MK Annihilation is back - SPOILER about Bios

About Me

•11/21/2008 07:18 AM (UTC) •

If he wanted us to know Raiden was related to Shinnok and Kahn, you think he'd have actually mentioned it in the long-as-hell backstory text for Mythologies. He went in-depth on every other subject under the sun in there.

•11/21/2008 07:27 AM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
If he wanted us to know Raiden was related to Shinnok and Kahn, you think he'd have actually mentioned it in the long-as-hell backstory text for Mythologies. He went in-depth on every other subject under the sun in there.

Yeah I dunno...who knows who else is related...

There was a book of interviews with Tobias and Boon where it was mentioned that Sheeva, Kintaro and Goro are cousins. Another magazine published once that Sheeva was one of Goro's seven wives; Am I the only one who remembers that?

About Me

•11/21/2008 07:35 AM (UTC) •

Pretty sure the team once debunked the "Sheeva is one of Goro's wives" idea.

Also, I don't think Kintaro could be related to the others. I'd like to believe that tiger-Shokans are an ethnicity, like humans have white, black, asian, latino, etc.

Mick-Lucifer

@Mick-Lucifer

About Me

What do you like? Hit the Toasty thumbs up on articles and forum posts for a quick response!

•11/21/2008 07:35 AM (UTC) •

Not to mention a booming "SON" at the end of a sentence in one of the MK4 clips.

•11/21/2008 08:32 AM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
Pretty sure the team once debunked the "Sheeva is one of Goro's wives" idea.

Also, I don't think Kintaro could be related to the others. I'd like to believe that tiger-Shokans are an ethnicity, like humans have white, black, asian, latino, etc.

Yeah agreed.

•11/23/2008 02:23 AM (UTC) •

Shao Kahn was pretty much becoming one of my favourite characters, too. Although he has been the major villain for pretty much the entire series, we still know (knew?) very little about him. It fascinated me how the MK Team could get away with that, and despite wanting to know more, I was surprised by how awesome not knowing anything about Kahn truly was.

Now, I think I appreciate the silence on his character a whole lot more. I already miss those days. There are so many ways to elaborate on his character and make it more interesting, and they choose this?

Spirit_Wolf

@Spirit_Wolf

About Me

•11/23/2008 10:52 AM (UTC) •

I only have one thing to ask when I read stuff like this.

Is MK turning into a cheesy soap-opera? Djeezes, everybody seems to be family of each other and stuf. The only thing missing are the bed-sharing stories.

Or some Star Wars rip-off:
Shao Kahn: "Raiden, I am your brother..."
Raiden: "no.......... no......"
Shao Kahn: "Come with me to the Dark Side"
Raiden: "NO ..... no..... I will never..."
Shao Kahn: "It IS your destiny!!"
Raiden: "No.... noooooo.... nooooooooooo"

:) (I hope you know what scene I am reffering to)

•11/23/2008 11:16 AM (UTC) •

I'd have rather Shao Kahn been revealed as Bo' Rai Cho's brother. And yes, I am being serious about that. At least both those guys are from Outworld. It also adds more motivation to why Bo' Rai Cho would feel such a responsibility to Earthrealm. Having an evil older brother going around feasting on the souls of innocents would definitely raise a decent person's stakes in helping others out. Well, you would think.

Also, the whole "Shao Kahn is all serious and Bo' Rai Cho seems a bit of a clown" thing adds a polarity to the characters that is almost ironic.

About Me

•11/23/2008 11:20 AM (UTC) •

I think Kahn being Bo's brother would be just as, if not more forced than him being Raiden's actually. And even if it wasn't, I suspect Bo' Rai Cho's time is over and done with. He had a good run, three games in a row, but I think he got stale fairly quickly and Kung Lao's certainly ready to graduate to the "wise old martial arts teacher" role in the next era.
In retrospect, I also feel that Shao Kahn's time to die is overdue and we should see a new ruler of Outworld in MK9.
So no matter what angle you look at it from, it's far too late to explore Kahn's familial ties.

