I'd prefer to just see that poor shlub of a character get a little more love in a future game. And before anyone gives me crap a majority of you rally behind the idea of Masked Guards and Shadow Priests taking up a slot so don't even.

yes I would like it. Variety is a good thing

I love Scorpion's Champion costume and storyline, it's one of the 3D era elements I wish would be revisited. Anything's really better than seeking revenge for the 10 zillionith time.

Be a cool throwback sure.

I mean.... I apologize in advance for being the salty one, but I've always hated Monster and I'd strongly prefer he stayed forgotten.

I have flashbacks to the Deception forums, and arguing with people over whether he was a unique character or generic enemy. Or even whether Monster was his actual name, or just a generic descriptor (Like "Ghost" described Liu Kang, or Oni Warlord in Shaolin Monks)... and it brings back decade old headaches.

Always felt like it was supposed to be Scorpion confronting Shujinko, but when they decided to scrap that costume, they instead hastily re-wrote it to be some other generic character arriving out of left field and then never to be seen again. I'd prefer to just write him off as an unimportant NPC and forget about him.

The horns, and hole in the stomach are reminiscent of corrupted Shinnok. Maybe in another timeline/universe he was sent by Shinnok or used the amulet himself because he needed the extra power?

Ka-Tra

I really liked Monster. He was the only charcater that missed Armageddon, cause he wasn't really a "playable" character. But he has good lore and potential, that could be exploited.

He's one of those minor characters that could make a comeback sometime in the future to be developed into a complete character as they did with Tremor for example. Some others I'd love to see again: Rutuu, Tasia, Jataaka.

Watch this video by Dynasty, where he speaks of such characters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TOZmS5b6ck

See these are the Deception arguments I have PTSD flashbacks to. My first instinct is to say: Is it that he wasn't a real "playable" character, or is it that he wasn't a real "character"

I never saw him as a character, I saw him as an aborted Scorpion skin that got hastily re-worked into an unimportant enemy because it was already finished, generically described as "Monster" specifically to avoid giving him individual characterization. I see him as no more a character than "Director" "Stuntman" "Orochi Hellbeast" or "Oni Warlord" ...But... Believe me, I'm aware there are people who would argue the point...

I need to stay the hell away from this thread. I hated this argument then, and I hate it now. This is exactly why I'd rather leave him buried. lol

I'm just going to put this out there: I see some mention in this thread of Monster being perhaps a different being than Scorpion... I always thought Monster is Scorpion, but he's called "Monster" because Shujinko doesn't recognize him during their encounter. Am I wrong? idk that's how I always percieved that situation.

That is also how I originally perceived the situation, and also something I argued with people about, lol. On my first playthrough, I interpreted it as Shujinko seeing Scorpion as "Monster" just as he saw Liu Kang as "Ghost"

The counter-argument is: At the point where Shujinko meets Monster in the Konquest Mode timeline, Scorpion should not yet have been champion of the elder gods, and thus we can only assume this must be a different champion that predates Scorpion.

The counter-counter-argument is: Konquest Mode's timeline is a complete and utter mess, and to hold it up to high standards in one situation, is pointless, because it contradicts the timeline on any number of other situations. I mean Shujinko also meets Sub-Zero VERY early in the timeline, before MK1, and he's already wearing his Cryomancer armor no less. So. *Shrug*

... And ya'know... there are counter-counter-counter-arguments... and so on... but since the game doesn't really give us much information on Monster beyond what we can take at face value... who the hell knows. I stopped trying to argue the point that he was Scorpion 10 years ago, because I realize the timeline doesn't support that idea, and believe me, this argument inevitably leads nowhere. But I'll be damned if I'm ever going to support the idea that he's in any way an important character in his own right, lol...

If affiliated with Elder Gods, (as their champion) Monster could be sent from the One Being through Kronika. Don't know what Monster did to prove he's champion of the Elder Gods.

@Gillbob316

I mean if people are okay with giving the throwaway character from Special Forces (Tremor) or set dressing nobodies like the Shadow Priests and Maksed guards a roster slot then why not Monster?

I'm not strongly advocating for it but I'm not against it either.

Well for what it's worth, I've never been in favor Shadow Priests or Masked Guards either. Kind of the same line of reasoning... I don't like the idea of giving Monster credibility as an actual character... because I never perceived him as such in the first place, and thus, no, I don't want him taking up a roster slot.

Tremor, on the flipside, was a real character, and while I didn't personally advocate for him, I didn't mind him getting a promotion either. Nor did I mind Sareena getting one. Nor would I mind Kia, Jataaka, Tasia or No-Face, really. But again, I'm not advocating for any of them either.

I ask myself, "Would I dislike Monster less if he returned as a fully fleshed out character with a backstory, and a personality?" and the answer is... possibly. What's funny is, I WAS an advocate for Meat and Chameleon, back when MKA's roster was still forming, and they were missing in the early lineup. One could argue they were even less fleshed out than Monster at their inception, but still, as they were playable characters in the games they debuted... I viewed them as real characters. Wheras since Monster was not a playable character, and more the unfortunate & confusing product of a re-written Scorpion concept, I was always very resistant to the idea that he should be considered an actual character. As I mentioned in my last post, I initially just believed him to be Scorpion, as perceived by Shujinko, but... it's a point I've stopped arguing, because Konquest mode's sloppy construction ultimately makes the argument inconclusive at best.

And I freely admit, as I've mentioned, a lot of the animosity is just existing prejudice and PTSD toward this topic... because this is a topic I argued A LOT when Deception was still current, and as a result, the very mention of Monster tends to make my neck hairs stand on end. Though admittedly this thread has been more civil about it than the arguments I had way back when.

I don't personally think of him as a legitimate character. If he ever became a legitimate character, I'd probably be more accepting of him, but that wasn't the question the OP asked, the question was did we want him to be a Scorpion skin, and no, I don't. Because at that point he's still just a confusing non-character sharing 1/2 a concept with Scorpion. And furthermore, the skin would be a fresh reminder to the world that he exists. And that's a slippery slope that leads to weirdos campaigning for him in MK12.

Alright I can understand, accept and agree with that. Cheers.

I think it would be a nice nod to old fans and it looks cool enough to gain some popularity with newcomers. While it's certainly not a must-have, I can't really see a reason why not. I'd like to see Sub-Zero's Shredder costume first, but Monster was always a neat design. I'd approve of its inclusion but wouldn't care if it never returned.

Shredder Sub-Zero would be really nice. As for Scorpion, instead of the Monster skin I'd rather have his MK4 costume.