First things first: It won't happen.

To be honest there in the game, why not have them unlockable playable in Singleplayer/Practise mode only? That would have made a better Challenge tower reward then Toilet Roll Mileena.

Having said that Goro is Playable in the Challenge Tower, and I honestly didn't enjoy playing as him very clunky and slow, I never liked playing as the Bosses in MKA etc.

(Kahn is playable in the Vita version, Kintaro gets no love)

This is wierd why shao kahn is palyble for vita and not all bosse and other thing why the ps3 dont get this guys is strange you know
If i will meet Ed Boon i will ask him why they are not playble?What he will say?
Kinatro even is slow too but id like just to hve them there to play arcade with some friend just to do fatalities and x-ray somthing like that is not like i kill somebody?

You know, I was thinking about this the other day. I did enjoy playing as the bosses, but the problem is that bosses only become playable/competitive in compilation games. I would be much more likely to main a boss character if they weren't only available in 64-character rosters. Why couldn't Kintaro have been in Deception, or why couldn't Goro have been a roster character in MKDA? There's no good reason if you think about it.

I thinks its basically because traditional MK Bosses are overpowered.

Exactly, and imo that's the way it should be.

If a boss is going to become a playable character, it needs to cease being one, like Cervantes in Soulcalibur or our very own Shang Tsung. Bosses shouldn't be playable; it takes away from them being the boss.

With that said, Goro needs to just be a playable character, which is how I treated him in MK4.

If they made the bosses playable without changing any of their properties, they'd all be bottom-tier characters. The only exception would be Kahn because of his hammer projectile infinite (he still has to land it, though).

No-love --Dr;)

Here's how I see it... in Armageddon, my one friend who never even played Mortal Kombat, decided she's going to be play as Onaga, and I played as Frost. I know her entire move list, what happens? She beats me, because he was too huge, somewhat overpowered a bit, and just... bah.

Bosses, in my opinion, shouldn't be playable, because it takes away the purpose of them being bosses. Even in Armageddon, to be honest, I didn't like that the bosses were playable. They didn't feel right when I tried to take control of Kahn and Kintaro. They just... weren't fun to play as, despite my friend got a kick out of playing as Onaga. And trust me, this isn't because I'm a sore loser (I really am when I lose to someone who doesn't play nearly as much as I do in a game), it's just that I didn't have fun playing as bosses or against people who chose bosses. Just takes away the fun, in my opinion.

They are bosses
Bosses are the hard guys to fight at the end of a game
I kinda do think Goro would be a cool DLC, but he's a boss along with Kintaro and Shao Kahn. Bosses are meant to be FOUGHT, not PLAYED. (Yes, Goro was playable in the challange tower 1once1)

Either you aren't very good at the game, or you can't fight bosses worth shit. My best characters in Armageddon are Goro, Shao Kahn, and Reptile and only Goro is a boss in that game. I tried playing as Onaga and Moloch for awhile, and my little brother stomps my ass using Liu Kang. Goro is the only character I can reliably beat him with when he uses Liu Kang, but it's only because I'm incredibly good with Goro. Even then our matches are incredibly close.

If you are losing to bosses you need to adapt to fighting them, since they work differently than normal characters. My brother and I had friends who would play Armageddon with us and occasionally they would use the boss characters only to get their asses kicked. Onaga, Moloch, and Blaze may have been immune to projectiles, but Goro and Kintaro were perfectly balanced.

For those who don't like playing as the boss characters, to each their own. I love playing as hulking brutes in fighting games like Goro, Bowser, or Hulk whereas most people I know tend to prefer the faster characters. I feel Mortal Kombat doesn't have enough big bruiser characters (Sheeva sucks, Jax is ok), and I feel characters like Goro and Shao Kahn would add some much needed diversity to the roster.

As somebody who plays as the boss characters in MK9, I can tell you right now they would need quite a bit of work if they were to be made playable. Goro is the best made character and the only one I regularly play as, but I rarely ever play as Shao Kahn or Kintaro. The bosses have almost useless basic attacks because they aren't very strong, are horribly slow, and leave you wide open to counterattack if blocked or dodged. On the other hand their special attacks are too good being either to powerful, or too spammable. Their X-ray attacks are much too powerful as well, which is why I only use them as a coup de grâce to finish off an opponent with low health.

I would love to see the bosses made playable, but they would need a complete overhaul. They would need better basic attacks and new combos. They would need toned down special attacks and X-ray attacks. They would need to be fully fleshed out, balanced characters which is how they should have been from the start. It would be great to see boss DLC, but sadly I don't see it happening.

I never liked playing Bosses anyways. Sure, they're powerful but they are SO freaking slow to balance their power. I'm more use to smaller, speedy characters when you can get multiple hits in.

PC version most likely will have ALL characters available through mods and hacks. And there will be less trouble with implemeting them.

I like when bosses are playable, because I want to have all characters available in the fighting game.

Some guys have already managed to get Kintaro and Shao Kahn playable on the PC version. Modding joys...

Even though this post was written to me back in April, I still feel inclined to respond:



You're wrong on both reasons... I played Armageddon for a long time, despite it's one of my least liked games. I rocked it with the two ice birds. I don't like playing as or against bosses in that game because it takes away the fun, especially when they're Onaga, who takes up half the screen. It threw me off guard with that since I never bothered to touch the bosses, with the exception of Kahn. I've played as him once.

I can beat who I can, boss characters or not. It's not that hard to read the other player's moves.

My friend still to this day brags that she defeated me with him... Oh how she was invited to play against me in MK2011... But yet, she only beat me once with Onaga... the second time... Yeah I caught on.



I think I know how to fight against bosses where people spam the one move, but thanks for your "advice."




Remember that, son.


Although, I like seeing mods in the PC version. I've always kinda wanted to do something like that. Oh how I can't.

My take away from all of that? You lost to your friend when she played as Onaga despite the fact that you were "rocking" your best character Frost. You weren't used to fighting boss characters because they take up half the screen (Which the MK9 Bosses do not), but you adapted, overcame, and beat her after that. Yet because of that one loss, you hate the idea of bosses being playable. Seriously?

I also love how despite the fact that you quoted me saying some of the bosses (Onaga, Moloch, Blaze) were imperfect in Armageddon and the Shokans (Goro, Kintaro) were balanced you ignored all that and complained about how Onaga is cheap, and how your friend beat you with him. Shao Kahn and Motaro weren't even true boss characters in Armageddon.

Hell if the bosses were so damn cheap in Armageddon I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have lost only once. The only reasons you could give for losing to her anyways was that Onaga is too big (size doesn't matter much in fighting games, aside from the intimidation factor), too overpowered (Being immune to projectiles is cheap, but his lack of speed or combos balances out his natural power). Losing to a friend using a boss is a pretty weak reason for hating the idea of playable bosses.

Having big slow powerful characters adds diversity to a game. That's why we have characters like Zangief, Bowser, and Iron Tager in other fighting games. Most of the characters in Mortal Kombat are either speedy combo fighters, or well balanced fighters. We have a grand total of two heavy hitters in Mortal Kombat 9, it wouldn't hurt to have a few more. The Bosses in this game are also interesting characters that have been a part of Mortal Kombat for years and they have been playable multiple times in the past.

If the bosses were to be made playable I would want them to be balanced characters, not overpowered or overly reliant on cheap moves. As they are the bosses are pathetic excuses for opponents on the Arcade tower and not very interesting to play as either (with the exception of Goro). Then comes the argument of "But then they wouldn't be powerful enough to be bosses". Which is why they made Shang Tsung a more powerful opponent on the Arcade ladder, but people can't seem to grasp the idea of them doing that with Shao Kahn and the Shokans. I'm getting pretty tired of arguing against the same two terrible complaints about why Bosses shouldn't be playable. If you don't like to play as the Bosses don't play as them, but there are people who would appreciate the option.

Okay, firstly, I didn't complain that all of the boss characters were taking the whole screen in the match, I only complained about Onaga. One loss against a boss character was NOT my reason to hate bosses being playable. I simply explained an example of my take on a match against one boss, not all of them. How in the world, based on one measly little example, can you sit here and write that I'm against the whole idea against bosses being playable? That is not even close to why I don't want them playable, in fact, if you were to re-read my first post I clearly go into detail about why I don't want them to.

I said, and please read this carefully, they take away the fun out of the game. They were a tad bit overpowered, and in my opinion, despite that diversity in strength and speed is a good thing, I would rather see that be spread throughout the weaker characters that we play as. Why do we need to throw in the bosses if they're not going to be that toned down/toned up in strength/speed?



