No split punch makes sense because there'd be no animation filmed for the MK3 characters reacting to it. same reason the Pit II got cut.
A personal rundown of Mortal Kombat & Injustice veterans' kostume redesigns (MK/Injustice series spoilers)
- Thread starter Scrappy-Fan92
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No split punch makes sense because there'd be no animation filmed for the MK3 characters reacting to it. same reason the Pit II got cut.
Never thought about that, but it makes perfect sense.
Fatalities in 3 lacked falling over animations. Was this related to some technical issue as well (like storage size) or was it just a stylistic choice?
I forgot about this great one. Sub zero frozen limbs were cool (pun intended)This one is cool too
Other Noob outfits
Cage tuxedo
Reptile animated
I forgot about this lui Kang
Raiden with floating
Jax with some random outfit
This post was originally a quote but I got lost on the mkwarehouse site like I was in high school again. I hope it never goes down.
not sure, never seen it talked about. It is weird though, especially with how good they looked in II, with the big ass ball of blood and the way they'd fall to their knees then completely down.
IIRC the lack of proper animations for fatalities (character being properly sliced and diced, falling down etc) was due to the memory limits. Something had to be cut and thus we ended up with shitty fatalities animations. Compared to MK2, where each character had their own, unique animations for things like Kung Lao's vertical hat slice or Kitana's kiss of death, MK3 was such a disappointment.
Yeah, they even did a little twitch. They were fantastic in MKII.
Yeah, that's kind of what I thought, but I didn't make the connection that may be the reason until Osu pointed out why the split punch wasn't in Trilogy. It's the same reason we had so many palette swaps--they really had to get creative with how to work around these issues.
Mortal Kombat: Special Forces post (and a request)
OP
OP
And now we approach the designs of the infamous Mortal Kombat: Special Forces. This spin-off of dubious canonicity served as a prequel of sorts focusing on series regular Jax as he, Sonya, and the Black Dragon criminal syndicate fought to attain the powers of an ancient mystical artifact. Please ignore that Jax is already sporting his prosthetics despite this game ostensibly taking place before Mortal Kombat 3. The development of this title was tumultuous and resulted in a culling of content, allegedly including Sonya as a playable kharacter and an explanation as to why Jax was already breaking out the artificial sleeves. The development woes of Special Forces would be exacerbated (if not caused outright) by the departure of several veteran Midway developers before the game's release, including series co-creator and primary kharacter designer John Tobias.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUIlUzTZsEc
Sonya...
I have never played Special Forces. I do know that Sonya was supposed to have a far bigger role in it than she wound up getting, which in the final project apparently consisted of not even showing up. There are pre-release screenshots of her in-game though, and as evidenced above she had concept art done for her new design. It looks like a merger of her MK1 and MK3 kostumes, with platform boots? Certainly an inspired choice. Almost as inspired as the green thong wedged up her yoga pants. Tobias' designs, even for the relatively normal humans, were very much in the vein of a superhero comic, which meant everyone wore their undies on the outside. They were obviously trying to harken back to Sonya's pants from the original game, though I think that one pulled it off better. Regardless, it's a solid enough send-off for Sonya's aerobics days.
Kano...
The 1995 live-action film would have a fair deal of influence on the games, some instances more overt than others. One of the more obvious cases of the movie's pull was Kano being modeled on the late Trevor Goddard's likeness after his well-received performance (Kano's Japanese-American heritage would also be retconned away in favor of an Australian background). Even with the beard and full head of hair, he's still recognizably Kano. The metal-plated eye and bandolier are retained and this game's version would even keep the MK3 incarnation's affinity for black. This design is certainly more grounded and missing the deliciously evil flair of his MK3 counterpart, but it works.
Jax...
And now we meet the star of the show himself. Art for this man is a little inconsistent (just look at the cover above with the red bandana). His in-game appearance is closer to that of the picture in the middle (though the pants are a darker shade of green in the game proper). It's a more overtly military Jax, but that's mostly just because of the camo pants. To the right is his concept art, which shows a lot more of the traditional Tobias style. I do like that his and Sonya's pants and boots were meant to match (and Jax seems to be displaying the bulkier frame that he'd be rocking in Deadly Alliance) though I do think the more restrained design in the middle wound up working better for the final game.
