A new vignette for the upcoming Mortal Kombat focusing on fan favorite Sub-Zero has been released. The video provides background on the character and dives into the hatred he has for Scorpion. It also shows some nice artwork and what appears to be in-game fighting. A vignette focusing on Scorpion himself dealing out the hurt was released earlier this month.

Sub-Zero’s vignette is a little less fighting and a little more story, check it out:

While too much story in a fighting game can do more harm than it does good, this trailer does not appear to go off the deep end in any way. Instead, it sets up the basic rivalry fans have known and expected between Sub-Zero and Scorpion. A little background as to why the contestants entered this brutal contest to beat each other up and kill each other never hurts if done right. The revamped Mortal Kombat is looking to do a lot right.

While other sequels in the franchise arguably lost their way as they moved further and further away from the simple formula that worked in the original and in Mortal Kombat 2, this relaunch of sorts looks to take the game back to its roots, while updating the graphics and polish for the modern gamer. It is no longer trying to shoehorn itself into a 3D fighter and instead has gone back to fighters on a 2D plane. The hits look brutal and the combos look intricate and a little more sophisticated than a simple memorize-the-button-press system like some of the other entries included.

The game also smartly features stages and backgrounds that throwback to some favorites from games past. All-in-all it looks like the people at NetherRealm Studios have taken hints from games like Street Fighter 4 and even Mega Man 9 for ideas on how to bring a whole new game to people who loved the originals. It looks like they have figured out how to update Mortal Kombat without changing too much and taking away everything that made the originals so much fun.

What do you think? Do you think this new Mortal Kombat has what it takes to get the franchise back on top? Are you excited about what you have seen so far? Let us know in the comments below.

Mortal Kombat is set for release in 2011 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3