Mortal Kombat 11 is coming to next-gen consoles on Nov. 17, alongside the Mortal Kombat Ultimate Edition. Fortunately, gamers who already purchased the game for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will be offered a free upgrade on new systems. However, not all of their data will transfer to the PlayStation 5.
According to NetherRealm's Kombatkast on Twitch, as long as players sign into their next-gen console with the user ID connected to the account on their old console, then inventory, rewards, character variations and Time Krystals -- as well as anything purchased with Time Krystals -- will transfer to both next generation systems, but that's where the two systems divide.
So, what won't transfer? Between PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, gamers will lose story progression from Part 1 and Part 2, though any rewards earned from story progression and campaign completion -- such as playable character Frost and any skins or gear acquired -- will still be available after transfer. Settings files and Kombat Kard stats won't carry over when data is transferred, either.
Meanwhile, Xbox Series X users will be able to access Xbox One story progression and campaign completion data, as well as settings files and Kombat Kard stats from the cloud or through USB transfer. They can continue to progress in campaigns where they left off on their old system.
Losing story progression and settings files on PlayStation 5 alone seems short-sighted, and is just one of the potential pitfalls of upgrading to the next-gen Sony system. In the past, Sony has limited accessibility to previous generation console games, requiring players to hold onto old systems to keep playing favorites that weren't remastered or made digitally available for a new system.
Microsoft took the extra step to allow gamers to continue playing old favorites on a new system, ensuring reverse compatibility for previous generation games. With Mortal Kombat 11, it appears that Microsoft has once again taken extra steps to ensure gamer satisfaction.
As gamers contemplate which system they will support this November, accessibility to investments made on previous systems will factor heavily into their choices. One has to ask why Sony continues to limit their customers. Sony and Microsoft are both offering reverse compatibility for physical PlayStation 4 and Xbox One discs and digital downloads. For Sony, this is a huge step in the right direction, but the company still has more work to do.
Fans who already own Mortal Kombat 11 for last-gen systems will need only to insert their disc on Nov. 17 and follow prompts to download an upgraded version of the game. Upgrading to the new version will offer improved loading times, 4K Dynamic Resolution and enhanced visuals, but even if players choose not to upgrade, they can still play the old version on their new systems.