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Mortal Kombat's Fatalities Kill the Narrative
- Thread starter Ragnorok64
- Start date
Seriously this. Why do we always need to find the smallest stuff to complain about now.
Things were much easier when you were young. You just enjoyed the game for what it was instead of looking for even the smallest reason to tell others how upset you are.
I know this has probably been mentioned numerous times on this thread, but Mortal Kombat's entire appeal is it's hyperviolence and its attitude towards it. Blood and gore to MK is like T&A to DOA, except MK is often more tongue and cheek and self aware IMO. The characters even lampshade the wanton bloodlust in their various interactions in the very same game being scrutinized, lol.
I mean, having a narrative and some sort of canon is nice in a fighting game but the truth is, nobody really plays fighting games for the story.
Injustice 2 had a fun story that I really enjoyed but after it was done I completely forgot about it and just played the game for the fighting.
It's the same with MK, that's why I don't think this is an issue, most people wouldn't be able to tell you what happened in the previous MK game in terms of story because most people who play fighting games genuinely see the story as a nice added extra, it's not the reason they purchase the game.
Injustice 2 had a fun story that I really enjoyed but after it was done I completely forgot about it and just played the game for the fighting.
It's the same with MK, that's why I don't think this is an issue, most people wouldn't be able to tell you what happened in the previous MK game in terms of story because most people who play fighting games genuinely see the story as a nice added extra, it's not the reason they purchase the game.
As already been pointed out, how is this different from mirror matches and all other silly video gamey stuff you get in non-canon matches?
Does DBFZ ruin it's narrative cuz you keep blowing up same places over and over with short breaks in between?
Does DBFZ ruin it's narrative cuz you keep blowing up same places over and over with short breaks in between?
In all Dragonball games when you have family members go against each other it's always friendly banter, but then you can completely disintegrate them. No different here. This is such a non issue.
This is where I'm at. It's Mortal Kombat, fatalities are the dna. I guess just don't play MK?
Also had to click off after seeing he's one of those animated avatar YouTube's. Blegh, no thanks.
Yet you have no qualm about mid match X-rays , where they literally kill each other but get right back up to fight after the move........you gotta let this one go buddy.
It's a vacous complaint that doesn't realize that an idosyncracy inherent to the design of the game isn't an actual flaw. The character building is accomplished through the story mode and the versus is pre-fight banter is little more than fan-service. This isn't hightlighting a problem it's a lazy intellecutally dishonest non-arguement.
It's not that deep. You can't do fatalities in the story mode, anyway.
Anything outside that is fair game.
Anything outside that is fair game.
I remember calling the Club Nintendo hotline (yup im that old) to get the inputs for fatalitys, brutalitys etc for the MK Trilogy on N64. Well to cut it short, no fatalitys dont kill the narrative mainly for whats sayed already a few times. Battling it out in arcade mode isnt story relevant.
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I actually do think X-rays are dumb specifically because they are essentially mid match fatalities.
Or were you directing that comment of the video maker?
Narratives in Vs in Fighting games really aren't suppose to make sense, which is why it has story mode.I can say the same thing for Halo with Master Chief being the only Spartan to make it out of Reach unharmed but then you jump into multiplayer and see a bunch of Spartans running around killing each other.
It actually fits MK11's narrative because time travel.
Sigh, just stop, what is this nonsense. It's a damn fighting game about murdering people in outlandish ways starring ninjas gods and mystical creatures. I don't care if they start the fight with some preprogrammed statement, it's just a fighting game. I don't understand why some like to block fun, you know there are different modes, you know it's a video game, you know everyone magically lives after the fight. None of this is real. Just enjoy it and don't ruin it for everyone else.
TIme travel, alternate realities, doppelgangers and clones are all within MK's tool box.
you can't do fatalities in the story mode and nobody care about the narrative of MK, it's more about the fatalities than anything else
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The amount of people replying with "you can't do Fatalities in story mode," when the content of the video and the replies in this thread make it clear that that isn't the issue being talked about, is baffling.
This is why I've never gotten very far in a single video game in my entire life going all the way back the Atari 2600 days...