Jarek...
I admittedly forgot that doing the games by release order meant I would get to talk about him earlier than I expected. There isn't much to say about Jarek's design. It's rough criminal gear that's thankfully brightened up by those lovely green pants. His in-game design between MK4 and Special Forces (middle picture, Jarek on the far right) didn't really change much if at all, but his mugshot from Special Forces' intro (rightmost picture) does imply that he was supposed to have a few more tweaks for his second appearance, including a necklace and earrings. But those never show up in the game proper as far as I know, so we're just left with a relatively humble kostume for Kano's one-time replacement. It is funny that Jarek's design here would be loosely reinterpreted for his boss' kostume in Deadly Alliance, bringing things full circle I suppose.
And that's it. These are the final redesigns of the Tobias era of Mortal Kombat. There will always be a part of me that ponders over what could've been for the series' first foray into games made exclusively for the sixth-generation systems, though I guess Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus can provide me one possible answer. When we return, we'll be going over Mortal Kombat making its first notable effort to retool itself with a new story direction and a new visual identity...which means this is as good a time as any to make a request of you all. I am a bigger apologist for the franchise's PS2 run than most people, but even I know Midway's rendering and kharacter models could leave a lot to be desired at times. I will try to stay on topic to the best of my abilities because this thread is about discussing outfits, not faces
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That reminds me of another thing I didn't like about MK3--the falling over animation that they did when a character dies after getting hit by a normal. The character just topples over like they're a tree that someone just cut down. Even as a kid I thought it looked weird. I guess it was just so they could use the sprite of the character lying on the ground for the whole motion instead of animating any movement.
I'm looking through all MK Trilogy fatalities and I see a lot of MK2 ones, that required unique animations, were cut, replaced or modified. There's no Jax's arm rip, no Kung Lao's vertical hat slice, the Sub-Zero's head rip was "censored" and his ice sculpture Fatalities was replaced, Kitana's kiss now makes the enemy "long" instead of blowing up.
Compared to MK2, MK3 (and MKT) fatalities looked so lame and stiff. :/
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interesting that the render for Jax in MK:SF is just his MK4 render but with a bandana and recoloured pants. I don't hate it, haha
The lack of love for MK4 Reptile from OP makes me sad...
But seriously, I love that shit. I remember when I was flipping through a magazine or strategy guide at a Toys R Us back before console release and seeing his render and being so hyped. The live action version from the commercial is even better.
I like the faux mask as it reads better as him being a ninja. I also like to think of it as Reptile trying to hide his monstrous, reptilian mouth around civilians or even his opponents who may not expect his mouth attacks.
But seriously, I love that shit. I remember when I was flipping through a magazine or strategy guide at a Toys R Us back before console release and seeing his render and being so hyped. The live action version from the commercial is even better.
I like the faux mask as it reads better as him being a ninja. I also like to think of it as Reptile trying to hide his monstrous, reptilian mouth around civilians or even his opponents who may not expect his mouth attacks.
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance post
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Welcome, readers, to the next installment of my rundown of Mortal Kombat veteran redesigns. This is the part where I would go into some extended diatribe about how John Tobias' departure would inevitably lead to a shift in design sensibilities for the series' next mainline game (and it did) while trying to weave some coherent narrative about how and what the individual new designers did to make the series their own. Unfortunately, specific correlation on which Midway artists did which designs for these years is a bit spotty. I've seen the likes of Steve Beran, Herman Sanchez, Luis Mangubat, and various others generally credited for the art for Deadly Alliance and its two immediate sequels, but I don't know much beyond that. Steve Beran is credited as the one who did the concept sketches for kharacters in this game, so there's that at least. Nonetheless, this is the fifth mainline game and the start of a new story arc. To quote Raiden, Liu Kang is dead. And that's not even the weirdest thing in this sequel. Take a listen to the awesome kharacter select theme and get comfortable.
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flQEnC6pjPE
Raiden...
