Warner Bros. has addressed the concerns of Mortal Kombat 1 fans following the Definitive Edition launch, confirming that no further DLC characters or story content will be added to the game.
Mortal Kombat 1 has reached 5 million copies sold, contributing to the franchise's overall milestone of 100 million units. Mortal Kombat 11 quickly surpassed Mortal Kombat X’s sales of nearly 11 million units to become the series' best-selling title, eventually exceeding 15 million copies by 2022. By comparison, Mortal Kombat 1 has not reached the same commercial success as its predecessors.
In a statement via the official Mortal Kombat social media account, Warner Bros. acknowledged the disappointment felt by players, stating that the NetherRealm team must now "shift focus to the next project in order to make it as great as we possibly can."
While Warner Bros. has not specified what this new project entails, speculation strongly indicates it will be Injustice 3, the next installment in NetherRealm's DC superhero fighting series.
The complete official statement reads as follows:
We are hearing players’ requests for continued game support of Mortal Kombat 1, and, while we will continue to support Mortal Kombat 1 through balance adjustments and fixes, there will not be additional DLC characters or story chapters released from this point on.
We understand this will be disappointing for fans, but our team at NetherRealm needs to shift focus to the next project in order to make it as great as we possibly can.
The release of the T-1000 guest character in March 2025, which arrived roughly a year and a half after Mortal Kombat 1 launched, now stands as the final major content update for the game. For comparison, NetherRealm announced in July 2021 that work had begun on its next project (Mortal Kombat 1), marking the end of DLC support for Mortal Kombat 11. That announcement came two years and three months after Mortal Kombat 11’s launch. In contrast, today’s decision arrives just one year and eight months after Mortal Kombat 1’s release.
Fans are revisiting previous comments from NetherRealm chief developer Ed Boon, who previously assured long-term support for the game. Many are now highlighting a September 2024 tweet from Boon, which sought to reassure the community by stating, “NetherRealm is still fully committed to supporting Mortal Kombat 1 for a long time to come.”
Mortal Kombat 1 experienced a notable resurgence in January with the secret battle against Floyd, the pink ninja character that Boon had hinted at for years. This event sparked a community-wide engagement that briefly revitalized the player base. However, this was a rare highlight in what many dedicated fans consider an otherwise underwhelming installment.
What comes next for Mortal Kombat? Parent company Warner Bros. Discovery has confirmed its continued faith in the franchise. In November, CEO David Zaslav announced the company’s strategy to focus heavily on four core gaming titles, with Mortal Kombat among them. Additionally, the film adaptation Mortal Kombat 2 is scheduled to release later this year.
