Mortal Kombat X is the tenth main game in the one-on-one fighting series and a sequel to the 2011 title Mortal Kombat. The game stays close to the visual style and the mechanics of the 2011 reboot. The main controls are still based on two types of punches and kicks, and blocking, to form combos with uppercuts, teleports, special moves that incorporate weapons and fatalities. The three-tiered energy from the previous title returns, making available X-Ray moves, powered up EX moves and combo breakers. As introduced in Injustice: Gods Among Us, characters can use the environment to re-position themselves or optionally use parts as weapons. Each character now has three variations with different moves and weapons. There is once again a sprinting gauge, returning from Mortal Kombat 4.

The plot is set about 20 years after the events of the previous game where the ending revealed that Shinnok used the void after Shao Kahn's death to attack Earthrealm with his army of Netherrealm forces. Several characters work together to steal Shinnok's amulet and imprison him inside, but eventually Mileena hatches a plan to release Shinnok by bringing the amulet to Quan Chi who escaped when Shinnok was imprisoned. The gap in years is mainly used to introduce the new characters to the cast, such as Cassie, the daughter of Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade (who married and divorced), Kotal Kahn as the new emperor of the Outworld, and Takeda, the son of Kenshi.