Mortal Kombat has proven to be not only a highly successful film based on a video game, but also has proven to be highly influential in the franchise itself, with plenty of its elements being carried over to the games themselves.
- The idea of a realm having to win 10 tournaments in a row in order to invade another realm, first alluded in Mortal Kombat 9's Story Mode.
- Raiden being established as a Big Good/Mentor Archetype to the heroes with a dry sense of humor rather than being a vengeful god opposed to Shang Tsung, as a result of Christopher Lambert's portrayal of him, and his inability to participate in the Tournament due to his status as God of Thunder. Even minor changes like Raiden's white hair were made canon (it was originally brown, but never seen).
- The love interest angle of Kitana and Liu Kang.
- This was a major point in Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks and was subtly alluded by in Liu Kang's ending in 4 where she offers him the chance to rule by her side in Edenia and presumably other rewards, he politely declines in lieu of continuing to be Earthrealm's champion.
- There's also Mileena's ending in Armageddon where Kitana's soul trapped in Mileena's body tells Liu Kang that she will remember his love for her.
- In The Stinger of Mortal Kombat X, it's revealed that Raiden was giving his last speech as well as Shinnok's head to them, who rule the Netherrealm together.
- Multiple points of the story of Mortal Kombat 11 touch upon their relationship, up to and including Liu Kang, now with godlike powers, choosing Kitana to aid him in his role as the new Timekeeper in the Golden Ending (which is sadly rendered non-canon by the Aftermath expansion).
- In addition, multiple pre-fight intros allude to their relationship, and each other's ending have both of them missing the other person.
- In Mortal Kombat 1 when Liu Kang is looking for other allies among the other timelines, the first ally summoned is Titan Kitana, they end remembering who each other were, and they share a kiss, lamenting not being able to enjoy life's simple pleasures, a nod to Liu Kang's own ending in 11.
- There's also the love interest angle of Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade. While there were next-to-no mentions of this in the original timeline, in 9, Johnny has an instant crush on her, they become the sole survivors of the Shao Kahn and Shinnok invasions. By the time of X, they marry, become parents to daughter Cassie Cage, and get divorced, and by the start of 11 they're back together again until Sonya dies in the Netherrealm mission.
- Kano was originally an American of Japanese descent, but Trevor Goddard's interpretation of him was so well received that the character has since been modeled after the actor and was retconned as being Australian in the games following this movie. Ironically, Goddard was actually a Londoner who spent his entire life acting as an Australian in order to fill a gap in the Hollywood market. Sadly, Goddard passed away from a bad drug overdose in 2003 and Kano was officially made Australian from then on, in his honor.
- He has also in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance a move called "Ear to Ear", named after a line in the movie. This movename is also present in Mortal Kombat 9 as one of his fast tag combos.
- Johnny Cage's motivations for joining the Tournament (to prove himself to be a real deal and not a fake).
- Shang Tsung having "Your Soul Is Mine!" as a Catchphrase.
- Scorpion having the ability to teleport an adversary to the Netherrealm. This appeared first as one of his fatalities in Mortal Kombat 3, then in his ending in Mortal Kombat 4, was the climax of his feud with Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat 9, and it's both his Limit Break and his winning pose in Injustice: Gods Among Us.
- Kitana's likeness to her actress, Talisa Soto, at least in games of the original timeline post-4.
- The rivalry between Johnny and Goro (which mostly involve a variation of the "$500 sunglasses" scene and lines). Particularly in Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, where one of the finishers that can be performed on Goro involve Johnny appearing out of nowhere and killing him, and Mortal Kombat X, where Johnny gets to comment on how Goro still has a vulnerable spot and that the big fellow owes him a pair of $500 sunglasses. Furthermore, one of Johnny's sunglasses designs in 11 is called "$500 sunglasses" and an exchange with Sheeva establishes that both she and Johnny still remember the loss of his eyewear.
- Johnny's "Who hired this guy?" line as part of his first Fatality in Mortal Kombat 11 also comes from the movie.
- The movie had Shang Tsung briefly impersonate Boyd, Johnny's sensei. Mortal Kombat 11 confirms that Boyd existed in the game universe as well, and that Shang Tsung murdered him at some point.
- MK 11 also redesigned and modeled Shang Tsung to more closely resemble Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa's portrayal of the character from the movie, and even brought back Tagawa himself to provide Shang's voice.
- His intros also feature several references to the movie such as him tricking Johnny into entering the tournament by impersonating his mentor, Master Boyd (also confirming the theory that he killed Johnny's sensei to impersonate him), and his Villainous Crush on Sonya.
- MK 11 would also receive DLC costumes for Sonya Blade, Raiden, and Johnny Cage, which would change into their appearances in the movie, with the likenesses (and voices!) of Bridgette Wilson, Christopher Lambert, and Linden Ashby respectively.
- One of the areas in the Krypt (which takes place at Shang Tsung's island) is the dining room where Goro and Kano had their "underworld boss" conversation complete with what appears to be Kano's skeleton where he was seated in the film. Another section of the Krypt features a statue of Reptile's true form from the film.
