Mortal Kombat 11: Fans call for return of gay character Kung Jin
Mortal Kombat’s Kung Jin. (Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Fans are calling for the return of gay character Kung Jin in the latest instalment of Mortal Kombat 11.
NetherRealm and Warner Bros. announced details of the upcoming Mortal Kombat 11 video game on Thursday (January 17).
So far, eight playable characters have been confirmed for the video game franchise, which has been running since 1992.
Eight characters for Mortal Kombat 11 confirmed so far
These are: Sonya Blade, Geras, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Baraka, Skarlet, Raiden, and an unknown fighter.
However, on social media, fans are pining for the return of the fantasy fighting game’s first gay character, Kung Jin.
Kung Jin, the younger cousin of Kung Lao, was introduced in the last edition of the game, Mortal Kombat X, in 2015.
“What I want most from MK11 is to give Kung Jin a boyfriend that is a playable character and neither dies during the story,” one person posted on Twitter.
“I need to know if Kung Jin is going to be erased from the canon considering he’s is the only #LGBT+ rep in the entire franchise.”
—A Mortal Kombat fan
Another said: “There’s a lot of characters I want to see in Mortal Kombat 11, but I really hope that Cassie Cage, Jacqui Briggs, Takeda and Kung Jin all make it back.
“They all had great chemistry in MKX and I feel like their story is just getting started.”
Other fans are concerned that Jin won’t be included in the latest edition of the game, with some saying that the promotional video for Mortal Kombat 11 sets it up as a prequel.
Fans are calling for the return of Mortal Kombat‘s Kung Jin on Twitter. (kamilumin/Twitter)
“@MortalKombat @noobde since #MK11 is going to do timeline manipulation, I need to know if Kung Jin is going to be erased from the canon considering he’s is the only #LGBT+ rep in the entire franchise,” one person wrote.
“I really hope you’re not going to do the ‘bury your gays’ trope.”
Through a series of flashbacks in Mortal Kombat X, gamers watched as Kung Jin, a member of the Shaolin Monks, explored his sexuality as he fought with several others.
Mortal Kombat‘s Kung Jin introduced in 2015
Mortal Kombat X’s cinematic director Dominic Cianciolo also confirmed that Jin is gay on Twitter.
Responding to a fan who asked: “Is Kung Jin gay?,” Cianciolo wrote: “Yes.”
According to Forbes, users will be able to play using at least 25 characters on Mortal Kombat 11.
Mortal Kombat 11 will be released worldwide on April 23.
It will be available on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Watch the video below:
