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Support for MK1 Supposedly Cancelled

Do you think this is the end of MK1?


  • Total voters
    64
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Vulgar

Kombatant
I think this is the most damning thing for MK's future. WB doesn't give a fuck about their properties, they were willing to destroy the Arkham brand with Suicide Squad and have heavily damaged all the good will from the first 4 NRS games, as well as harming their at the time new IP of Shadow of War / Shadow of Mordor with insane micro transactions.

Capcom, while also being greedy as fuck, seem to actually give a fuck about their brands. They revamped Resident Evil and out of their last 5 games, 4 have been good and 2 have been truly incredible. RE9 is likely to be very good and RE5 remake and the potential of a Code Veronica remake are games fans actually are asking for. They gave us Devil May Cry 5 (which is the best action game of all time, let's be clear) after 11 years, and Devil May Cry 4 special edition after 7 years, ditching the awful reboot everyone hated instead of sticking it out (we will see if MK does something similar). And of course they dropped SF6 and healed a lot of the damage from SF5. They're WAY more in touch with what their fans want from each of their franchises.
One thing that definitely helps Capcom is that they're their own publisher.

It makes a huge difference, I think. They don't have Papa WB breathing down their necks.

Capcom does their own scummy stuff tho. So..

Idk man. Lol
 

Dankster Morgan

It is better this way
One thing that definitely helps Capcom is that they're their own publisher.

It makes a huge difference, I think. They don't have Papa WB breathing down their necks.

Capcom does their own scummy stuff tho. So..

Idk man. Lol
No I agree, Capcom are a bunch of greedy fuckers, but first they make an extremely well polished and fun game that is made for fans, THEN they add micro transactions. Like RE4 remake is arguably the best action horror game ever made and surpasses the OG in some ways, but has some weapons and treasure as DLC. Very stupid, but optional. The actual substantive DLC of Ada's campaign was only 10 bucks, which I think makes the difference.

They're not mandated to make a slop game that nickle and dimes you at every turn, and is visibly less content and feature rich than recent games. The publisher has an understanding of what makes each franchise appealing, WB doesn't seem to if they thought Arkham fans would like Suicide Squad. If it's true that this game is repurposed from Injustice 3, NRS didn't even want to make MK1 yet, it certainly doesn't feel like a passion project even if it's very fun.
 

Felipe_Gewehr

Twinktile
This is why I call it the SFV of the MK era. People see it as a diss, but always forget S4 and S5 of SFV was epic with S5 being truly a great game, but the stain of launch, S1, and S2 were like a stain so deep you had to throw the shirt away lol. MK1 is actually a good game right now but the damage from the launch and word of mouth hurt it. They'll need a SF6 revamp to repair the image I think across the greater group of players which should be more than possible if they take in all the feedback and apply it.
Historically, does the developer of SF actually listens to feedback and communicates with the fanbase? How was the transition between the poorly received SFV to SF6? Because we have seen that, since MKX at least, NRS communication is lacking severely. They DO listen to criticisms regarding gameplay, though - Mkx was criticized for "no footsies", so we got Mk11. Mk11 was then criticized for "too much useless gear pieces, boring restricted gameplay", and we got Mk1 with "1 gear piece per character and combo freedom". Mk1 is currently being criticized for "Kameo safety cheap tactics and lacking enjoyable single player content", so imagine they will go all "no kameos, awesome single player" for their next MK.
 

SaltShaker

In Zoning We Trust
I think this is the most damning thing for MK's future. WB doesn't give a fuck about their properties, they were willing to destroy the Arkham brand with Suicide Squad and have heavily damaged all the good will from the first 4 NRS games, as well as harming their at the time new IP of Shadow of War / Shadow of Mordor with insane micro transactions.

Capcom, while also being greedy as fuck, seem to actually give a fuck about their brands. They revamped Resident Evil and out of their last 5 games, 4 have been good and 2 have been truly incredible. RE9 is likely to be very good and RE5 remake and the potential of a Code Veronica remake are games fans actually are asking for. They gave us Devil May Cry 5 (which is the best action game of all time, let's be clear) after 11 years, and Devil May Cry 4 special edition after 7 years, ditching the awful reboot everyone hated instead of sticking it out (we will see if MK does something similar). And of course they dropped SF6 and healed a lot of the damage from SF5. They're WAY more in touch with what their fans want from each of their franchises.
Yea WB I probably would say is a big problem, Suicide Squad was just, just, yea, and they actually doubled down on it lol just maddening. I'm hoping since MK was named dropped as high priority they'll be willing to let the actual people who know what they're doing work, but with them you never know.

