Mortal Kombat X: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners

[Indypride]

Hey everybody, I'm Indypride. I've been stalking the TYM Forums for about a month in anticipation of MKX, but last night decided to take the plunge and officially join. As my first "contribution" to the MK community I'd like to present Mortal Kombat X: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners.

I say it in the video and I'll say it again here, I am by no means an expert at Mortal Kombat and would probably get bodied by a large percentage of you on TYM, if not the majority. But I do feel like my knowledge of the game and Commentary are pretty solid (I've been casting Total War and Dota 2 competitively and on Youtube for 2 and a half years) and wanted to pass down some of the basics/fundamentals of MK I've learned over the past few years. I also realize that for many of you, most or none of this information will be new. But I do welcome anyone interested in watching to give me some constructive feedback, criticism, or praise, and I look forward to hearing your opinions on the video. Thanks for having me on TYM! I think I'll like it here.

*Oh, and a little disclaimer, I don't take credit for any of the tech presented in the video, but crediting the first person to truly discover a piece of tech is tricky. I wasn't going to spend my commentary time crediting individual players for combos and tech when I'm not sure who discovered what first. Thanks to all who have knowingly or unknowingly helped me get better at MK!

 

[Tim Static]

@Indypride Would love to have you make an actual guide that is on TYM, not a video tho it's a good companion. Something that can be read without having to watch a video etc. If you can do that, and it's good, i'll definitely sticky it & promote it to help out all our newer members & MKX players

 

[Indypride]

@Indypride Would love to have you make an actual guide that is on TYM, not a video tho it's a good companion. Something that can be read without having to watch a video etc. If you can do that, and it's good, i'll definitely sticky it & promote it to help out all our newer members & MKX players

I'd be more than happy to do that. Before that happens though, I think it would make sense for the content in the video to be verified by more experienced competitive players, and any mistakes I might have made pointed out so that I could correct those before creating a written guide. Obviously I wouldn't want any incorrect info in a written guide on TYM, so some kind of proofreading from a better player than me might be in order?

But yeah I'm definitely down to do that. A lot of that work has been done in the process of creating the video

 

[Tim Static]

I'd be more than happy to do that. Before that happens though, I think it would make sense for the content in the video to be verified by more experienced competitive players, and any mistakes I might have made pointed out so that I could correct those before creating a written guide. Obviously I wouldn't want any incorrect info in a written guide on TYM, so some kind of proofreading from a better player than me might be in order?

But yeah I'm very much willing to create a written guide

Cool. You can also do it as a "work in progress" kind of thing where players can actively help you as you edit it etc.

 

[DDustiNN]

I'd be more than happy to do that. Before that happens though, I think it would make sense for the content in the video to be verified by more experienced competitive players, and any mistakes I might have made pointed out so that I could correct those before creating a written guide. Obviously I wouldn't want any incorrect info in a written guide on TYM, so some kind of proofreading from a better player than me might be in order?

But yeah I'm definitely down to do that. A lot of that work has been done in the process of creating the video

I like your video; very nice. We do already have a similar write-up from Tom Brady:

http://testyourmight.com/threads/mkx-system-guide.49846/

A lot of the same topics, although there are bits and pieces that you covered which he didn't yet, and vice versa. I especially liked your explanation of 50/50s, mix-ups, footsies, and frame data. I've been a casual fighting game fan since MK1 and Street Fighter 2, but I never got into the technical stuff like that. I really liked the breakdown of these terms and concepts, since I see them quite a bit around here.

A collaboration write-up/video with you and Tom Brady would be amazing!

 

[DirtyLary]

Thanks for the video. I'm a beginner still trying to get over the hump with learning FGs. My biggest hurdle is trying to memorize everything. You look at the move list and there's so many moves. My question is. Do you just learn the fast pokes for interupts, then a low and high bnb to start off with? Do people actually learn every move, and combo listed in their move list, there so many strings. What would be the order in learning things?

