Well, maybe NRS should have hired a graphic designer that knows how naming conventions and logos go. Better yet, NRS should have named the game anything else other than MK1 when we've had Mortal Kombat 1 three times now: the 1992 one, the 2011 one and now the 2023 one. They didn't even bother changing the stylization of the number 1 from the previous game, all they did was swap the direction of the bottom half.
NGL, I thought we were doing a Mortal Kombat Konquest, the series type story where we should have got a slew of new (but also classic like Hanzo/Bi Han) where we follow the new heroes learn and build the new world under Lord Lui Kang
Not everything with multiverse is trying to be the mcu. Marvel did not invent the multiverse. But I do agree that mortal kombat would be better off if we could finally get away from it and time travel. Unfortunately it's probably here to stay. Witch sucks because if they wanted to tell a multiverse story, injustice is right there
Personally wasn’t a fan of the story, not bc it wasn’t good until the last 4 but more so bc the game is marketed as MK 1 yet it’s MK 12, majority of the characters are the same with the smallest changes ever.
I like the idea that Shang Tsung's universe would be more classic in their characters (Hanzo scorpion, Conqueror Shao Khan, Flesh Pits mileena) It'd contrast to liu kang's timeline, where he chanced people's circunstances in order to let them themselves shape new destinies, Shang Tsung however keeps their circunstances the same to reduce variables he needs to account for, and THEN proceeds to coerce them into thier new desitny as his pawns.
Then the casualties for both sides could’ve been halved. Half the mk cast on liu kang survives and the other dies. Same with Shang tsungs mk cast of classic characters.
A great, although impractical idea, that I read these days would be to use the MK11's face models to depict the Shang Tsung's characters. I presume the licensing fees would be astronomical.
I don't hate the multiverse concept, but it mostly depends on execution. Like Ben 10 has done this so often it's honestly hilarious, but it never feels cheap when they explore the Omniverse. But like then you get DC where like every time a character dies they'll probably just get another one from a different universe (green arrow)
The thing that annoys me most about this is how NRS seems to almost be in denial that this is a multiverse, from their insistence on using "timeline" instead of "universe" for everything, to that one interview where Ed Boon said they wouldn't do multiverse stuff (although it's possible I'm misremembering that), they're really acting like this is something new and fresh that's never been done before, when it's a very by-the-book multiverse story. Infinite timelines and infinite universes are the exact same thing, just with different terminology.
When Dragon Ball Super managed to distinguish the similarities between timelines and the universes far better and can be easier to look over than what other companies came up with, that’s not funny.
@@mazkeraid4039what kills me is MK has a good foundation though. The ideas of realms and mortal kombat is awesome and distinct in of its own self, just make more realms and not this multi universe bullshit. MK1-7 had good ass lore but even the. we explored a little of outworld, a little of new york in earthrealm and have alot about edenia, aswell as Shujinko’s quest. Just expand upon that
@@InTheKitchenWristStirFryThat would require too much creativity and thought, multiverses are far easier because they can do anything just because, and nothing matters.
The saddest part of this game is that...I loved the characters of this game. Love the actors, who brought them to life, But ... we'll probably never see them again
@@dylansharp8471 well, no actor has returned from any game since MK9. Liu kang and Shang tsung have never looked better, but the actors from Mk9, X, 11 and 1 are all different people. Edit: I personally Hate how they both Looked in MK 11, and I'm super glad they look the way they do. But the pattern tells me we'll never see them again
@@cynicalfella Shang Tsung in MK11 in both versions is a reproduction of Cary Tagawa, and the face model actor who played Kuai Liang in MK11 again played Kuai Liang in MK1
@@Tevi_L7151 I know the Shang Tsung fun fact, I just really don't care all that much, I find the face model REALLY UGLY, like, DISGUSTINGLY ugly, Like, It was a PAIN seeing those characters on screen (Liu kang and ST). I didn't know that Kuai Liang had the same facial model on both games, That's pretty nice, but It's more sad than anything else, because it is not like Sub zero in Mk 11 was... relevant... His chapter wasn't even HIS CHAPTER, Was Hanzo's and his. He was literally a Background character, he almost didn't matter... and bro didn't even return as Sub-zero 🤣🤣
@@cynicalfella and still even with the chapter he shared with Hanzo he literally has 5 chapters in the last 4 games including MK1. But yeah, he's a placeholder again, a replacement (literally replacing Hanzo even for Harumi lmao, and he is now an orphan boy recruit in Shirai Ryu thanks to Smoke in his arcade ending)
this whole multiverse thing screams "we came up with our content model first (invasion seasons), let's write an excuse in the story to justify it". with the way M1K is monetized, I wouldn't be surprised if it was some exec's idea. player retention and all that, you know.
@@billmcdermott9647 a bit better than what Netflix Witcher did to justify a "lore" reason why there's a different Geralt but the bar ain't that high tho
The portals scene in Avengers Endgame is so upsetting in hindsight because even though it was actually earned and impactful, it clearly left a horrible impact on the entertainment industry in the years after.
I felt that the entertainment industry understood what made Avengers: Endgame's climax so impactful and powerful, but they were so impatient that they wanted to replicate that same moment without a proper build up, like MK1.
My main issue was Shang Tsung as the final boss. What they should have done was pulled a Nina/Anna Williams variation as Namco did. Give Titan Shang his MK 11 move pool. He shouldn't have the moveset of M1K Shang! Making both variants unique and making the Titan actually feel like a boss fight.
One thing about the ending is that it feels kind of contradictory towards Shang Tsung's character. His tower ending in MK11 he comes to the conclusion that despite having the powers of a Titan he would stay in the shadows and manipulate other Titans/minions to do his bidding for him so he doesn't leave himself open to being defeated. In MK1 he just reveals himself to the heroes for no real reason and just decides to have a giant battle. He just feels like a villain that would/could have been around for a couple games just manipulating events through others.
While I agree that multiverse stories are becoming boring by this point in how pop culture has been overusing it, I disagree that they are boring. They can be very cool as proven by exemples like Flash of Two Worlds, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Grant Morrison's JLA Earth 2, two os my favorite JL episodes (Legends and A Better World) and Into Spider Verse and Spider Man TAS finale. The difference between those exemples and this game is that they actually explore the worlds they introduce, showing who their characters are and how their presence affect the main ones, instead of being a cheap execuse to have the characters fighting versions of themselves with no personality.
Would it be cool if we had a havik, Hotaru and Darrius from Shang’s timeline fighting back against Titan Shang’s forces who in MK11 said they plan to invade order and chaos realm.
Should have been the main plot for mk12 and make it a time skip instead having to force a 2nd/3rd reboot in which this game is classed as with a risk of going to a 3rd/4th official reset bcoz of power wanking fantasies
I literally already had this discussion, down to the "for being a supposed selling point, 'Titan' Shang Tsung's universe sure was wasted and unexplored", in your last video. So thanks for the vindication.
I would honestly say that titan Shang’s verse should have been the canon version, moving forward, not the entire split timeline bs (which was not even indicated in aftermath). Reasons why: 1) I’m sorry for the liu kang fans but he should have lost that fight against Shang in aftermath. How can he - his revenant self - raiden go toe to toe against Shang with the powers of the crown, cetrion, kronika, shao Kahn, raiden, fujin, twindel and win, not to mention his dumbass plan about letting his friends die. - actually forcing the plot to go in a different direction and could have explored something new like how all the main protagonist are literally villains now since havik and hotaru aren’t exactly your typical to go to for a good motives and have ridiculous extreme views, putting us more in suspense - I also hate the fucking idea that apparently we needed to reboot when it could literally have been just a fucking timeskip where shit is still in the 2nd timeline, plus it would add on Shang’s smartness as it could add that even he would not fuck with time so heavily to get what he wants as it can prove to be a colassal fuck-up, given the examples. Also, he has other powers to use to conquer the universe. I know this point has been repeated by me( and I honestly don’t blame people if they hate this point repeated by myself), but it is still baffling that we went down the road we went when we genuinely did not even need to go into the very fucking idea of infinite timeline and multiverse bs to advance the story. The idea laid out was easy to think of, in the least bs of ways and the fact that NRS could not think of this. Ffs, the second timeline has not even be explored that much in the first place (all it did was really focus on much of the retelling of mk1-4 and then relies heavily on nostalgia rfor the attempt original plot - which it is actually not lol - and now we are moving onto the third timeline in which it is now commiting a “dragon ball super” in which it has that same risk again, only this time we are witnessing in full force. I have also heard leaks that instead focusing more on the plots of what is happening of the aftermath of civil war, it’s still focusing or more multiversal bs lol
@@nabilahmed579 Yeah, agreed on all fronts of this, especially the second timeline being "such wasted potential". Hell, _MK9_ basically did a bad speedrun of _MK3_ even though that could have easily been its own entire remade game & plot and then _MKX_ alao outright skipped 20 years despite derailing pretty much everything after _MK4_ too, with only contradicted comics filling in the gap. Then _MK11_ saddles us with Kronika and more time travel and for some reason drastically different versions of Sindel and Skarlet, which we've both agreed was stupid multiple times already, so no point going over that again right now. That said, I'm not surprised at WB & NRS chasing trends even as much as other people seem to be blaming the MCU like MCU *made* them do it, much less do it so incompletely. I'm just disappointed, like I am with the fact they just as predictably also didn't show us anything of the Great Kung Lao *again* despite Fire God Liu Kang's _Aftermath_ ending that is now canon literally finishing with him talking to the guy. Sigh. Your "Titan"--gods I hate this MK term--Shang Tsung scenario sounds far more interesting than what we got, especially since it would force NRS to not make him essentially omnipotent like how they basically did with Kronika, who was written as too dumb to use it, and then again with Fire God Liu Kang while he's--sigh"--a "Titan", showing once again neither NRS nor WB has pattern recognition when it comes to their own mistakes. No surprise there either, unfortunately.