Historically, does the developer of SF actually listens to feedback and communicates with the fanbase? How was the transition between the poorly received SFV to SF6? Because we have seen that, since MKX at least, NRS communication is lacking severely. They DO listen to criticisms regarding gameplay, though - Mkx was criticized for "no footsies", so we got Mk11. Mk11 was then criticized for "too much useless gear pieces, boring restricted gameplay", and we got Mk1 with "1 gear piece per character and combo freedom". Mk1 is currently being criticized for "Kameo safety cheap tactics and lacking enjoyable single player content", so imagine they will go all "no kameos, awesome single player" for their next MK.
Funny enough, one of the main criticisms before was that Capcom DIDN'T listen and had a huge high horse complex which eventually led to the disastrous SFV early years. They were buying their own hype treating people like crap. Like talking about low tier characters were actually the best in the game and the players didn't know any better (yes this happened haha). There was some, let's call it "restructuring" at the top and they started listening a lot to the community after that, gaining feedback for changes through surveys, providing updates and explanations, etc, which led to the end of SFV being solid leading into SF6 with a complete overhaul of the game.

NRS listens in a different way, but I agree 100% that I think their communication needs a lot of work but they listen. Inj1 was "too slow" so MKX was crack cocaine. MKX was too "no neutral" so MK11 was a stick fighter. All of that is definitely accurate lol. Overcompensating each game, but I think it partially comes from building a "new game" from scratch each time which is a lot harder than building on the same game. It's easier for Tekken to be so balanced if it's the same game being tweaked since 2005 lol. In MK1 you can tell they listen just by the way the updates have been made that improved the game so much. They just gotta pick one path, stick with it, and keep building on it, especially if they have WB crunching them.
 

ImpostorOak

Goro is a Pokémon
Are we sure this news is legit and set in stone?

I'm not surprised if it is. I'm a die hard MK fan and I hated MK11, and think MK1 is better, but still bad. The past 2 MK games have felt like they were made for people who are bad at fighting games. Mk11 it was Krushing Blows and overtuned Fatal Blows, in MK1 it's kameos making neutral pretty Unga bunga and skewing risk reward so heavily.

That's gameplay critique. If I take off my competitive pants, this is just the worst AAA game I've bought in a few years. The story is ass, there's barely any content, and the side mode is something I would've thought was lame on my PS1 when I was 8. Anything close to cool is $5-10 in a shop, anything you can unlock is an ugly recolor.

I love that I can pick up an MK and be one of the better online players instantly. That's all I like about MK anymore. A lot of you are in that same boat and in denial about it. Try the other current FGs. They're so much better. It's ridiculous to say that MK1 is good.

Pro players and casuals share this opinion, the people who don't share this opinion are able to be counted on one forum.

Imagine if Summoner Quan Chi in MKX could set up puggles on a block string safely and enforce the 50/50 after and do so by just doing a string. That's how MK1 plays and I see people say MKX was more Unga bunga. Blows me away.
 

Eji1700

Kombatant
Are we sure this news is legit and set in stone?

..
No. At the end of the day until there's official confirmation there's no way to be sure. The current evidence is a well known and accurate leaker saying this is the case, and the lack of any real response from NRS denying the claims. I think the first part means a lot more than the second part, but at the same time it wouldn't be the first time someone was wrong. They could stick around, but the smart money is that the leaker is right given their history.

That said, they could also be right right now, and end up wrong. As with most leaks they aren't privy to everything, so if there's some higher level discussion that filtered down as "yeah we're probably done here, hold everything" but that turned around, they may not be in the loop.

With all that said, from a zoomed out perspective, WB is not a great corporate custodian. As others have pointed out, suicide squad was a disaster, and it's hardly the only one under WB. Perhaps more damning, is what KIND of disaster it was. It reeks of marketing and focus groups having the reigns of development. Hot media property + known studio + gambling mechanics + microtransactions? Nothing could go wrong!

Obviously, it did, and it does make me wonder at the hell NRS must be dealing with on their side. I would not be shocked at all that "gameplay" is the absolute last priority for WB and it's a fight to even get what we have. WB reeks of the kind of company that trend chases and has no idea how to properly develop its IP's, and their track record certainly reinforces that.

With that in mind "fuck it we'll take our ball and go home....and write it off on our taxes" is a very strong possibility. I suspect if suicide squad had done remotely well we would get a new shaolin monks in the same (miserable) vein, and I wouldn't be shocked if the next MK title is in a non fighting game vein.

