Mortal Kombat 1’s Kameos Casts Doubt on Its Most Recent Franchise Tradition for MK2

Mortal Kombat 1's Kameos Casts Doubt
Mortal Kombat 1’s Kameos Casts Doubt | Image Credit: esi.si.com

One of the finest aspects of the Mortal Kombat series might become a double-edged sword for later editions with the introduction of Kameo Fighters in Mortal Kombat 1.

What You’ll Know in This Article

  • While Mortal Kombat 1 was originally well-received, its pricey microtransactions and balancing problems have caused criticism.
  • The balance and small roster of Mortal Kombat 1 might be impacted by the addition of Kameo Fighters as support characters.
  • Changing beloved characters from Mortal Kombat games to Kameo combatants instead of selectable combatants may annoy devoted fans and obscure the series’ own identity.

When Mortal Kombat 1 first came out in September of last year, it was well-received by critics, but many of its fans now find it offensive. Although the game looks fantastic and plays well on most platforms, it has balance problems and costly microtransactions. The introduction of Kameo Fighters, a new assist feature, has completely changed the franchise. The main topics of discussion surrounding Mortal Kombat 1 at the moment are worries about how Kameo Fighters may affect the game’s balance, but adding them might have an effect on other aspects as well. The roster of the franchise as a whole is one of its biggest advantages, and the addition of assist fighters might hurt it.

The help mechanism in many other fighting games is not how Kameo Fighters operates. Players select a secondary character to perform assistance in games such as BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle and Dragon Ball Fighter Z. Each character in the game is a fully functional combatant with support skills. However, there is a supplementary roster of Kameo Fighters in Mortal Kombat 1. While there are some similarities to the main Kombatant roster, the Kameos are distinct iterations of those characters. Furthermore, some cast members are limited to supporting roles because some Kameo combatants are not listed among the main combatants.

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The Roster in Mortal Kombat is Its Greatest Feature

The fighting game genre has been defined in part by the Mortal Kombat franchise. Since its 1992 debut, the series has grown to become one of the most well-known in the gaming industry. Its enduring ensemble of characters is largely responsible for this. Sub-Zero and Scorpion are inextricably linked to the genre. Over the course of the franchise, NetherRealm has created dozens of legendary fighters, with over 70 playable combatants. In addition, Mortal Kombat has regularly included cameos from other well-known properties, which has enhanced the series’ buzz just as much as its original cast. Regretfully, there is a chance that Kameo Fighters may make visitors into a double-edged sword.

Kameo Fighters Could Have a Negative Effect on MK1 and MK2’s Roster

Although adding more characters to each game sounds like a nice idea, the fact that Kameo Fighters has been added could limit certain fighters to only being assistance. This may also apply to some of the characters who have been rumoured for Kombat Pack 2, including visitors from other shows. While assists in MK1 are new at the moment, fans may get impatient if series stalwarts are constantly demoted to Kameo Fighter rank in subsequent entries—especially if this is done to accommodate more guest characters. However, if a well-liked guest character becomes a Kameo Fighter instead of a regular one, their appearance can become less of an event.

How Should Kameo Fighters Be Handled in Mortal Kombat 2?

Mortal Kombat 2 has to expand on the Kameo system if it is to be reintroduced. One way to allow any character to fulfil both roles is to let players select a Kameo Fighter from the regular roster. This would be the most efficient approach to prevent any possible controversy over which characters are turned into Kameo Fighters, even though it could result in a smaller roster overall. Every major roster position that is granted to a visitor under the current setup is a spot that isn’t occupied by an MK franchise character.

If more original characters are turned into kameos, the guest characters who have made every new MK game into an event now face the risk of undermining the series’ identity.

The controversial transformation of the Mortal Kombat series may be attributed to MK1’s Kameo Fighters. Since there are frequently more PC players for MK11 than for its sequel, NetherRealm may alienate a significant portion of its fan base if it continues to handle the Kameo system carelessly. It would be detrimental to see the system exploited to give guest fighters priority over significant series characters.

Though the technique is effective and can be changed to address the balancing concerns brought forth by Kameo Fighters, it can irritate Mortal Kombat 2 players if too many of their favourite characters are sidelined to make place for newcomers.

Source:
https://gamerant.com/mortal-kombat-1-kameo-fighters-mk2-roster/