With the first MK game built from the ground up for sixth-gen consoles (and the first entirely new mainline game to forgo the arcades), there was an opportunity to take advantage of the power of the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube and demonstrate it through the kharacters' far more detailed garb. Look at Raiden. He's moved beyond his humble days of simple robes and dresses himself in something far more ornate; even his hat has ornamental plating. Still, he's recognizably Raiden. They even kept the general silhouette of his overtunic (which has more of a sea green color now), just with more detailed fabric and gold trim. I really do like the gold trim running throughout the kostume. The cape is also a great addition, it really helps sell the look of a proud deity (one who at this point in the lore recently renounced his status as Elder God). Also of note is his hood/cowl, loosened so that for the first time in a game we can actually see Raiden's hair poking out (and in a possible nod to the movies and Mortal Kombat: Conquest, it's pure white). Raiden's design has always looked pretty baggy since MKII, but Deadly Alliance's rendition makes it look even baggier. You can almost feel the layers just by looking at the render. Amusingly, I'd say the design element I like the least here is the knotted belt. As far as prime examples of Deadly Alliance's style goes, Raiden is a pretty good initial indicator for how many of the other veterans would be interpreted, though I'd say he got one of the best overhauls out of the bunch.
Sonya...
I told you all the aerobics era was ending. With this game, Sonya begins her transition from comic book MMA fighter to sexy Halloween military lady, which means consecutive designs that attempt to convey a serious military warrior but can't help themselves from throwing in needless elements. If Deadly Alliance's redesigns are generally remembered for excess of armor and plating, then Sonya's redesigns from this era should be remembered for Midway's obsession with putting her in a thong. It's the one real gripe (outside of the weird boobsock thing her shirt's doing in the render) I have with this kostume, which gives her a jacket and some gloves that I like. It's also just unfortunate that she doesn't really have a bright color to call her own anymore. It was shared with Reptile and later Jade, but green was Sonya's thing. It helped her stand out in the lineup and now it's either gone outright or darkened to the point where I can't even call it green. One of the few redesigns I'm split almost down the middle on.
Johnny Cage...
I don't know if this was intentional, but a few designs in this game do feel oddly nostalgic (by the standards of 2002) despite the attempts at revamping everyone's looks. Take Johnny for instance. His MKII color scheme is maintained, but he's looking a little closer to MK1 with the shorter pants (with the name "Cage" on the side of one of the legs, a nice touch) and bindings around the ankles and wrists. He's even got a sash of sorts again. Of course, he's also got a slew of new bells and whistles: arm bracelets, additional blue wrapping, and that honking lion door knocker champion belt. This kitschy Hollywood Muay Thai look would probably suck if it wasn't Johnny Cage wearing it. Since it's Johnny Cage, I'm willing to go easy on it, but I would maybe remove the door knocker belt or some of the additional wrapping. One or the other. It's a serviceable redesign, albeit one that could've maybe used some streamlining.
Scorpion...
Osu 16 Bit mused that Scorpion and Sub-Zero are always recognizable despite being as susceptible to visual retools as anyone else in this series. She's right. Even underneath all of the armor, you can still pick Scorpion out from a crowd. This time around, he's opted to go for a harder material for his tunic, contrasted with a new skull belt and matching skull thigh guards. Even his boots have gotten edgier, being adorned with spiked ankle bracelets above his tabi sandals (I didn't even know he had those until today). Interestingly, the new armor initiative doesn't seem to have extended to his mask, which appears to be made of a simple fabric with no fancy patterning. An interesting choice if there ever was one. As I alluded to earlier in the thread, Deadly Alliance was my first real exposure to Mortal Kombat, so this was my introduction to Scorpion. The design is edgy 2000s aesthetic to a tee and probably one of the only real examples of this game's default ninjas opting for a more steel-plated look (Cyrax being the obvious other example), the former of which was to be expected for Scorpion. The latter less so, especially for what was basically the kharacter's first wholly unique design in the series. While I think later games would execute the armored yellow ninja motif better, this is a fine first attempt.
Sub-Zero...
They're back! I do wonder how fans felt being suddenly greeted with the return of Kuai Liang's suspenders. Excuse me, Grandmaster Kuai Liang's suspenders. The real-life time gap between entries four and five was accompanied by an in-universe time gap where relative peace reigned. Sub-Zero has reformed the Lin Kuei into a force for good and I guess he decided to pull rank by presiding over them in a modified version of the outfit he wore while he was specifically trying to get away from them. Honestly, I think this is a great design. The ice arms (first featured in Sub-Zero's alternate skins from MK4) are a nice touch and contrast with the black forearm bindings. Midway even fixed my biggest problem with the kostume's counterpart from MK3 (the crotch patch) by just adding a loincloth to the pants, and the whole thing just looks better now that they don't have to worry about it being a constructed kostume made with a limited prop budget. I would've personally added more blue squares to the straps like its predecessor outfit boasted, but this is a prime example of how to retool a divisive look.