WarriorPrincess

@WarriorPrincess

•11/23/2008 11:30 AM (UTC) •

Hopefully they don't try to make this idea canon in the next MK title.
MK team, lets leave Kahn's family ties to Kitana, Sindel, & Mileena.

•11/23/2008 01:21 PM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
I think Kahn being Bo's brother would be just as, if not more forced than him being Raiden's actually. And even if it wasn't, I suspect Bo' Rai Cho's time is over and done with. He had a good run, three games in a row, but I think he got stale fairly quickly and Kung Lao's certainly ready to graduate to the "wise old martial arts teacher" role in the next era.

In retrospect, I also feel that Shao Kahn's time to die is overdue and we should see a new ruler of Outworld in MK9.

So no matter what angle you look at it from, it's far too late to explore Kahn's familial ties.

Shao Kahn truthfully should have been killed in Mortal Kombat 3, seeing as, you know, every ending to the game had him exploding and his reign of terror ending. I guess they decided to retcon it when they realised how badly they fucked up Shinnok (which in fairness was pretty fucking bad).

That being said, I do sort of wish that Shao Kahn will return in New Mortal Kombat, but he definitely should not be the boss character. I think it would add instant prestige to the new era if the main villain of the last one was reduced to being a playable warrior in this one. Through this, we can actually learn a bit about the character (and hopefully what we do know is not canon). There should definitely be a new major villain, though.

This also means, however, that Shang Tsung would be back due to the soul pledge between the two. Some may hate this, but personally, I wouldn't mind, because Shang is becoming one of my favourite characters (even if Wikipedia refers to him as a dim-wit, betraying my original impression of a scarily intelligent Tsung). The demon sorcerer as a hidden character -- complete with shape-shifting abilities -- hiding in the shadows, would be very cool. He's the first villain of Mortal Kombat, so that's enough reason for him to warrant making appearances, I think.

Bo' Rai Cho probably shouldn't be back, although I do appreciate the character more than most people do. In the story, he was strong, had a really great supporting role, fit into the scene perfectly (not taking into consideration how his jokey moves removed him from it), and I basically think that the character actually had a lot of heart. He definitely deserved to return for Deception, even when most people were calling for his head. Cho deserves a hero's death, though, or maybe even to live and retire.

As for Kung Lao? I don't know why, but I've never really liked the character. He always felt like too much of a sidekick to Liu Kang, and he really seemed to steal Kai's spot at the new age protagonist for the Mortal Kombat series. I think he was meant to die in MK3, but he didn't for whatever reason. I guess he's sort of popular and iconic. Then they killed him off again. With Lao losing to Shao Kahn in MK3, and the Deadly Alliance in MK5, I'm just not sure I think the character is...well, strong enough to warrant surviving. He's definitely one I would write off.

About Me

•11/23/2008 01:34 PM (UTC) •

You-Know-Who Wrote:
Shao Kahn truthfully should have been killed in Mortal Kombat 3, seeing as, you know, every ending to the game had him exploding and his reign of terror ending. I guess they decided to retcon it when they realised how badly they fucked up Shinnok (which in fairness was pretty fucking bad).

That being said, I do sort of wish that Shao Kahn will return in New Mortal Kombat, but he definitely should not be the boss character. I think it would add instant prestige to the new era if the main villain of the last one was reduced to being a playable warrior in this one. Through this, we can actually learn a bit about the character (and hopefully what we do know is not canon). There should definitely be a new major villain, though.

This also means, however, that Shang Tsung would be back due to the soul pledge between the two. Some may hate this, but personally, I wouldn't mind, because Shang is becoming one of my favourite characters (even if Wikipedia refers to him as a dim-wit, betraying my original impression of a scarily intelligent Tsung). The demon sorcerer as a hidden character -- complete with shape-shifting abilities -- hiding in the shadows, would be very cool. He's the first villain of Mortal Kombat, so that's enough reason for him to warrant making appearances, I think.

