Highlights
- Reptile has been confirmed as a returning character for Mortal Kombat 1, fulfilling the desires of many fans who had been eagerly anticipating his comeback.
- The "Banished" trailer also confirms Ashrah and Havik for the game's roster, adding to the excitement for long-time fans of the franchise.
- The reshaped world of Mortal Kombat 1 has altered the backstories of these characters, with Reptile seemingly aligning himself with the forces of good in the new trailer.
One of the most-requested classic characters has finally been confirmed for the Mortal Kombat 1 roster, with a new trailer revealing the return of Reptile along with other fighters from the series’ past. Many fans of the long-running fighting franchise had been anticipating this announcement following recent hints about Reptile’s return dropped by developer NetherRealm Studios and series creator Ed Boon on social media.
One of the franchise’s most iconic characters, the scaly-skinned fighter Reptile made his debut in 1992’s original Mortal Kombat as a secret boss. Since that initial appearance, Reptile has become a series mainstay, with the shapeshifting combatant showing up in over a dozen Mortal Kombat titles as either a playable character or to make cameo appearances via in-game cutscenes. Following the recent announcement that NetherRealm’s popular Kombat Kast will be returning ahead of the launch of Mortal Kombat 1, it’s likely that players will learn more about Reptile’s new abilities in the coming weeks as the studio does deep dives into the game’s many combatants.
Reptile’s return was confirmed in the new “Banished” trailer for Mortal Kombat 1 that was released at EVO 2023. Staying true to its title, the trailer introduces a trio of fighters to the in-game roster who have seemingly been banished by their respective communities. In addition to Reptile, who was shunned from his society due to his ability to take on human form, the trailer puts a spotlight on Mortal Kombat: Deception’s reformed Netherrealm demon, Ashrah, and the Chaosrealm cleric, Havik. The surprise addition of this trio of fearsome fighters to Mortal Kombat 1’s launch roster is sure to come as a welcomed surprise to long-time fans of the franchise.
The trailer also showed that Ashrah won’t be the only Netherrealm demon making an appearance in Mortal Kombat 1, with the shapeshifting assassin Sareena appearing as a Kameo fighter alongside Havik to lend a hand in an especially brutal beatdown. Much like the other Mortal Kombat 1 characters that have been revealed so far, each of these new combatants looks to have a drastically altered backstory in the reshaped world created by Fire God Liu Kang. This is particularly evident in the case of Reptile, with the traditionally villainous fighter seemingly working alongside the forces of good in the new trailer.
Even as Mortal Kombat 1’s September 19 release date creeps ever closer developer NetherRealm Studios continues to excite fans with each new character reveal. And with the start of the Mortal Kombat 1 pre-order beta now only weeks away, it won’t be long until franchise fans can finally get a taste of the game’s bloody, brutal action for themselves.
Mortal Kombat 1 launches September 19 for PC, PS5, Switch, and Xbox Series X.