Reptile...
Speaking of divisive looks, let's talk about Reptile. I'll be upfront: I think this -- both as a kostume and as a general rendition of the lizard form -- is better than his look in MK4. I'm generally of the opinion that if Reptile has to be visibly non-human, then you may as well commit to it. Based on concept sketches I've seen over the years, Reptile's new look here (explained in-universe as further devolution due to isolation from his kin) was based off of a proposed kharacter named Tiamat who also boasted a more bestial lizardlike appearance than the other Zaterrans we'd seen up to this point. Reptile's always had interesting lore about him, and this design does at least provide foreshadowing for his role in Deception. As for the kostume itself, I actually like it a lot. Midway wisely decided to treat green as an accent color since Reptile's scales already provide a lot of green on their own, and opted to complement it with black and gold on the ninja uniform. Honestly, I'd argue Reptile's a little too well-dressed for someone losing the last vestiges of his sanity and spending half of his story in this game wandering about the Outworld wastelands. His alt kostume (which does resemble Tiamat's proposed design) probably fits the depraved wasteland warrior Midway wanted to convey, but the default kostume is just a good look, lizard or no lizard.
Kano...
Kano's transformation into Trevor Goddard reaches the mainline series, and I'd say he got one of the better redesigns among the returning veterans. The traffic light bandolier is sadly gone here (though featured in an alt kostume harkening back to MK1 Kano) and replaced with an open vest and a hairy chest. It's so hairy, and the graphics are so 2002. And that's not a shark-tooth necklace he's wearing by the way. That's a lock of Sonya's hair he ripped away while being kicked off a roof during the events of MK3. Thankfully, his MK3 color scheme is maintained via the red lining on the inside of the vest. It's a simple but effective look for a simple but effective crook like Kano.
Shang Tsung...
We get to talk about one half of the titular Deadly Alliance now. After his absence in MK4, the soul-sucking sorcerer is back with a vengeance and a wild mane of hair. He's basically MK3 Shang if he had the fashion sense of his older counterpart and I'm perfectly fine with that. Much like Raiden, the kostume looks a little cumbersome to move around in due to all the layers involved (including a hoodie on the back of the robes and some tassels in the front that are strangely absent in the CG intro). The red, orange, brown, and gold color scheme works quite well even if I usually associated Shang Tsung with darker colors, and I dig the patterning on his boots. All around, it's a welcome return to his evil wizard days with a contemporary twist.
Kitana...
I'd say that this is a surprisingly conservative redesign, but that's possibly because this was originally meant as an alternate kostume for a comparatively more out-there look. This is in notable contrast to Sub-Zero and Kung Lao, who kept their more untraditional looks as their defaults for this game. For whatever reason, the devs swapped the kostumes around and this one is what we got on the kharacter select screen. It's a nice mix of the MKII and UMK3 outfits, and in a reversal of what happened with Sonya and Sareena (and would later be demonstrated with Jade and Mileena) is ironically enough probably less risqué than what she wore previously. The almost grayer shade of blue works well, and I like the two-tone look of her new boots and mask. Shout-out to the extremely long braid she's got going on. One of the strongest designs of the 2002-08 run in my humble opinion.
Jax...
Hmm. This is an odd one for me. When I first saw Jax as a child, I thought he was the coolest guy on the roster. I also thought he was wearing sunglasses and not goggles. Yes, those are goggles he's wearing. They're presumably protective eyewear for the heavy-duty firearm he wields now, but it's a choice that definitely made me tilt my head when I first noticed. I actually do like most of this design: the bandolier, the green and red contrast between the pants and beret, the kneepads. The goggles just look a bit odd. Really, my biggest issue is with the arms. It's been several years since MK4 so I'd expect Jax to upgrade them for future threats and they are probably closer to how bionic sleeves would look in the real world circa 2002, but they come off as a little overdesigned due to all the segmenting of the metal plating. You guys remember that RoboSapien toy that got popular in the 2000s? That's what the arms remind me of. Truth be told, I think they look better in-game (they almost come off as more white than their actual silver in the render above).
