An expanded version of the game, titled Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition, was released for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in February 2012 and for Microsoft Windows in July 2013.

The storyline involves the divine protector of Earth, Raiden, attempting to change the aftermath of the events of Armageddon by contacting his past self as he faces defeat at the hands of the evil emperor of Outworld, Shao Kahn.

While having characters and levels rendered in three-dimensions, the gameplay distances itself from the 3D graphics style seen in the last five games, bearing closer resemblance to that of the 2D era of the series, using a camera that is perpendicular to the two-dimensional playing field.

Mortal Kombat uses a single two-dimensional fighting plane (at 60 frames per second),[5][6] although characters are rendered in three-dimensional fashion,[7] intended to give depth and range to portrayals of various projectiles.

Back to the events of the first tournament, the past Raiden sees visions of the future due to the message he received and notices his amulet has been damaged.

They are followed by Lin Kuei cyber assassins Sektor and Cyrax who are tasked with retrieving the rogue warriors for cybernetic conversion.

Following his victory over Shang Tsung, the ruler of Netherrealm, Quan Chi, and the fire-breathing Kintaro, Kung Lao's neck is snapped by Shao Kahn while his back was turned, killing him, with Liu Kang retaliating and mortally wounding the emperor in a fit of rage.

Joined by police officers Stryker and former Black Dragon member Kabal, the Earthrealm fighters attempt to stop Kahn's invasion.

During the ensuing battle, Jax, Jade, Sub-Zero, Kabal, Stryker and Smoke are easily defeated and killed by Sindel, and Kitana is brutally beaten.

Quan Chi declines, and reveals he already has possession of the heroes' souls, promised to him by Shao Kahn in exchange for his allegiance to the emperor, and has turned them into undead "revenants".

Quan Chi, now shown to be an agent of Shinnok, the exiled Elder God of darkness, reveals that the destruction of Shao Kahn and the weakening of Earthrealm by the death of their fighters was part of their plan to conquer all the realms for their own bidding.

[25] In late 2009, Boon stated that the franchise was returning to its bloody origins[26] and that the production team were aiming for a "Mature" rating, as opposed to the "Teen" on the previous game.

[5] It was revealed at the Sony E3 press conference that Mortal Kombat would be 3D compatible,[29] and Boon said that in dealing with the 3D capability, more attention to detail was required so as to not obstruct the gameplay.

[44] On April 5, 2011, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and NetherRealm Studios announced Mortal Kombat was finished and ready for mass production, with pre-orders having gone "gold".

[51][52] On October 4, 2010, the "Environment Bio" trailer of the Mortal Kombat arena, The Pit, was released to explain the in-game backstory on its origins and evolution.

[53] Similar videos featuring The Living Forest,[54] the Dead Pool,[55] and Kahn's Coliseum[56] were released afterward, also explaining background information on the stages.

[61] In April 2011, Playboy models Jo Garcia and Brittney Palmer (dressed as Mileena and Kitana, respectively) promoted the game in a sponsored vlog advertisement.

[64] In April 2012, two live-action cosplay trailers featuring Rachelle Glover (Kitana)[65] and Danni Levy (Mileena)[66] were released;[67][68] they were later combined into one commercial video titled "Fight Anywhere".

The demo (an arcade ladder with single- or two-player capability) showcases four characters (Johnny Cage, Mileena, Scorpion and Sub-Zero) and the stages The Living Forest and The Pit.

[71] Mortal Kombat was also internationally presented in the 2011 Evolution Championship Series (Evo), being recognized as a "main tournament fighting game".

[72][73] "Professional gamers" Justin Wong (winner of the PDP championship) and Carl 'Perfect Legend' White (the Evo 2011 champion) spoke positively of Mortal Kombat's place in future tournament events.

[75] A European version of the Kollector's Edition was also released, which includes the game, art book, a Scorpion & Sub-Zero figurine, a Steelbook case and downloadable skins.

[85] Warner Bros. is one of the first game companies that introduced the concept of season pass: a long term, pre-paid, post-launch downloadable content plan.

[4] As of March 21, 2020, Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition has been removed from Steam due to changes with Warner Brother Games' network.

"[104] Brett Elston of GamesRadar was also more cautious in his review, stating it is "a successful sequel that both reboots and redeems the wayward series, though it's not a flawless victory.

"[107] Crisan compared it to "watching a full length CG movie", and said that while "incredibly corny, it's also oddly addicting" due to its over-the-top plot.

Dan Ryckert of Game Informer called it "the most complete version of Mortal Kombat available,"[106] while Brett Zeidler of Destructoid hailed it as "a perfect example of keeping the best graphical fidelity possible and including an already astronomical amount of content.

"[127] According to Walton, "despite a few control issues" regarding tag team combos, "Mortal Kombat on the Vita is every bit the great and gruesome fighter as its console counterparts.

[137] Netherrealm Studios' success with Mortal Kombat's story mode influenced future Mortal Kombat entries and Netherrealm's Injustice series, and inspired developers of future fighting games to create similar film-inspired experiences in their games, like Guilty Gear Xrd, Tekken 7, Street Fighter V, and Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite.

[47] A sequel for the game, Mortal Kombat X, was developed by NetherRealm Studios for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One and was released in April 2015.