Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 28 minutes ago
Recently, after finally getting around to playing Mortal Kombat 1, I went back and played through the entire trilogy of games that led up to it — which only reaffirmed something I'd been thinking for a long time. Mortal Kombat 11 has one of the most fascinatingly awful story modes in any game I've played. I'll go as far as to say it's the second worst time travel-based story I've ever experienced.
I've played through the story mode in MK11 more than any other story mode in MK history. Back in university, I remember complaining about how expensive Switch games were, and then a friend suggested checking the deals section on the eShop. One of the first things that came up was MK11 for 85% off — and who passes that up? Then I played the game twice. Sometime later I played through the trilogy, not once but twice. And recently, I played through the trilogy again. Five playthroughs in total, and it's genuinely remarkable how gradually but potently it sank in just how bad the story is.
It should come as no surprise to longtime fans. There are probably a million videos on this topic already, but I have to get my thoughts out there. That's how much this irks me.
The Structural Problem
Modern Mortal Kombat struggles to write decent plot lines largely because it deliberately limits itself through its structure. The game constantly shifts focus to different characters every half hour or so, and every chunk of story has to find a way to contrive four fights in a row with the same character — hence Geras showing up at the end of Sonya's chapter apropos of nothing. As shoehorned as that felt, complaining about that specific instance is like complaining about the moistened towelettes on a crashing airplane. These games have genuinely difficult structural limitations to work with. But there are ways to make it work. Somehow, even by those limited standards, the writing in MK11 is woeful.
The Opening: A Promising Setup Squandered
The game starts before the epilogue of MKX, and this is actually a pretty compelling scene. When he purified the Jinsei Chamber at the end of MKX, Raiden absorbed a significant amount of Shinnok's evil energy, which corrupted him and transformed him into Dark Raiden. The game opens on him torturing Shinnok before decapitating him. If nothing else, the story is genuinely good in this first chapter — it's telling something coherent, interesting, and different from most of the rest of the series.
With Raiden now corrupted, he's declared all-out war against all other realms, operating under the assumption that they pose a threat to Earthrealm. A team of Special Forces operatives led by Cassie Cage, Sonya Blade, and Jacqui Briggs leads the charge straight into the Netherrealm, opposing several of the remaining Revenants including Liu Kang, Kitana, Jade, and Kabal. They succeed in blowing up the Bone Temple — but in the process, Sonya Blade is killed.
This is the perfect setup for a story where Raiden ends up as the main villain. They went on the offensive completely unprompted at his insistence, and in the process lost a friend, a mother, a wife, and a great warrior. And Raiden seems almost pleased about it.
"Your mother died a warrior's death. May we all be so fortunate."
Unfortunately, this is where things fall apart in a hurry....
Recently, after finally getting around to playing Mortal Kombat 1, I went back and played through the entire trilogy of games that led up to it — which only reaffirmed something I'd been thinking for a long time. Mortal Kombat 11 has one of the most fascinatingly awful story modes in any game I've played. I'll go as far as to say it's the second worst time travel-based story I've ever experienced.
I've played through the story mode in MK11 more than any other story mode in MK history. Back in university, I remember complaining about how expensive Switch games were, and then a friend suggested checking the deals section on the eShop. One of the first things that came up was MK11 for 85% off — and who passes that up? Then I played the game twice. Sometime later I played through the trilogy, not once but twice. And recently, I played through the trilogy again. Five playthroughs in total, and it's genuinely remarkable how gradually but potently it sank in just how bad the story is.
It should come as no surprise to longtime fans. There are probably a million videos on this topic already, but I have to get my thoughts out there. That's how much this irks me.
The Structural Problem
Modern Mortal Kombat struggles to write decent plot lines largely because it deliberately limits itself through its structure. The game constantly shifts focus to different characters every half hour or so, and every chunk of story has to find a way to contrive four fights in a row with the same character — hence Geras showing up at the end of Sonya's chapter apropos of nothing. As shoehorned as that felt, complaining about that specific instance is like complaining about the moistened towelettes on a crashing airplane. These games have genuinely difficult structural limitations to work with. But there are ways to make it work. Somehow, even by those limited standards, the writing in MK11 is woeful.
The Opening: A Promising Setup Squandered
The game starts before the epilogue of MKX, and this is actually a pretty compelling scene. When he purified the Jinsei Chamber at the end of MKX, Raiden absorbed a significant amount of Shinnok's evil energy, which corrupted him and transformed him into Dark Raiden. The game opens on him torturing Shinnok before decapitating him. If nothing else, the story is genuinely good in this first chapter — it's telling something coherent, interesting, and different from most of the rest of the series.
With Raiden now corrupted, he's declared all-out war against all other realms, operating under the assumption that they pose a threat to Earthrealm. A team of Special Forces operatives led by Cassie Cage, Sonya Blade, and Jacqui Briggs leads the charge straight into the Netherrealm, opposing several of the remaining Revenants including Liu Kang, Kitana, Jade, and Kabal. They succeed in blowing up the Bone Temple — but in the process, Sonya Blade is killed.
This is the perfect setup for a story where Raiden ends up as the main villain. They went on the offensive completely unprompted at his insistence, and in the process lost a friend, a mother, a wife, and a great warrior. And Raiden seems almost pleased about it.
"Your mother died a warrior's death. May we all be so fortunate."
Unfortunately, this is where things fall apart in a hurry....
