NetherRealm Studios has mostly been making the same game for the past few years, alternating between Mortal Kombat and Injustice titles.
With Mortal Kombat 1 having just launched their latest expansion with Khaos Reigns, MK creator Ed Boon talks about what the studio is ready to tackle next.
NetherRealm’s Next Game was Decided 3 Years Ago
In an interview with ComicBook, Boon talks about how the studio decides their next project, even before they launch the current one. He explains, "I've said this before but we start planning the next game long before we're done with the previous game… There is so much prep work, research, and planning. It is absolutely not the case that when we finish the game we go, 'Okay, what're we going to do next?' There's a lot of people who need to be working on something. We've known what our next game was going to be three years ago and we've been working on it in some capacity ever since."
Mortal Kombat 1 was released last year, which means they’ve already been working on their next title before the MK reboot was even announced.
Could Injustice 3 be in the Works?
Many fans have suspected that NetherRealm is already working on the announcement for Injustice 3. Besides the Mortal Kombat games, NetherRealm has been behind DC’s AAA fighting game title Injustice, which promises a hyper-violent game with a dark story starring iconic DC characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and other Justice League members. Occasionally, the game—just like Mortal Kombat—will also feature guest characters from different franchises like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Hellboy.
With Mortal Kombat’s emphasis on gratuitous violence, the Injustice titles are a bit more PG-13 when it comes to their action. After all, a character like Superman has no business having his head slowly torn off like characters from MK. That’s also why only characters like the Joker have managed to jump to the Kombat franchise since he’s already naturally violent.
With the last Injustice game coming out in 2017, it’s time for NetherRealm to start working on another DC title. Admittedly, recent games like Gotham Knights and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League haven’t been able to captivate audiences as expected, so perhaps NRS will bring the DC brand back to the spotlight.
The Perfect Timing
It would also coincide perfectly with the release of the next Superman movie from director James Gunn. However, with the promise of a brighter DC universe going forward, maybe NetherRealm could also pivot to a lighter fighting game direction for the Injustice franchise.
Who knows, maybe this time they can milk the multiverse angle with multiple types of Superman, from Christopher Reeves to Henry Cavill. WB Pictures has the resources and necessary licenses.
It’s not clear when NetherRealm will announce its next game, but for now, the hype is around the release of Mortal Kombat 1's DLC, Khaos Reigns. The game is currently playable on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.