After glimpsing a wallpaper featuring the sorcerer Shang Tsung last week as well as earlier this week, the shapeshifter returns today with his very own character vignette! Like other story trailers, this is narrated by the Mortal Kombat announcer's voice and reveals interesting details about his background and role in Mortal Kombat.

As has long been speculated, Shang Tsung is not originally from Outworld. The incarnation of the story has the sorcerer discovering a portal and pledging his loyalty to Shao Kahn in return for his iconic powers rather than being cursed by the Elder Gods to consume souls to sustain his youth, though presumably that fact can still be assumed. As mentioned in his Mortal Kombat: Armageddon bio, Shang Tsung is magically bound to Shao Kahn due to this process. Not much is revealed gameplay wise, though we do see Shang make his entrance with his iconic "Your soul is mine!" line as he enters combat disguised as his opponent. He is able to use his morphing ability for the first time since Mortal Kombat Trilogy, but it is limited to whoever he is facing. Interestingly enough, he appears once again in his older form inspired from Mortal Kombat 1, raising the question whether or not his youthful appearance is his main costume or an alternate. As is typical with these trailers, a teaser for a fatality is shown near the end. In this, Shang Tsung seems to possess his victim with his malevolent powers and forces them to rip off their own head with their bare hands.

Gameplay wise Shang Tsung incorporates a style similar to his snake stance in Deadly Alliance. He uses a few special moves including his skull fireball blast and 3 skull fireball eruption. He also seems to have his soul steal ability from the last few games, which there replenished a small portion of his lifebar.

Check out the video above or click here to visit Gamespot. For gameplay enthusiasts, keep in mind that a true gameplay centered trailer usually follows the character vignette within a week's time! Stay tuned to Mortal Kombat Online for the latest updates!