Who is the most successful 3D Character design?

[Ptehu]

paraphrasing xenogorgeous' post

Li Mei, no doubt about it ...... she looked generic and boring in the past, but now, looks interesting and I hope she comes back in MK2

To add to that why I think so:

• her lantern moves / firework theme is pretty unique and is something that was never seen in MK
• while she is purple, which is a nice throwback to original color scheme from MKA, she doesn't seem like a pallet swap for anyone and she is NOT too similiar to any other lady from MK aesthetic-wise
• her more serious look fits her new role and also her backstory is quite interesting. She has her past and her demons and she seems determined for redemption
• her combos are flashy, acrobatic and fun
• we still can get more info about who kill Jerrod in the future expansion and her role might be even more developed
• I never cared for her in 3D era and considered her bland af. Now she really has her time to shine

2nd place I guess Reiko, he technically does not qualify as "3D era" character but he was MIA way too long. Unpopular opinion now, but I really like how he looks & plays in MK1. I like also his "i love shao" personality I like how he doesn't use weapons at all "BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT EVEN WORTHY". I get that his moves can be distributed across other members of MK cast and no one would ever recognize that Reiko is missing, but combined - I like what I see.

3rd Ashrah. Too bad she doesn't rock her iconic hat in the default look, but it looks decent on her mastery skin. Her face was meh at the first sight but the more I look at her, the more I like her. Personality, backstory, moveset - all seems to be good.

4rd Nitara - aesthetic wise she is quite ok and it's really ashame they followed the more "femme fatale" archetype rather than "bloody vampire" lady, but I still think it's quite cool. I don't care about Megan being her or not being her. The amount of hate towards her is a bit too much. Anyway, even without paying attention to the voice - I would prefer her to be more brutal. Gameplay-wise though - she might take 2nd spot in this ranking - she is super unique and covers the air like no one else ever in MK series. Nice move to have her.

Last place is Havik - but he is still ok, there is just one HUGE flaw I see in his character currently: I hate that he is Dairou. I really cannot stand it. Dairou should have been totally separate, fully developed character, even NPC. But combining him and Havik into one? Lazy and bad move. HIm not being a cleric YET, it's fine, he can still be developed further. I also don't like why they didn't even explain why he has his strange powers.

 

[chrisisnice]

As far as my rankings go...

1) Ashrah - no contest. She is the best character model in the game. She has the most unique playstyle in the game. She has one of the stronger storylines in the game. Seriously, she should be a staple in the series from now on. The last character concept that was this strong was Cassie Cage.

2) Li Mei - She looks great and her moves are awesome. The Lantern concept is unique and the combos which use multiple lanterns are some of the best looking in the game. Love that her intro, stance, normals and victory pose are really tough looking. The purple particle effects are the best looking in the game.

3) Nitara - Nitara's moveset is very unique and she looks really good, though she does feel a little clunky at times. The voice acting is a serious turn off and takes you out of the MK fantasy world.

4) Havik - As probably the biggest name 3D character to come back, they did him no favors. Aesthetically, he should have been a lot better (lose the Karen haircut). Very clunky to play. The only thing he has going for him is that his moves are still unique looking.

5) Reiko - Bad storyline - he is the most useless jobber in the game. To make things worse, he is the most generic looking character in a MK title since Tavem. He is lucky that he has ok game play or there would be nothing going for him apart from being a little bit of a DILF.

 

[Art Lean]

5) Reiko - Bad storyline - he is the most useless jobber in the game. To make things worse, he is the most generic looking character in a MK title since Tavem. He is lucky that he has ok game play or there would be nothing going for him apart from being a little bit of a DILF.

And let’s not overlook the fact that the clown wears office loafers into battle

 

[IamSub0]

All this Reiko shade, smh. I think he had a strong improvement over his previous iterations because he was super boring as an experienced general who was still a jobber and Shao Kahn fanboy/wannabe usurper. He was all over the place conceptually (he was a last minute addition to MK4 and it shows), but even though MK1 kept the SK hero worship they at least gave him a feasible backstory for it. His playstyle is still a bit random, but I think it works for him and he's hella fun to play. I'd like to see him continue to be a player in the lore and return to the roster in the future.

I also liked what they did with Li Mei. Outworld characters were in sore need of some spotlight and development, and MK1 did a good job at building up the characters that were kind of in the middle of the franchise by not being iconic but not jobbers or total losers either. The disgraced but honorable cop thing works for her in a way that I didn't expect, and her moveset is solid.

Ashrah is kind of a weird one because I don't think they actually altered her background much at all. She was always cool, but she got lost in the 3D era churn. Her new playstyle is undoubtedly strong even if it's not my thing.

New Havik is a punk and doesn't hit the same notes as the old version, but he is fun to watch good players go to town with.

Nitara is as forgettable as before for me. The vioce acting doesn't help.