You just admitted you can’t even use the mechanics as they exist but are arguing it’s too casual. It doesn’t add up, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t judge the game’s meta/potential/depth through the perspective of someone who is not going to utilize the mechanics presented to their potential.
I have a feeling that like many, you have invested time in this game and others, have learned many combos and conversions, watch high level play and consider yourself a part of the FGC.....and yet sometimes you’re still beaten by things you consider cheap or by people employing very very simple tactics that you might even understand but can’t counter. Maybe not, but I see this all the time; players being “good” but losing to bad shit, and faulting the game.
You quoted that post by that guy going into the mkx meta and how complicated it was to conserve resources in order to have meter for armoring through gaps, and rely on meterless damage so that it was an option, etc. He also goes into great detail about how intimate matchup and character knowledge was integral and required a ton of investment.
MK11 is the exact same but with more layers. There’s more gaps in strings, the flawless block mechanic is 100% mandatory for competitive play. Like if you let my skarlet f43 without showing me you will flawless block and punish, you’re getting bullied. You have to constantly manage both your own meter and the opponents. “I read throw ...d2....do I use the KB? They have meter to fall out....nah....neutral duck stand punish”. If you read fallout, you d2 and recover in time and now they’ve used their resources and aren’t at advantage and are helpless next touch and can’t wakeup. I’m not totally sure about whether the current breaker system is a better system or not at this point, but I do know that there’s depth there and counterplay, and that’s always good on some level.
I could go on and on. You can try to argue that mkx has this super high execution barrier, but it’s just not the case, and again, that’s clearly not where the difficulty lies in many fighting games, this one included. Yes, there were some tight links but in so many cases the optimal that required more execution eeked out 3-5% or something beyond very simple combos. I mean, do noobs 113xxdu amp, dash cancel 113,b11+3xx du and land all hits of the second 113 and get the link into b11+3 and do it ten times in a row. It’s not easy. There’s some execution in this game, but perhaps less so in combos but much more in terms of active defense and flawless block.
So many people that play MK in general learn elaborate combos to beat up the AI. I’ll say it again....a lot more people know how to do combos than know how to properly space moves, understand frame data, exploit gaps, utilize frame traps and setups, tech grabs, jump/duck tick throws and lab options against characters tools.
MK11 at high level looks incredible and is so much less reliant on vortexes, 50/50s and jump ins. Don’t get me wrong MK11 has some elements I don’t like, it’s not perfect, and there’s definitely things that feel off (poking/counterpoking, mashing being effective due to a ton of high starters, etc.)
I’m not trying to flame you, be a dick, I just really disagree and think you’re wrong. Nothing personal. Everyone has preferences, you’re entitled to like what you like, but by framing it that it’s somehow a lesser game or more shallow than mkx seems off base and sort of seems like you’re basing that off of you’re own inability to employ the highest level mechanics.
I’m not just stanning, I could rant about things that seem off about the game or that I’m not personally in love with, but compared with mkx, MK11 seems to be a better distillation of what makes fighting games skill based and a true head to head match of wits and dexterity and ultimately so frustrating and satisfying simultaneously.