Bo' Rai Cho probably shouldn't be back, although I do appreciate the character more than most people do. In the story, he was strong, had a really great supporting role, fit into the scene perfectly (not taking into consideration how his jokey moves removed him from it), and I basically think that the character actually had a lot of heart. He definitely deserved to return for Deception, even when most people were calling for his head. Cho deserves a hero's death, though, or maybe even to live and retire.

As for Kung Lao? I don't know why, but I've never really liked the character. He always felt like too much of a sidekick to Liu Kang, and he really seemed to steal Kai's spot at the new age protagonist for the Mortal Kombat series. I think he was meant to die in MK3, but he didn't for whatever reason. I guess he's sort of popular and iconic. Then they killed him off again. With Lao losing to Shao Kahn in MK3, and the Deadly Alliance in MK5, I'm just not sure I think the character is...well, strong enough to warrant surviving. He's definitely one I would write off.

Technically, Kahn doesn't really appear to explode. All you see is the souls he's stolen from Earth flowing out of him and then his castle and the portal above it disappearing from the city. That said, I thought he was dead too. In fact, there's TWO different backgrounds in Gold that appear to have a coffin with the shape of Shao Kahn's body carved into the top. When Deadly Alliance revealed he was still alive after all, only to seemingly kill him all over again, my reaction was "Wait...what? Seriously?" So basically, I've been emotionally un-invested in Kahn for years, waiting for him to pass on and let someone else sit in the throne. Letting Onaga stick around a while might've been nice, but it's too late for that now. I'd actually like to see the next emperor of Outworld be someone who ISN'T an all-powerful demigod end boss. Maybe build a plot out of a battle for the crown between multiple contenders.

As far as Shang, he's one of my favorite characters, but I feel like the entire reason they had him age back to an old man at the end of Armageddon's opening cinema was a way to tell the viewer "everything is coming full circle and the story of Shang is ending the way it started", as though he won't be back. I feel like it would be fitting if Armageddon was indeed his end.

And with Kung Lao...I kind of agree with you, but at the same time, I never liked Kai or took him seriously, and neither did most of the fanbase, so with Liu dead, who else is there to become the wise master who trains new Shaolin warriors in the future? You can't just eject the Shaolin from the franchise the way you could less important groups like, say, the Black Dragon. They're the single group most deeply tied to the history of Mortal Kombat, AND the central body around which all the main heroes in the series seem to orbit.

•11/23/2008 02:06 PM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:

You are technically right. Shao Kahn isn't seen to explode. That's just the sound effect they used after you defeat him, and I guess my mind jumped the gun and connected the dots. That's how I used to think of it when I was younger playing the game. It's a cool visual.

I agree completely about Shao Kahn popping up. I'll say this -- I did feel it was kind of cool, because Mortal Kombat 4 left me disconnected from the series, because it had a completely different feel, and a lot of things just didn't deliver with it. Seeing the familiar face of Shao Kahn at least edged me back into familiar waters. The same thing with Shang Tsung, although, I felt that he should have been dead after MK3, too.

I guess it is finally time to shut the book on those two characters. They did have good runs. If either one returns, however, I will not be complaining. I do think that no matter which one we're talking, their role needs to be very different in the next game. A secret character position for Shang Tsung, and a playable role for Shao Kahn, for example.

Killing off the Shaolin monks is definitely not the way to go. I definitely agree with you there. And I am in that group that didn't really like nor get too invested in Kai, but I think a lot of that was having Liu Kang save the day again as the main protagonist. He felt so much like a sidekick. From a storytelling perspective, though, all bias aside, Kai would have logically seemed like the best choice as Liu Kang's successor. Especially with Raiden's staff. It also seemed that Raiden was passing the torch onto Fujin, but that was sort of abandoned, too.

That being said, and while I did like Kung Lao in MK:DA more than any of his other appearances, I feel that he was the main star there, and that will be his time in the sun. It would have made sense, and sort of been cool to have him back for Deception in the same role, but they decided to go with Shujinko, probably just to advertise the Konquest feature more, and to give it more canonical bearing.