From the pov of the corporate overlords MK is probably a tricky IP. You can't just slap all the common tropes on it because at the end of the day its main selling point is "horrifically violently kill your opponent", but rather than lean into that chasing something like SAW's success, they feel like they're doing almost everything they can to have their cake and eat it to. VS match, go ahead and kill the fuck out of everyone. Story mode, here's a few gory scenes but you'll never actually do a fatality yourself.

It'd be nice if they sold off the IP to someone who gives a damn, but I doubt that's going to happen as history show's there's a lot more shit custodians willing to cash in on brand recognition that passionate people who want to make something as complex as a fighting game (and the only popular block button fighter at that).
 

Vulgar

Kombatant
Are we sure this news is legit and set in stone?

I'm not surprised if it is. I'm a die hard MK fan and I hated MK11, and think MK1 is better, but still bad. The past 2 MK games have felt like they were made for people who are bad at fighting games. Mk11 it was Krushing Blows and overtuned Fatal Blows, in MK1 it's kameos making neutral pretty Unga bunga and skewing risk reward so heavily.

That's gameplay critique. If I take off my competitive pants, this is just the worst AAA game I've bought in a few years. The story is ass, there's barely any content, and the side mode is something I would've thought was lame on my PS1 when I was 8. Anything close to cool is $5-10 in a shop, anything you can unlock is an ugly recolor.

I love that I can pick up an MK and be one of the better online players instantly. That's all I like about MK anymore. A lot of you are in that same boat and in denial about it. Try the other current FGs. They're so much better. It's ridiculous to say that MK1 is good.

Pro players and casuals share this opinion, the people who don't share this opinion are able to be counted on one forum.

Imagine if Summoner Quan Chi in MKX could set up puggles on a block string safely and enforce the 50/50 after and do so by just doing a string. That's how MK1 plays and I see people say MKX was more Unga bunga. Blows me away.
So another reliable leaker put out completely different info than FateUnknown. I don't think anyone knows anything concrete at this point.
 

Vulgar

Kombatant
Are we sure this news is legit and set in stone?

I'm not surprised if it is. I'm a die hard MK fan and I hated MK11, and think MK1 is better, but still bad. The past 2 MK games have felt like they were made for people who are bad at fighting games. Mk11 it was Krushing Blows and overtuned Fatal Blows, in MK1 it's kameos making neutral pretty Unga bunga and skewing risk reward so heavily.

That's gameplay critique. If I take off my competitive pants, this is just the worst AAA game I've bought in a few years. The story is ass, there's barely any content, and the side mode is something I would've thought was lame on my PS1 when I was 8. Anything close to cool is $5-10 in a shop, anything you can unlock is an ugly recolor.

I love that I can pick up an MK and be one of the better online players instantly. That's all I like about MK anymore. A lot of you are in that same boat and in denial about it. Try the other current FGs. They're so much better. It's ridiculous to say that MK1 is good.

Pro players and casuals share this opinion, the people who don't share this opinion are able to be counted on one forum.

Imagine if Summoner Quan Chi in MKX could set up puggles on a block string safely and enforce the 50/50 after and do so by just doing a string. That's how MK1 plays and I see people say MKX was more Unga bunga. Blows me away.
Also, about pro players sharing this opinion, I'm pretty sure Sonic Fox doesn't. Other than saying that Havik needs to be nerfed, they've been pretty consistent in enjoying the game.
 

PrinceGoro

Apprentice
A few thoughts.

I was ready to hate this game. I thought Kameos would ruin the game, but they were fun.

The impact of 3D characters on sales is bullshit. There are five of them out of a 35 playable character roster- one of those is now basically a mainstay of the series now (Kenshi). I do not think that people initially bought MKX for Ferra Torr and Kung Jin, so I do not think that 3D characters had a major impact. Some of them were very well implemented - particularly Ashrah.

I said from the start that sales would be massively hurt by the fact that they had moved to current gen consoles rather than PS4 etc as only a third of people have new gen. People argued with me about it, but it came true- I said from the start, this was their dumbest call. The audience is significantly reduced by only targeting current gen, so Khaos Reigns was never going to sell well.

It really is a shame. The game is close to how it should have been shipped. It would have been nice to see where it went from here.
There are alot of diehard 3d era haters on this site, their bs doesnt even deserve a response.

Anything bad happens and they will find a way to pin it on the 3d era chraacters lol.

