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Dev's introduction and questions.

devdot4

Certified beginner
Hello, I am Dev and I really like this game, I was a fan of Mortal Kombat 9 and I didn't really like MKX that much but I didn't mind it. This game is so good even though I am not quite good with general mechanics of the game. I play on PC and I generally enjoy the frequent patches coming to it.

I had few questions such as;

1. Now I don't really understand and know MK language (the way people speak about button names like f1, s21, etc) is it possible to find a cheatsheet with all the names of the known lingo throughout the community?

2. What would be the best character to play as a beginner? I have tried Shao Kahn, Liu Kang, Johnny Cage and Cassie Cage but out of all of them, they have their own unique niche (I still prefer Liu Kang and Shao Kahn because its satisfying to hit someone with a hammer or a bicycle kick)

3. How can I improve my skills? I know that there's a practice mode but that thing is quite advanced as well as the few tutorials in tutorial section. Should I watch Youtube videos people put up on Youtube?

Edit: Also I don't quite understand when to use; breakaways, getups, counterattacks effectively.

Thank you for reading this thread. Have a wonderful day.
 

xenogorgeous

.... they mostly come at night. Mostly.
here we go ! :

1) nope, there is not a compendium about, but you learn by having contact with the community discussions, and in time, you end know the meaning .... f1, is like forward direction + front puch button, S4, you can see as "standard forward kick" .... the four buttons in your control , are named by number, example in Xbox Controler : X and Y , are 1 and 2 , and A and B, 3 and 4, in MK FGC languange, hehe

2) Scorpion and Skarlet are the more easy going , in my opinion

3) Training against AI in Hard difficult, and playing a lot of matches online, but, seeing videos are cool too .... there is ton of them in Youtube .... playing against TYM member is recommended too

4) Breakway: use it when you know that your opponent will launch your in the air and this will leave to you take a hit combo of 30% or more damage , get up , use it when you cannot deal with pressure on the corner, kinda you were hit by a combo in the corner and know that you will take another there .... counter attacks (flawless block ?) .... this is a hard one, use it when you know that some opponent abusing using a same string that have gaps on it , I guess
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
here we go ! :

1) nope, there is not a compendium about, but you learn by having contact with the community discussions, and in time, you end know the meaning .... f1, is like forward direction + front puch button, S4, you can see as "standard forward kick" .... the four buttons in your control , are named by number, example in Xbox Controler : X and Y , are 1 and 2 , and A and B, 3 and 4, in MK FGC languange, hehe

2) Scorpion and Skarlet are the more easy going , in my opinion

3) Training against AI in Hard difficult, and playing a lot of matches online, but, seeing videos are cool too .... there is ton of them in Youtube .... playing against TYM member is recommended too

4) Breakway: use it when you know that your opponent will launch your in the air and this will leave to you take a hit combo of 30% or more damage , get up , use it when you cannot deal with pressure on the corner, kinda you were hit by a combo in the corner and know that you will take another there .... counter attacks (flawless block ?) .... this is a hard one, use it when you know that some opponent abusing using a same string that have gaps on it , I guess
Thank you for responding, I just have a hard time doing getups, perfect blocks and breakaways at the right time and I also know that there's no point spamming the keys for it to work. I just dont know when to do it at the right time, the game is too fast for me to react to getting launched, cornered and getting hit by the same attacks.
 

XxTheGoblinX

Le_Supreme_
Hello, I am Dev and I really like this game, I was a fan of Mortal Kombat 9 and I didn't really like MKX that much but I didn't mind it. This game is so good even though I am not quite good with general mechanics of the game. I play on PC and I generally enjoy the frequent patches coming to it.

I had few questions such as;

1. Now I don't really understand and know MK language (the way people speak about button names like f1, s21, etc) is it possible to find a cheatsheet with all the names of the known lingo throughout the community?

2. What would be the best character to play as a beginner? I have tried Shao Kahn, Liu Kang, Johnny Cage and Cassie Cage but out of all of them, they have their own unique niche (I still prefer Liu Kang and Shao Kahn because its satisfying to hit someone with a hammer or a bicycle kick)

3. How can I improve my skills? I know that there's a practice mode but that thing is quite advanced as well as the few tutorials in tutorial section. Should I watch Youtube videos people put up on Youtube?

Edit: Also I don't quite understand when to use; breakaways, getups, counterattacks effectively.

Thank you for reading this thread. Have a wonderful day.
2. As a beginner I think its best to play someone you actually enjoy playing, I think Liu Kang and Shao Kahn are great to start off. I play Shao Kahn exclusively and hes so much fun, and he isnt the best but hes not garbage so winning isnt too hard. Liu Kang is said to be better so maybe you should play both.