If one Shaolin monk character returns, though, I'm thinking it will be Liu Kang. I'm not saying it should be. His death in MK:DA was very refreshing, and I felt it added a lot to the game (it instantly got me into it, to say the least), but he is the main hero of Mortal Kombat. I can see him replacing Fujin as Protector of Earthrealm, when Fujin replaces Raiden as an Elder God. If Kang does return, I see him as the mentor for a new Shaolin monk protagonist. Perhaps one that is a bit more "edgy" than the previous monks we've gotten, just to set him apart. Yeah, I know the idea of an "edgy monk" is fairly radical.

About Me

•11/23/2008 02:13 PM (UTC) •

Honestly, Liu Kang coming back to life, or appearing as anything other than a zombie, is the absolute last thing I ever want to see in a post-Armageddon game.

•11/23/2008 02:36 PM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
Honestly, Liu Kang coming back to life, or appearing as anything other than a zombie, is the absolute last thing I ever want to see in a post-Armageddon game.

Haha, that is understandable. I do think that Liu Kang is more likely than Kung Lao, though, unfortunately.

•11/23/2008 06:16 PM (UTC) •

Honestly, if MK9 is a direct sequel MKA, I don't think Kung Lao will have a major role. He's a sidekick. Why not let Sub-Zero (who imo has the most interesting and involved plotline in MK) take over as the hero? Why does it need to be a shaolin monk?

I'd like to see a bare bones cast of returning characters for MK8, maybe without Kung Lao.

•11/23/2008 10:18 PM (UTC) •

Yeah, I agree, Kung Lao doesn't need to come back. Let him die heroically in Armageddon, or something.

Sub-Zero as the major protagonist does make a lot of sense. His power is growing in the story, and his image is synonymous with Mortal Kombat. His image has its own N64 game based around it, and it can be argued that the character is becoming more and more "pure," and hence more and more likely to play the role of a main hero in future games.

I'm not the biggest Sub-Zero fan, mind you, but it does make pretty much perfect sense from a logic standpoint.

•11/24/2008 12:30 AM (UTC) •

You-Know-Who Wrote:
Yeah, I agree, Kung Lao doesn't need to come back. Let him die heroically in Armageddon, or something.

Sub-Zero as the major protagonist does make a lot of sense. His power is growing in the story, and his image is synonymous with Mortal Kombat. His image has its own N64 game based around it, and it can be argued that the character is becoming more and more "pure," and hence more and more likely to play the role of a main hero in future games.

I'm not the biggest Sub-Zero fan, mind you, but it does make pretty much perfect sense from a logic standpoint.

I wasn't a huge sub-zero fan until the 3-D games. They really turned him into an interesting character, worthy of holding down the series as the main protagonist.

Kung Lao is a supporting character in Liu Kang's story, nothing more (even if the hat slice fatality is the greatest thing to ever happen in an MK game.)

WarriorPrincess

@WarriorPrincess

•11/24/2008 12:49 AM (UTC) •

I say let Mileena & Kitana finally put their differences aside and kill Kahn!

About Me

•11/24/2008 05:18 AM (UTC) •

I'd like to point out that I never said Kung Lao should become the main protagonist. What I said was, he should replace Bo' Rai Cho as the teacher character.
What that means is there should be some new, young characters who come from the Shaolin/White Lotus, as his students. Obviously, those new students would be the main characters of their plot and Kung Lao would only play supporting character to them.
And I picked Kung Lao specifically for this role because 1) He's always wanted to be a teacher/rebuilder of the White Lotus, since like way back in MK3, and 2) Liu Kang is fucking dead and needs to stay that way.
Other potential teacher characters are Shujinko and Kenshi, but neither really has ties to the Shaolin, nobody even likes Shujinko, and Kenshi's too much of a loner. He works best as a mysterious wandering ronin type.

•11/24/2008 11:55 AM (UTC) •

RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
I'd like to point out that I never said Kung Lao should become the main protagonist. What I said was, he should replace Bo' Rai Cho as the teacher character.

What that means is there should be some new, young characters who come from the Shaolin/White Lotus, as his students. Obviously, those new students would be the main characters of their plot and Kung Lao would only play supporting character to them.

