Mortal Kombat 11 character roster: every fighter leak and announcement far

Ripping out spines is back – though if we’re honest, it never really left, right? Mortal Kombat 11 is on the way, bringing back a mixed character roster of returning brawlers and brutal newcomers.

In the previous game in the series, Mortal Kombat mixed things up a little in terms of its character roster. While it had a standard character list, each character had three different ‘stances’ – essentially meaning that there were character variations within the basic character list. We learned in our first hands-on session that Mortal Kombat 11 will keep this system, so each character will be able to mix it up between three different ‘stances’ with slightly different moves and customization options.

Stances or no, one of the major things that makes a fighting game work is the cast of characters – and Mortal Kombat has been bold in introducing newcomers, aging-up iconic staples and generally changing the fighter roster in the games since its 2011 reboot. On this page, we’ll be detailing all the characters in Mortal Kombat 11 that we know about so far, updating it as character reveals come.

Mortal Kombat 11 characters: every confirmed fighter on the roster

Here’s a complete Mortal Kombat 11 character list so far – every officially revealed character, pictures of them and of course a little about them:

Scopion

It wouldn’t be Mortal Kombat without Scorpion, and so of course he leads the character roster. A ninja who has already died but been resurrected, he’s one of the few character who has appeared in every single Mortal Kombat game, inspiring fear in his opponents before getting them to “come over here” for a brutal beat-down.

Sub-Zero

While Scorpion has some fiery moves, Sub-Zero is trrue to his name, bringing ice-based elemental moves to the Mortal Kombat 11 cast of characters. He’s another of the lucky characters to have appeared in every Mortal Kombat game so far, and he returns once again in MK11.

Raiden

Not all is as it seems with Raiden. Raiden has appeared in every major Mortal Kombat game, and though he’s the God of Thunder and originates from the heavens, Raiden doesn’t appear to be all that good any more in MK11 – though he is certainly still god-like. This new ‘dark’ form of Raiden brings red-tinted lightning magic to the MK11 roster.

Geras (newcomer)

All-new for the character roster of Mortal Kombat 11 is Geras – a powerful new warrior who can manipulate the time and the sands – which seems to be a reference to the sands of time, of course. His sand moves can be used for projectile attacks and to create decoys to distract enemies, while his manipulation of time allows for teleportation and other difficult-to-predict shenanigans mid-fight.

Sonya Blade

General Sonya Blade returns, as tough and as brutal as ever. After marrying action man Johnny Cage and having a daughter, Sonya is back on the character list again in Mortal Kombat 11. She comes with her usual array of acrobatic moves, some helpful gadgets, and even has a stance named after noted pro MK player SonicFox. This time around, she’s voiced by Rhonda Rousey.

Baraka

In Mortal Kombat 9 Baraka featured, but only as a non-playable story character. In Mortal Kombat 9, he returns to the playable character list proper with explosive violence. He still has his blades, his massive teeth and that same sense of brutality – and one of his new finishing moves sees him fish his opponent’s brain from their skull and then set to eating it. Food for thought indeed.

Skarlet

Skarlet has an interesting history – she made her debut in 2011’s Mortal Kombat 9, but she was actually based on long-standing rumors from the nineties that a female ninja was playable way back in MK2. Now she’s back again in MK11 as a full-blown character in her own right, complete with powerful moves where she uses her own blood to damage her opponents.

Kano

It wouldn’t be a Mortal Kombat game without everyone’s favorite Aussie mercenary, Kano. Sporting a metal plate on his face, and a deadly laser in place of his right eye, he is utterly hated by Sonya Blade. Probably due to his terrible sense of humor. Part of Shao Kahn’s posse, how Kano will fit into the storyline in Mortal Kombat 11 remains to be seen.

Jade

Jade is a Mortal Kombat mainstay, having made her playable debut back in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 as a powerful ninja assassin type. Being such a series staple means she won’t be kept away easily – in fact, not even death can keep her away. Jade might be dead, but she’s been resurrected by Quan Chi and makes her appearance in MK11 in an undead form.

D’vorah

D’vorah was one of the newly introduced characters in Mortal Kombat 10, a bug lady who uses insects to overwhelm and overpower her opponents. D’vorah is essentially Kotal Kahn’s second in command, and is likely to be a full of tricks and nasty, creepy-crawly moves as she was in MK10.

Kabal

Kabal made his debut in Mortal Kombat 3, and is probably one of the more iconic characters in the series thanks to his recognizable mask and hook swords. Kabal wasn’t playable in MK10 and was limited to a strictly story-based role, but he makes his return in MK11 as a fully-fledged playable character. The role he’ll play remains as-yet unclear.

Shao Kahn (pre-order bonus character)

In the current Mortal Kombat lore Shao Kahn is allegedly dead, and while we don’t know if he’ll stay that way for MK11, he will be playable in this game as the first piece of MK11 character roster DLC. Players who get off their marks and pre-order the game ahead of release will get an unlock code for the former emperor of outworld for free.

Mortal Kombat 11 Roster Leak & Speculation: who else will be in the game?

While the above list is the characters confirmed to be in Mortal Kombat 11, other aspects of the game as shown off to fans offer some glimpses and leaks at what other classic series staples might make it into this latest bloody fighting tournament.

Mortal Kombat of course has a significant story mode, and that means that some characters might appear in the story or in the background of stages but not be playable – but for now, we can at least speculate based on who we’ve seen and based on rumors and leaks that have hit the internet so far. We love a good fighting game roster leak! Here’s who we’ve spotted so far:

Shinnok: Shinnok has been shown in the story mode prologue of MK11 being tortured by Raiden, but given that he gets his head ripped off it seems pretty likely he won’t be playable.
Kronika: Kronika is the mysterious new bald-headed villainess who appeared in the announcement trailer. It appears she can manipulate time, jsut like fellow newcomer Geras – so it wouldn’t surprise us if these two are heading for a showdown.
Liu Kang: Liu Kang has been spotted in non-gameplay sections of the game – but is he a story and background character only? Achievement text leaked via steam suggest he’ll be playable proper.
Kung Lao: Like Liu Kang, series regular Kung Lao has shown up in some behind-the-scenes footage – but it’s not clear if he’s on the roster, but achievement strings leaked on steam suggest he is in.
Cassie Cage: The daughter of Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage, Cassie was one of the best new additions to the MK10 cast. She’s been spotted in behind-the-scenes footage in what looks like a fight intro – so Cassie appears to be on the playable character roster.
Rain: Rain made his debut in Ultimate MK3, and rumors of his return have been stoked by a pro player saying they plan to main him in MK11. Are they trolling, or do they know something we don’t?
Jax or Jacqui Briggs: uncovered in a datamine of the Steam Achievements for MK11, there’s a character with the development name ‘JAC’ – which makes sense for either Jackson ‘Jax’ Briggs or his daughter, Jacqui. Our money is on Jacqui.
Kotal Kahn: Steam Achievements also mention a character known as ‘KOT’ – very likely the development name for Kotal Kahn.
Erron Black: the leaked Achievement file names also mention ‘ERR’ – and this lines up with Erron Black, another MK10 newcomer and fan favorite who is likely to return.