Mortal Kombat and Injustice developer NetherRealm Studios has been quiet since it announced that it was ceasing support for Mortal Kombat 11. Given how it is breaking its two-year cycle, many were wondering what the studio was up to. The team itself hasn’t broken its silence, but Warner Bros. has confirmed that Mortal Kombat 12 exists and is slated for 2023.
As captured by Aluminum54 on Twitter, Warner Bros. mentioned the game in an earnings call for its fourth quarter in 2022.
“And there’s lots more to come, including the highly anticipated Mortal Kombat 12 and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, games also set for release this year with ambitious launch projections,” said President and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery David Zaslav.
No other details were given. It’s also a mystery when it will be revealed in a more official capacity with a teaser trailer or gameplay. Co-Creator Ed Boon, however, said in December 2022 that it was “likely” that the game would be revealed soon. Boon also previously stated that “more variables” were involved in this one and why it is taking longer.
Speculation over NetherRealm’s next game has run rampant over the past year. Early rumors pointed to the team making a Marvel fighting game. The studio’s patterns suggested that its next title was Injustice 3. However, insider Jeff Grubb stated in August 2021 that NetherRealm was focusing on Mortal Kombat 12 instead of Injustice 3 because of the uncertainty that would come from making a game with Warner Bros. characters.
Mortal Kombat started coming up more, too, as a messy desk photo and hint from Johnny Cage’s actor pointed toward the bloody fighting series. Both posts were quickly deleted, as well. Boon himself also started directly mentioning Mortal Kombat 12 and even said the next title from the team would be “I3 or MK12” in a tweet from November 2022.