Kung Lao...
Now this is an interesting one. Much like Kitana, it seems Kung Lao also got his intended default kostume swapped around during the prerelease period. Unlike Kitana, his new default is in deliberate contrast to his established look. Honestly, I kind of think it works better for where Kung Lao was at this point in the series. As revealed in Mortal Kombat Gold, he had faked his death and retired to a quiet life to refocus himself on Shaolin teachings before all that nonsense with Shinnok and Goro got his attention. Now, he's presumably had time to resume a civilian's life for several more years until Liu Kang's death calls him back into action, so this more grounded outfit works. I imagine this is probably closer to what actual Shaolin monks would wear in real life, with some possible video game liberties taken. The gold trim around the uniform and boots complements the red sash and greenish-gray hĂ n fĂş(?) well. His hair has grown out in the interim as well, which is probably why he doesn't wear his hat (which is stored on his back for when he needs to toss it). One of the more drastic redesigns, but more so because of how restrained it is rather than for any notable excess of accessories. It serves its purpose for what Kung Lao was doing at this point in the series and I respect it for that, even if his alternate/intended default would be the one to influence his designs for the next decade.
Cyrax...
His legs look like the scream canisters from Monsters, Inc. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, I can talk about Cyrax properly. Most of the "ninja" influence has been stripped away, but he's no longer a Lin Kuei at this point, having thrown in his lot with Special Forces after they restored his memories as a human. As such, he's traded in his loincloth for metal tights. That in conjunction with the new chestplate does inadvertently give him a bikini look, but he just narrowly pulls it off. I do find it interesting that his presumed upgrades courtesy of the OWIA left him with more exposed machinery than before. His new gauntlet panels could and in canon do get damaged pretty easily, to say nothing of the tubing around his leg joints. His MK3 and Gold designs, by virtue of being an actual man in a suit and a 3D translation of said man in a suit respectively, ironically conveyed a more human-looking Cyrax than the game where he's already regained his human memories. I don't think that's a strike against Deadly Alliance's rendition, just a funny observation. Anyways, Midway seems to have left his helmet unchanged from Tobias' designs, which I think was the right decision. This would be the last new design of Cyrax to keep the original head shape and his last new primary design from the Midway years.
Quan Chi...
This is a case where Midway opted to operate under the assumption that less is more. I'd say it worked out quite well and gave them a chance to really make Quan Chi come into his own. He's abandoned his necromancer robes for a pair of pants and some gloves, though they did thankfully honor his old color scheme with the teal fabric adorning his pants. Going shirtless means he also gets to display all of the new tattoos he's gained in the interim. I also like that they repurposed his spikes by integrating them somewhat more subtly into the new bandolier. Keeping in line with the events of Mythologies and MK4, he's also got Shinnok's amulet proudly on display. Really, that amulet shows up more than Shinnok himself. Much like how Liu Kang, Raiden, and Johnny's MKII attire would serve as the general templates for the majority of their future looks, this is for all intents and purposes the Quan Chi design, being utilized 1:1 or modified lightly for his appearances in Deception, Shaolin Monks, Armageddon, MKvsDCU, and MK9.
Blaze...
You see that orange guy in the background of the picture on the left? That's Blaze, formerly Torch, a minor kharacter seen on the Pit II stage in MKII and MK Trilogy. Deadly Alliance would be the last game to feature standalone secret playable kharacters that were completely hidden away on the select screen, and it seems the devs wanted to revisit an earlier kharacter for one of their special secret fighters. Now Blaze has been repurposed from a fiery Liu Kang sprite into a pure fire Elemental, which means he's the Human Torch in black undies and chains. He's somewhat reminiscent of the Fire God from Mythologies, except committing more heavily to the whole flaming naked golem look. One could argue it's generic, but I don't mind. It looks very flashy in-game as well when his skin's lighting changes with the flames around him.
That concludes our section on the playable kharacters featured in the console versions. Now a look at some of the NPKs featured in Deadly Alliance:
Liu Kang...
Yep, it's Liu Kang from MK3 in 3D. Not much to say other than noting that he's missing his arm bracelets.