@@MusicoftheDamned another thing with the GKL era is not only is his era is basically abandoned for the modern cast that deserves a massive break now, modern kung lao gets shafted as well lol. Fucker is the only one out of the 4 to actually have powers, when each of the 4 had basically none of their equipment or training with liu, and could actually make a decent arc about him showcasing pride like an arrogant twat, he either gains humility or gains the idea of his pride being his main source of motivation to prove why he’s the best and talk his shit, but he gets sidelined for raiden, who later gets sidelined for the rest of the fucking story (btw raiden should have not been rebooted, if anything, he should’ve either remained mortal being just an advisor for liu, finally getting a rest and see how his life turns out as a human in the modern era if the game still was more of a continuation of mk11 - which it is - not making him to a mortal, which probs complicates how raiden gets affected by time travel even more). Also, another thing that genuinely bugs me is despite how much of a dumbass raiden is when he was a thunder god, I don’t like how all of the characters go buddy-buddy with fire god liu kang despite the fact that he literally erased a fucking timeline in which it had no indication of being ridiculously fucked up as everything was done on the sea-of-blood. The fact that the heroes do not even question as to why he even bothered to restart history and put 2-and-2 to see Liu’s reasoning is bullshit and act like it’s normal is kinda out of character for them. Liu literally has done a villainous act (by action) and somehow, our heroes is fine with that is a giant plot point that needed to be addressed and they don’t even bother to give any sort in depth explanation to tackle it. Honestly, the treatments of sindel, kabal, shao Kahn and the others (while still fucking atrocious to say the least), the entire points of reboot and which character is heavily involved is about to become a giant problem for the series going forward now
@@nabilahmed579 Yeah, the timeline being reset at all in the Fire God Liu Kang timeline after the _Aftermath_ release when he went back before it happened is a potentially rather big plot hole I hadn't realized until now. I imagine NRS just went through with it because "hey, the timeline was already reset in the base game" and just went from there without thinking through it at all. That sais, to be fair as far as other characters' reactions go, no one left really knows the actual details except for Geras and "Titan" Shang Tsung, the former of whom wouldn't say anything and the latter of whom wouldn't be believed by anyone who didn't already have a reason to dislike Fire God Liu Kang. Even if the "original" Shang Tsung would technically be telling the truth for once, it would be difficult to side with the guy who is hellbent on literally destroying your entire universe out of spite. The funny thing is that even if the reset was somehow inevitable because of Kronika's death(s) in both base _MK11_ and _Aftermath_ and/or fighting over The Hourglass in both games, Fire God Liu Kang arguably does immoral things anyway by screwing over the lives of current Shang Tsung, Shao, and Quan Chi's instead of trying to steer them too away from evil. Instead he just opts to make them all miserable while in Shao's case he simultaneously doubles down by seeming to give him a genetic weakness from birth and yet somehow lets him still have access to Outworld's government unlike the other two, among other things. Otherwise I completely agree. NRS and current WB have shown themselves to be pretty much incompetent at even short-term planning though, so none of this is particularly surprising either.
Well remember he's been locked up for who knows how long he was never killed. So his mind might've snapped a few times due to solidarity confinement. BUT this also leave everyone in the impression "Good we can manipulate him easily" BUT AGAIN Onaga is a smart crafty son of a gun. He could somewhat make " comments and suggestions" to better make his plans work or even have secret followers to better regain his throne. Initiate plot twist some of the villains and probably a good guy or two are followers of Onaga and have been sabotaging things for him to build his strength, calculate strength of his oppenents, and destroy their defences to finally initiate his plan. All because he was thought to be a " dumb beast"
How??? Onaga hasn’t had a speaking role since Armageddon, and hasn’t even been relevant to any of the stories since outside of small comments primarily in intro dialogues
It would have been nice if she lived longer so we could have finally seen her and Jerrod actually interact for once, but at least she didn't die as Twindel again. (Merely to her. Sigh.)
@MusicoftheDamned Say if Sonya were part of MK1's story and was chosen to be one of Liu Kang's champions for the tournament. Then, later in the timeline, Sonya is able to develop a friendship with Sindel (if she lived) in an Earthrealm/Outworld alliance between the special forces and the empire. That's an alliance I'd like to see for MK. Because the last time Sonya ever crossed paths with Sindel in the last timeline was back when Sindel (Twindel) was banging Shao and Sindel herself wanted Sonya to get knocked up by Johnny for slaves! 🤮 My idea ought to pull a good enough 180 to destroy the memory of that! I also would like to see a friendship between Sonya and Li Mei. Who both crossed paths before in MKX but only for like 3 mins. Say if Sonya in the new timeline had a similar new backstory to Li Mei's. Where Sonya had to leave a proud military career behind in disgrace over an incident that got her court-martialed and dishonorably discharged. Like how Li Mei left the Umgadi in disgrace over the incident with Jerrod. The two are able to relate with one another and form a bond throughout the rest of the timeline.
@@wickdaline8668 I'm actually fine with the Special Forces and the Black Dragon just not showing up in _M1K_ as it is for all the game's and story's faults, even if the game was weirdly mean to Jax at the very end of it and even meaner to the Kombat "Kids". That said, yeah, seeing Sonya and actual Sindel interact would have been nice since _Aftermath_ sure as hell doesn't count and since I can't remember if they even interacted in the original timeline either.
@MusicoftheDamned I really wonder what it must have felt like for Mara Junot to voice two different versions of Sindel? One in MK11, where she's an evil mustashe twirling biatch and one in MK1 where she's a compassionate but strict leader to her people. Must've been a distinct experience for her in the recording booth.
@@wickdaline8668 I imagine she had fun with it even if it was maybe a bit weird, though I don't know how many times she's had to do "talking to themselves" thing a lot of voice actors have done. Despite a lot of my issues with _MK11_ and this game, voice acting generally isn't one of them outside of one character in each game with both of them being the celebrity who sticks out like a sore thumb due to not actually being a voice actor: Rhonda Rousey in _MK11_ as Sonya and the somehow even worse Megan Fox in _M1K_ as Nitara. I mean, hell, even as much as Kronika is an awful character, Jennifer Hale still does excellent voice work as usual. Ms. Junot similarly did a good voice acting job even last game despite how much I hate Twindel, so I'm glad she got stick around even if I was initially worried give the _M1K_ trailers made it seem like we were going to get Twindel again.
It really says a lot about how they aren't even sure if Invasions is canon. Imo it's just evidence that the writers do not care for the narrative possibility of the multiverse... Despite it being core to the game.
This was my first MK game and the story seemed like a pretty straightforward sci-fi/fantasy adventure that gave enough exposition for newcomers not to get lost.
I just wanna add that my already had a sort of multiverse. All these timelines seem to connect through the hourglass, making them originate from the same universe.
Multiverse-related stuff might as well be seen as a modern plague for franchises. It's just such a boring and uninspired excuse to reuse characters and plot twists. What pisses me the most is how even many years later those who keep adding this dried out concept into their verses, still look so proud of themselves, as if they're writing next Shakespearean magnum opus. Like, writing is easy when there's basically no restrictions or rules left in the universe you created!
