Kotaku: At last year's Midway Gamers Day, Mortal Kombat co-creator and series overlord Ed Boon talked up the then-unnamed eighth entry in the franchise. Boon described Mortal Kombat 8 at the time as "very dark, serious" and "gritty" take on the series, a back to basics reboot that was free of "vibrant, saturated colors." It was said to be heavily inspired by the look of Gears of War.