Mortal Kombat 1 Dev Chief Ed Boon Teases T-1000 Fatality and ‘Future DLC’

Ed Boon, Mortal Kombat 1's development chief, recently shared a sneak peek of the T-1000 Terminator's upcoming Fatality on social media, simultaneously teasing "future DLC." This reveal coincided with the announcement that Mortal Kombat 1 has surpassed five million copies sold, a significant jump from the previously reported four million, following the release of the Conan the Barbarian guest character.

Boon tweeted a short video showcasing one of the T-1000's Fatalities, a thrilling homage to the iconic Terminator 2 chase scene featuring the T-1000 driving a wrecked truck. His accompanying comment, "With Conan getting into player’s hands, we are excited to keep trucking forward with future DLC!", sparked considerable excitement within the Mortal Kombat community.

While the phrase "keep trucking forward with future DLC" might simply refer to the imminent release of the T-1000, many speculate it hints at additional DLC characters beyond the current Khaos Reigns expansion. This expansion includes the T-1000, alongside Cyrax, Sektor, Noob Saibot, Ghostface, and Conan the Barbarian. The question of a potential Kombat Pack 3 or a third wave of DLC characters has been a topic of much discussion among fans, fueled by Mortal Kombat 1's sales success.

Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company, has expressed continued confidence in the Mortal Kombat franchise. CEO David Zaslav stated in November that the company plans to double down on only four game titles, with Mortal Kombat being one of them. Adding to the anticipation, Boon himself confirmed in September that NetherRealm had decided on its next game three years prior, while promising extended support for Mortal Kombat 1.

While many fans anticipate a third installment in the Injustice fighting game franchise, neither NetherRealm nor Warner Bros. has confirmed this. The Injustice series, featuring DC Comics characters, saw its first game, Injustice: Gods Among Us, released in 2013, followed by Injustice 2 in 2017. NetherRealm's decision to release another Mortal Kombat game (Mortal Kombat 1) in 2023, following Mortal Kombat 11 in 2019, deviated from the previously observed alternating release pattern between Mortal Kombat and Injustice titles.

In a June 2023 interview with IGN, Boon vaguely addressed this decision, citing factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the team's transition to a newer version of the Unreal game engine (Unreal Engine 4 for Mortal Kombat 1, compared to Unreal Engine 3 for Mortal Kombat 11). However, he explicitly confirmed that the Injustice franchise remains a possibility, stating, "Not at all," when asked if the door was closed.