I will say that, in regards to the "variations represent timelines", if you want a third one then the outcome of Kronika's victory being one of them would probably be the best way to go. She is, after all, a logical candidate, and her timeline would best be the one for characters most similar to MK1-8. It would also mean a multiversal 1v1v1 where we have the most idyllic timeline (Liu Kang's) vs the most dystopian timeline (Shang Tsung's) vs a mix of both (Kronika's), and this could be used to imrpove Kronika and other's characters as they can see what the timelines could be under another's influence.
Due to one of sindel’s dialogue, how it was MK12_ rather than MK1_ And taking the leaked business call into account. It’s safe to say the game originally was called MK12, and was switched to MK1 due to Warner Bros slip I feel like if it was called MK12 the ending would of been better suited, but to be a series reset and call it MK1, it shot itself in the foot
That naming terminology is used everywhere. If it's a sequel to a franchise, even with some subtitle, it's usually codenamed (series name/abbreviation) + number.
@@Grim-Owl I can't name specific instances, as I haven't done it in a while, but those in-game codenames and even the names of EXE files will often not match the title of the game. Chances are, they were debating whether to do 12 or 1 early in development, and just called the Unreal project MK12 as it made the most sense as a short, simple codename to use internally.
In my opinion they shouldve did away with this timeline multiverse bullshit entirely along with kronika and titan shang tsung. It shouldve just focused on the new shang tsung being the villain and possibly making him more of a gray character since lui kang actively made his life pathetic, same with quan chi bi han and the lin kue should also gotten more story focus to flesh out their characters more and make bi han less of a lame ass generic bad guy and more like his original version even if hes still turns on them. Characters like Ashrah , Havik, Nitara and Reptile also should not just drop off the face of the earth and return to properly conclude or further they're arcs, especially Reptile considering shang tsung killed his family. The first half of the story is good but this game has SO much wasted potential.
The thing that bothers me the most is that nobody really reacts to the revelation of Liu Kang being their gods. This guy who they believed to just be their friend is basically their creator. And aside from Sindel questioning him about their relationship it's basically brushed aside. Another thing is how characters just accept the existence of the multiverse. They just accept that it exists and that their evil counterparts are attacking them, instead of them grappling with that fact.
they got the taste of it way back in vsDC. and could never let go of this comic book stuff that has no place in MK. you can tell they have more fun making Injustice.
Honestly, i always had the idea that we still have the shang tsung from his timeline ending coming to lui kangs timeline, but instead it it being another multiverse thing, he's teaching him a lesson that changing the timeline won't always change a characters fate. For example, mileena will always have some form of tarkoten in her, or kenshi will always be the blind warrior, baraka still a tarkoten, shao kahn a dictating ruler, etc.
No pls dont bring variations back I just want characters with their full kit in ine character, having to choose what moves I want in sacrifice of others suck I want to be able to use all the intended moves made for that character. NO MORE VARIATIONS PLS do not ask for them to come back
I thought I was the only who was dismayed with the multiversal climax. That "wuxia" aesthetic should have been the main theme of the story, manifesting the idea of a timeline of peace.
I'll be honest, I liked the ending of M1K, it's really funny in how ridiculous it is and it opens the door for new, interesting stories with different characters as titans.
In the final chapter of M1K one of the alternate timeline fighters you battle against is Scorpion with Kung Lao's hat, and you know how they named him? Scorp-Lao. SCORP FRICKIN' LAO. I can't decide whether it's a stroke of genius or just unbelievably stupid.
Well I am guessing the other name would have been Kungpion, which sounds like Kung Peon and that would be just crapping on Kung Lao. Now if the hat is a buzzsaw variant, he could have been Sawpion, and his hat / saw projectiles would attach into the skin and he would pull them back magnetically?
Great video dude! I really agree especially on that last point about the skins and variations to them. I think that would be a wonderful way to have classic versions of characters coexist with the new era ones as selectable fighters! Especially with the multiverse gimmick. I personally found myself enjoying M1K's plot even during the finale, my issue is exactly going back to the skins aspects, there's a reallll big lack of diversity in the skins that show up, for both good and evil versions of characters. If I had to suggest a "fix" on a surface level while having to keep the plot as it is, I'd just establish more skin diversity during the final battle, especially with the whole dumb gimmick of rotational unlocks and store content, the many future skins that we'd get from the store get teased in the Armageddon styled finale by making debuts there, be it as selectable fighters or ones you encounter as you traverse the pyramid. Like seriously, we see the same light and darkness skins in the final chapter pop up more than just twice, it's really distracting and removes the impact of what's meant to be an "awesome" and "epic" end game styled finale. I especially see what you mean as to why it doesn't work as it is, but I think the impact would've been greater if those multiverse fighters were versions of the characters we've met before (Such as 3D era styled Dark Raiden amongst the good guys to counter the NRS Era Dark Raiden, 3D Era Elder God's Champion Scorpion as one of the good guys, MK9 Tower Ending Shang on the good guys, MK9 Tower Ending Fire God Liu Kang on the bad guys side, etc. etc.).
Honestly it would’ve been better if both Liu kang’s and Shang tsung timelines were corrupting one another due to both of them controlling half of the hourglass eventually leading to a war we’re both sides try to regain control of the Hourglass and try to destroy the other timeline before the changes become permanent.🐱
Damashi is revealed to be Onaga, and the Dragon Army awakens. Three chapters are spent to take them down, and now Outworld & Earthrealm trust each other as Quan chips allies all conspire against them and Havik is set up as the new threat with his whole face melted now. Simple.
I also thought it was weird for M1K to jump right into Armageddon, though I do appreciate how much fun they had for some of the Kombatants from the multiverse. Clockodile and Stung Lao are great names
NRS did a multiverse story where only the playable roster and some kameos has multiple versions Not one single version of Kintaro,Kabal, Sheeva Fujin, Kira, Taven, Noob Saibot,Erron Black,Kotal Khan, Jade and more in this "multiverse" LMAO
@@J1210mk2honestly, that would be great. When M1K was revealed I was kinda hoping this game would be an Earth-2 situation while the previous timeline still existed in some way for classic fans.
Personally, I find this multiverse idea so bad that even this desire to learn more about characters presented to us fades away because ultimately nothing really matters as much anymore and at the same time everything is so repetitive
Just finished the main story and so agree. MK stories have never been the peak of storytelling but this just feels like a lack of faith in laying out the foundations for this timeline. Rather than up the stakes or be excited about the potential, this "twist" has just made it all feel a little worthless and has dampened my excitement for future DLC.... -Introduction of Special Forces VS Black Dragon? Doesn't matter cause Kano Sonya. -Countess Jade being part of Kitana's future? Doesn't matter cause even Liu Kang is hung up on a Kitana from another timeline... -Titan Havik? Why not Titan Meat or Titan MoKap?
From a writing standpoint you need to understand multiverse is not a bad idea it gives you more freedom you're not limited you can do whatever you want you could kill characters and have them return an easy fashion but you probably never worked on something so you don't understand the multiverse.like some of us do and why it matters
@@owaindavies9457 "Introduction of Special Forces VS Black Dragon? Doesn't matter cause Kano Sonya. -Countess Jade being part of Kitana's future? Doesn't matter cause even Liu Kang is hung up on a Kitana from another timeline..." How exactly? That could still happen to the new timeline we're following.
I blame our media 'accelerationism' on this rushed epic climax thing; universal climaxes used to take a decade of intrigue and buildup in order to get there; there was a time when sequels and threequels MATTERED because they took many years to release and we didn't have the spoilers we have today so there was a lot of hype and anticipation for things. Heck, I remember how exciting it was to wait years for Pokemon's second generation or even the third one, but now they release every year and have therefore lost their impact. Same goes for like every movie and game series now! Nothing is exciting anymore and thanks to our production-obsessed society, i find it kind of sad. Also glad to see that someone sees the value in the variation system!
Perfectly said. Nothing much to add. I wouldn't have multiverse at all in the lore, MK doesn't need that, and they made in the worst way possible. The amalgamations in the last chapter while entertaining take away any meaning these characters and this franchise could have. A perfect example of this is when Titan Kitana encounters Titan Liu Kang says "you're my Liu Kang". Liu Kang doesn't look in love for the new timeline Kitana, because is not his Kitana. These are not the same characters. Their stories are over. Mortal Kombat characters are over and Mortal Kombat is over. In a sense, that's true since the first reboot, but this game make it even more clear.
I would like to add that Titan Shang Tsung is a joke as a main villain. For all the build up to him, he doesn't win a single fight, he's driven off from his attack on the hourglass without being defeated and in the climax, Liu Kang nearly defeats him and Quan Chi at the same time. While some aspects have improved compared to NRS' previous attempts, when it comes to selling the villains as credible threats, this game is the worst one yet.