I didn't complain that Onaga was cheap, all I said was that he took up half the screen which threw me off guard. Nowhere did I even state that he was cheap. I did state that the way my friend used him was, but not the character himself since she was literally the first person I played against that used that character.

Also, I respond to what I want to when I quote people. It's much easier to take the entire paragraph and split them off rather than hunting down the sentences and respond to them. Oh the laziness...



I like the fact that you're talking to me as if I've never touched these games in my life... What a joke.

You missed the one other reason and that she was spamming one move that I couldn't block... However, as I stated, that is NOT my reason for disliking playable bosses. I gave one measly little example of how my fun wasn't there when she decided to pick as a boss character and you took it as that's my main reason for hating bosses being playable when I clearly go on in the second paragraph of my first post and explain that there's no fun when I play against them in Armageddon when friends chose them. Believe me when I write this: My example has nothing to do with a reason other than I had no fun playing as/against a boss character in that game.

And if you don't like that reason, I suggest then you stop responding because I'm sticking to that reason and there's nothing you can really say to make me change my mind.



And I don't mind slow, powerful characters... but they don't need to be playable bosses, they could easily be other characters.



Then stop arguing with them and let them be with their reasons. You can't change everyone's reasoning to not want playable bosses to wanting playable bosses.

I don't want them to be playable because it takes away the fun, in my opinion, of what a boss character should be. They shouldn't be playable. If you truly despise that reason, I suggest then you stop arguing with me and leave it alone because it's my reason and I'm sticking with it. They're not that fun to play with, but if you believe that they are fun, fine, you stick with that and I'll agree to disagree. However, my reason is not based on one measly little loss against a friend, it was clearly an example to show you I was not having fun against a boss character she chose.

http://d-h.st/rpu
Patch for playable bosses.

You did use the example as proof that bosses are overpowered though, because you said a friend who had never played Mortal Kombat beat you as your best kombatant. If you actually read my earlier posts as well I even said that I wouldn't want the bosses to be overpowered if they were ever made playable.

The reason you gave for not wanting the bosses to be playable was that it "took away from the purpose of them being bosses". This might be understandable if the recent game didn't prove how wrong this notion is. NetherRealm Studios eventually decided that the bosses being playable took away from them as well, so they scrapped the plans to make them playable. All except for one boss that is.

Shang Tsung is without a doubt the toughest boss in Mortal Kombat 9. Goro, Kintaro, and even Shao Kahn are all pale shadows of their former selves. The have incredibly slow and somewhat weak basic attacks (read an earlier post to see how weak Shao Kahn's uppercut is), are overly predictable, and lack working combos. The only things that keep them from being complete punching bags are their armor frames (which don't help much if you know how to fight them), a few overpowered special attacks, overpowered X-rays, and extra health (despite this Shang Tsung has more health in Tag Ladder). Being unplayable doesn't make the bosses any more challenging.



They take away from the fun for you. If they add to the fun for other people, why leave them out? I dislike several characters like Johnny Cage, Quan Chi, Sindel, and Cyber Sub Zero but I wouldn't take them out of the game if other people would enjoy them (except maybe Cyber Sub Zero because he was just a bad idea). If you really don't like playing as the bosses the solution is simple enough: don't play as them. Other people enjoy playing as the bosses so just because you don't, doesn't mean it shouldn't be an option. Like I said earlier, I wouldn't want the bosses in if they were overpowered.



In your own words you said he was "somewhat overpowered a bit". If Onaga wasn't cheap or overpowered, and it was just that you weren't used to fighting him that isn't a very good example for bosses taking the fun out of the game. One of my friends who I haven't played with in awhile used Johhny Cage recently and he caught my other friends and I off-guard for a few matches. I hate Johhny Cage but just because my friend reminded us of how good he could be doesn't mean he shouldn't be a playable character in the game.

As for the spliting off the paragraph while quoting I have learned from my earlier mistake. Quoting on this forum works a little differently than most, and I wasn't used to it. I aplogize for my laziness.



