Thanks to the efforts of Doc Mack and all the folks at Galloping Ghost Arcade, the very first Kombat-Kon has come and gone! The two-day event was a huge success and will hopefully spawn future gatherings for mortals across Earthrealm, and other domains as well!

The main attraction at Kombat Kon 2016 was the appearance of actors and actresses who appeared in the original Mortal Kombat Trilogy! Over the November 19-20 weekend a kavalcade of Kombat stars made appearances at the Kon!

Present and accounted for were: Phillip Ahn (Shang Tsung), Sal DiVita (Nightwolf, Cyrax), Richard Divizio (Kano, Quan Chi, Baraka), Brian Glynn (Shao Kahn), Kerri Hoskins (Sonya Blade), Tony Marquez (Kung Lao), Lia Montelongo (Sindel, Sareena), John Parrish (Jax), Carlos Pesina (Raiden), Daniel Pesina (Johnny Cage, Scorpion, Sub-Zero), Ho Sung Pak (Liu Kang, Shang Tsung), Steve Ritchie (Shao Kahn), John Turk (Sub-Zero, Shang Tsung), and Katalin Zamiar (MKII Kitana & Mileena).

MKII's unmasked Sub-Zero, Josh Tsui, was also there to discuss his upcoming documentary on the wild times at Midway Games: Insert Coin. Read more about the fan invested passion project in MK Online's Insert Coin Interview.

Of course, Mortal Kombat co-creator John Tobias was a feature appearance, as well as past and present developers John Vogel, John Podlasek, Steve Brownback, and Rigo Cortes also made appearances. They answered fan questions, and autographed photos of themselves. In addition, lots of fans brought their own Mortal Kombat memorabilia to get signed.

The highlight of the event had to be the panel, which consisted of Daniel Pesina, John Parrish, Lia Montelongo, Phillip Ahn M.D., and Sal DiVita. They shared their experiences working on the Mortal Kombat games, and gave fans a glimpse behind the scenes!

Although we can’t show video of this, Daniel Pesina shared his recordings of the filming of the first Mortal Kombat game. They showed how original plans for the game included the characters walking into the frame and having a brief intro. Johnny Cage’s entrance involved blowing kisses to the audience, and Raiden was wearing a cape, which he took off right before the round started. This seems prophetic, considering the characters have pre-fight intros like this in the modern game. Raiden has come to wear a cape in several of the later games.

There were several exhibition events that took place under the guidance of original Kombatants. Daniel Pesina held a rope dart class [pictured above], in which participants could learn the move that inspired Scorpion’s spear! John Parrish’s Kombat Kourse as well as Lia Montelongo’s Boot Kamp taught kompetitors to work as individuals, and as part of a team, to attain victory.

At the VIP after-party, Anthony Marquez was the life of the party. In a case of life imitating art, Marquez (Kung Lao) considers original Liu Kang Ho Sung Park his best friend [pictured below]! Daniel Pesina is like a brother to him, too. Deep ties bind the warriors of Earthrealm together! Who knew?

There were some brilliant cosplayers representing klassic and fan favorite characters: Liu Kang, Kitana, Johnny Cage, Jax, Raiden, Kung Lao, Scorpion, Sub-Zero and Jade - who was played by John "Jax" Parrish's daughter!

One of the most memorable cosplayers appeared as Dan Forden. His version of the classic "Toasty!" popup was pixel perfect when a Klassic Scorpion had enough of Kung Lao!

Tons of Mortal Kombat fans were there in attendence! They included longtime user fraysol, as well as best friends Shang_heihachi and TheYellowHare, who met right here on Mortal Kombat Online in the early days of mk5.org and the Gamers.com forums!

I also caught up again with Patrick McCarron from TRMK - who I last saw at E3 2005! One his moderators, Sarah, also joined him. Ryan from TeamRipSet was also there providing live streaming. Good old Dan from MK Universe, and Steve Burrick from MK Kollectors also attended. Strike a victory pose!

The Mortal Kombat games themselves were well represented at the Kon, as well! Arcade machines spanning the entire legacy were there, including the original Mortal Kombat, Mortal Kombat II, a joint Mortal Kombat 3/Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 cabinet, and Mortal Kombat 4!

They also had several PS3 and PS4 consoles set up to play Mortal Kombat (2011) and Mortal Kombat X. Mortal Kombat tournament brackets pitted fans against one another for prizes, including original statues: golden and colored version of Johnny Cage/Daniel Pesina and Shang Tsung/Phillip Ahn! There were also free t-shirts, wallets, temporary tattoos, coffee mugs, and action figures given away!

The Kon also had merchandise for sale at several interesting booths! Adam W. Michaels from Adam’s Art Box had a ton of interesting artwork for sale: mostly Mortal Kombat characters, but also some from The Walking Dead and other popular properties.

Myke and Anthony of Kombatpedia fame were also in attendance. They were waving the flag for the much discussed fan resource, giving out prototypes of the proposed book, as well as t-shirts and a few posters [pictured below].

All in all, this was a spectacular event! A huge thanks to Doc Mack and everyone at Galloping Ghost Arcade for putting it together. Hopefully, this will be the first of many Kombat-Kons to kome! Mortal Kombat Online will feature more sights from the event very soon.

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