I actually think it works in twisted sense because in his mk 11 he says “To survive, I must return to the shadows, avoid confrontation, and work my will through the hands of others...” So as soon as he refused to heed his own advice he got killed. He could have just kept posing as Damashi and puppeteers from a distance
The Biggest Waste of Potential was Not Bringing Cary Back for the Reveal. Like he was THE Shang Tsung you start setting up stuff like this in MK11 and stop it completely.
Buut nobody wants to see their favourite character die permanently. I think that's why other than Sindel most dead characters were from other timelines.
30 years of Mortal Kombat, you'd think its greatest fan would've understood and accepted that story, content etc all serve other aspects of the product, not the other way around. Being commercial first and everything else second is the essence of what makes Mortal Kombat what it is.
My problem with it is it felt too small and the cutscenes were too short. We should be seeing titan versions of every single mortal kombat characters. Even ones from other medias.
Hey I got a question for the multiversal conquerors in Invasion mode: what's the point of invading timeliness if you just end up spawning another where you didn't do it? Or a "timeline" where those would-be conquerors lose horribly? That's the problem I have with these types of antagonists that rarely gets addressed.
I hated the story as much as the next guy but come on blaze should have been on top of that pyramid and the fact that the chapter is called armegedon and you have the pyramid yet no blaze was just a very stupid call then again its mk1 so stupid calls are all over this games story.
I might be nitpicking... but Titan Shang Tsung should have been given a whole different moveset exclusive to himself instead of just having New/Liu Kang's Era Shang Tsung... That broke my immersion when playing against him in any mode...
I have a question to ask you 4thSnake. I’ve seen a number of fans wishing for John Tobias to come back to do the story. Do you think that would help or harm Mortal Kombat’s story and lore? He is the co-creator and developed the story during the Arcade era. Just wondering what you thought…
I think it is their will to not alienate anyone, which in turn, alienate everyone. Kinda like Shujinko in MK Deception lol. This story tries to reboot not only the original trilogy from the 90's, but also the whole 3D era, and also being a direct sequel to the 2010's era. This is why M1K is filled with story bits from many games, like MK2, or Deadly Alliance, and end up with an Armageddon reash through a post MK11 aftermath lens. That way, they feel like they catched up everything for everyone, without realizing this is just surface level of committment which will fail to engage people on a deeper level. I think I understand the loop they are stuck in. They have to catter to so many audiences, wether old as fuck as me, which grew up with MK1 on PC, and MK2 on supernes, or young people who grew up with Cassie Cage and Kotal Khan. I don't blame them, they want to please everybody, because they are a big franchise for mainstream audience, the best selling fighting game franchise of them all. The last MK game I bought was MK 9/2011, and it was disapointing. They want to get me back with the M1K reboot, but they just can't. They have to commit into a story for that, and they won't, because comitting mean narrowing their audience, and narrowing their audience is "bad". The irony is that if they had commit to their "combat kids" from MKX, which I did not bought, maybe I would have come back to explore that story with MK11, but they didn't do that, because they just can't commit. And M1K is just stuck on that mindset "do not alienate people, put everything surface level you can, and pray for a box office win". So I watch their story mode on youtube, with low level of engagement, and even though I like many takes on the M1K story, it just feel shallow and meaningless, because they just fast forward everything to catch up 3 decade of story, into 16 chapters ! That is insane lol. I wish you the best. I love your takes, they are filled with of love and thoughts.
When i first saw all those variations I thought it was a showcase of the in game customisation that we can do But no, they had to give us that free to play treatment
The seeds of really interesting plots were all there. It didn't have to reach multiversal level threats. Shang tsung/quan chi finding out their potential was stifled for crimes they didn't personally did not commit. General shou's coup. Onaga in the background. Sub zero being the worlds best fighter/defender of earth realm yet snubbed for the chosen one. Raiden being manipulated into being the next chosen one. All this and more merely needed to play out
Hello The4thSnake! I've been wondering if you plan on making more Tekken Wasted Plotential episodes since Tekken 8 came out. I personally thought Tekken 8's story was BETTER than T7, but still heavily flawed and with so much lost potential!
I also don’t get how the FVCK every single person has their own timeline. How does Havik have a timeline? HE WASN’T EVEN THERE WHEN LUI KANG FOUGHT KRONIKA!!!!
Does this Klown even like anything? And still calling it Mortal 1 Kombat is so annoying and irritating. One of the worst youtubers ever for sure
lol
I've put this up on the fridge for you, buddy. Keep it up, proud of you.
It's called an alternative opinion. I suggest you get used to them because you'll be seeing a lot of them.
@@ciarandoesstuff77 this guy hates Snake so much, he needed to announce it under few of his videos.
Could have tried putting (April Fools) at the Bottom of your Comment next time dude
Well, maybe NRS should have hired a graphic designer that knows how naming conventions and logos go. Better yet, NRS should have named the game anything else other than MK1 when we've had Mortal Kombat 1 three times now: the 1992 one, the 2011 one and now the 2023 one. They didn't even bother changing the stylization of the number 1 from the previous game, all they did was swap the direction of the bottom half.
I love how M1K story was going pretty fine and then in the middle they decided to speedrun Deadly Alliance and Armageddon like it was a good idea
With no recourse for Deception to bridge the two.
Don't forget Armageddon at the end!
@@ryu411
Kronica-Damashi
NGL, I thought we were doing a Mortal Kombat Konquest, the series type story where we should have got a slew of new (but also classic like Hanzo/Bi Han) where we follow the new heroes learn and build the new world under Lord Lui Kang
It was so good at first, so good. Didn't they say no more multivers stuff, too??? Such crap man that are killing their own game
Gotta love how in the end, the writers made their own MCU fanfic. Very inspiring shit from NRS
The MKCU one might say
The mcu did invent the fucking multiverse
"You heard people complaining about time travel? How about we make MK multiverse of madness, they gonna love it!"
Not everything with multiverse is trying to be the mcu. Marvel did not invent the multiverse. But I do agree that mortal kombat would be better off if we could finally get away from it and time travel. Unfortunately it's probably here to stay. Witch sucks because if they wanted to tell a multiverse story, injustice is right there
Yeah, it's like they were restricting themselves to the very end, until someone out there couldn't stand it anymore.
it just sucks cuz the story was quite refreshing and decently new feeling until they decided it would be funny to make this mk11-2
Personally wasn’t a fan of the story, not bc it wasn’t good until the last 4 but more so bc the game is marketed as MK 1 yet it’s MK 12, majority of the characters are the same with the smallest changes ever.
I like the idea that Shang Tsung's universe would be more classic in their characters (Hanzo scorpion, Conqueror Shao Khan, Flesh Pits mileena)
It'd contrast to liu kang's timeline, where he chanced people's circunstances in order to let them themselves shape new destinies, Shang Tsung however keeps their circunstances the same to reduce variables he needs to account for, and THEN proceeds to coerce them into thier new desitny as his pawns.
Then the casualties for both sides could’ve been halved. Half the mk cast on liu kang survives and the other dies. Same with Shang tsungs mk cast of classic characters.
A great, although impractical idea, that I read these days would be to use the MK11's face models to depict the Shang Tsung's characters. I presume the licensing fees would be astronomical.
I don't hate the multiverse concept, but it mostly depends on execution.
Like Ben 10 has done this so often it's honestly hilarious, but it never feels cheap when they explore the Omniverse. But like then you get DC where like every time a character dies they'll probably just get another one from a different universe (green arrow)
Same
The thing that annoys me most about this is how NRS seems to almost be in denial that this is a multiverse, from their insistence on using "timeline" instead of "universe" for everything, to that one interview where Ed Boon said they wouldn't do multiverse stuff (although it's possible I'm misremembering that), they're really acting like this is something new and fresh that's never been done before, when it's a very by-the-book multiverse story. Infinite timelines and infinite universes are the exact same thing, just with different terminology.
When Dragon Ball Super managed to distinguish the similarities between timelines and the universes far better and can be easier to look over than what other companies came up with, that’s not funny.
@@mazkeraid4039what kills me is MK has a good foundation though. The ideas of realms and mortal kombat is awesome and distinct in of its own self, just make more realms and not this multi universe bullshit. MK1-7 had good ass lore but even the. we explored a little of outworld, a little of new york in earthrealm and have alot about edenia, aswell as Shujinko’s quest. Just expand upon that
@@InTheKitchenWristStirFryThat would require too much creativity and thought, multiverses are far easier because they can do anything just because, and nothing matters.
