TheInjusticefranchise was a wonderful step forward for NetherRealm following its watered-downMortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, and even thoughInjustice’s action is still nowhere near as gratuitous or gory asMortal Kombat’s it still packs a superpowered punch. Regardless,Injusticehas not reached the same level of success thatMortal Kombathas either, which is only one of the multiple possible reasons whyNetherRealm has confirmedMortal Kombat 12to be the next game in line. IfInjusticeis continued in the future, though, it needs a course correction either way.
The Snyderverse in the previous DCU put out movies likeMan of Steel,Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Zack Snyder’sJustice League. Some actors and their characters are still seemingly a part of the DCU, but these movies are more or less being retconned now for the future slate ofDCU movies under James Gunn’s creative direction.Injustice 2laid the groundwork for a sequel of its own that could be pursued, but if it is going to continue as an IP it should not be completely rebooted or retconned like the Snyderverse gradually has been.
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Injustice 2 is Backed into a Corner Narratively
Injusticehas written itself into an odd predicament. On the one hand,Injustice 2’s ‘good’ ending leaves it open to any number of narrative beats thereafter with Superman locked away in the Phantom Zone; on the other hand,Injustice 2’s ‘bad’ ending leaves it constrained under aplot identical toSuicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’s.
BecauseKill the Justice Leagueis doing its own interpretation of superheroes mind-controlled by Brainiac, it would be absurd for NetherRealm to double-down on that plot as well. This suggests that the ‘good’ ending would become canon, even if the ‘bad’ ending would have otherwise offered a more interesting cliffhanger. Now, both could be retconned or rebooted for any other potential storyline that NetherRealm could want instead, and fans would probably just be happy to seeInjusticereturn with a third installment.
It was previously rumored thatNetherRealm could be sold after the Warner Bros. Discovery merger, which would potentially strip DC-licensed characters from NetherRealm and leave it unable to use them. If this is still a possibility, NetherRealm would surely be unable to make any concrete plans regardingInjusticeand instead choose to concentrate its efforts elsewhere for the time being. In that regard, only one other option seems reliable.
Injustice Needs to Pave Its Own Path or Make Way for Mortal Kombat
IfInjusticecannot return in a confident way where its characters would be secure under licensing, then it should simply be considered forpost-launch guest characters inMortal Kombat 12’s DLC.Mortal Kombat 12could have an entire guest character pack for DC characters, for example, that hone in on several guests that would have been considered for anInjustice 3.
This would satiate fans of bothMortal KombatandInjusticeand give NetherRealm distance from having to design an entire cast of DC characters. Of course,Injustice 3could still be planned for some point in the future, and some characters would be better left to add to that roster instead.
Mortal Kombat 12might already want a lot of previousMortal Kombatcharacters for its post-launch DLC, let alone other licensed characters it can get its hands on, but it would be a shame ifInjusticewas abandoned entirely. So long asInjusticeis not wholly rebooted or retconned, it will hopefully still have a fruitful future at NetherRealm, even if it needs to wait forMortal Kombat’s next mainline installment to release.
Injustice 3is rumored to be in development.
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