Fact of the matter is one of the high points of this game is the roster and its because it included these awsome 3d era charcters that were gone for a while. Like havik and reiko, ashrah li mei and nitara, in adittion to the already established ones in quan chi and kenshi.

None of the new charcaters from mkx and 11 can hold a candle to any of them and purging that trash and having the roster be klassics and 3d era is exactly why this is one of the best rosters in an mk game(geras is the only redeamable and interesting chracter out of then and gets a pass)


3d era marked the non existance of competative mk yes, but in all other aspects it is goated, from content to the atmosphere and story, game modes,sound design and music etc etc.
 
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Subby Z

Mortal
They gave us Devil May Cry 5 (which is the best action game of all time, let's be clear) after 11 years, and Devil May Cry 4 special edition after 7 years, ditching the awful reboot everyone hated instead of sticking it out (we will see if MK does something similar).

Please dear god.

If we got like an MKX2 that continued after MKX or something after Armageddon I would instantly play. I want Kuai Liang back sooo bad (no Scorpion is not him fuck that).

I never want to be in Liu Kang’s universe ever again.
 

ImpostorOak

Goro is a Pokémon
Also, about pro players sharing this opinion, I'm pretty sure Sonic Fox doesn't. Other than saying that Havik needs to be nerfed, they've been pretty consistent in enjoying the game.
If I won every tournament and made a living off of each NRS game, and got glazed by the makers of said games, I'd probably like it, too.

And even THEN, they have had ups and downs with their opinion.


Let's not forget they threatened to quit the game.
22177
 

Dankster Morgan

It is better this way
Please dear god.

If we got like an MKX2 that continued after MKX or something after Armageddon I would instantly play. I want Kuai Liang back sooo bad (no Scorpion is not him fuck that).

I never want to be in Liu Kang’s universe ever again.
Well, what’s funny is MK 11 was their chance to do MK9 2 and MK1 was their chance to give people their preferred versions of old characters again. The writer did neither.

Mechanically, I would think MKX fans would dig MK1.
 

Subby Z

Mortal
Well, what’s funny is MK 11 was their chance to do MK9 2 and MK1 was their chance to give people their preferred versions of old characters again. The writer did neither.

Mechanically, I would think MKX fans would dig MK1.
I mean honestly MK9 2 would be fine as well.

I just want the characters back who have actual history. All of the characters in this game felt like they were just those characters in name alone. Much like MK1 felt like MK in name alone.

I said earlier in this thread but I hated sooo much of what they did in this game. I cannot fathom how Dom said he thought about just making Hanzo an adopted brother in the Lin Kuei and didn’t go that direction.

We still could have had Kuai Liang in MK2 at least. For the time being though he has ERASED Hanzo Scorpion and Kuai Liang Sub-Zero. If we continue in this timeline there is no way for them to come back soon unless they magically made Kuai a cryomancer again.

I also hated how they made the powers like learned powers for several characters. Raiden has an amulet that gives him powers. Rain practices magic. Sub-Zero practices cryomancy (they are no longer cryomancers it appears). Idk it all just seemed off.

I may be out there saying this but I blame a lot of shit on that awful MK movie in 2021. They brought back Bi-han because he was one of the only good things in that movie and Reptiles reptile form looks awfully similar to that movie as well. Seems like they also used a loose form of arcana for everyone to explain their powers (they do not call it that but how people learn their powers in MK1 seems similar).

Another MK thing I hope kinda bombs is the next live action movie so they stop that shit. The animated movies were fine-ish. Not great but not awful. I thought the 2021 movie was shit though.
 

SaltShaker

In Zoning We Trust
If I won every tournament and made a living off of each NRS game, and got glazed by the makers of said games, I'd probably like it, too.

And even THEN, they have had ups and downs with their opinion.


Let's not forget they threatened to quit the game.
View attachment 22177
Sonic must have had someone take a dump in their cereal that day. I'm 100% confident "dropped MKX, INJ2, and MK11" isn't true at all lol.
 

Vulgar

Kombatant
If I won every tournament and made a living off of each NRS game, and got glazed by the makers of said games, I'd probably like it, too.

And even THEN, they have had ups and downs with their opinion.


Let's not forget they threatened to quit the game.
View attachment 22177
Don't tell me you believe the, "NRS makes characters for Sonic Fox" conspiracy theories, do you?

They did, but that was then. The game is in a much better place now and they're producing content regularly for it.

