As far as video game Easter eggs go, few have anything to do with legendary rock band Pink Floyd. But that’s exactly what Mortal Kombat 1 fans are excited to uncover with the release of guest character Conan the Barbarian this week.
Let’s back up for a bit. Mortal Kombat is perhaps most famous for its various ninjas. Everyone knows Sub-Zero is blue and Scorpion is yellow. Ermac is red and Rain is purple (you see what they did there?). But there’s no pink ninja, which is where Pink Floyd come in. Floyd is the name given to a rumored pink ninja supposedly buried within the bowels of Mortal Kombat 1, just waiting to be discovered. NetherRealm development chief Ed Boon has teased fans on multiple occasions by referencing a pink ninja called Floyd, and, back in 2023, Mortal Kombat dataminer TheThiny unearthed text in the Mortal Kombat 1 files that referenced a character called Floyd.
Yes. I honestly want to make a PINK ninja and name him FLOYD. No kidding.
— Ed Boon (@noobde) October 4, 2022
Now, it looks like Floyd may finally become a reality inside Mortal Kombat 1. Recently released gameplay showing off Conan the Barbarian includes a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it ‘Floyd’ pop up in pink text displayed on the left of the screen. Bemused fighting game YouTuber Super, whose early access Conan gameplay contained the Floyd name, took to social media to express their excitement.
Listen closely and you’ll hear a guitar riff play alongside the Floyd pop-up during the Conan victory cutscene. Super had no idea how they activated it and couldn’t replicate it, but Mortal Kombat 1 fans are determined to get to the bottom of this mystery as soon as Conan comes out tomorrow.
The secret floyd fight in MK1 is coming with conan. I somehow activated it but didn’t actually go into the match. I tried to get it again but was not successful.
Watch the full early access conan video here https://t.co/WpKeQFKB5C pic.twitter.com/LqfFOyK2ZL
— Super (@lSuper_) January 17, 2025
Of course, it’s quite possible there is no secret Pink Floyd fight to activate, and this Floyd tease is just that: a tease. Boon is known for trolling Mortal Kombat fans, and the series is packed with pop culture references and in-jokes that go nowhere. You’d expect dataminers like TheThiny will work it if anything related to Floyd has changed when the Conan update kicks in, but players will still have to discover the activation, if it even exists.
More details about the secret Floyd Fight:
The Floyd Easter egg triggers randomly at any stage. Once the icon pops up it plays a Guitar Riff (Pink Floyd reference?).
I believe you have to do a certain action / challenge at that time.#MK1 #MortalKombat1 pic.twitter.com/bFGzCcbWp3
— thethiny 🐰🍉 (@thethiny) January 18, 2025
Conan the Barbarian, due out January 21 as part of the standard DLC early access period for Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reigns Expansion owners before wide availability a week later, features the likeness of Arnold Schwarzenegger, who famously played Conan in the cult classic 1982 film, but does not feature his voice.
T-1000 Terminator is the final DLC character added to the gory fighting game as part of the Khaos Reigns expansion, and follows playable fighters Cyrax, Sektor, Noob Saibot, Ghostface, and the aforementioned Conan the Barbarian. NetherRealm is yet to announce a third set of DLc characters.
Image credit: Super / X.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.