder Gods}} to get off their asses and help.
** {{spoiler|Raiden's killing of Motaro}} served as this for Shao Kahn. Up until that point, things had been progressing mostly the same, barring {{spoiler|Sub-Zero becoming a cyborg instead of Smoke, and Kung Lao's death}}. Once {{spoiler|Motaro's body}} is brought in front of him, Kahn decides to {{spoiler|[[Your Soul Is Mine|sacrifice Shang Tsung]] to empower Sindel, giving her enough power to murder most of the heroes}}.
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* '''[[It Got Worse]]''': The storyline in a nutshell.
* [[La Résistance]]: Raiden, Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, Sonya, Sub-Zero, Jax, Stryker, Nightwolf, Kabal, Kitana and Jade.
* [[Lazy Artist]]: While all of the character models here are new, the intro depicts the ([[Kill'Em All|very bloody]]) aftermath of ''[[
* [[Let's You and Him Fight]]: '''The entire story''', thanks to {{spoiler|Shinnok and Quan Chi}}'s machinations. With most of Earthrealm and Outworld's warriors {{spoiler|dead}}, {{spoiler|the Netherrealm}} is now in perfect position to conquer both.
* {{spoiler|[[Mauve Shirt]]}}: Nearly ''every'' hero is turned into this by endgame.
* {{spoiler|[[Mutual Kill]]}}: The aftermath of {{spoiler|Nightwolf}} vs. {{spoiler|Sindel}}.
* [[Never Say "Die"]]: Story Mode removes Fatalities and visible character injuries. Also, no characters die unless the plot requires it.
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: The new game's story mode covers the events of the first three ''Mortal Kombat'' games, but changed slightly due to Raiden receiving incomplete visions of the future. {{spoiler|Almost everything he does as a reaction to those visions only seems to make things ''worse''}}. To be somewhat more specific, he most manages to avoid making things too bad during the ''Mortal Kombat 1'' arc, though this causes some issues that crop up during the ''Mortal Kombat II'' arc that weren't present in the original timeline, and while those issues still don;t throw things too off the rails, all the changed circumstances, mixed with a little bit of dissension between Liu Kang and Raiden, cause things to really go off the rails in a bad way {{spoiler|though the remaining upside is that Shao Kahn is really dead this time, thus preventing the worst outcome of the original timeline}}.
** Also, Nightwolf in {{spoiler|Freddy's}} Arcade Ladder ending. All Nightwolf accomplished was {{spoiler|returning Freddy to the place where he was always the biggest threat, the Dream Realm
* [[No Campaign for
* [[Poor Communication Kills]]: [[Kill'Em All|Does it ever]]. Future!Raiden clarifying "he (who) must win" might have made a world of difference.
* [[Red Herring Shirt]]: {{spoiler|Johnny Cage}} and {{spoiler|Reptile}} live. If you know anything about these two in the original timeline, this is a '''huge''' development.
* [[Reset Button]]: This game is a [[Broad Strokes]] approach to the original trilogy
* [[Retcon]]: The whole idea of retelling the events of the first three games while ''
** [[Continuity Reboot]]: '''Very''' ingeniously [[Subverted Trope]]. At the end of ''Mortal Kombat Armageddon'', during his final moments at the hands of Shao Kahn, Raiden manages to perform one last act of godhood: he sends messages to his past self during the events of the first three games, in an attempt to avoid the horrifying future he's currently in. This results in Past!Raiden changing events to avoid Armageddon, hence how the game happens in the timeline of the classic games but is still a proper sequel and does not discard the story of the previous ones.
** [[Alternate Continuity]]: The original universe still exists, and most of the basic backstories are still intact, but it's now the [[Bad Future]] of this game, akin to ''[[Age of Apocalypse|The Age of Apocalypse]]'' or how they [[Star Trek (
** One particular plot point that was retconned involved the resurrection of Sindel during the ''Mortal Kombat 3'' arc. Originally, according to ''Mortal Kombat 3''{{'}}s prologue screens, Shao Kahn had devised the plan himself ten thousand years ago, to resurrect Sindel (with Shang Tsung's help) on Earthrealm soil so Kahn would have the power needed to breach the dimesional gates and conquer Earth, the plan itself being enacted in full once Kahn became frustrated with Earth's warriors repeatedly foiling his earlier takeover attempts. ''Mortal Kombat Trilogy'' slightly retconned this point so that he carries it out while the heroes are distracted with the events of ''Mortal Kombat II''. In ''Mortal Kombat 9''{{'}}s Story Mode, however, the plan is now thought of on-the-spot by Quan Chi, with neither Shao Kahn or Shang Tsung having any part in the actual resurrection itself.
** Scorpion's backstory: In the original game, he wanted revenge on the elder Sub-Zero for killing him. He also turned into the younger Sub-Zero's mentor in ''Mortal Kombat II'' as an apology for killing his brother. His family and clan being assassinated and blamed upon the ''younger'' Sub-Zero happened in ''Mortal Kombat 4'' thanks to a lie courtesy of Quan Chi. This version blames it all upon the elder Sub-Zero and makes the younger one Scorpion's enemy from the start.