3. You can improve by watching how the pros play and using them as a guide. Reading the forums also help, alot of people on this site share and find new tech about characters you might be playing. Videos on youtube are also fine, but the best way to learn is to practice and then fight against real people on your level or higher. If you lose try not to get frustrated just figure out why and work on it.

You can learn about breakaways n stuff in the tutorial inside the game, but other then that just enjoy the game, its great.
 

xenogorgeous

.... they mostly come at night. Mostly.
Thank you for responding, I just have a hard time doing getups, perfect blocks and breakaways at the right time and I also know that there's no point spamming the keys for it to work. I just dont know when to do it at the right time, the game is too fast for me to react to getting launched, cornered and getting hit by the same attacks.
no pain no gain, friend ..... everyone has to start from the beggining .... you can also try in training mode, picking up the AI , using the record mode option and record yourself a lot of sequences of hits you have hard time to deal with, an train only ways to treat these situations , hehe ;)
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
2. As a beginner I think its best to play someone you actually enjoy playing, I think Liu Kang and Shao Kahn are great to start off. I play Shao Kahn exclusively and hes so much fun, and he isnt the best but hes not garbage so winning isnt too hard. Liu Kang is said to be better so maybe you should play both.

3. You can improve by watching how the pros play and using them as a guide. Reading the forums also help, alot of people on this site share and find new tech about characters you might be playing. Videos on youtube are also fine, but the best way to learn is to practice and then fight against real people on your level or higher. If you lose try not to get frustrated just figure out why and work on it.

You can learn about breakaways n stuff in the tutorial inside the game, but other then that just enjoy the game, its great.
You know what, after reading your comment to my post, I realized why I have these problems, since doing juggles, chain combos, etc. I feel like my most troublesome problem is the type of the controller I use, I haven't tried playing with a keyboard yet but I just started using Xbox One controller from the beginning but I also heard that PS4 controller is better for this from my friend. I also seen Maximillian's video about the custom controllers with seperate d-pads, do you think it's a good idea to invest in something like that it isn't as hard (I usually accidentally smash multiple directions due to my large fingers)

Edit: also hard to do special moves due to the same reason. Also thank you for a nice comment :)

and I also watch SonicFox's videos on Youtube to see what I can do to improve.
 
@devdot4 Welcome to the community! I play on PC as well, and have for the last few games. You're getting some good replies here as well. My own two cents to your questions:

1) There is no cheatsheet, but you'll pick the lingo up as you go along. If you're not sure what something means, you can simply ask in a thread. I've never seen anyone here rip on someone for asking a basic question like that, since everyone starts learning sometime.

In general, 1 = Front Punch, 2 = Back Punch, 3 = Front Kick, and 4 = Back Kick. F = Forward, D = Down, B = Back, and U = Up. JP = Jump Punch, NJP = Neutral Jump Punch, JK = Jump Kick. ~ = cancel into. You'll see that one a lot when people type out combo strings (or strings for short).

2) Honestly, I'd suggest you play what character you like the most or think would be the most interesting. Don't worry about tier lists or people saying a character is too strong or too weak. At this point you want to learn the base mechanics of the game, and you can do that with any character of your choice or preference.

If there's a style you prefer, such as being very offensive, very defence, using projectiles, we can make better recommendations for you.

I also recommend you play Story Mode as you get to play as over half the roster in the mode and can get a feel for multiple characters there.

If you're enjoying Liu Kang and Shao Kahn, stick with them. I'd recommend picking and focusing on one for a while simply to focus your learning efforts.

3) Improving will come over time with experience, and it's a fantastic feeling when you realize you truly are improving. I first started playing seriously with Mortal Kombat (2011), and what I did was I picked a character, went into Practice, and simply started trying all their basic punches, kicks, jump attacks, etc. to get a feel for them. How fast are they? What moves have better range? That sort of thing. No need to adjust any Practice settings for that.

Next, I went through all their special moves and did the exact same thing. I then moved on to their combo strings listed in the Moves List and did them all repeatedly for a while, and when I could comfortably do them without looking at the buttons needed, I moved on to special cancels.

A special cancel is when you add a special move to the end of a kombo string. You'll see pros do strings, into specials, into more strings, etc. You want to start smaller. Take a basic string, like 1,1,1, but add a Fireball to the end. Can this be done? Will the move work? You can find out by trying in training and see what specials can be added on, and which ones can't. You might need to do 1,1 ~ Fireball, or a full 1,1,1 ~ Fireball could work. You have to try and see.

