Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • View Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Amazon Spring Sale
  • New Games for 2026
  • Submit your game clips
  • GDC
Don't miss these
Nioh 3 stone demon with red eyes
Action RPGs "If we focus too much on casual players, that would take away the bite," says Nioh 3 dev
The Elder Scrolls Oblivion Remastered screenshot with 'Future of Starfield' branding
RPGs How returning to The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion reshaped Todd Howard's stance on remastering Bethesda's RPGs
Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 2
Mortal Kombat "You lost $40 million": Dev lost Mortal Kombat rights because he went on a family vacation
Nioh 3 female warriors
Action RPGs Should Japanese game devs focus on a Japanese style? Nioh 3 leads say it's "one of our strengths"
The Last of Us 2
Third Person Shooters Arc Raiders lead was surprised The Last of Us players liked the game, just not "PvP all the time"
Ellie and Joel during The Last of Us
Survival Horror Games The Last of Us sparked "internal fight" at Naughty Dog, says veteran designer: "'It's not just another zombie game'"
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Survival Horror Games "They're not good enough," joke devs behind "self-feeding" horror giant stuck in the Steam Top 50 while others rot
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2
RPGs Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 devs knew the sequel "had to stand taller" after "experimenting" on the first game
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing female protagonist Naoe
Assassin's Creed Assassin's Creed Shadows features "will make their way to other games," franchise lead says
Dead by Daylight
Horror Games 10 years later, one of the only live-service horror games still standing learned how to win the "hellish" attention war
Tekken 8 screenshot
Fighting Games The 25 best fighting games you can play right now in 2026
Sam Porter Bridges flexes for the camera in Death Stranding 2
Action Games Death Stranding 2 dev says Hideo Kojima "wanted more people to enjoy" the sequel
Nioh 3 shogun in plate armor helmet
Action RPGs 15 years after Dark Souls, Nioh 3 faced the exact same problem and "people felt that the game was a little bit easier"
Donkey Kong punching through rocks in Donkey Kong Bananza
Donkey Kong Donkey Kong Bananza devs want to make sure Mario and DK's games feel different
Mortal Kombat 1 Baraka
Games Mortal Kombat, Hogwarts Legacy, and more could get the chop in $6 billion cuts following Paramount merger
  1. Games
  2. Fighting Games
  3. Mortal Kombat
  4. Mortal Kombat X

Mortal Kombat creator, Ed Boon, talks story mode in MKX

Features
By GamesMaster_ published 24 February 2015

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Q: What are the core principles that each Mortal Kombat game is built around?

Q: What are the core principles that each Mortal Kombat game is built around?

The core idea is always to introduce something that differentiates this game from not only the other Mortal Kombat games, but also other fighting games. Sometimes thats one, two or three big things: like in Mortal Kombat 9 we had been 3D before so we said lets go back to 2D, lets bring all these old characters that we havent seen in a while back in. And also to tell a really elaborate story was a big goal for that game too.

So its kind of like: what hasnt been done before? Why should I care about Mortal Kombat X? And I think character variations and all these online modes, and everything else that were gonna be announcing, are going to have as big or bigger of an impact than even Mortal Kombat 9 had.

Page 1 of 4
Page 1 of 4
Q: Why is now the right time to bring in character variations?

Q: Why is now the right time to bring in character variations?

A lot of attention in Mortal Kombat 9 went into eSports, EVO, tournament kind of stuff; features that the hardcore guys are really going to get into. And in talking to a lot of them, what they talk about is what they call match-ups. Like theyll say Scorpion is a good match-up for Raiden, Raiden is a bad match-up for Mileena, then they rank all the characters.

But some people just love a character, so we asked what we could do to make certain characters match up better with others? So we just came up with a different version of, for example, Sub-Zero a version of Sub-Zero thats better up-close, a Sub-Zero that plays better from afar, a projectile-based one, a clone-based one and that kind of spiderwebbed into every character done like that.

Page 2 of 4
Page 2 of 4
Q: The cinematic, B movie campaign was arguably MK9s strongest feature. Wheres that headed this time around?

Q: The cinematic, B movie campaign was arguably MK9s strongest feature. Wheres that headed this time around?

Well, you know, ironically we never promoted that in MK9. It just was there and it took people by surprise: it was like, oh my God, what is this?, you know? And, quite honestly, back then I was saying we should be jumping up and down talking about this!

So we havent announced [MKXs story mode] yet, but if we were to do something like this, when you think about it, we have all the way up to April to talk about the game. Id be surprised if we never mention it!

Page 3 of 4
Page 3 of 4
Q. How do you see the health of the traditional beat-em-up at the moment?

