Updates to the Mortal Kombat X: Premium Edition bundle on Xbox Marketplace have revealed artwork for the first wave of downloadable content skins - the Samurai Pack!

Beware! That Kombat Pass has a death curse! Jason Voorhees will stalk the forests of Mortal Kombat X as the first downloadable bonus character revealed for the 4-fighter pass.

Update (Apr. 25): Fans can now look forward to getting their hands on The Ultimate Horror Pack starting May 5th if they've purchased The Kombat Pack! For everybody else, the store will begin selling Jason and Vampiress Mileena, Kraken Reptile & Pharoah Ermac skins starting May 12th.

During last week's Game Developers Conference, various press members were granted a hands-on preview with Mortal Kombat X and the first chapter of its exciting new Story Mode! Early word revealed Kenshi & Johnny Cage's playable involvement but with embargoes lifted, new details are flooding in from all sides!

Character speculation will be one of the last topics to die, especially with downloadable content beyond the horizon! Polygon has one of the best previews, revealing the ambitious scope of the game that awaits: "There are battles with hundreds of non-player characters and Mortal Kombat cameos, Urbano said, on a scale that NetherRealm just couldn't pull off before."

Among the "hundreds" of cameos are some expected returns. Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade, Kenshi, Raiden & Fujin reportedly lead the fight for the home team, while undead revenants of Jax, Sindel, Stryker, Kabal & Smoke battle under the control of Quan Chi. This continues the plot initiated during the last game, where the defeated warriors' souls were seized in the Netherrealm. IGN notes an appearance by Nightwolf, who was also among the dead fighters, as well.

It's the Netherrealm's invasion that is the subject of story mode's opening chapter. This refers to the expected continuation of the new timeline, revisiting the original plot of MK4. We saw glimpses of invading villain Shinnok and his struggle with the heroes in the Story Mode Trailer and again in the Cage Family Trailer. According to IGN, Shinnok is the final battle of Chapter 1.

No one has been able to distinguish the playable roster from the story mode cameos. Shinnok and Jax both appeared in one-on-one fights - each with 3 variations, according to Hardcore Gamers. IGN notes, "We have no idea yet, but there are a bunch more slots on the character select screen that need to be filled..." Polygon adds, "... we did see a couple of unannounced playable fighters, including Erron Black, in the game's attract mode."

Migrating from challenge modes in Mortal Kombat (2011) and Injustice: Gods Among Us into the story are "quick time events". Simple inputs determine the outcome of conflict that doesn't fit into traditional side-to-side kombat. GameInformer have a particularly evocative description of their experience, which explains the continuing sequence involving Johnny Cage and a notably heroic Kenshi:

"They’re en route to Raiden’s Sky Temple, where the lightning god is making a last stand against Shinnok’s forces. Whirring over the on-the-ground action sounds like a pretty great plan until the windshield is pierced by another familiar sight: Scorpion’s chain-blade. The soldiers in the back of the helicopter look around frantically, when Scorpion surprises the crew by appearing in the rear of the aircraft. There’s a battle, of course, and I’m paying such close attention to it all that I miss an unexpected quick-time event. It doesn’t kick me out to a game-over screen, but the action immediately shifts to show Johnny Cage blowing a series of blocks and taking damage. I do a better job of keeping up over the next few sequences, and Johnny reverses the course of the fight. He more than holds his own until Sub-Zero joins the party, freezing a couple of attackers’ heads and shattering them against each other."

He's battled his way through demons, cyborgs and Namco's Soulcalibur II. Could the comic book anti-hero Spawn be eyeing up the warriors of Mortal Kombat X next? Creator Todd McFarlane says it's an open possibility in a Toy Fair interview with GamerFitNation.

Mortal Kombat X Executive Producer Shaun Himmerick (@lover_of_tacos) has been fielding questions from fans via social media micro blogging site Twitter. The result is a raft of new details about the April 14 release, including character "unreveals" and DLC specifics.

Mortal Kombat X is mere months away, and fans eager to upgrade their pre-order to special editions can now do so!

The Kollector's Edition leads with a stunning new vision of Scorpion created by Coarse, both in sculpted and digital formats! The ultimate extras include more skins, klassic kombatants and the lurking promise of "iconic" guest characters. Full details for the April 14 specials below:

It's official: Mortal Kombat X is coming to home systems April 14, 2015! The Tuesday launch will see the worldwide release reach PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 & PC. [Related Article: MOREtal Monday: Mortal Kombat X Box Art]

The long awaited release date was announced today with an even bigger bombshell attached - pre-orders will receive bonus playable DLC character: Goro! Take a closer look at the grizzled four-armed Shokan by clicking the image below:

Ed Boon and the team from NetherRealm are in Cologne, Germany to show-off Mortal Kombat X at what is shaping up to be a memorable trade fair! IGN have spoken to Boon about the 2015 fighter in one of the first interviews to come out of 2014's Gamescom and they've uncovered a couple of interesting details!

While no details have come from Gamescom just yet - we've again been teased with the introduction of a new "-Ality" that will be revealed sometime in the near future. That's just the tip of an iceberg that gave us new story and character beats, as well as a bombshell about expected crossovers. Read on:

It was the bombshell that rocked us in April 2008. Revealed in a Mortal Kombat Online exclusive: Mortal Kombat versus DC Universe turned the core fighting franchise on its head -- introducing MK's first all-out crossover with another franchise! It brought an end to then-rampant sequel speculation, and created an indelible link with the superheroes that starred in 2013's Injustice: Gods Among Us.

Six years on from that memorable first image [pictured right] - we are again anticipating what might be announced when a mystery countdown ends June 2nd. Sequel rumors persist for both Mortal Kombat and Injustice -- leading to speculation of overlapping, or simultaneous development cycles.

Always up for a lark: NetherRealm Studios Creative Director Ed Boon has thrown "Injustice Too" into the collective vernacular. The overseer of both MK and Injustice is probably just engaging in a little harmless subterfuge, but it alludes to a hypothetical outcome few have even dared to consider.

The next generation is changing the game and we think there's a concept that would make use of dual franchise development. An idea that would land Warner Brothers on the cutting edge of attempting to please everybody. Before we get to that, some history:

He landed in download channels to a chorus of mixed reaction, but it seems no amount of ire could stop Scorpion becoming the highest selling DLC for Injustice: Gods Among Us!

The accolade was revealed by Injustice Creative Director Ed Boon, who invited Twitter followers to guess who took the top spot as "highest selling" content [see; Reply].