Shao Kahn...
Shao Kahn('s doppelganger) seen on the right is basically just the MKII design brought into 3D for his brief appearance in the opening cutscene of Deadly Alliance. The skull emblem on the chestpiece is notably missing and the spikes on the shoulder pads appear to be more numerous, but it's Shao Kahn through and through.
...And here's a concept sketch to show what Shao Kahn (center of the image) could've looked like if he had a bigger role, courtesy of the MK Warehouse:
This also isn't too much of a departure from what he normally wears, other than the missing center straps, and the new helmet which looks to be modeled after the skull of some Outworld beast. Or a ram.
Kai...
Oh, Kai. One of the few newcomers added to MK4 that wasn't inherited from Mythologies or a last-minute replacement of another kharacter. You were so close to making it into Deadly Alliance, but alas. On the right is a concept sketch for his planned appearance in Deadly Alliance, which opted for what looks to be more of a Sherpa swordsman look. Fitting, given his Nepalese background (EDIT: It has come to my attention that Kai may not be Nepalese, background info that I randomly took from another site that has been removed since the last time I checked said site). I'm of two minds on the stripes being applied to his face. They look nice and striking in the art, but would probably have looked like a total mess on a kharacter model. If Kai ever resurfaces, I wouldn't mind this design serving as an inspiration for a new kostume.
Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance was released on the three active major home consoles of the sixth generation, with a "port" seeing release on the Game Boy Advance within a week's time. The GBA version carried over roughly half of the fighters seen in the console release, and would receive a sister game of sorts in 2003 titled Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition. Tournament Edition would retain Scorpion, Shang Tsung, and Quan Chi and feature most of the kharacters not available in the earlier GBA game. It also featured a handful of exclusive kharacters.
Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition
Noob Saibot...
He's Scorpion but with the color black in this game, keeping the palette swap tradition going on just a little longer. I do like that they retained the blue eyes from MK4.
Sektor...
The Ketchup to Cyrax's Mustard also took advantage of asset reuse and adopted Cyrax's new design for his own. What I said about Cyrax largely applies to him as well.
Sareena...
One of Bi-Han's allies from Mythologies makes her playable debut here, after being passed over for a spot in Deadly Alliance's console roster (which is presumably why she gets the fancy renders and wholly unique model compared to her recolored TE brethren). Much like Sonya, she's been given a more fanservicey makeover -- not that her original design was particularly modest to begin with, but it still had to accommodate a real actress doing the stunts -- swapping out her corset for a bikini top. The red on her original outfit has also been swapped out for maroon accents, including on her studded gloves. I prefer the Mythologies design, but I like the patterning and details of the Tournament Edition design more and wouldn't have minded a composite.
...And that is about all I have to say about the redesigns for Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance and Tournament Edition. Goro shows up in Noob's ending in TE, but he looks about the same. There were some growing pains in the transition to a different art team, but I'd say they did well enough for the first new Mortal Kombat game since the departure of so many Midway developers, with the caveat that many of the things that would dog the series' visual identity in its later years effectively started in earnest here.
Next time, we'll look at the sixth mainline game's visual overhauls, including those for many kharacters who hadn't had a major role in years. But for now, I need to rest.
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I love MKDA Kung Lao. I think it's one of his best looks in the series. The hat on the back was such a kool twist. He has a great fatality in that game too, big time swagger.
MK:DA designs always lose points for me because of that horrible Jax design. And that alternate is potentially one of the worst costumes in MK history, doesn't fit Jax personality at all
I am a fan of the Kung Lao default tho
I am a fan of the Kung Lao default tho
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It was ridiculous how much Midway tried to make thongs Sonya's thing during the sixth-gen era, and then made sure to make it visible that Sonya *doesn't wear* thongs anymore in MK Vs DC.
Still better costumes than the one in MK9, though.
MKDA will always be remembered as the game that shocked the masses as we all watched in horror as Liu Kang got his neck snapped and soul taken by Shang Tsung. The thing that was never supposed to happen did, and it made the story all the better because of it.
MK3 really recycled that sprite of people getting lit on fire. Nearly everyone's fatality used some variation of it.
It always surprised me how lazy and downgraded MK3 and UMK fatalities were to 2. You also got to love it when like 8 legs pop up from one body when they exploded too.