@@shadow-squid4872 my bad for expecting good story writing from NRS.
They're trying to do something different, it's fair for them to use other name regardless if they're succeeding or not.
The saddest part of this game is that...I loved the characters of this game. Love the actors, who brought them to life, But ... we'll probably never see them again
What makes you say that?
@@dylansharp8471 well, no actor has returned from any game since MK9. Liu kang and Shang tsung have never looked better, but the actors from Mk9, X, 11 and 1 are all different people.
Edit: I personally Hate how they both Looked in MK 11, and I'm super glad they look the way they do. But the pattern tells me we'll never see them again
@@cynicalfella Shang Tsung in MK11 in both versions is a reproduction of Cary Tagawa, and the face model actor who played Kuai Liang in MK11 again played Kuai Liang in MK1
@@Tevi_L7151 I know the Shang Tsung fun fact, I just really don't care all that much, I find the face model REALLY UGLY, like, DISGUSTINGLY ugly, Like, It was a PAIN seeing those characters on screen (Liu kang and ST).
I didn't know that Kuai Liang had the same facial model on both games, That's pretty nice, but It's more sad than anything else, because it is not like Sub zero in Mk 11 was... relevant...
His chapter wasn't even HIS CHAPTER, Was Hanzo's and his. He was literally a Background character, he almost didn't matter... and bro didn't even return as Sub-zero 🤣🤣
@@cynicalfella and still even with the chapter he shared with Hanzo he literally has 5 chapters in the last 4 games including MK1. But yeah, he's a placeholder again, a replacement (literally replacing Hanzo even for Harumi lmao, and he is now an orphan boy recruit in Shirai Ryu thanks to Smoke in his arcade ending)
this whole multiverse thing screams "we came up with our content model first (invasion seasons), let's write an excuse in the story to justify it".
with the way M1K is monetized, I wouldn't be surprised if it was some exec's idea. player retention and all that, you know.
Let's face it,The multiverse stuff isn't gonna leave mk at this point unfortunately,it is what it is
It would have worked better if they had built up to it
Every franchise wants that piece of the Multiverse now. It can actually work if done right, like the Spider-Verse (Into, Across and Beyond).
MK just isn’t for me anymore. I guess I’m too old…at 25😂
@@billmcdermott9647 a bit better than what Netflix Witcher did to justify a "lore" reason why there's a different Geralt but the bar ain't that high tho
It's the crisis on infinite timelines.
My dyslexia corrected the title to Mortal Kombat 1 💀💀💀
The portals scene in Avengers Endgame is so upsetting in hindsight because even though it was actually earned and impactful, it clearly left a horrible impact on the entertainment industry in the years after.
Not really, I feel like mk is the only example
@@Deathmare235Same, I think the above is exaggerated
@@andrewrogers3067did you see the new flash movie? It basically has a similar scene and it’s just as disastrous
I felt that the entertainment industry understood what made Avengers: Endgame's climax so impactful and powerful, but they were so impatient that they wanted to replicate that same moment without a proper build up, like MK1.
@@onepresence9460 or they didn’t understand and just only saw the cool portal scene
My main issue was Shang Tsung as the final boss. What they should have done was pulled a Nina/Anna Williams variation as Namco did. Give Titan Shang his MK 11 move pool. He shouldn't have the moveset of M1K Shang! Making both variants unique and making the Titan actually feel like a boss fight.
And actually look like Mk11 Shang Tsung
YES!
That was my main gripe about this whole thing, it was just so damn lazy!
*phew* For a moment I was thinking I was being too nitpicky...
Crazy how you're trying to fix the multiverse plot. And it's actually pretty cool! XD
i disagree my dear lizard lover, actually really sucks
Honestly, the whole story stinks...😂😂😂😂, they could have done better, instead of this fanfiction crap.
I loved it too, it just had that raw chaotic energy from the earlier games!
The moment we saw Kronika look alike, we knew the endgame scenes was going to get fucked
One thing about the ending is that it feels kind of contradictory towards Shang Tsung's character. His tower ending in MK11 he comes to the conclusion that despite having the powers of a Titan he would stay in the shadows and manipulate other Titans/minions to do his bidding for him so he doesn't leave himself open to being defeated. In MK1 he just reveals himself to the heroes for no real reason and just decides to have a giant battle.
He just feels like a villain that would/could have been around for a couple games just manipulating events through others.
Yeah, I guess that was Non-Canon
Like Liu Kang turning his Friends in The New Council of Elder Gods
While I agree that multiverse stories are becoming boring by this point in how pop culture has been overusing it, I disagree that they are boring. They can be very cool as proven by exemples like Flash of Two Worlds, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Grant Morrison's JLA Earth 2, two os my favorite JL episodes (Legends and A Better World) and Into Spider Verse and Spider Man TAS finale.
The difference between those exemples and this game is that they actually explore the worlds they introduce, showing who their characters are and how their presence affect the main ones, instead of being a cheap execuse to have the characters fighting versions of themselves with no personality.
It's a case of eating your fav food everyday
After a while it tastes like nothing even if it's exactly as day 1
@@GarkKahn
To who?
Would it be cool if we had a havik, Hotaru and Darrius from Shang’s timeline fighting back against Titan Shang’s forces who in MK11 said they plan to invade order and chaos realm.
Should have been the main plot for mk12 and make it a time skip instead having to force a 2nd/3rd reboot in which this game is classed as with a risk of going to a 3rd/4th official reset bcoz of power wanking fantasies
Damn, that could be a good mirror to evil titan havik in Liu kang's universe
I literally already had this discussion, down to the "for being a supposed selling point, 'Titan' Shang Tsung's universe sure was wasted and unexplored", in your last video. So thanks for the vindication.
I would honestly say that titan Shang’s verse should have been the canon version, moving forward, not the entire split timeline bs (which was not even indicated in aftermath). Reasons why:
1) I’m sorry for the liu kang fans but he should have lost that fight against Shang in aftermath. How can he - his revenant self - raiden go toe to toe against Shang with the powers of the crown, cetrion, kronika, shao Kahn, raiden, fujin, twindel and win, not to mention his dumbass plan about letting his friends die.
- actually forcing the plot to go in a different direction and could have explored something new like how all the main protagonist are literally villains now since havik and hotaru aren’t exactly your typical to go to for a good motives and have ridiculous extreme views, putting us more in suspense
- I also hate the fucking idea that apparently we needed to reboot when it could literally have been just a fucking timeskip where shit is still in the 2nd timeline, plus it would add on Shang’s smartness as it could add that even he would not fuck with time so heavily to get what he wants as it can prove to be a colassal fuck-up, given the examples. Also, he has other powers to use to conquer the universe.
I know this point has been repeated by me( and I honestly don’t blame people if they hate this point repeated by myself), but it is still baffling that we went down the road we went when we genuinely did not even need to go into the very fucking idea of infinite timeline and multiverse bs to advance the story. The idea laid out was easy to think of, in the least bs of ways and the fact that NRS could not think of this.
Ffs, the second timeline has not even be explored that much in the first place (all it did was really focus on much of the retelling of mk1-4 and then relies heavily on nostalgia rfor the attempt original plot - which it is actually not lol - and now we are moving onto the third timeline in which it is now commiting a “dragon ball super” in which it has that same risk again, only this time we are witnessing in full force.
I have also heard leaks that instead focusing more on the plots of what is happening of the aftermath of civil war, it’s still focusing or more multiversal bs lol
@@nabilahmed579 Yeah, agreed on all fronts of this, especially the second timeline being "such wasted potential". Hell, _MK9_ basically did a bad speedrun of _MK3_ even though that could have easily been its own entire remade game & plot and then _MKX_ alao outright skipped 20 years despite derailing pretty much everything after _MK4_ too, with only contradicted comics filling in the gap. Then _MK11_ saddles us with Kronika and more time travel and for some reason drastically different versions of Sindel and Skarlet, which we've both agreed was stupid multiple times already, so no point going over that again right now.
That said, I'm not surprised at WB & NRS chasing trends even as much as other people seem to be blaming the MCU like MCU *made* them do it, much less do it so incompletely. I'm just disappointed, like I am with the fact they just as predictably also didn't show us anything of the Great Kung Lao *again* despite Fire God Liu Kang's _Aftermath_ ending that is now canon literally finishing with him talking to the guy. Sigh.