I mean, I just can't restart or continue after my first death, it just doesn't make sense narratively and always takes me out of the game. So that first inevitable death, I just have to stop and never play the game again. It's the only way it feels realistic.
I mean, I just can't restart or continue after my first death, it just doesn't make sense narratively and always takes me out of the game. So that first inevitable death, I just have to stop and never play the game again. It's the only way it feels realistic.
As others have mentioned its not really an issue since its not cannon to the story.
What does bother me however is after watching the character reveals for the upcoming game they have gone super over the top with the attacks that lead up to a fatality. Like, I'm all for vicious attacks etc ut when normal moves etc seem to look like fatalities it kind of takes away from the actual brutality of the fatalities themselves.
What does bother me however is after watching the character reveals for the upcoming game they have gone super over the top with the attacks that lead up to a fatality. Like, I'm all for vicious attacks etc ut when normal moves etc seem to look like fatalities it kind of takes away from the actual brutality of the fatalities themselves.
Game Informer: "What do you think is the biggest misconception about MK?"
Ed Boon: "That MK is only appealing because of its violence"
That I do agree with. The 'Fatal Blows' (X-Ray moves) are just as brutal, of not more brutal than some fatalities. And characters just stand up ald shrug them off.
I mean that's a NetherRealm thing, not a direct issue with fatalities. Injustice and Injustice 2 don't have most of their characters murdering each other (except the Joker) and yet they still end the same as MK, with just a pose and no win quote.
Hell, isn't "ruining the narrative" a bigger problem in that series, since you can have someone with little in the way of powers or training like Captain Cold beat someone with God-like abilities like Superman or Black Adam in a one on one fight, even after being thrown by them through buildings or into gunfire?
Hell, isn't "ruining the narrative" a bigger problem in that series, since you can have someone with little in the way of powers or training like Captain Cold beat someone with God-like abilities like Superman or Black Adam in a one on one fight, even after being thrown by them through buildings or into gunfire?
Various bits of data over the years have actually said the complete opposite. Most people play the single player content in any fighting game and then drop it.
Versus fights are dream matches, and they can be as nonsensical as you want them to be. Brutally dismembering someone minutes after engaging in lighthearted banter is no stranger than mirror matches or wacky alternate costumes or pulling weapons out of hammerspace or any other convention that falls apart the moment you think about it. The premise of the video is a nonissue, and it's so laughably pedantic that it's not even worth engaging with.
Mannnn I've always felt the exact opposite to you. I LOVE Mortal Kombat, but the story rarely rises above B-movie tier writing or interest to me. MK9 and MKX had some cutscenes making me think "this is really dumb" and I always thought the fans took it too seriously for what it was. Not only that, but the story seemed to eliminate the spooky vibe of the series. In MK1-3, Outworld characters were mysterious which gave the game a certain tone that I like. Now any and all mystery has been revealed. Hard to distinguish, but I've always appreciated MK for its lore, but not its story.
First and foremost, the game is about fun, and narrative comes second. That's how I see it. The moment the vapid cheeseball of a story takes priority over fun is the day I stop playing. BUT that's just a personal opinion. Not saying we shouldn't have a story mode, as that is as fun a fatailities, I'm just saying that a narrative really shouldn't be the point of the series (as is the case for most games) - the point should be fun, and having both fatailies and a story is what people find fun. Also, this closes the case regardless of my personal opinion:
First and foremost, the game is about fun, and narrative comes second. That's how I see it. The moment the vapid cheeseball of a story takes priority over fun is the day I stop playing. BUT that's just a personal opinion. Not saying we shouldn't have a story mode, as that is as fun a fatailities, I'm just saying that a narrative really shouldn't be the point of the series (as is the case for most games) - the point should be fun, and having both fatailies and a story is what people find fun. Also, this closes the case regardless of my personal opinion:
Not been true for a loooooong time. People enjoy the characters, stories, and single player options for the game. I don't know why people keep trotting out that nonsense sentiment like it has any relation to reality.
Seriously. The fatalities are something you watch once or twice and then never bother with again. Wouldn't give a shit if they took them out of versus play entirely.