Mortal Kombat 1 player finds paywalled chest that needs a DLC character to open

Mortal Kombat 1 is the latest installment in the long-running Mortal Kombat series, and it features an Invasions mode where players can unlock gear and cosmetics. Unfortunately, a player recently found a chest in Invasions mode that’s impossible to open for anyone who doesn’t own a specific DLC character.

Reddit user u/T-Squeezy expressed their frustrations and disappointment at the locked chest. It reportedly contains cosmetic skins for Johnny Cage and General Shao, but to open the chest, players must own the character Shang Tsung and perform his second fatality on it.

While Shang Tsung is a major antagonist in the game, he’s also a DLC character whom players can get by purchasing him from the store, or as a pre-order bonus. As such, anyone wanting to get the cosmetic items inside the chest will need to have this character, essentially paywalling the chest and its contents.

Several other players chimed in to express their disappointment at this peculiar design choice from NetherRealm Studios. Understandably, many fans are concerned about game’s future, and are hoping we won’t return to the days of Mortal Kombat being laden with egregious microtransactions. One user said “It’s despicable and cheap,” and that it’s “more proof that Invasion isn’t considered a base game mode.” 

Mortal Kombat 1 launched on Sep. 19, 2023 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. In Invasions mode, players control characters on a board as they interact with items and unlock chests. Developer NetherRealm has yet to comment on the issue, so it’s not yet known whether paywalling the chest was an intended choice.