Your "Titan"--gods I hate this MK term--Shang Tsung scenario sounds far more interesting than what we got, especially since it would force NRS to not make him essentially omnipotent like how they basically did with Kronika, who was written as too dumb to use it, and then again with Fire God Liu Kang while he's--sigh"--a "Titan", showing once again neither NRS nor WB has pattern recognition when it comes to their own mistakes. No surprise there either, unfortunately.
@@MusicoftheDamned another thing with the GKL era is not only is his era is basically abandoned for the modern cast that deserves a massive break now, modern kung lao gets shafted as well lol. Fucker is the only one out of the 4 to actually have powers, when each of the 4 had basically none of their equipment or training with liu, and could actually make a decent arc about him showcasing pride like an arrogant twat, he either gains humility or gains the idea of his pride being his main source of motivation to prove why he’s the best and talk his shit, but he gets sidelined for raiden, who later gets sidelined for the rest of the fucking story (btw raiden should have not been rebooted, if anything, he should’ve either remained mortal being just an advisor for liu, finally getting a rest and see how his life turns out as a human in the modern era if the game still was more of a continuation of mk11 - which it is - not making him to a mortal, which probs complicates how raiden gets affected by time travel even more).
Also, another thing that genuinely bugs me is despite how much of a dumbass raiden is when he was a thunder god, I don’t like how all of the characters go buddy-buddy with fire god liu kang despite the fact that he literally erased a fucking timeline in which it had no indication of being ridiculously fucked up as everything was done on the sea-of-blood. The fact that the heroes do not even question as to why he even bothered to restart history and put 2-and-2 to see Liu’s reasoning is bullshit and act like it’s normal is kinda out of character for them.
Liu literally has done a villainous act (by action) and somehow, our heroes is fine with that is a giant plot point that needed to be addressed and they don’t even bother to give any sort in depth explanation to tackle it.
Honestly, the treatments of sindel, kabal, shao Kahn and the others (while still fucking atrocious to say the least), the entire points of reboot and which character is heavily involved is about to become a giant problem for the series going forward now
@@nabilahmed579 Yeah, the timeline being reset at all in the Fire God Liu Kang timeline after the _Aftermath_ release when he went back before it happened is a potentially rather big plot hole I hadn't realized until now. I imagine NRS just went through with it because "hey, the timeline was already reset in the base game" and just went from there without thinking through it at all.
That sais, to be fair as far as other characters' reactions go, no one left really knows the actual details except for Geras and "Titan" Shang Tsung, the former of whom wouldn't say anything and the latter of whom wouldn't be believed by anyone who didn't already have a reason to dislike Fire God Liu Kang. Even if the "original" Shang Tsung would technically be telling the truth for once, it would be difficult to side with the guy who is hellbent on literally destroying your entire universe out of spite.
The funny thing is that even if the reset was somehow inevitable because of Kronika's death(s) in both base _MK11_ and _Aftermath_ and/or fighting over The Hourglass in both games, Fire God Liu Kang arguably does immoral things anyway by screwing over the lives of current Shang Tsung, Shao, and Quan Chi's instead of trying to steer them too away from evil. Instead he just opts to make them all miserable while in Shao's case he simultaneously doubles down by seeming to give him a genetic weakness from birth and yet somehow lets him still have access to Outworld's government unlike the other two, among other things.
Otherwise I completely agree. NRS and current WB have shown themselves to be pretty much incompetent at even short-term planning though, so none of this is particularly surprising either.
@@nabilahmed579
That's a big load.
Pretty sure Liu is a full on good guy as his past self is fully in control.
In my opinion. I feel like they ruined Onaga. They ruined Damashi, wasted his dragon army and made him into a brainless wild animal.
Well remember he's been locked up for who knows how long he was never killed. So his mind might've snapped a few times due to solidarity confinement. BUT this also leave everyone in the impression "Good we can manipulate him easily" BUT AGAIN Onaga is a smart crafty son of a gun. He could somewhat make " comments and suggestions" to better make his plans work or even have secret followers to better regain his throne. Initiate plot twist some of the villains and probably a good guy or two are followers of Onaga and have been sabotaging things for him to build his strength, calculate strength of his oppenents, and destroy their defences to finally initiate his plan. All because he was thought to be a " dumb beast"
How??? Onaga hasn’t had a speaking role since Armageddon, and hasn’t even been relevant to any of the stories since outside of small comments primarily in intro dialogues
@@shadow-squid4872 I really favored Onaga over Shao. He needs to make a proper comeback.
There's also a Titan Onaga with his own timeline. I hope he ends up being the final boss when the game is actually komplete.
Been waiting for a wasted plotential on mk1. Thanks 4thsnake
Does anyone wish Sindel lived longer for this new timeline, at least? Or did she actually die in the right way at the right time?
It would have been nice if she lived longer so we could have finally seen her and Jerrod actually interact for once, but at least she didn't die as Twindel again. (Merely to her. Sigh.)
@MusicoftheDamned Say if Sonya were part of MK1's story and was chosen to be one of Liu Kang's champions for the tournament. Then, later in the timeline, Sonya is able to develop a friendship with Sindel (if she lived) in an Earthrealm/Outworld alliance between the special forces and the empire. That's an alliance I'd like to see for MK. Because the last time Sonya ever crossed paths with Sindel in the last timeline was back when Sindel (Twindel) was banging Shao and Sindel herself wanted Sonya to get knocked up by Johnny for slaves! 🤮 My idea ought to pull a good enough 180 to destroy the memory of that!
I also would like to see a friendship between Sonya and Li Mei. Who both crossed paths before in MKX but only for like 3 mins. Say if Sonya in the new timeline had a similar new backstory to Li Mei's. Where Sonya had to leave a proud military career behind in disgrace over an incident that got her court-martialed and dishonorably discharged. Like how Li Mei left the Umgadi in disgrace over the incident with Jerrod. The two are able to relate with one another and form a bond throughout the rest of the timeline.
@@wickdaline8668 I'm actually fine with the Special Forces and the Black Dragon just not showing up in _M1K_ as it is for all the game's and story's faults, even if the game was weirdly mean to Jax at the very end of it and even meaner to the Kombat "Kids". That said, yeah, seeing Sonya and actual Sindel interact would have been nice since _Aftermath_ sure as hell doesn't count and since I can't remember if they even interacted in the original timeline either.
@MusicoftheDamned I really wonder what it must have felt like for Mara Junot to voice two different versions of Sindel? One in MK11, where she's an evil mustashe twirling biatch and one in MK1 where she's a compassionate but strict leader to her people. Must've been a distinct experience for her in the recording booth.
@@wickdaline8668 I imagine she had fun with it even if it was maybe a bit weird, though I don't know how many times she's had to do "talking to themselves" thing a lot of voice actors have done. Despite a lot of my issues with _MK11_ and this game, voice acting generally isn't one of them outside of one character in each game with both of them being the celebrity who sticks out like a sore thumb due to not actually being a voice actor: Rhonda Rousey in _MK11_ as Sonya and the somehow even worse Megan Fox in _M1K_ as Nitara.
I mean, hell, even as much as Kronika is an awful character, Jennifer Hale still does excellent voice work as usual. Ms. Junot similarly did a good voice acting job even last game despite how much I hate Twindel, so I'm glad she got stick around even if I was initially worried give the _M1K_ trailers made it seem like we were going to get Twindel again.
It really says a lot about how they aren't even sure if Invasions is canon. Imo it's just evidence that the writers do not care for the narrative possibility of the multiverse... Despite it being core to the game.
Bullshit.
NRS needs to hire this man, holy cow.
That would not work out as well as you think
@@MazeDaGr8
Why's that?
Another banger video!!
The whole game is wasted potential let alone the plot.
Why you say that?
When AI voice channels can make not only a better story, but a better ending? You know you done fucked up.
This was my first MK game and the story seemed like a pretty straightforward sci-fi/fantasy adventure that gave enough exposition for newcomers not to get lost.
„Such Wasted POtenTiaL“
:Grandmaster Blueberry ice
I just wanna add that my already had a sort of multiverse. All these timelines seem to connect through the hourglass, making them originate from the same universe.
As a mortal kombat fan, I FUCKING HATE the NRS timeline
Multiverse-related stuff might as well be seen as a modern plague for franchises.
It's just such a boring and uninspired excuse to reuse characters and plot twists.
What pisses me the most is how even many years later those who keep adding this dried out concept into their verses, still look so proud of themselves, as if they're writing next Shakespearean magnum opus.
Like, writing is easy when there's basically no restrictions or rules left in the universe you created!
False.