Once I got all that down, I started playing against the Normal AI. The point was to put everything I learned into practical practice against an opponent who generally fought back but wasn't overwhelming me.

From there, you can build your knowledge and mechanics as you become more comfortable and are able to execute basic strings and cancels without even thinking.

For a Video tutorial, I highly recommend Ketchup and Mustards Casual to Competative series. It also explains many of the terms and such you're asking about, and will help to answer your fourth question:




A question I have for you: You mention keys. Are you playing with a keyboard, or a Controller? Even though on PC, I highly recommend you get a good Controller. While you can play with a keyboard, generally, the game isn't designed for one and a proper Controller is considered a better option. I personally use a Hori Fighting Commander for Xbox One, and it's fantastic with a great D-Pad.

Also, in your game's options, make sure to turn "Release Check" Off, and set the option for input strings (I can't recall the exact name, but it's something like that) to Long.

Feel free to ask us any more questions as you learn!
 
I feel like my most troublesome problem is the type of the controller I use, I haven't tried playing with a keyboard yet but I just started using Xbox One controller from the beginning but I also heard that PS4 controller is better for this from my friend. I also seen Maximillian's video about the custom controllers with seperate d-pads, do you think it's a good idea to invest in something like that it isn't as hard (I usually accidentally smash multiple directions due to my large fingers)
I strongly advise against a Sony DualShock 4 Controller for the PC version, as it's been linked to regular crashes in the game. I can not tell you why a DS4 would oft cause the game to crash on people, but it does. I've helped several community members here on TYM alone with PC crashes, and the DualShock 4 they were using was the cause.

My theory is because, as I understand it, the DualShock 4 is not officially supported by a PC, and a third party program is needed to get it running and the game doesn't like that. That's just speculation on my part though, and could be wrong.

If you want a general stock controller, you'd want the Xbox One Controller for Windows. I personally recommend the Hori Fighting Commander for Xbox One though, as it's formally supported by PC and has a better D-Pad.

It lacks sticks though, so you'll need to use your Mouse/Keyboard to navigate the Krypt. If you want to use Konsumables in Towers, you'll also need to use the Keyboard for that, which gets rather awkward.
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
@devdot4 Welcome to the community! I play on PC as well, and have for the last few games. You're getting some good replies here as well. My own two cents to your questions:

1) There is no cheatsheet, but you'll pick the lingo up as you go along. If you're not sure what something means, you can simply ask in a thread. I've never seen anyone here rip on someone for asking a basic question like that, since everyone starts learning sometime.

In general, 1 = Front Punch, 2 = Back Punch, 3 = Front Kick, and 4 = Back Kick. F = Forward, D = Down, B = Back, and U = Up. JP = Jump Punch, NJP = Neutral Jump Punch, JK = Jump Kick. ~ = cancel into. You'll see that one a lot when people type out combo strings (or strings for short).

2) Honestly, I'd suggest you play what character you like the most or think would be the most interesting. Don't worry about tier lists or people saying a character is too strong or too weak. At this point you want to learn the base mechanics of the game, and you can do that with any character of your choice or preference.

If there's a style you prefer, such as being very offensive, very defence, using projectiles, we can make better recommendations for you.

I also recommend you play Story Mode as you get to play as over half the roster in the mode and can get a feel for multiple characters there.

If you're enjoying Liu Kang and Shao Kahn, stick with them. I'd recommend picking and focusing on one for a while simply to focus your learning efforts.

3) Improving will come over time with experience, and it's a fantastic feeling when you realize you truly are improving. I first started playing seriously with Mortal Kombat (2011), and what I did was I picked a character, went into Practice, and simply started trying all their basic punches, kicks, jump attacks, etc. to get a feel for them. How fast are they? What moves have better range? That sort of thing. No need to adjust any Practice settings for that.

Next, I went through all their special moves and did the exact same thing. I then moved on to their combo strings listed in the Moves List and did them all repeatedly for a while, and when I could comfortably do them without looking at the buttons needed, I moved on to special cancels.

A special cancel is when you add a special move to the end of a kombo string. You'll see pros do strings, into specials, into more strings, etc. You want to start smaller. Take a basic string, like 1,1,1, but add a Fireball to the end. Can this be done? Will the move work? You can find out by trying in training and see what specials can be added on, and which ones can't. You might need to do 1,1 ~ Fireball, or a full 1,1,1 ~ Fireball could work. You have to try and see.

Once I got all that down, I started playing against the Normal AI. The point was to put everything I learned into practical practice against an opponent who generally fought back but wasn't overwhelming me.

