WhenMortal Kombat 1launched last year,I enjoyed it more than most due to its refreshing combat mechanics and excellent storytelling, but still ended up disappointed thanks to its menagerie of post-launch issues.Aggressive microtransactions, game modes that got in their own way more often than not, and missing features like Krossplay added up to make MK1 a surprisingly mixed bag once it was in players' hands.
One year later, it’s a different and much more positive story. While the expensive shop offerings still make me want to cry,NetherRealm has fixed a lot of the issues and added in a ton of exciting characters as DLCthat have moved the new timeline closer to its true potential.That made the inevitable expansion, Khaos Reigns, an exciting prospect.
My favourite part of Mortal Kombat 1 was its story mode, and a hill that I will continue to die on is that it’s one of NetherRealm’s best. I was hoping that Khaos Reigns, which adds an epilogue like MK11’s Aftermath, would give me more of that goodness, but that isn’t the case.
Khaos Reigns technically adds six fighters, but Ghostface, Conan, and the T-100 are all coming at a later date so I won’t be judging them here. Ghostface is a very cool addition, though.
A Khaotic Narrative
Khaos Reigns takes place directly after Mortal Kombat 1’s main story and initially starts strong by focusing on the conflict between Sub-Zero’s Lin-Kuei and Scorpion’s newly-formed Shirai Ryu. Newcomers Cyrax and Sektor, who have been massively redesigned and wear exosuits instead of being actual cyborgs, help Bi-Han attack Kuai Liang’s wedding, kicking off another conflict between the brothers.
The rivalry between Sub-Zero and Scorpion has always been one of the stronger points of Mortal Kombat, so I was optimistic that Khaos Reigns would focus in and tell a grounded story with the reimagined versions of the main cast. That hope faded after just 30 minutes when Khaos Havik rocked up and turned it into yet another multiverse-obsessed, MCU-style affair.
By far the least interesting part of Mortal Kombat 1’s campaign was its final hour, which halted all focus on Liu Kang’s fascinating new timeline to smash a bunch of variants together like Ed Boon playing with his action figures. It made for an exciting finale at least, but it should never have been the focus, something that Khaos Reigns completely misses.
Too Much Multiverse
Most of your time in the new expansion is spent in Khaos Havik’s realm with alternate versions of characters that are impossible to truly care about. When the story focuses on the fighters we know and love dealing with Bi-Han’s transformation into Noob Saibot, it’s entertaining, but too often it lowers the stakes by focusing on multiverse versions that inevitably won’t matter.
Khaos Havik himself is an entertaining villain and has some memorable moments, but he was never worth basing a whole epilogue on, and the fact that he isn’t from the new main timeline makes it hard to stay invested in his future. Noob is the only part of the expansion that feels developed, and that’s really only because he’s an existing character who is only somewhat changed by his origin and new green glow - if you like old Noob, you’ll like new Noob, because they’re basically the same.
Despite all of the controversy surrounding Cyrax and Sektor being genderswapped, they aren’t enough of a focus in the expansion anyway. Cyrax has hints of being an interesting character as she defects to the Shirai Ryu, and Sektor’s romance with Bi-Han is a neat twist, but neither feel particularly fleshed out compared to the rest of the cast.
Some of the most interesting parts of the campaign come from seeing Mileena as Empress of Outworld and clearly struggling with the pressure, which is more proof that a grounded story would have been better.
And then, before you know it, Khaos Reigns is over. At barely three hours long, Mortal Kombat 1’s first big expansion — one that costs $40 — is incredibly brief and doesn’t offer much beyond finding a way to introduce Noob Saibot. As much as I love the guy and am glad to see him back, it’s slim pickings for such a high asking price.
At Least The Fighters Are Great
Khaos Reigns’ saving grace is its three new playable characters, who are all fantastic additions to the roster and some of the best in the game. The star of the show is yet again Noob who plays similarly to before, but has enough differences to feel like a new take, like how his projectile can now be detonated. He also still has his classic rage-inducing teleport grab, which pleases me immensely.
On the other hand, Cyrax feels quite different from older Mortal Kombat games. She has most of the same techniques including the net and buzzsaw, but now that it’s coming from an exosuit, the moves’ properties are completely different. She’s fast-paced and has a ton of techniques up her sleeves, making her a marked improvement over the old Cyrax. I’ll get hate for that one, but it’s true.
Sektor is the only fighter that didn’t reach main status for me, and that was simply because she has a higher focus on heavy-hitting projectiles than the others. While I was initially mixed on those three heading up an expansion, the final result is proof that NetherRealm knows how to make its characters work and change them in interesting ways.
Khaos Reigns also adds Animalities as part of a free update for all players, which is a nice touch. They’ve always been my least favourite type of “alities”, but they’ve been gone a while so it’s nice to see them again.
Mortal Kombat 1 hasn’t missed once with its post-launch DLC characters (and really, with its roster as a whole) so I’m sure that the rest of the expansion’s soon-to-be-released fighters will be great, but as it stands I can only talk about these three. While they are some of MK1’s strongest characters (in terms of how they play at least), they can’t make me overlook what is otherwise a weak expansion greatly overshadowed by NetherRealm’s last offering.
Reviewed on PS5.
WHERE TO PLAY
Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reignsexpands Liu Kang’s New Era with a new story campaign and an all-new cinematic experience. Discover how Liu Kang rallies his champions and puts faith in his enemies as he battles the ruthless Titan Havik, who threatens to plunge the realms into khaos. If they fail, the New Era will be reduced to anarchy.DISCOVER NEW ORIGINSMortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reignsfeatures reimagined stories and gameplay for Klassic Kombatants Noob Saibot, Cyrax, and Sektor, while also welcoming new faces to the Mortal Kombat universe—Ghostface, T-1000, and Conan the Barbarian.ANIMALITIESAnimalities return as a free content update for all Mortal Kombat 1 owners. Morph into your favorite kombatant’s spirit animal to annihilate your defeated opponent.NEW KONTENT, MORE VALUEThe best value for Mortal Kombat 1 is now available! Jumpstart your journey with the Kollection Edition. Includes access to the Base Game, Kombat Pack, Story Expansion, and Kombat Pack 2 (Guest fighters release date TBA)* KOMBAT PACK 2 NOT AVAILABLE SEPARATELY
