Mortal Kombat 1 has a completely new origin story for Hanzo Hasashi

Mortal Kombat 1 may have changed Scorpion from Hanzo Hasashi to Kuai Liang, but it didn't completely eliminate the original character.

and has actually given him a whole new origin.

Since the very first reveal trailer, one of the biggest points of discussion in Mortal Kombat 1 has been the identity of Scorpion. Fans speculated that in this universe, he was not Hanzo Hasashi as in other parts of the series, but actually Kuai Liang, the second Sub-Zero. This was eventually confirmed by the game's story director.

The replacement of Scorpion's identity has generated mixed reactions among Mortal Kombat fans, primarily due to concerns that Hanzo Hasashi was completely erased from this timeline. Fortunately, that is not the case, as while he may not appear during the game's story mode, he does make an appearance elsewhere in Mortal Kombat 1. If you wish to dive into Mortal Kombat 1 without any preconceptions, here's your spoiler warning for one of the game's tower endings.

As is customary in previous Mortal Kombat games, completing a run in Tower mode rewards players with a unique ending for each playable character. What's different this time is that all of these endings seemingly fit into the main storyline, rather than having the wild endings we've seen in previous games.

Many of these endings are quite interesting, but Smoke's ending takes the cake as the best of them all. Smoke's ending shows him embarking on establishing the Shirai Ryu with Scorpion but struggling to find someone worthy to join the clan. That changes when Smoke is attacked by a young boy whom he mistakes for an assassin but is actually just a scared warrior trying to find money for food.

Smoke takes in the young boy and introduces him to Kuai Liang, who is impressed by his "fire." If you haven't figured it out yet, let me explain to you - this young boy is none other than Hanzo Hasashi, who in this timeline is apparently destined to become Kuai Liang's student and one of the key members of the Shirai Ryu.

That's a massive change for the character who typically was around the same age as Kuai Liang's older brother, Bi-Han. However, it's definitely an interesting change that closely ties him to the origins of the Shirai Ryu and doesn't simply repeat the same story as in previous Mortal Kombat games. And hey, if you're missing the classic Hanzo Hasashi from earlier games, he seems to be at least making an appearance as an important part of one of the upcoming Invasion seasons.