It's true, I can't change someone's opinion if they don't want to change it. However that doesn't change the fact that the bosses were weak in this game and being unplayable didn't help them any (if anything it hurt them because they clearly weren't as well made). It doesn't change the fact that Shang Tsung is the toughest boss in the game despite being playable (because they used the Street Fighter approach and merely buffed him for the Arcade Ladder). It also doesn't change the fact that there are plenty of people who would find enjoyment in playing as the likes of Goro, Kintaro, and Shao Kahn and that giving them that option wouldn't negatively impact those who didn't want to play as the bosses.



But the thing is the bosses are quality characters. They have their own interesting movesets, storylines, and playstyles. They have more fans than some of the already playable characters like Sheeva, Kano, and Nightwolf. It's true they were merely unplayable opponents to be fought at the end of an Arcade Ladder back in the day but they have evolved since then. Goro has been playable in every game since the original not counting MK9 (or spinoffs). Making him unplayable again after all that is about as disrespectful as making Reptile or Jade unplayable again because it takes away from them being "Secret Characters". Reptile, Jade, Smoke, and Noob Saibot were all still playable characters despite also being "Hidden Kombatants".



Done and done. Learned my lesson of the day.



I'll agree to disagree on that but there's just one problem I already pointed out earlier. Bosses being playable allows people who like to play as bosses to have fun, and only negatively impacts somebody with the opposite opinion if they play as a boss. Bosses being unplayable gives people like you what they want, but doesn't allow people like me to have fun playing as a boss. One option is pretty good compromise (so long as the bosses aren't cheap when playable but cheap when used by the AI) and the other only favors one side.

Also I'm glad you didn't let one match you lost get to you and apologize for not reading your first post more clearly. However losing once to Onaga isn't a very good reason for why fighting a playable boss isn't fun. I've lost to my little brother using Raiden plenty and my best friend using Kung Lao once or twice, but you don't see me saying that characters with hats shouldn't be playable.

Almost missed this, thanks for posting it! If they manage to hack movesets so the bosses can be fixed up and rebalanced I will definitely be buying it for the PC.

I just never saw them as fun characters. And I wouldn't like it if they had to get toned in either direction to be playable.

I did have a lot more to say, however, I was having problems trying to send my message yesterday and I can't seem to remember what I exactly wrote.

Playable bosses mod for PC (check video description);

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otd23RVelsM

You can also swap fatalties and victory/intro poses for all characters, so if you don't want to use that mod you can see Mileena perform Goro's fatalities just by changing file names. Check the Fatality Swapping thread I started to learn more about it.

I already posted it in this topic, two posts above yours, I believe.

I think its better that they are not playable. Keeps the OP boss feeling towards them

It's funny people seem to think that when the bosses aren't anywhere near as tough as they should be. As I've pointed out before Shang Tsung is the toughest boss in the game despite being a playable character. My brother and I routinely beat the three unplayable bosses in 30 seconds or less when playing Arcade or Tag Ladders. I did a little research to find out why the bosses suck so much and found out something surprising:

DAMAGE COMPARISON
Damage against normals, [against Sub Boss], {against Final Boss}

Uppercut
Normal Character: 12, [8], {6}
Goro: 16, [11], {8}
Kintaro: 7, [5], {3}
Shao Kahn: 4, [3], {2}

NOTES
*Shao Kahn's strongest physical attacks are the same strength as Kintaro's uppercut.
*Goro's other attacks are around 7 damage with his second strongest being a sweep kick that does 9.
*Attacks do slightly less damage to the Shokan sub-bosses and even less to Shao Kahn.

That's right, with the exception of Goro the boss characters have weaker physical attacks than the playable characters. Just to keep things simple and to the point I'll bullet point other reasons why the bosses suck:

. Boss characters have very slow moving attacks
. These slow moving attacks are easily evaded or countered if blocked
. Boss characters do not have actual combos (Second hit can be blocked)
. As noted above Boss characters have weak basic attacks
. Taunts are overly long and used frequently
. Boss characters lack enhanced specials and breakers
. Boss characters lack normal grabs (with the exception of Shao Kahn)
. Boss characters lack jumping and jump attacks

Because of all those things listed above Boss characters are overly predictable and fairly weak opponents. Yes they have some powerful special attacks and yes they have broken as hell X-ray attacks but those are the only two things they have going for them. Their armor frames aren't much of a problem if you know how to fight them. The Boss characters are very poorly made.

A lot of people said the bosses shouldn't be playable in this game because it would make them less threatening, and less of a challenge. Funny how this game went and made the one playable boss the only genuinely tough one.