 

[Indypride]

Thanks for the video. I'm a beginner still trying to get over the hump with learning FGs. My biggest hurdle is trying to memorize everything. You look at the move list and there's so many moves. My question is. Do you just learn the fast pokes for interupts, then a low and high bnb to start off with? Do people actually learn every move, and combo listed in their move list, there so many strings. What would be the order in learning things?

When learning a character I think its important to keep it really simple. Start out going through the normals of that character. Look at their uppercut, standing jab, back 1, down 1, down 3, down 4. See what comes out fast and what recovers quickly on block, and use those. Then look at the strings that start with the normals you like. If a character has a good Back 1 normal, look at the strings that start with it and use it. You dont need to memorize every string, every character has some strings that are pretty pointless. Just use the ones that are easy to execute for you and feel/look good, and if you are feeling more advanced look at the frame data to see how punishable it is on block.

You dont need to be hitting 35% combo punishes consistently to win online. Understanding what a character is capable of doing to you in terms of their strings and specials is more important, and that just comes with experience playing against the AI and other people.

It is important, as you said, to learn 1-2 BnB's for midscreen and 1-2 BnB's for the corner that you can land consistently, but that can come a little later, after you learn some useful strings and special moves, and understand which parts of the stage you can control with them.

 

[PaletteSwap]

Great video. One thing you didn't mention about x-rays is the benefit of having unbreakable damage. Maybe it was implied with the statement about pros using it to decide the match.

 

[Indypride]

Great video. One thing you didn't mention about x-rays is the benefit of having unbreakable damage. Maybe it was implied with the statement about pros using it to decide the match.

Yep I definitely should have mentioned it. But thanks I appreciate it

 

[callMEcrazy]

Thanks for the video. I'm a beginner still trying to get over the hump with learning FGs. My biggest hurdle is trying to memorize everything. You look at the move list and there's so many moves. My question is. Do you just learn the fast pokes for interupts, then a low and high bnb to start off with? Do people actually learn every move, and combo listed in their move list, there so many strings. What would be the order in learning things?

Indypride pretty much covered everything.

Personally though I'd say that the fastest way to learn a character is seeing how a professional player plays it. Some might say that's not the best way to do it but it can do wonders for a beginner. People who are expert at playing FGs can break down a character very quickly because they know exactly what they are looking for. But for a beginner doing it from scratch can be overwhelming. When you watch a pro play a few matches with your character you'll quickly learn which normals and strings to use and when. I was in the same boat as you with MK9 and that's how I did it.

Also mind your spacing or space control. It's not quite a beginner concept but it's essential for fighting games. And you are not likely to pick up on it watching pros either because they just do it so damn effortlessly. It's quite invisible.

 

[Jynks]

thanks for this video.. check it out now

 

[sub_on_dubs]

I actually like videos better. I guess I'm a visual learner. Never been a fan of reading.

 

[Farpafraf]

Great job dude

 

[Indypride]

Great job dude

Thanks I really appreciate it

 

[Heartwire]

Now I'm confused, I thought a Vortex leaves you with a frame advantage after you hit them, forcing your opponent to block cause they don't have the frames to punish you.
Thus opening them up for a 50/50.
Correct me if I'm wrong but a Vortex is not a 50/50, it instead opens you up for one due to frame advantage.

 

[Indypride]

Now I'm confused, I thought a Vortex leaves you with a frame advantage after you hit them, forcing your opponent to block cause they don't have the frames to punish you.
Thus opening them up for a 50/50.
Correct me if I'm wrong but a Vortex is not a 50/50, it instead opens you up for one due to frame advantage.

My understanding of a vortex is that it is a series of 50/50 situations in which an opponent MUST guess between blocking high, blocking low, or using meter to break, and has no other options. And that this series of 50/50s will continuously loop itself until the player doing it messes up, uses a move that no longer gives them frame advantage to continue the vortex, the opponent dies, or the opponent guesses right and blocks correctly. So no, I guess a vortex is in and of itself not TECHNICALLY a 50/50. It sets up a series of those situations. I'm not sure the distinction matters much tho