And I picked Kung Lao specifically for this role because 1) He's always wanted to be a teacher/rebuilder of the White Lotus, since like way back in MK3, and 2) Liu Kang is fucking dead and needs to stay that way.

Other potential teacher characters are Shujinko and Kenshi, but neither really has ties to the Shaolin, nobody even likes Shujinko, and Kenshi's too much of a loner. He works best as a mysterious wandering ronin type.

Oh yeah, that is noted. A lot of people seem to be of the opinion Lao should be the main character from this point in. I totally disagree with that. But as for Lao being a teacher? Well, to be honest, I am still not completely sold.

I would actually prefer Liu Kang as a mentor to the new heroes. In pretty much the same role Raiden played until he went nuts. Bo' Rai Cho as a teacher has been done, and I think it is time to move on. I mean, the guy has already had like four students, and they all end up dead. If he did come back, it would be "Do It Yourself" time for that guy. Shujinko's ending of getting electrocuted into oblivion was very cool, and quite sad. Seriously, did that guy even get a chance to sleep with a woman? Kenshi seems to be heading into a partnership of sorts with Sub-Zero. That was merely hinted at in Deception, I can't quite recall if it was followed up in Armageddon, but if Kenshi taught, I think it would be with Sub-Zero.

That's another thing to consider: How many trainers do we want floating about? Sub-Zero is running his new Lin Kuei clan. Your point about Kung Lao always wanting to train is a very good one, but the point about Liu Kang being dead could also be applied to Kung Lao. He died in Deadly Alliance, and it seemed he was meant to be killed off in MK3 by Shao Kahn's hand. At least he got to Hat Slice Baraka.

About Me

•11/24/2008 04:20 PM (UTC) •

After Frost, I don't see Sub-Zero having any more plots about taking students.

And Kung Lao very clearly came back. He came back in the same breath he died in, which makes it not a true death at all.
Armageddon ends with, as far as we know, Liu Kang still dead. I can't see a single good thing coming out of reuniting the zombie and the ghost, and keeping Liu in the series. He's over and done with, played out, he had a good run but that run is over and it's time to let the hell go. If you really want to play as Liu, that's what remakes of older games and alternate universes like MK vs DCU can be for. The future needs to be different from the past, man.

WarriorPrincess

@WarriorPrincess

•11/24/2008 04:31 PM (UTC) •

I have a feeling that the only ending in Armageddon that will hold
true in the next MK title is Taven's Konquest Ending.

-------------------------------------------------

My world has been ripped to pieces. I awoke in a foreign realm, forced to complete a quest set forth by my parents, Argus and Delia. This quest, though intended to save the realms, has destroyed my family. My brother, Daegon, became obsessed with winning the ultimate prize of full godhood and murdered our parents -- and in his madness, he sought to destroy me as well. Orin and Caro, dragons loyal to our family for ages, were not spared from the curse this quest has wrought. Daegon enslaved Caro to serve his own ends; the sorcerer Quan Chi killed Orin, who was my guardian. Though I had nothing left, I was determined to complete the quest. I faced many kombatants, fighting my way to the top of the pyramid until at last, I alone defeated Blaze in Mortal Kombat. The energy released by his death passed through me, granting me full godhood. The excess power then filtered through my armor and passed into the other kombatants. Though this energy was to have one of two effects on them -- death or annulment of their powers -- a third, unforseen outcome resulted.The quest did nothing to resolve the instability of the realms. But as protector of Edenia, I vow to stave off Armageddon until a solution can be found.

-------------------------------------------------

About Me

•11/24/2008 04:42 PM (UTC) •

Taven's ending gives more powers to every single character. I really, REALLY don't see that happening. I suspect that NONE of the endings come true and MK9 gives us some other explanation for how Blaze was defeated.
I kind of see bits of Daegon and Blaze's endings being the truth. Blaze is too powerful to be stopped, then Argus and Delia reveal themselves to be still alive and try to intervene to prevent him from destroying everyone, probably culimanting in a small group of heroes working together to bring Blaze down in the end.