Q. How do you see the health of the traditional beat-em-up at the moment?

Obviously in the 90s it was the category of games, and then over time I think they got too complicated I think a number of games came out that required that you study them, take a college course, and then you are at the entry level. And people just dont have that kind of time to invest; they just want to have fun. So there was a few years where they were just too complicated.

And then in 2008 Street Fighter IV came out, and in 2011 Mortal Kombat 9 came out. I think those two games going back to 2D and simplifying the whole thing, the whole process, the whole ten-hit-string thing, simplifying all that I think that brought a lot of people back to being able to have fun with a fighting game and not have to take a course in it. So I think that was a big part of it.

Page 4 of 4
Page 4 of 4
CATEGORIES
PS4 Xbox One Platforms PlayStation Xbox
GamesMaster_
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Read more
Invincible VS screenshot showing Dupli-Kate using her abilities
Fighting Games Invincible VS director wants players to feel like "a f**king superhero," so expect matches that are a "knock-down, drag-out fight until the death"
 
 
Mortal Kombat movie
Action Movies Mortal Kombat 2 star joins in with Street Fighter movie beef after Game Awards dig because he "loves a good rivalry"
 
 
Key art for Scott Pilgrim EX showing Scott and Ramona ready for action in front of a montage of enemies and other characters, with the Big in 2026 GamesRadar+ frame
Action Games Scott Pilgrim EX's new roster is inspired by "fighting game archetypes", with a fresh take on the universe
 
 
Lords of the Fallen 2 woman clutching her hands together in prayer
Action RPGs Soulslike action RPG Lords of the Fallen 2 is on the "same journey" as the Batman Arkham games, dev says
 
 
Key art for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls showing sketchy drawings of Ghost Rider, Captain America, Spider-Man, Storm, and Doctor Doom all ready for a fight - with the GamesRadar+ Big in 2026 brand frame
Fighting Games Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls could be the comeback Marvel fighters have been waiting for, thanks to an anime makeover
 
 
Nioh 3 stone demon with red eyes
Action RPGs "If we focus too much on casual players, that would take away the bite," says Nioh 3 dev
 
 
Latest in Mortal Kombat
Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 2
Mortal Kombat "You lost $40 million": Dev lost Mortal Kombat rights because he went on a family vacation
 
 
Mortal Kombat 11
Games Mortal Kombat's Sub-Zero and Kitana team up after figure skating duo's win to pull off a competition illegal move
 
 
Mortal Kombat 3 screenshot showing nightwolf and sheeva
Mortal Kombat "This is a Komplete FAILURE": Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection is off to a rough start with massive input lag and netcode issues ruining fighting game fans' experiences online
 
 
Karl Urban as Johnny Cage is ready to fight in the Mortal Kombat 2 trailer
Mortal Kombat Mortal Kombat co-creator says the movie sequel's opening has made him cry every single time he's watched it: "It punches you in the face"
 
 
Adeline Rudolph as Kitana in Mortal Kombat 2
Mortal Kombat Mortal Kombat 2 is as much about Kitana as it is about Johnny Cage: "They go in and out of each other throughout the movie"
 
 
Karl Urban as Johnny Cage is ready to fight in the Mortal Kombat 2 trailer
Action Movies Mortal Kombat 2 gets a big release date delay, but ends up in a promising spot
 
 
Latest in Features
Arjun shields up as Prophet blasts out a spiral of yellow corrupted bullets in a Saros boss fight, with the GamesRadar+ Big Preview frame
Roguelike Games Saros: The Big Preview – Hands-on and developer access with PS5's roguelike game-changer
 
 
The Serpent's Skin
Horror Movies The Serpent's Skin is the neon-soaked, blood-splattered queer love story I've been waiting for
 
 
Pokemon TCG Perfect Order Elite Trainer Box on a wooden table
Tabletop Gaming Perfect Order introduces a Pokemon card everyone will want to use, and fans are already clamoring for it
 
 
Cyberpunk 2077
RPGs Cyberpunk 2077 is a better role-playing game than The Witcher 3
 
 
Star Fox
Third Person Shooters Star Fox isn't just an iconic retro Nintendo shooter – it paved the road to Super Mario 64
 
 
Jujutsu Kaisen
Anime Shows Jujutsu Kaisen season 4 release date speculation, teaser, cast, and Culling Game Part 2's story
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
    1
    "You can't build clever little games anymore" unless you're Expedition 33, RPG legend says
  2. 2
    Arc Raiders lead was surprised The Last of Us players liked the game, just not "PvP all the time"
  3. 3
    Saros aims for bite-sized 30-minute runs, and the cool-off makes you "ready for another", its game designer tells me
  4. 4
    7 reasons why Saros has me hooked on its eclipse-powered roguelike runs
  5. 5
    Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 devs knew the sequel "had to stand taller" after "experimenting" on the first game

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...