From there, you can build your knowledge and mechanics as you become more comfortable and are able to execute basic strings and cancels without even thinking.

For a Video tutorial, I highly recommend Ketchup and Mustards Casual to Competative series. It also explains many of the terms and such you're asking about, and will help to answer your fourth question:




A question I have for you: You mention keys. Are you playing with a keyboard, or a Controller? Even though on PC, I highly recommend you get a good Controller. While you can play with a keyboard, generally, the game isn't designed for one and a proper Controller is considered a better option. I personally use a Hori Fighting Commander for Xbox One, and it's fantastic with a great D-Pad.

Also, in your game's options, make sure to turn "Release Check" Off, and set the option for input strings (I can't recall the exact name, but it's something like that) to Long.

Feel free to ask us any more questions as you learn!
Wow, this was quite a pleasant ride! Thanks!!!

I use an Xbox one controller and it's so hard to play with it because I have long and big fingers.
 
I second that Skarlet is a great choice. She is my #2.

Easy to pick up, very straight forward and she scales with your competitive level.
Not to mention she is the best voiced character in the game and has a super cool theme.


If Skarlet doesn't do it for you, I think Baraka is also a pretty straight forward pick,
 
Wow, this was quite a pleasant ride! Thanks!!!

I use an Xbox one controller and it's so hard to play with it because I have long and big fingers.
Do you find the buttons are too small on the Xbox One Controller? If so, the Hori Pad I mention has larger buttons. It's also lighter.

You can check it out on Hori's official site here.
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
Perfect! I'll see if I like it. Is there a controller with mechanical dpad?
Do you find the buttons are too small on the Xbox One Controller? If so, the Hori Pad I mention has larger buttons. It's also lighter.

You can check it out on Hori's official site here.
 
Welcome!
I think Baraka might be one of the most straightforward characters in the game. Give him a try.
as well as the few tutorials in tutorial section. Should I watch Youtube videos people put up on Youtube?

Edit: Also I don't quite understand when to use; breakaways, getups, counterattacks effectively.
Did you actually beat the tutorials? I found them very helpful. Surprisingly easy to understand even for someone like me.
I think improving your skills is a lot about finding a challenging opponent online and bash your head against them until you win or make progress. I don't recommend figting an AI for that, since they usually play differently from humans and you might find ways to abuse them.
 
Do you find the buttons are too small on the Xbox One Controller? If so, the Hori Pad I mention has larger buttons. It's also lighter.

You can check it out on Hori's official site here.
I can confirm the hori fight commander for the xbone is a good controller for MK. Thats what I use on xbox but use the dual shock on PS4
 

trufenix

bye felicia
Honestly, the tutorial mode was made for you, it will teach you everything without the insane bias that permeates the community. Has good demos and all.

Good starter characters are Liu and Scorp. Liu by far. His most threatening poke is f+3,3,3,3 , hit confirm into anything. literally anything. HIs special moves are the most simple in the game and they can all be amplified for more damage or crushing blows or both. Scorpion is a harder character to use, but not by much. You'll need to have a better understanding of how "MK" works to use him though.

Baraka's simple too but winning is hard. So is Geras, but you won't learn anything from using him in his current state. You'll just start winning faster.
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
Welcome!
I think Baraka might be one of the most straightforward characters in the game. Give him a try.

Did you actually beat the tutorials? I found them very helpful. Surprisingly easy to understand even for someone like me.
I think improving your skills is a lot about finding a challenging opponent online and bash your head against them until you win or make progress. I don't recommend figting an AI for that, since they usually play differently from humans and you might find ways to abuse them.
I did beat the tutorial but it's not sticking on me.
Honestly, the tutorial mode was made for you, it will teach you everything without the insane bias that permeates the community. Has good demos and all.

Good starter characters are Liu and Scorp. Liu by far. His most threatening poke is f+3,3,3,3 , hit confirm into anything. literally anything. HIs special moves are the most simple in the game and they can all be amplified for more damage or crushing blows or both. Scorpion is a harder character to use, but not by much. You'll need to have a better understanding of how "MK" works to use him though.

Baraka's simple too but winning is hard. So is Geras, but you won't learn anything from using him in his current state. You'll just start winning faster.
I don't really like Scorpion but I do play as Liu Kang, I dare to say that he is my main (well kinda but not really)
one of the best tutorials in fighting games! for sure
yea but it's not sticking on me unfortunately, I can redo the tutorial to better understand it but idk if it will help.
 

trufenix

bye felicia
I did beat the tutorial but it's not sticking on me.