I will say that, in regards to the "variations represent timelines", if you want a third one then the outcome of Kronika's victory being one of them would probably be the best way to go. She is, after all, a logical candidate, and her timeline would best be the one for characters most similar to MK1-8. It would also mean a multiversal 1v1v1 where we have the most idyllic timeline (Liu Kang's) vs the most dystopian timeline (Shang Tsung's) vs a mix of both (Kronika's), and this could be used to imrpove Kronika and other's characters as they can see what the timelines could be under another's influence.
for some reason whenever I think of 1v1v1 with huge armies, I think of Romance of the 3 Kingdoms...
Due to one of sindel’s dialogue, how it was MK12_ rather than MK1_
And taking the leaked business call into account. It’s safe to say the game originally was called MK12, and was switched to MK1 due to Warner Bros slip
I feel like if it was called MK12 the ending would of been better suited, but to be a series reset and call it MK1, it shot itself in the foot
That naming terminology is used everywhere. If it's a sequel to a franchise, even with some subtitle, it's usually codenamed (series name/abbreviation) + number.
@@StinkySlinky1218 but if Ed Boon stated that it wasn’t a follow up to MK11 (which we know is a lie) wouldn’t it of just been called MK1_ instead?
@@Grim-Owl I can't name specific instances, as I haven't done it in a while, but those in-game codenames and even the names of EXE files will often not match the title of the game. Chances are, they were debating whether to do 12 or 1 early in development, and just called the Unreal project MK12 as it made the most sense as a short, simple codename to use internally.
In my opinion they shouldve did away with this timeline multiverse bullshit entirely along with kronika and titan shang tsung.
It shouldve just focused on the new shang tsung being the villain and possibly making him more of a gray character since lui kang actively made his life pathetic, same with quan chi
bi han and the lin kue should also gotten more story focus to flesh out their characters more and make bi han less of a lame ass generic bad guy and more like his original version even if hes still turns on them.
Characters like Ashrah , Havik, Nitara and Reptile also should not just drop off the face of the earth and return to properly conclude or further they're arcs, especially Reptile considering shang tsung killed his family.
The first half of the story is good but this game has SO much wasted potential.
Agreed on all accounts
The thing that bothers me the most is that nobody really reacts to the revelation of Liu Kang being their gods. This guy who they believed to just be their friend is basically their creator. And aside from Sindel questioning him about their relationship it's basically brushed aside.
Another thing is how characters just accept the existence of the multiverse. They just accept that it exists and that their evil counterparts are attacking them, instead of them grappling with that fact.
NRS wants to be the MCU so badly 😂. They ain't those guys
The MCU ain't those guys anymore either.
they got the taste of it way back in vsDC. and could never let go of this comic book stuff that has no place in MK.
you can tell they have more fun making Injustice.
@@jeggsonvohees2201they were those guys at least, NRS are nowhere close to
More like WB wants NRS to be MCU
@@Deathmare235 True.
Yknow youre getting trash content when a 4thsnake video is recommended 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Honestly, i always had the idea that we still have the shang tsung from his timeline ending coming to lui kangs timeline, but instead it it being another multiverse thing, he's teaching him a lesson that changing the timeline won't always change a characters fate. For example, mileena will always have some form of tarkoten in her, or kenshi will always be the blind warrior, baraka still a tarkoten, shao kahn a dictating ruler, etc.
No matter what you change in a timeline, you won't change a characters outline
Really enjoyed the story mode up until all the multiverse bs came in.
The story up until that point felt very 90’s mk to me. Campy and enjoyable.
Justice for Onaga.
No pls dont bring variations back I just want characters with their full kit in ine character, having to choose what moves I want in sacrifice of others suck I want to be able to use all the intended moves made for that character. NO MORE VARIATIONS PLS do not ask for them to come back
Not to mention making variations doesn't even make more fun playstyles it just makes one placestyle meta and the other either okay or ass.
The ending felt completely rush imo
Just like I predicted, a banger video.
I thought I was the only who was dismayed with the multiversal climax.
That "wuxia" aesthetic should have been the main theme of the story, manifesting the idea of a timeline of peace.
Nether realm: MAKE THIS MAN THE STORY WRITER!
Yet another reason why this game should have been called MK12
@The4thSnake You are great, and you're a amazing writer!!!!
Awesome Video, Bro!
I just want them to have a way to close each timeline off from the others so we can solely focus on this one.
I'll be honest, I liked the ending of M1K, it's really funny in how ridiculous it is and it opens the door for new, interesting stories with different characters as titans.
In the final chapter of M1K one of the alternate timeline fighters you battle against is Scorpion with Kung Lao's hat, and you know how they named him?
Scorp-Lao. SCORP FRICKIN' LAO.
I can't decide whether it's a stroke of genius or just unbelievably stupid.
Both
Well I am guessing the other name would have been Kungpion, which sounds like Kung Peon and that would be just crapping on Kung Lao. Now if the hat is a buzzsaw variant, he could have been Sawpion, and his hat / saw projectiles would attach into the skin and he would pull them back magnetically?
There’s Another Scorpion/Kung Lao Named Stung Lao in the Same Chapter Too
Personally, i would've named either Hanzo Lao or Kung Liang. It fits better imo.
Kung-Pion
Great video dude! I really agree especially on that last point about the skins and variations to them. I think that would be a wonderful way to have classic versions of characters coexist with the new era ones as selectable fighters! Especially with the multiverse gimmick.
I personally found myself enjoying M1K's plot even during the finale, my issue is exactly going back to the skins aspects, there's a reallll big lack of diversity in the skins that show up, for both good and evil versions of characters. If I had to suggest a "fix" on a surface level while having to keep the plot as it is, I'd just establish more skin diversity during the final battle, especially with the whole dumb gimmick of rotational unlocks and store content, the many future skins that we'd get from the store get teased in the Armageddon styled finale by making debuts there, be it as selectable fighters or ones you encounter as you traverse the pyramid.
Like seriously, we see the same light and darkness skins in the final chapter pop up more than just twice, it's really distracting and removes the impact of what's meant to be an "awesome" and "epic" end game styled finale.
I especially see what you mean as to why it doesn't work as it is, but I think the impact would've been greater if those multiverse fighters were versions of the characters we've met before (Such as 3D era styled Dark Raiden amongst the good guys to counter the NRS Era Dark Raiden, 3D Era Elder God's Champion Scorpion as one of the good guys, MK9 Tower Ending Shang on the good guys, MK9 Tower Ending Fire God Liu Kang on the bad guys side, etc. etc.).
Honestly it would’ve been better if both Liu kang’s and Shang tsung timelines were corrupting one another due to both of them controlling half of the hourglass eventually leading to a war we’re both sides try to regain control of the Hourglass and try to destroy the other timeline before the changes become permanent.🐱
I will forever believe that Titan Havik should have been the Invasions tutorial
Damashi is revealed to be Onaga, and the Dragon Army awakens. Three chapters are spent to take them down, and now Outworld & Earthrealm trust each other as Quan chips allies all conspire against them and Havik is set up as the new threat with his whole face melted now. Simple.
I've been waiting for this!
I also thought it was weird for M1K to jump right into Armageddon, though I do appreciate how much fun they had for some of the Kombatants from the multiverse. Clockodile and Stung Lao are great names
i’ve been waiting for this one
Its funny how NRS killed the Shirai Ryu better then then the lin kuei ever could
To be 100% honest
it was pretty silly though and probably intentionally stupid which is why its so late xD
NRS did a multiverse story where only the playable roster and some kameos has multiple versions
Not one single version of Kintaro,Kabal, Sheeva Fujin, Kira, Taven, Noob Saibot,Erron Black,Kotal Khan, Jade and more in this "multiverse"
LMAO
Hopefully the expansion will conclude the time travel/multiverse plot.
the problems is where do you go from here after all that stuff is wrapped up? soft-reboot things?
@@thesilentsociety3252 Mabye it can end with all timelines merging similar to COIE and we could have Onaga be the main villain.
@@J1210mk2honestly, that would be great. When M1K was revealed I was kinda hoping this game would be an Earth-2 situation while the previous timeline still existed in some way for classic fans.
As always great vid, keep up the great work Snake!!
I can't help but feel disgruntled that they had a soft reboot, but then basically speed ran MK1 to Armageddon.
Story was great. I can't wait for netherealm to not continue it in the sequel
Personally, I find this multiverse idea so bad that even this desire to learn more about characters presented to us fades away because ultimately nothing really matters as much anymore and at the same time everything is so repetitive
Just finished the main story and so agree.
MK stories have never been the peak of storytelling but this just feels like a lack of faith in laying out the foundations for this timeline.
Rather than up the stakes or be excited about the potential, this "twist" has just made it all feel a little worthless and has dampened my excitement for future DLC....