Or when someone is cut in half and their hands just float there beside the legs because they just literally cut the sprite in two.
That's not Kerri Hoskins... are these shots of the unreleased HD remake?
Now that i noticed that some fighters forgot How to fight betwen 1-2, their battle stances are way better in the First one
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I don't even know what I'm going to write for Sonya for the next few games without coming off as redundant.
I don't even know how I'm going to handle Armageddon, it makes MK Trilogy's asset reuse look like a picnic. And only the kharacters who got wholly new designs got new renders, so I don't know what the protocol will be for comparing game appearances. I might have to just use the versus images for everyone else, even if I prefer full-body art whenever possible.
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Looks like it the Kitana actor is completely different.
Fun journey.
Some definite improvement and detours.
I don't like Scorpion getting too thicc or edgy. Reptile becoming actual reptile is yuck. And the eventual Sub Shredder is trash.
Some definite improvement and detours.
I don't like Scorpion getting too thicc or edgy. Reptile becoming actual reptile is yuck. And the eventual Sub Shredder is trash.
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This ruined fatalities in MK3. Fatality execution and results sucked 90% of the time.
In before IMAGINE NOT LIKING FLOATING ARMS IN FATALITIES.
I missed the MK4 post (it's been a busy work week) but I wanted to contribute to that specific discussion all the same, because it's still my favourite in the series.
So, last year, I just so happened to be in the mood for MK4, and reinstalled the game on PC. This time, though, I also installed the mod that allows the game to use the higher-quality polygonal models from the arcade version. While this does drop the framerate to 30fps, it's fun to mess with, and there's a VERY noticeable difference when it comes to the models. So here goes.
Sub-Zero's (Kuai Liang) alt costume with and without the mod:
Noob Saibot (Bi Han) with all three costumes (no mod):
That grim reaper hoodie is WILD. I don't think MK4 gets enough credit for some of the neater alts it had.
Reptile (alt) and Scorpion with and without the mod:
There's a couple of other great alts, too--specifically Johnny in his tuxedo and Sonya's red palette swap. Both of those look fantastic.
Edit: Twitter links are slightly messed up (not sure why it isn't linking each individual post), but you get the point.
So, last year, I just so happened to be in the mood for MK4, and reinstalled the game on PC. This time, though, I also installed the mod that allows the game to use the higher-quality polygonal models from the arcade version. While this does drop the framerate to 30fps, it's fun to mess with, and there's a VERY noticeable difference when it comes to the models. So here goes.
Sub-Zero's (Kuai Liang) alt costume with and without the mod:
Noob Saibot (Bi Han) with all three costumes (no mod):
That grim reaper hoodie is WILD. I don't think MK4 gets enough credit for some of the neater alts it had.
Reptile (alt) and Scorpion with and without the mod:
There's a couple of other great alts, too--specifically Johnny in his tuxedo and Sonya's red palette swap. Both of those look fantastic.
Edit: Twitter links are slightly messed up (not sure why it isn't linking each individual post), but you get the point.
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I keep hoping that we'll get a 60fps PC version of MK4 with the higher-quality models some day, but at this point I don't think there's enough interest in the game. :/
Frankly, the ideal scenario would be for NetherRealm to clean up MK Gold, port it over to modern platforms, and that way we'd have the best of both worlds.
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A retooled version of Mortal Kombat Gold (either through NRS or a trusted outsourced studio) would be quite nice.
I should buy a copy of mk gold. I have a dreamcast and played the shit out of 4 on n64 but only seen gold via video.
Yeah. I would find it difficult to resist, even at a $20-$25 price point.
It's DJ Reptile
Looking at these gifs, while I do like the MK2 designs better I think they had better stances in MK1. Johnny Cage and Liu Kang stances in particular looked way cooler.
Ive always loved the shit out of that animation
I remember being blown away by the fancier graphics and animation in MKII when it first released in arcades, but for the most part it was a step back in many ways.
you can see how poor many of the idle stances were in MKII. The fighters stand more upright, their legs are close together, they dont have clear silhouettes and their animation cycles are very rapid, wobbly and unthreatening. the stance difference between Liu kang in MK1 and MKII is a prime example. In MK1 he looks ready to move and attack with any limb, he's well balanced and looks like a martial artist. In MKII... not so much.
many of the costume design changes are made to make the characters clearer to see, things like metal wrist bands or Raiden's blue tunic, but they also lose the sense of realism and grounded-ness that the first game somehow had, despite shooting fireballs and electricity.