I don't really like Scorpion but I do play as Liu Kang, I dare to say that he is my main (well kinda but not really)

yea but it's not sticking on me unfortunately, I can redo the tutorial to better understand it but idk if it will help.
Well, the tutorial is huge. Maybe you did the little baby one that pops up when you first turn the game on, but if you go to the learn tab there's about 50 different tutorials, including one for every character. It's intimidating, but everyhting is in there, frames, reversals, oki, the breakaways, all the hard stuff, all the basics.

That said, if doing it the lab way isn't your deal, just pick liu kang and start mashing until it makes sense. He has just about everything you could ask for in the way of moves, and none of it is hard to do. Command grab, parry, projectile, easy strings, hard strings, you name it. Find a training partner who isn't a dick, or join one of the rooms full of real players here, we'll treat you right online, or hide in the towers until you feel confident. Ask questions as needed.

Welcome to TYM.

EDit: ALso, tag your moves. I can't stress that enough. Putting all the moves you don't understand or don't know what to do with on screen so you don't forget them is super beneficial to how I learn characters. That way I don't get tunnel vision off the one or two things that actually work, then get my back blown out against real opponents.

That's the theory anyway.
 

devdot4

Certified beginner
Well, the tutorial is huge. Maybe you did the little baby one that pops up when you first turn the game on, but if you go to the learn tab there's about 50 different tutorials, including one for every character. It's intimidating, but everyhting is in there, frames, reversals, oki, the breakaways, all the hard stuff, all the basics.

That said, if doing it the lab way isn't your deal, just pick liu kang and start mashing until it makes sense. He has just about everything you could ask for in the way of moves, and none of it is hard to do. Command grab, parry, projectile, easy strings, hard strings, you name it. Find a training partner who isn't a dick, or join one of the rooms full of real players here, we'll treat you right online, or hide in the towers until you feel confident. Ask questions as needed.

Welcome to TYM.

EDit: ALso, tag your moves. I can't stress that enough. Putting all the moves you don't understand or don't know what to do with on screen so you don't forget them is super beneficial to how I learn characters. That way I don't get tunnel vision off the one or two things that actually work, then get my back blown out against real opponents.

That's the theory anyway.
I actually did the whole tutorial and got stick in baraka/skarlet flawless block thing for 2 hours, managed to do it with my keyboard. The tutorial is fine but it just not working on me, the reason why might've been that I've just went through it without giving it thought. Maybe I should go back, read the whole thing and then do it slowly and multiple times until my brain recognizes it as a 2nd nature.

And when I tag moves, do them and then I almost always forget them :D (I can remember the special moves but never the combos)

Now doing the whole tutorial was a big chore for me and through doing it over and over and over I managed to complete it (I just wanted the Shao Kahn announcer)
 

trufenix

bye felicia
I actually did the whole tutorial and got stick in baraka/skarlet flawless block thing for 2 hours, managed to do it with my keyboard. The tutorial is fine but it just not working on me, the reason why might've been that I've just went through it without giving it thought. Maybe I should go back, read the whole thing and then do it slowly and multiple times until my brain recognizes it as a 2nd nature.

And when I tag moves, do them and then I almost always forget them :D (I can remember the special moves but never the combos)

Now doing the whole tutorial was a big chore for me and through doing it over and over and over I managed to complete it (I just wanted the Shao Kahn announcer)
I actually haven't finished them and I consider myself pretty well versed in how 11 plays, so if you went through them and didn't find what you're looking for, that's probably not the best avenue for you.

My tagging system is this, first go round, just tag all specials, use them in matches, mash them whatever, make sure I know which ones can amplify for damage or combos or swag. Once they're added to my gameplay (or ejected) I start detagging them (cause it maintains them over matches as long as you don't break modes) and start adding in the strings, to see what fits where, what combos, what meaties, etc. This process is the long one and hard against the ai, but you learn it super fast against people, again if you keep it on so you do forget. If you turn it off and trust your memory, yeah, you're just gonna fall into easy shit and bad habits. But Again, that's how I do it, and that's how I build a mental database of about 4 different characters, depending on matchups, it may not work for you.

Randoms are dicks, and won't teach you anything, but most of the people with the balls to create a room or run a long set will become traiing partners for life if you don't bore them or beat them too bad. I don't play on PC, but I can't imagine the PC community is any less welcoming than any other, so I'd say just make some friends and join some rooms until you find some opponent and some characters you like. You might turn out to really vibe with someone off kilter like Noob or Jacqui or Jade. They're more MK specific style characters with their pressure and zoning, but if you come from other games, maybe that makes sense to you.