** Kitana's backstory: Originally, she and Mileena grew up together as Shao Kahn's assassins, with Kitana believing Mileena was her twin sister. Way before the events of the second game, Kitana had found out all by herself her real father has been killed by Shao Kahn and her sister was a clone. She kept this in secret until the right opportunity came to her, the Outworld tournament held in ''Mortal Kombat II''. This version has Kitana only finding out all of this when Raiden spoke to her during the events of said tournament.
* [[Ripple Effect Indicator]]: Raiden's medallion.
* [[Sacrificial Lion]]: {{spoiler|Several of the heroes}} play a large part of the overall story, only to be [[Killed Off for Real]] near the end to show how truly catastrophic the changes to the timeline has become.
* [[Sequel Hook]]: {{spoiler|Shinnok is next
** Even though the Arcade Ladder endings clash with Story Mode's ending, {{spoiler|Jade}}'s ending looks like another very possible hook.
** Same goes for Raiden's ending. The events detailed in that ending closely follows what happened in Story Mode, and two of the four figures shown being empowered by Raiden's soul heavily resemble {{spoiler|Johnny and Sonya, the only two remaining Earthrealm heroes besides Raiden himself}}.
* [[Set Right What Once Went Wrong]]: Raiden at the time of ''Mortal Kombat Armageddon'' sent a message to himself as of the original ''Mortal Kombat'', attempting to avert Shao Kahn's victory.
* [[Shoot the Shaggy Dog]]: Every other game in the franchise (barring ''[[Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub
* [[Shout-Out]]: Check [[Mortal Kombat
* [[Taking You
▲* {{spoiler|[[The Bad Guy Wins]]: Played with. Toward the end of the game, Raiden realizes that the message his future self sent is referring to '''Shao Kahn'''. He lets Kahn merge Earthrealm with Outworld, only for the Elder Gods to punish Kahn, since he broke the rules of Mortal Kombat. }}
* [[Title Drop]]: Liu Kang delivers one during his pre-fight speech to Shang Tsung prior to their battle from the first tournament. The trope's [[Justified Trope]], since the story retells events from the first three games, which featured a Mortal Kombat tournament and {{spoiler|an attempt to merge Outworld and Earthrealm together whilst ignoring the rules of Mortal Kombat}}.
{{quote|
:: Other drops happen during the course of the story, which goes without saying.
* [[Took a Level
** Sindel took a level in '''{{spoiler|mass murder}}'''.
** Stryker, Kabal, Smoke
** Nightwolf became one of the game's bigger badasses: he manages to land the role of Raiden's deputy, and when The God of Thunder's not around to directly lead the Earthrealm warriors, he leads the group into battle.
** Ermac originally existed as an [[Ascended Glitch]] whose telekinesis served as his only claim to fame
* [[Tournament Play]]: This game is the first game of the series being deemed Tournament-worthy by EVO standards.
* [[Trying to Catch Me Fighting Dirty]]: In both the
* [[Wham! Episode]]: {{spoiler|Near the end, Sindel singlehandedly kills almost all of the heroes}}.
** The game's a reboot of the original plot, so it's going to stick to that original plot, right? They won't do anything ''too'' major, right? They especially won't drastically change one of the most popular characters in the entire series... ''right?'' {{spoiler|Yeah, uh... Cyber Sub-Zero says "hi there"
* [[What Happened to
** {{spoiler|Mileena}} gets shocked by Raiden, but it's not that big.
** {{spoiler|Reptile and Baraka}} are beaten but spared.
** {{spoiler|Goro, Kintaro
** {{spoiler|Kano}} is last seen frozen by {{spoiler|Cyber}} Sub-Zero, but not shattered. He just disappears from the scenes, although apparently {{spoiler|he did warn Quan Chi of Cyber Sub-Zero}}.
** {{spoiler|Cyrax and Sektor}} may or may not be dead.
** Also, Raiden mentions that {{spoiler|he sent Liu Kang and Kung Lao to rescue their Shaolin Masters}} near the beginning of the ''
** Well the fact that most of these characters don't seem to be dead could be very important considering they may be needed to fight
* [[The Worf Effect]]:
** In Smoke's chapter of Story Mode, he faces off Kitana and Sektor and triumphs without much difficulty. When they meet again (Kitana and Nightwolf's chapters, respectively), {{spoiler|Kitana beats him alongside Cage}}, and {{spoiler|Sektor treats Smoke like a ragdoll, with Smoke being unable to successfully land a blow before Sektor gets him into a chokehold and Nightwolf has to intervene}}.
** If the Story Mode is any indication, Sub-Zero punked {{spoiler|'''Kratos''' ([[
** It's a running Gag that Sub-Zero is by far the strongest character when he's offscreen, having previously done the same thing to Superman.
** {{spoiler|Sindel, empowered by Shang Tsung's soul/essence}}, attacks the heroes after {{spoiler|the automated Lin Kuei warriors fail to kill them}}. The battle quickly escalates into a [[No-Holds-Barred Beatdown]] like no other
* [[Your Soul Is Mine]]: Late in the game, Quan Chi begins creating a "soulnado", a green vortex designed to suck out the souls of every living person in Earthrealm. It ends up being destroyed thanks to sucking up a [[Humanoid Abomination]].
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