It looks like Mortal Kombat 12 may have been leaked by one of the developers at NetherRealm Studios -- and we might be seeing a trailer pretty soon.
The Mortal Kombat franchise has been happily chugging along for over three decades. However, the franchise has come to a bit of a standstill -- NetherRealm Studios announced that there would be no more Mortal Kombat 11 DLC last year and we've heard neither hide nor hair of a sequel -- until today.
The Mortal Kombat 12 Leak, Explained
The Mortal Kombat 12 leak boils down to an image reportedly tweeted out by NetherRealm Studios Senior Production Manager Jonathan Anderson as reported by VGC (seen above). The image looks innocuous enough on its own -- that is, until some keen-eyed people noticed a file named "MK12_Mast..." on the computer monitor on the top right.
The tweet in question has since been deleted. However, additional details in this Mortal Kombat 12 leak suggest that this "leak" might not have been an accident at all -- a partial e-mail is also included in the image that warns that keen-eyed fans will notice small details in the most innocuous of images.
[...] confidential. Do *not* [...] our fans eagerly scrape the internet for any trace [...] take extra care with this material.
That could be an unfortunate coincidence, but it could also be hanging a lampshade on a deliberate leak.
As for the file name itself, GamesRadar points out that "MK12_Mast..." may refer to a "master file." In media production, the "master" is the highest-quality file that is used as the source for later distribution (which is often compressed down to smaller sizes). This may indicate that we'll soon be seeing a trailer for Mortal Kombat 12.
The timing of this leak is especially curious, too -- recently, Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon was selected as the 25th inductee into the Academent of Interactive Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame. Additionally, Deadline has reported that a Mortal Kombat movie sequel is in the works. These three pieces of news releasing so near to each other could be an incredible coincidence, but we can't say for certain either way.
One also has to consider the fact that the future of NetherRealm Studios is a little uncertain considering the process of AT&T spinning off its games division (of which NetherRealm Studios is a part). While we'd love to see a new Injustice game, Mortal Kombat 12 would be free of any cost concerns over licensing DC's characters and would likely have a lower financial risk in an uncertain time.
Whether this was a leak or viral marketing, the one thing we do know for certain is that Mortal Kombat 12 is likely to come out at some point in the future anyway. NetherRealm Studios has had continued success with the franchise for quite some time and there's no real reason for them to stop making these great fighting games anytime soon.
Do you think the Mortal Kombat 12 leak was an accident or viral marketing? What's your favorite game in the Mortal Kombat franchise? Let us know in the comments below!
