The early nineties was arguably a golden age for video games and their multimedia tie-ins, when mainstream organizations were enthusiastic to fully exploit a now sturdy market and its growing legion of fans. From this heady brew arose a British behemoth called GamesMaster: a much-loved gaming show with a penchant for kombat that has returned anew in 2021! Watch the first episode right here:

GamesMaster first broadcast in 1992 - the same year Mortal Kombat debuted to hysteria around the world. It's no surprise, then, that the series remained a perennial favourite for the show, which featured an entire dedicated Mortal Kombat episode for its revamped third series premier in late '93, and followed the feature film in the following years.

Watch: GamesMaster Series 8 Episode 1 | GamesMaster Mortal Kombat Special

A twenty-three year drought between episodes has been ended thanks to Channel 4's E4 and Facebook sponsor Meta Quest, who're preying upon gamers' nostalgia with a well rounded reinvention of the original's various game show and magazine article formats. The first episode features modern contests, like a Super Mario 3D World speedrun, with a trio of new hosts, and Sir Trevor McDonald as the new head in charge - the titular GamesMaster.

Keeping the MK tradition alive is a brutal battle between brothers, Ryan "Ketchup" Neal and Jake "Mustard" Neal, whose showdown for sibling supremacy in the final segment comes with the promise of the coveted Golden Joystick, and the threat of impending death. Hey, no problem. This is the nineties!

Mortal Kombat 11 provides their arena, which means the competition pros who were synonymous with Sektor and Cyrax in the past had to make do with Rain and Frost. The result was an exciting three round bout that put on a pulse pounding (games)master class with one very "cool combo" and an exciting finish.

[Related Article: MK30: The Creation of Scorpion's Mortal Kombat Spear]

What were your favourite video game shows on television in decades of yore? Share your nostalgia with us in the comments below and keep the dream alive in the Mortal Kombat 11 forum. Or go back to the past for the latest in retro in the 2D Kombat Klassics forum!

In a world of increasingly traded and converging intellectual properties few things are sacred, but as The Matrix prepares for resurrection, Keanu Reeves still believes in keeping some realities separate. The star was asked about his iconic characters crossing over with Mortal Kombat in a recent Q&A. Watch and learn:

The actor tackled popular facts and fiction about his career in an "Explain This" interview with Esquire. He was asked everything from marital status to casting sliding doors, but it's the prospects for his iconic characters appearing in Mortal Kombat that got a thoughtful, but decisive rejection.

Fans have been dying for Neo or John Wick to appear in a Mortal Kombat game. [Laughs]. If it were up to you, would you allow it to happen?
If it was up to me: no. Mortal Kombat is awesome - in so many ways - but I think, y'know... Neo, John Wick. Yeah, man. They're doing their own thing. Mortal Kombat's doing their own thing.

The idea of Neo entering Mortal Kombat was seriously considered when the fighting game franchise was rebooted under new parent company, Warner Brothers, a decade ago.

Creative Director Ed Boon revealed the Matrix crossover submitted during development, but the team ultimately realised "horror characters tend to lend themselves to it". The 2011 reboot game instead featured horror slasher Freddy Krueger, and PlayStation exclusive Kratos.

Multimedia guest characters continue to be a high selling cottage industry unto themselves, but also remain controversial amongst die hard fans, who, like Reeves, have a healthy respect for characters and projects that are "doing their own thing". That may not stop Warner Brothers finding ways to commodify their blockbuster property, though.

MultiVersus will take the pop culture megamix of WB's Space Jam: A New Legacy and Ready Player One a step further, consolidating WB cartoon and pop properties in a Super Smash Bros style platform fighting game coming 2022.

Neither The Matrix nor Mortal Kombat have been confirmed for the upcoming brawler, but the inclusion of a Game of Thrones character has thrown the door wide open to speculation that traditionally adult brands may get a kid-friendly makeover on their way to battling Steven Universe and Adventure Time characters.

