All I know is if they resurrect Kitana without resurrecting Jade, I'm suing.

Interesting thread.
For starters, I think only Jade deserves to be brought back in the next game for having the most original and interesting ending. They can expand on that and maybe make her return possessed by that mysterious lady.
The rest should stay dead for now, coz I see no reason (or way) they could come back and make sense...maybe Liu Kang's ending can also be used to bring him back but Kitana, Smoke, Nightwolf, Stryker, Sub Zero, Sindel, Kabal, Jax should stay dead at least for the next game (even though I love Smoke and Kitana).

It would probably make more sense as DLC, since the DLC characters for MK9 have no story role.

I know its not what we want, but its probably what they will do.

Ah, I would like to add:

Sindel should triumphantly return. I think it'd be great if she was not in fact killed by Nightwolf(thus, he didn't die either), but they were instead transported to another dimension(or whatever... I do believe Nightwolf also uses that beam of light to travel..... I think...)... Like some kind of spirit world that infuses them with the most raw spiritual energies and tosses them back out as changed beings. I'd like to see Sindel return as a total banshee: White skin, hair like tendrils, maybe horns, ragged ghostly clothing, etc... I could care less about Nightwolf. He bores me. But, from that point on, Sindel and Nightwolf would be connected to this dimension and thus, connected to each other, allies or not. Likely not.... But I think it's an interesting take on their future, at least a little bit.

Interesting ideas! Though I think Sindel will be absent in the next game simply because her "important role" in the story is over now, plus she wasn't one of the most popular players in this game. However when they bring her back I think they will turn her good....she was good in the first place so it only makes sense for the writers to turn her in her next appearance, even though I like your idea a lot more.

^^

True, she has always been one of my absolute favorites in this series, but she's also always been one of the least popular... Come to think of it, between Sheeva and Sindel, why am I even here? Hehe... Though I think she's a major case of untapped potential, and a great idea wasted on a mediocre story.(The MK story, that is... Sindel's original story is wunnerful)

There's no choice, really. The story of this game immediately revealed that every dead character became a member of Quan Chi and Shinnok's army and that those two are plotting the next attack on the realms.

They should've just not had that chapter where Raiden goes to the Netherealm at all. Then there'd be some mystery about where their souls went and whether the dead characters will ever come back.

Not to mention Raiden's character wouldn't have looked so stupid and detestable if he'd never tried to sell his friends' souls to one of the worst villains in history.

I loved Sheeva, Mileena and Rain ever since I can remember myself playing MK and at that time all 3 were jokes....Now Mileena and Rain are extremely popular so who knows maybe Sindel and Sheeva's popularity will rise in the future as well ;)

When I said resurrected, I also meant free from Quan Chi's control. In their current state, the deceased characters are little more than zombies, mentally speaking. Even if the next game feature Shinnok and/or Quan Chi as the antagonists, the deceased do not have to be involved in any official capacity. Remember when the heroes died and were resurrected as Onaga's brainwashed lackeys in MKD? They weren't playable, and while some of them could be fought in the konquest mode, it had nothing to do with the story, and they didn't even have special moves.

I'd like these characters' deaths and rebirths as Quan Chi's minions to have an impact that last longer than one game. Even if Jax returns as a playable character, it should be either as a non-canon character, with him being his familiar self (as in, pretending he didn't die), or as his canon corrupted self. He shouldn't already be back and teaming up with Sonya as he did before, with him pratically saying "I was dead. Now back to business, babe". Let his death and his current state have an impact on Sonya's character.

If any of the deceased are resurrected, or at least freed from Quan Chi, their deaths and enslavement should have an effect on them, on their characters.

I'd like to see this;
Quan Chi resurrects all the dead fighters(including Kahn and Motaro)and use them to help invade Earthrealm. During the invasion; Kenshi, Cage, and Sonya capture part of Quan Chi's resurrected army. Kenshi uses his mind control to save who he can.
Kahn(since resurrection)pretends to be under Quan Chi's control. He awaits the perfect time to destroy the sorcerer and reclaim Outworld. Unable to be captured, Liu Kang is now the biggest threat to Earthrealm. Unless he is controlled, Earthrealm is doomed.
The story could be based around saving old characters, and introducing some new fighters.

This idea came to me just this instant: If the next game has a story mode, and similar enough gameplay to MK9, then deceased characters could actually make surprise appearances as opponents. Their gameplay would be unchanged, or barely altered. Just Imagine having to fight a brainwashed and resurrected Shao Kahn, just as tough as he was in MK9, but not as the final boss. Seeing as he wouldn't be himself character-wise, he would not taunt.

Death does not, has not, and never will mean anything in Mortal Kombat.

To quote that movie from the 90s:

"The essence of Mortal Kombat is not about death, but life."

So there will always be a way to bring back the dead characters in the next game. Even if they bring them back as non-canon bonus characters.

Mileena was a JOKE?? since when?? lol...she's been badass ever since her debut .. i played MK1 but I didn't really get into it as much until MK2...Kitana and Mileena were my favs in MK2 and MKT...but after Trilogy...i sort of abandoned Kitana.... lost interest lol.... I know Rain was kind of a joke.. but he was always my favorite male "ninja" character

The next game will suck because all of the moderately interesting characters have been killed off, like kung lao and jade.

Killing most of the heroes made no sense and bringing them back will probably make even less sense, but thats NRS for ya.

My ideal ending would have been for Raiden to relinquish his god status to Liu Kang so not only could he defeat Shao Kahn but Sindel as well, thereby saving most of earth's heroes. Instead they were all killed in an admittedly humorous three minute cutscene.

That's precisely my point. Bring them back as non-canon characters if need be ( NRS likely doesn't have the guts to exclude Sub-Zero from any games anyway), but storywise, keep them dead or under Quan Chi's control, for a while.