MKII was the beginning of the games slide into silliness and bad animation imo, when it could have gone the other way and have drawn on the games original influences of 'Enter the Dragon' and 'Big Trouble in Little China', it instead went full on outworld bonkers and one piece swimsuits held together with shoe laces.
the costume change of Kano from MK1 where he looks like a guy in an actual martial arts tournament held on an island, wearing some kind of judo gi and having what looks like quite a realistic and understated metal section implanted on his face, compared to MK3 where he looks like the worst kind of cheap 90s comic design says it all really.
I'm not saying that direction completely sucks, but it's definitely quite different from the feel of the original game.
you can see how poor many of the idle stances were in MKII. The fighters stand more upright, their legs are close together, they dont have clear silhouettes and their animation cycles are very rapid, wobbly and unthreatening. the stance difference between Liu kang in MK1 and MKII is a prime example. In MK1 he looks ready to move and attack with any limb, he's well balanced and looks like a martial artist. In MKII... not so much.
many of the costume design changes are made to make the characters clearer to see, things like metal wrist bands or Raiden's blue tunic, but they also lose the sense of realism and grounded-ness that the first game somehow had, despite shooting fireballs and electricity.
MKII was the beginning of the games slide into silliness and bad animation imo, when it could have gone the other way and have drawn on the games original influences of 'Enter the Dragon' and 'Big Trouble in Little China', it instead went full on outworld bonkers and one piece swimsuits held together with shoe laces.
the costume change of Kano from MK1 where he looks like a guy in an actual martial arts tournament held on an island, wearing some kind of judo gi and having what looks like quite a realistic and understated metal section implanted on his face, compared to MK3 where he looks like the worst kind of cheap 90s comic design says it all really.
I'm not saying that direction completely sucks, but it's definitely quite different from the feel of the original game.
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I have actually looked in a few places because of my recent MK mode and didn't see a reasonable copy. I will try a local store this weekend though.
He doesn't move this fast and it seems like most people in this thread think he does.
The animation is still my favorite of MKII idle animations
Looking at this thread is an interesting trip back. MK3 really was when the character designs stopped being influenced by kung-fu flicks, and ventured more into edgy '90s comic book styling. Not a choice I liked, but it seemed to work well with the audience. When they started using CG models, the designs just went completely off the rails, especially when it came to the women.
But yeah, the success of MK1 allowed them to buy much better video capture equipment, lol.
But yeah, the success of MK1 allowed them to buy much better video capture equipment, lol.
Honestly, the PS2 games were my favorite of the MK games just because there was a willingness to just push forward with the series and come up with new ideas.
As much as I love the new trilogy, I didn't like its focus on rehashing the past. I hope they get really creative with the next game instead of just doing MK 1-3, but slightly different again.
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On a slightly different note, I really, really want to see an action adventure game like Shadow of Mordor w/Nemesis system, but set in the MK universe.
As much as I love the new trilogy, I didn't like its focus on rehashing the past. I hope they get really creative with the next game instead of just doing MK 1-3, but slightly different again.
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On a slightly different note, I really, really want to see an action adventure game like Shadow of Mordor w/Nemesis system, but set in the MK universe.
... but with none of the mtx. Great idea, would instabuy
Loving this thread. Even though they were simplistic compared to what would follow, I still really love the designs from MK1. Just some fighters at a kumite, simple and effective. That whole game had a really special energy to it.
Due to my overbearing mother, MK:DA was the first game in the series that I really got to dig into and I love that they really went for it. It still has to be the biggest shake-up in the series to date.
Looking forward to Shredder Sub Zero!
Due to my overbearing mother, MK:DA was the first game in the series that I really got to dig into and I love that they really went for it. It still has to be the biggest shake-up in the series to date.
Looking forward to Shredder Sub Zero!
Really? Like, I wasn't around for it, but the version I always hear is that the fans started to leave with MK3 in part because the influence of American-made genre fiction in that game made it more apparent just how silly it all was.
