While it may not quite be on the same levels asFortnite, theMortal Kombatfranchise has had its fair share of pop-culture collaborations over the last few years.Mortal Kombat’s very first guest character wasNightmare on Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger, appearing all the way back in 2012 inMortal Kombat Komplete Edition. That first appearance really opened the floodgate, withMortal Kombat Xincluding characters like The Predator and Jason VorheesandMortal Kombat 11bringing out The Terminator, Rambo, and Spawn. And if the rumors are to be believed, thenMortal Kombat 1will have plenty of its own crossover fighters.
According to recent rumors,Mortal Kombat 1is already set to include three crossover guest fighters, all coming within the game’s first Kombat Pack. These fighters includeInvincible’sOmni-Man,Peacemaker’s titular anti-hero, andThe Boys' Homelander. As evidenced by these picks, superheroes are nothing new forMortal Kombat, but Marvel’s heroes don’t tend to appear, likely due to licensing issues. But regardless of these legal roadblocks, there’s some leeway forMortal Kombat 1to have some kind of Spider-Man reference.
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Why Mortal Kombat 1 Might Have a Spider-Man Reference
While he probably won’t be web-swinging into the arena anytime soon, there’s a big possibility that Spider-Man could be referenced inMortal Kombat 1. In Insomniac’sMarvel’s Spider-Manand its upcoming sequel,Peter Parker is voiced by Yuri Lowenthal, a prolific voice actor that’s also appeared inArcane,Ben 10,Naruto, and a ton of other video games, TV shows, and movies. Yuri’s already done a phenomenal job of playing the web-head, and that looks like it’ll only continue in the sequel, with the actor already showing some great range in the trailer with his gruffer Symbiote Suit voice.
ButMarvel’s Spider-Man 2isn’t the only major video game appearance Yuri Lowenthal is having this year. Inthe latestMortal Kombat 1trailer, it was revealed that the gray ninja Smoke will be returning to the series, and this time, he’s voiced by Yuri Lowenthal. Though his voicelines are few and far between in the trailer, Yuri’s voice is very noticeable, and his portrayal of Smoke seems to be a unique one, sounding a little younger and less sure than previous iterations of the character.
TheMortal Kombatfranchise is no stranger to tongue-in-cheek references and Easter eggs, either to its own past or to the wider pop-culture world around it. For example, gettingMortal Kombat 1’s Premium Editiongives players access to a Jean-Claude Van Damme skin for Johnny Cage, the original inspiration for the character. So, a tongue-in-cheek reference to Yuri Lowenthal’s role as Spider-Man might not be out of the realm of possibility forMortal Kombat 1.
The most likely form of reference to Spider-Man inMortal Kombat 1would probably come from Smoke himself, delivered as a voiceline either during the campaign or, more likely, during the start of a match when each character taunts one another. The most obvious voiceline to use is the classic “With great power, comes great responsibility” speech, being a clear reference to the wall-crawler. It might even be fun to have Smoke’s opponent cut him off mid-sentence, acting as a further tongue-in-cheek commentary on how many times fans have heard that speech over the years. IfMortal Kombat 1really wanted to go above and beyond with a Spider-Man reference, it could even include a Spidey Easter egg with Smoke’s alternate outfits, potentially giving one a red, blue, and white color scheme, similar to Spidey’s look in Insomniac’s series.
Mortal Kombat 1releases September 19 for PC, PS5, Switch, and Xbox Series X/S.
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