Key Highlights:
- Ed Boon posted Mortal Kombat 4’s character-select screen on 6 June 2023 with the message “Some making their way back into action.”
- The image included returning names such as Reptile, Reiko, Tanya, Quan Chi, Jax and Sonya Blade.
- Several eventually appeared in Mortal Kombat 1 as Main Fighters, DLC Fighters or Kameo Fighters.
Ed Boon fuelled Mortal Kombat 1 roster speculation on 6 June 2023 by sharing Mortal Kombat 4’s character-select screen and saying that “some” of its fighters were making their way back into action.
The post arrived two days before Mortal Kombat 1’s first gameplay reveal at Summer Game Fest.
Several characters shown in the Mortal Kombat 4 image had already been confirmed, including Liu Kang, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Raiden and Johnny Cage. The more interesting possibilities were fighters whose MK1 status remained unknown.
The screen also included Reptile, Reiko, Tanya, Quan Chi, Jax, Sonya Blade, Fujin, Kai, Jarek and Shinnok.
Boon did not identify which characters his message referred to, so the image remained deliberately ambiguous at the time.
In retrospect, the tease was surprisingly broad.
Reptile, Reiko and Tanya all returned as playable Main Fighters. Quan Chi later joined the roster through Kombat Pack 1, while Jax and Sonya Blade appeared as Kameo Fighters.
Fujin, Kai, Jarek and Shinnok did not join Mortal Kombat 1 as selectable Fighters or Kameos.
The distinction matters because Boon’s wording did not necessarily imply that every returning character would occupy the Main Fighter roster. Mortal Kombat 1’s Kameo system allowed NetherRealm to bring classic characters back without making each one fully playable.
I think Jax and Sonya are the best examples of why the post was difficult to interpret before launch. Both were established Mortal Kombat characters, but their MK1 appearances ultimately came through the separate Kameo roster rather than the main selectable cast.
Boon also teased returning gameplay terminology ahead of Summer Game Fest by referring to “Kameos & Kombos & Breakers.” Breakers had previously appeared as a defensive mechanic in earlier Mortal Kombat games, including Mortal Kombat: Deception.
The subsequent gameplay reveal gave players their first practical look at Kameo assists and confirmed additional returning characters.
Mortal Kombat 1 continued expanding its classic roster throughout the pre-launch campaign, eventually bringing back characters from several different eras rather than concentrating solely on Mortal Kombat 4.
Boon’s post therefore worked less as a direct roster reveal and more as a warning that NetherRealm intended to pull heavily from the series’ wider history.