As does Rewind.
As does Honeybee.
As does Xombat.
As do many other top players.

Surely, they'd just make content of MKX if that's what they wanted to do?

Also, how do you account for the consistency of Rip's Arena, COTR, TNS, among others?
 

ImpostorOak

Goro is a Pokémon
Don't tell me you believe the, "NRS makes characters for Sonic Fox" conspiracy theories, do you?

They did, but that was then. The game is in a much better place now and they're producing content regularly for it.

As does Rewind.
As does Honeybee.
As does Xombat.
As do many other top players.

Surely, they'd just make content of MKX if that's what they wanted to do?

Also, how do you account for the consistency of Rip's Arena, COTR, TNS, among others?
No, I'm not a conspiracy theory kind of guy.

You do realize people do things for money, don't you? I don't go to my job because I'm passionate about retail. MKX wouldn't pull enough numbers without a boost to its relevancy. A few of these players have openly said they do this for the check. I'm not trying to convince anyone. I don't care if you disagree.

People are playing this game the same way that most people do CoD. They sweat in the most recent one bc that's the meta outside the in game meta. I did and do this too. Mortal Kombat is a huge series and the IP is too big to fail to the point of having no player base at this point. For many people, it's good enough. For many more, it's dogshit.

It's fucking pathetic how you use pop psychology to clown on people but you're literally a walking(uhhh typing? Internet-existing? W/E) whataboutism.
 

YagamiFire

Mortal
Capcom seems more than willing to correct direction. They started going value/quality-first as a profit-driver then using industry-standards to maintain profitability for big investment games (like SF6). WB has been slash & burn and it hurts all of their games...

...BUT WB's developers have also been hurting their own shit. Suicide Squad is a shit game from top to bottom with a dogshit story, bad gameplay and a bad structure. WB does not control that. WB does not dictate that shit. MK1 has a dogshit story, gameplay that does not click for a lot of the fanbase (I'm not willing to say it's bad because it's absolutely sound and better polished than a lot of what they've put out), and nontent for single player. WB does not control that shit. WB does not dictate that shit. WB did not say "Make a terrible MCU rip-off multiverse story". That is not going to happen. WB did not dictate to NRS to make the worst mode ever with Invasions. Etc etc. That is all on NRS.

WB is in an ultra shitty market position of being a shitty publisher with devs delivering some uniquely shitty games at the moment.
 

Kiss the Missile

Red Messiah
I don't think our top players don't care about the game, it's just their money maker. That's why they never join the online tournaments. Both Destroyer and Rip have mentioned how they've tried countless times to get people like Sonic or Ninja to join, and they just get ghosted. The players make less money in these tournies than just streaming the game, running ads and getting donos.
 

M2Dave

Zoning Master
I just spent the last couple hours running a couple sets to grind MUs and I left feeling nothing but pure unfiltered rage at the Heat system. Even when you abuse it it's still dirty. Nothing in MK1 is this stupid. Every game has it's stupid stuff but the oppressive heat "does everything combined plus ultra unga" is probably the worst of them all. Combined with Rage Arts not being able to jab check anymore, Power Crush being much better for some than others (mid hitting heat engaging combo starting wall splatting etc power crushes), just so much nonsense stacked together. Feeling like MKX sometimes out there. This post probably makes your point lol, but this game makes me more salty than any modern FG right now.
Tekken 8 does not have offense like Havik's reset, Kenshi's 50/50 mix ups, Nitara's safe dive kicks, Scorpion's 50/50 mix ups, Sindel's hard-to-blockable, etc.

Mix ups and vortices in Tekken are balanced because the heavy and/or launching low attack, such as a hell sweep, is always full combo punishable.

Besides, universal defensive options are vastly superior in Tekken 8 than in Mortal Kombat 1.

So, I am confused as to how you are arriving to the conclusion that "nothing in MK1 in this stupid" when everything offensively is more stupid.

A common issue is that many players - from top players to lower tier players - don't really agree on what an ideal MK game is.

Some people really like MK9. That's valid.

But you also have a lot of players that really want a return to MKX.

And yes, there are people that enjoy MK1's gameplay.

You're not going to please them all.
The objective is not to please everyone, which is impossible.

The objective is to please the majority of the fanbase.

I think that most players, competitive and casual gamers alike, would agree that Mortal Kombat X needed more defensive options while Injustice 2 needed less.

If I were a part of the NRS development team, I would attempt to design a fusion between Mortal Kombat 9 and X (i.e., one-on-one, no gimmicks, run button, etc.)