Confirming earlier theories, Mortal Kombat 1's story director, Dominic Cianciolo, dropped a bomb at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. Most notably, the character known as Scorpion, the franchise's face since 1992, isn't Hanzo Hazashi as previously known. Instead, it will be played by Kuai Liang.
The fiery, yellow-clad ninja has always been an embodiment of revenge, having been resurrected by the sorcerer Quan Chi to enact vengeance on his rival, Bi-Han, aka Sub-Zero, following the destruction of his family and clan. However, in game's new timeline, Scorpion and Sub-Zero are no longer deadly rivals but brothers within the Lin Kuei clan.
This transformation traces back to the significant alteration of the Mortal Kombat timeline by Liu Kang at the end of Mortal Kombat 11, which has birthed a parallel universe with a completely different character dynamic. The decision to reboot the storyline, as stated by NetherRealm's story director, was a deliberate attempt to surprise players and introduce a novel and unique experience. The studio is unapologetically not shying away from altering the existing lore, with co-creator Ed Boon expressing their intention to "drop a nuke" on the story of the new game.
In the same interview with IGN, amidst discussions about the revamped relationships among the playable members of the Lin Kuei, Cianciolo subtly slipped that Scorpion is indeed Kuai Liang, thus confirming fan theories floating since the game's announcement. This surprising reveal stemmed from Cianciolo's discussion of Smoke, another character from the series, is him as an adopted brother to both Scorpion and Sub-Zero. His statement implied an intensified conflict and deepened relationships among the trio.