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The 2011 video game that could've featured Neo is enjoying a revival thanks to newly added Xbox backwards compatibility. Would you have liked to see Neo or John Wick in kombat? Where we go from here is a choice I leave to you. Share your thoughts in the comments below, or discuss the infinite possibilities for the series' next step in the Future MK forum.

It's the game enthusiastic fans have clamored for but didn't even know they wanted. MultiVersus officially brings together the characters & brands of Warner Bros for a crossover platform fighter that will finally unleash the fighting instinct of Shaggy and more! Read on for much needed explanations:

Can an internet meme really launch a franchise? MultiVersus seizes upon the viral sensation of "Ultra Instinct Shaggy", answering the cries of over 380,000 fans who've continued to sign a petition to get Shaggy into Mortal Kombat 11 -- even though developer support for the game ended in July.

Last month rumors incorrectly circulated that the Super Smash Bros style game would be developed by NetherRealm Studios, and while Shaggy's involvement in MK is likely to remain limited to an animated cameo, we can't rule out a rematch between Scorpion and his new Saturday morning cartoon rival.

Game of Thrones anti-heroine Arya Stark has opened the door to traditionally adult franchises in the otherwise kid-friendly free-to-play team-based platform fighter, which will be coming to PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC in 2022.

The game has also previewed DC Comics fighters Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, who've starred in NetherRealm's Injustice franchise, and clashed with MK in Mortal Kombat versus DC Universe -- a newly added 360 title added to Xbox Backwards Compatibility support.

The game has also previewed characters from the Cartoon Network stable, including Adventure Time, Steven Universe, Looney Tunes, and Tom & Jerry. Among the adult franchise characters rumored for a future inclusion is "Mad" Max Rockatansky.

Do you think MK will enter the MultiVersus arena? Could the Player First Games free-to-play model be a testground for future NetherRealm fighters? Share your thoughts about the kombatants you'd like to see in the comments below and find more crossover action in the DC Universe Injustice forum. Or discuss your hopes & expectations for Mortal Kombat in the Future MK forum!

Fans of the very recently retro have something to cheer about with the long awaited return of the Xbox Backwards Compatibility program. Two MK titles from the 360 line-up have been added in the Xbox 20th Anniversary update, led by the Mortal Kombat reboot, which itself marked its 10th anniversary in April.

The ambiguously titled 2011 reboot rewrote reality as we knew it in the first Mortal Kombat game released under Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment. It revamped, redesigned, and recontextualized material from the original trilogy -- redefining kombat for a new generation of players, in the process. Backwards compatibility means you'll be able to rediscover it all over again on Xbox Series X & S -- but you'll need to get your hands on a disc copy, for now.

MK2011 built upon a foundation laid three years earlier by the more controversial crossover title: Mortal Kombat versus DC Universe. It is the other kombat klassic supported in Xbox's final 76 game backwards compatibility update, which also includes three Dead Or Alive games, Quake Arena Arcade, and Ridger Racer 6. A complete list was reported by The Verge.

First revealed in a Mortal Kombat Online exclusive; the DC Comics crossover sent shockwaves throughout the fanbase even before it was known the eighth installment would need compromised finishing moves.

The troubled fighter fell short of many expectations, including the developers, who had plans to add Quan Chi and Harley Quinn to the modest playable roster, but its infamy may make it the more interesting excavation for nostalgic gamers.

The legacy of Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe continues to be found in NetherRealm Studios' latest releases. It was the first time they tackled the DC Injustice roster, and also pioneered the return to a 2D plane for fighting, and chapter based story modes. It was even the first time the developer worked on DLC -- even though it was never released!

[Related Article: Editorial: The MKvsDC Crossover Nobody Sees Coming]

Recent third-party data leaks have fueled rumors of a third Injustice game, while Creative Director Ed Boon recently started celebrating next year's Mortal Kombat 30th Anniversary early. Could more retro re-releases be in our future?

Share your thoughts about the Xbox 20th Anniversary Backwards Compatibility patch with us in the comments below, and reconnect with the recent past in the Mortal Kombat (2011) forum! Or crossover into another world in the DC Universe Injustice forum!