Scheme Kahn't
Noob
Here's why:
Ironically, however, despite the crazy, catatonic nature of the game, MK11 is still as repetitive and predictable as fuck, and arguably more so than it has been in the series' entire history. NRS really have managed to achieve something quite 'special' here: Creating a fighting game that's so nauseatingly predictable -- in its canned combo strings; rigidity in ability application; red tape over all of its general gameplay; the gestapo policing of what's left of its so-called 'customisation' et al. -- yet, at the same time, so utterly random in the nature of its overall gameplay.
Kudos, guys. Your creative vision might not be shared by everyone... But, no one can every accuse it for not marching to its own drum.
"The most difficult opponent to fight is a drunk -- because they don't square up to fight; they don't demonstrate any discernible fighting style; and they obey no rules... You just don't know what they're going to doing."
(*paraphrased quote from my wing-chun kung-fu "sifu", c.1996)
- All actions are PREDICTIVE (compare: reactive); meaning, everything must be decided upon / inputted BEFORE the opponent acts -- the blind flailing of limbs by drunks attacking one another.
- The more you beat a target in MK11, the less they feel it (a.k.a., damage-scaling, the non discriminatory kind; or the "Rocky effect") -- being drunk "numbs" the pain receptors.
- The more the opponent is beaten, the more dangerous they become (re. Fatal Blows) -- the more a drunk is attacked, the angrier they get.
- Irrespective of skill level, the near-unconscious, often non-deliberate application of Krushing Blows can turn a fight in one's favour, even if wholly undeservedly so, in the context of the fight -- in a drunken fracas, anyone can win, at any time, using almost any attack.
- Up close, most of the game comprises of a 50-50 guessing game, yet, one that only favours the attacker -- once the drunken aggressor jumps on top of his target, scratching, tearing and biting is what it devolves into; and he who initiated the stoush, will have a decided advantage.
- Stage interactables -- bar stools, beer bottles, pool cues...
- Many exchanges are a mess of errant hit-boxes and nonsensical attack properties (overheads "mid"; highs "lows"; armour of universal OTG's ignored) -- brawling drunks have little idea of whats going on, beyond that they are in a fight.
- One can train and even master combos to the robot-perfect nth degree; but, in practice, the game is 1% deliberate action + 99% insanity -- under the influence of alcohol, the more advanced the technique, the less likely it is to be availed (*very few Van Damme style, jumping roundhouse kicks are seen in drunken bar fights).
- Competitive tiers have as little to do with skill in MK11, as they do in anime brawlers; because as long as players can remember to down-1 (into throw) when under pressure, and down-2 when being encroached upon, they've 95% of the tools they need for success (leaving the few advantages a char. has, tier-defining) -- when inebriated, the most basic attacks (hay-makers, headbutts, choke holds) work most effectively, and if one drunk has a better mastery of such attacks (or a natural physical advantage), they will likely win.
- MK11 is best played while intoxicated, because it mollifies the frustration associated with the game's myriad mechanical flaws, and it enhances the comedic factor that carries the MK11's gameplay experience -- intoxication blurs one judgement ("beer goggles").
Ironically, however, despite the crazy, catatonic nature of the game, MK11 is still as repetitive and predictable as fuck, and arguably more so than it has been in the series' entire history. NRS really have managed to achieve something quite 'special' here: Creating a fighting game that's so nauseatingly predictable -- in its canned combo strings; rigidity in ability application; red tape over all of its general gameplay; the gestapo policing of what's left of its so-called 'customisation' et al. -- yet, at the same time, so utterly random in the nature of its overall gameplay.
Kudos, guys. Your creative vision might not be shared by everyone... But, no one can every accuse it for not marching to its own drum.
"The most difficult opponent to fight is a drunk -- because they don't square up to fight; they don't demonstrate any discernible fighting style; and they obey no rules... You just don't know what they're going to doing."
(*paraphrased quote from my wing-chun kung-fu "sifu", c.1996)
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