Mortal Kombat 1: Ed Boon Promises Homelander and Omni-Man Won’t Just be Clones of One Another

The news that Homelander and Omni-Man would both be in Mortal Kombat 1 sparked a lot of excitement from fans. There’s just one problem… they’re both kind of similar, right?

Both characters take after Superman in that they have superhuman strength, flight, and absurd durability. Homelander has heat vision; Omni-Man doesn’t. But they definitely fit into a particular archetype, down to the fact that both wear caps.

Their similarities raise questions as to just how similar their combat styles will be in Mortal Kombat 1. Speaking with IGN, though, Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon brushed aside concerns from the fans.

“Obviously we could do anything with the characters, but I don’t think we’re going to have both Homelander and Omni-Man have heat vision or something like that,” Boon told IGN on the occasion of gamescom.

“We’re not going to have them both do all the kind of category of Superman-type things. We’re going to divvy up those abilities, so it’s not like it’s just a clone of the same character. They’re definitely going to play differently. The main attacks are going to really differentiate them, but we’re definitely aware of the assumption that some people were making on, ‘Oh, they’re just going to be the same characters.'”

Homelander and Omni-Man are two of the most prominent characters in Mortal Kombat 1’s first DLC Kombat Pack. Other characters include Quan Chi, Takeda, Ermac, and Peacemaker. It’s part of a tradition that has seen the likes of the Predator join Sub-Zero, Liu Kang, and the rest of the Mortal Kombat (k)rew.

To this point, we haven’t really seen much gameplay featuring Homelander, Omni-Man, or any of the rest of the DLC characters. Instead, Netherrealm Studios has chosen to focus on elements like the story, which Netherrealm Studios’ narrative director helped break down in a separate interview. The recent beta featured the likes of Johnny Cage, who has proven popular with fans.

We’ll undoubtedly see Omni-Man and Homelander in action soon enough. While you wait, check out our final preview for Mortal Kombat 1, which is due to release on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.