How to unlock all Kameo fighters in Mortal Kombat 1, and how Kameos work

Kameos are the big feature for Mortal Kombat 1, and essentially allow you to summon characters to give you an assist mid-combat.

Some of these Kameos are older Mortal Kombat characters that didn’t make the kut for Mortal Kombat 1’s character roster, like Sonya Blade and Keno. A few of them — who you’ll need to unlock — are characters that also appear in Mortal Kombat 1 as standard fighters.

In this Mortal Kombat 1 Kameo guide, we’ll teach you how Kameos work and how to unlock all of them.

How Kameos work in Mortal Kombat 1

Image: NetherRealm Studios / WB Games

Every time you pick a fighter in Mortal Kombat 1, you’ll also pick a Kameo fighter. Kameos have their own set of skills, special abilities, and even finishers like Brutalities and Fatalities.

Mid-combat — as long as your Kameo Meter is at least half-full — you can use the assist button (R1/RB/R) to execute a special attack. Your Kameo character will then leap into the arena and fire off an attack. You can alter your Kameo’s moves by holding down a specific direction when you hit the assist button.

All Kameo fighters in Mortal Kombat 1

Image: NetherRealm Studios / WB Games

While many of the main roster characters are available as Kameo fighters in the Kampaign, there are only 15 real Kameo characters for you to choose from at launch — only 10 of which are available when you first start the game.

Here are all Kameos you can play at launch, including those available from the get go:

• Cyrax
• Darrius
• Frost
• Goro
• Jax
• Kung Lao (locked)
• Kano
• Motaro (locked)
• Sareena
• Sektor
• Scorpion (locked)
• Shujinko (locked)
• Sonya
• Stryker
• Sub-Zero (locked)

How to unlock every Kameo in Mortal Kombat 1

Image: NetherRealm Studios / WB Games

The other five Kameos won’t be available until you increase your Mortal Kombat 1 profile level, which you can do by playing the game normally. Invasions in particular are a great way to level your profile quickly, and you should have access to all five Kameo fighters before you’re even halfway done with the mode.

Here are the five unlockable Kameo characters and what profile level you unlock them at:

• Scorpion — Level 5
• Sub-Zero — Level 10
• Kung Lao — Level 15
• Shujinko — Level 20
• Motaro — Level 25

Like the main roster, there is a spot for additional Kameo characters to appear in future DLCs or updates.