The 2011 reboot of Mortal Kombat was a new lease on life for the series.

Haunted by poor sales and even worse critical acclaim since the Playstation 2 era, the release of Mortal Kombat 9 took the bloody brawler back to basics. Familiar characters returned and the epic story mode reimagined a narrative that fans had fallen in love with more than 20 years ago.

It was a risk, but the move paid off for NetherRealm Studios. Mortal Kombat 9 was a success financially as well as critically.

Mortal Kombat X doesn't reinvent the wheel, but improves upon what worked in 2011. The story mode continues the tale with a fresh cast of characters that are interesting and — in the case of its female and gay characters — free of stereotypes. The gameplay is sharper than ever, combining the best of MK9 and NetherRealm’s previous release, Injustice.

Where Mortal Kombat X fails is at providing a consistent online multiplayer experience. Input lag and server disconnects are commonplace and a detriment to anyone looking for matches against online opponents. In spite of this, MKX is one of the best fighters in years.

Fighting games with fleshed out story modes have become a NetherRealm Studios trademark. Styled after 1960s chopsocky kung fu films, the Mortal Kombat X story is elaborate and exciting, though not terribly friendly to series newbies. Prepare to bring Wikipedia along if this is your first tour of duty. 

Story mode takes place 20 years after the end of Mortal Kombat 9, following the offspring of Mortal Kombat’s most popular characters on a quest to once again save the Earth from destruction. New characters like Cassie Cage pay homage to the past while still developing their own personalities. Other new fighters such as the insect queen D’Vorah are a great example of NetherRealm’s ability to design quirky characters that are as likable as they are violent and terrifying.

The story mode requires about seven hours to complete, which is shorter than MK9. Despite this, the story in MKX feels tight and not as bogged down by exposition, as the reboot had much more ground to cover.

A bevy of single player challenges accompanies the story mode, with challenge towers and daily challenge modes in many flavors. Whether you wish to play a standard arcade mode challenge or fight for one of five factions for leaderboard supremacy, there’s something for everyone.

The challenge towers are a great chance to learn the MKX fighting system, a thoughtful and balanced mix of the best mechanics from MK9 and Injustice. A novice player can jump in and have fun spamming uppercuts and projectiles. Those looking to dig into complex combos and frame data are welcome, as the game provides a great tutorial and a wealth of move information. As with most fighters, MKX is easy to learn and requires the patience of a wise sensei to master.

A word of warning: Anyone looking to take the path to enlightenment by playing online is in for a struggle. NetherRealm’s past two games were a chore to play online and MKX is no different.

The game servers disconnect players at random, sometimes not loading at all. Lag during online matches is frequent, slowing fights to a complete halt. Even at its best, the net code lag is enough that stringing together multi-button combos is sometimes impossible, leaving the player flailing and mashing buttons in the process.

Online may be the only way some will ever play against a live opponent and poor netcode eliminates online multiplayer as a viable option. It is unimaginable that NetherRealm Studios have released three games in a row with under performing online play, but here we are. The only thing consistent about MKX’s online play is that it is terrible on all consoles.

Despite such a grievous flaw, Mortal Kombat X is still a worthy entry in the fighting game genre and one of the best looking games of the year. Fans of the genre, the Mortal Kombat loyal, and those looking for a glut of single player content need look no further than Mortal Kombat X.

Details for next Batman game

Warner Bros. Interactive has announced the contents of the downloadable, post-release Season Pass for the final game in Rocksteady Studio’s Batman trilogy, Arkham Knight.

A press release from WB on April 28 revealed the retail price of the content pack at $39.99. Besides character skins and challenge maps featuring Batman and his various allies, the DLC pack will also include a prequel story starring Batgirl.

The Batgirl: A Matter of Family expansion pack is set in a new location and marks the first time Batgirl has been playable in the Arkham trilogy.

Batman: Arkham Knight will be available on June 23 of this year for PS4, XBox One, and Windows.

Contact Will Harrison at wharrison@theblade.com or on Twitter @DoubleUHarrison.

First Published May 7, 2015, 4:00 a.m.