The core of any good Mortal Kombat game is fighting, naturally, but that's not stopping NetherRealm Studios from going to great lengths to incorporate an in-depth story into Mortal Kombat X, much like it did with the last entry in the series. This time around, family bloodlines play an important role, which we learned early on when Cassie Cage was revealed. She's the daughter of Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage, but other relatives will appear in the game as well, including Jacqueline Briggs (daughter of Jax), Kung Jin (Kung Lao's younger cousin), and Takahashi Takeda (Kenshi's son). But, what about their parents? When and where do they come into play? Right in the opening act of Mortal Kombat X's story mode, as it turns out.

Seconds after the game starts, Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade and Kenshi appear, riding in a helicopter, and their presence hints that the game's timeline starts further back than we were initially led to believe. The group are interrupted by none other than Scorpion and Sub Zero, who waste no time getting down to business. Fighting in a helicopter is generally frowned upon, and sure enough, the bird tumbles out of the sky after a brutal cutscene filled with quicktime events. But, being the warriors that they are, everyone survives, and you immediately face off against Scorpion and Sub Zero, one after the other, as Johnny Cage.

The trailer above gives you a taste of what you can expect from the Cage family but what you don't see is the rest of the game's opening act, which throws more than a few curveballs.

After Johnny's encounter with Sub Zero and Scorpion, you're whisked to a temple where Raiden and Fujin are fighting against Quan Chi and Shinnok, but they aren't alone. Quan Chi's sidekicks are none other than Jax, Kitana, Nightwolf, and Smoke. How does this make sense? Why are the good guys fighting alongside the forces of evil? The specifics are still unknown, but glowing eyes and veins suggest that Shinnok has somehow taken control of them.

Relatives fighting is nothing new, at least in the real world, but it's never been explored quite like this in Mortal Kombat before. While we can't confirm that you will be able to pit parent against child just yet, the potential is interesting to say the least.

With so many characters revealed, teased, and hinted at, Mortal Kombat X's story mode could end up being fairly complex, so far as relationships are concerned. There's only a few more weeks to go until we know for certain who's actually playable, and who's going to end up on the sidelines.

Are there any characters that you hope will be revealed at the last minute before Mortal Kombat ships next month? Let us know in the comments below.