-Introduction of Special Forces VS Black Dragon? Doesn't matter cause Kano Sonya.
-Countess Jade being part of Kitana's future? Doesn't matter cause even Liu Kang is hung up on a Kitana from another timeline...
-Titan Havik? Why not Titan Meat or Titan MoKap?
From a writing standpoint you need to understand multiverse is not a bad idea it gives you more freedom you're not limited you can do whatever you want you could kill characters and have them return an easy fashion but you probably never worked on something so you don't understand the multiverse.like some of us do and why it matters
"Nothing matters" is bullshit and false.
@@owaindavies9457
"Introduction of Special Forces VS Black Dragon? Doesn't matter cause Kano Sonya.
-Countess Jade being part of Kitana's future? Doesn't matter cause even Liu Kang is hung up on a Kitana from another timeline..."
How exactly? That could still happen to the new timeline we're following.
I blame our media 'accelerationism' on this rushed epic climax thing; universal climaxes used to take a decade of intrigue and buildup in order to get there; there was a time when sequels and threequels MATTERED because they took many years to release and we didn't have the spoilers we have today so there was a lot of hype and anticipation for things. Heck, I remember how exciting it was to wait years for Pokemon's second generation or even the third one, but now they release every year and have therefore lost their impact. Same goes for like every movie and game series now! Nothing is exciting anymore and thanks to our production-obsessed society, i find it kind of sad.
Also glad to see that someone sees the value in the variation system!
I wouldn't say that.
Im still mad the kuai liang subzero didnt appear at all. I can’t stomach my favorite character being gone forever
Perfectly said. Nothing much to add. I wouldn't have multiverse at all in the lore, MK doesn't need that, and they made in the worst way possible. The amalgamations in the last chapter while entertaining take away any meaning these characters and this franchise could have.
A perfect example of this is when Titan Kitana encounters Titan Liu Kang says "you're my Liu Kang". Liu Kang doesn't look in love for the new timeline Kitana, because is not his Kitana. These are not the same characters. Their stories are over. Mortal Kombat characters are over and Mortal Kombat is over. In a sense, that's true since the first reboot, but this game make it even more clear.
"take away any meaning these characters and this franchise could have"
No it doesn't.
I would like to add that Titan Shang Tsung is a joke as a main villain. For all the build up to him, he doesn't win a single fight, he's driven off from his attack on the hourglass without being defeated and in the climax, Liu Kang nearly defeats him and Quan Chi at the same time.
While some aspects have improved compared to NRS' previous attempts, when it comes to selling the villains as credible threats, this game is the worst one yet.
I actually think it works in twisted sense because in his mk 11 he says
“To survive, I must return to the shadows, avoid confrontation, and work my will through the hands of others...”
So as soon as he refused to heed his own advice he got killed. He could have just kept posing as Damashi and puppeteers from a distance
@@billmcdermott9647Except he was such a pushover then how did he defeat Liu Kang in the first place?
The crown…since he didn’t have it on in MK1 or…..because we weren’t there to help him@@dragonstormx
Also I would like to add because they were lazy and couldn’t be bothered to make him into a full boss @@dragonstormx
Why was this video so short? 🤣 I fully agree with your take on it, though.
This is a damn good video.
The Biggest Waste of Potential was Not Bringing Cary Back for the Reveal. Like he was THE Shang Tsung you start setting up stuff like this in MK11 and stop it completely.
Maybe they just couldn't get him back.
Glad we aren’t pretending this story is good anymore
I think it is good …definitely one of the better ones but then comes Dow a lot once we went multiverse
Buut nobody wants to see their favourite character die permanently. I think that's why other than Sindel most dead characters were from other timelines.
Talk your shit snake 💯💯💯💯🙏🙏
30 years of Mortal Kombat, you'd think its greatest fan would've understood and accepted that story, content etc all serve other aspects of the product, not the other way around. Being commercial first and everything else second is the essence of what makes Mortal Kombat what it is.
Come again?
@@dylansharp8471Shit's Money First and always has been.
My problem with it is it felt too small and the cutscenes were too short. We should be seeing titan versions of every single mortal kombat characters. Even ones from other medias.
Worst thing about this game is the character designs. Everyone looks basically the same
Hey I got a question for the multiversal conquerors in Invasion mode: what's the point of invading timeliness if you just end up spawning another where you didn't do it? Or a "timeline" where those would-be conquerors lose horribly? That's the problem I have with these types of antagonists that rarely gets addressed.
I hated the story as much as the next guy but come on blaze should have been on top of that pyramid and the fact that the chapter is called armegedon and you have the pyramid yet no blaze was just a very stupid call then again its mk1 so stupid calls are all over this games story.
I might be nitpicking... but Titan Shang Tsung should have been given a whole different moveset exclusive to himself instead of just having New/Liu Kang's Era Shang Tsung...
That broke my immersion when playing against him in any mode...
Exactly. Sure it’s probably a nitpick but a valid one
I’d just assumed we would get a game featuring each of the. Winner if 11
Once again, you've demonstrated that YOU should be in charge of the story ideas for NRS.
It’s new but over hyped so it’s different but not that different
@@billmcdermott9647
What?
I have a question to ask you 4thSnake. I’ve seen a number of fans wishing for John Tobias to come back to do the story. Do you think that would help or harm Mortal Kombat’s story and lore?
He is the co-creator and developed the story during the Arcade era. Just wondering what you thought…
I have no idea what he's been doing since Tao Feng, so there's no guarantee he'd be any good.
Been waiting on this
I think it is their will to not alienate anyone, which in turn, alienate everyone. Kinda like Shujinko in MK Deception lol.
This story tries to reboot not only the original trilogy from the 90's, but also the whole 3D era, and also being a direct sequel to the 2010's era.
This is why M1K is filled with story bits from many games, like MK2, or Deadly Alliance, and end up with an Armageddon reash through a post MK11 aftermath lens.
That way, they feel like they catched up everything for everyone, without realizing this is just surface level of committment which will fail to engage people on a deeper level.
I think I understand the loop they are stuck in. They have to catter to so many audiences, wether old as fuck as me, which grew up with MK1 on PC, and MK2 on supernes, or young people who grew up with Cassie Cage and Kotal Khan. I don't blame them, they want to please everybody, because they are a big franchise for mainstream audience, the best selling fighting game franchise of them all.
The last MK game I bought was MK 9/2011, and it was disapointing. They want to get me back with the M1K reboot, but they just can't. They have to commit into a story for that, and they won't, because comitting mean narrowing their audience, and narrowing their audience is "bad". The irony is that if they had commit to their "combat kids" from MKX, which I did not bought, maybe I would have come back to explore that story with MK11, but they didn't do that, because they just can't commit. And M1K is just stuck on that mindset "do not alienate people, put everything surface level you can, and pray for a box office win". So I watch their story mode on youtube, with low level of engagement, and even though I like many takes on the M1K story, it just feel shallow and meaningless, because they just fast forward everything to catch up 3 decade of story, into 16 chapters ! That is insane lol.
I wish you the best. I love your takes, they are filled with of love and thoughts.
Titan Shang Tsung is the most powerful character ever yet the writer made him to do karate, and die after fight flash
When i first saw all those variations I thought it was a showcase of the in game customisation that we can do
But no, they had to give us that free to play treatment
My main issue with this game is the fact we finally got a good story but then nothing else to come back to
The seeds of really interesting plots were all there. It didn't have to reach multiversal level threats. Shang tsung/quan chi finding out their potential was stifled for crimes they didn't personally did not commit. General shou's coup. Onaga in the background. Sub zero being the worlds best fighter/defender of earth realm yet snubbed for the chosen one. Raiden being manipulated into being the next chosen one. All this and more merely needed to play out
Who would you have as the main villain
Hello The4thSnake! I've been wondering if you plan on making more Tekken Wasted Plotential episodes since Tekken 8 came out. I personally thought Tekken 8's story was BETTER than T7, but still heavily flawed and with so much lost potential!
Shang tsung(new era) should have picked and become the redeemable villain turn good guy and defeating his evil counterpart
Especially since Titan Shang dismissed as a poor copy…so having him truly end his reign would have been a good pay off
All they had to do was make a game about the great kung GOAT himself
I agree a whole lot with this video.
I never thought it was called M1K. I like it.
Such wasted potential😑... if ykyk
True. I wish it was written better.
I also don’t get how the FVCK every single person has their own timeline.
How does Havik have a timeline? HE WASN’T EVEN THERE WHEN LUI KANG FOUGHT KRONIKA!!!!