MK1 and MK2 are tournaments. MK3 makes references to it being a tournament, but with the way the story is, there's no logic to it. MK4 and the rest aren't tournaments.

To YaGreatness: Sub-Zero is no longer an enemy of Scorpion and Quan Chi is from the Netherrealm.

Thanx for letting me know that.

It could be considered a Tournament since they're basically challenging themselves to "Mortal Kombat" and the good guy fights the bad guys until they make it to the final round, the final boss.

yeah... again, the game suggests that MK1-4 are all tournaments, and if 4 is, then you have to assume that 5 and 6 are too. These don't have to be structured like the tournaments that we know, but could be based more on the structure that Lazer tag uses for tournaments. As we saw in Shaolin Monks (if you accept it as canon) it's possible, and what actually happened.
Didn't we cover this in another thread?

MK3 and 4 were just all-out wars between the sides of Good and Evil. However, Liu Kang's tomb in MKD mentions that he has medallions for four victories in Mortal Kombat, which, as you know, is a tournament, not a war. This kind of contradicts. As far as I can make out, Mortal Kombat is not a tournament as such, but a one-on-one, hand-to-hand contest. The reason Liu Kang has four celebrated victories is because he has saved the world by defeating someone in Mortal Kombat (Shang Tsung, Shao Kahn twice, and then Shinnok).

I had the idea of Mortal Kombat being an unbreakable bond between two people. Once Mortal Kombat has been declared, it cannot end until a resolution is brought to the contest, like death, surrender or mercy. Liu Kang, being the best fighter from Earthrealm, challenged each leader of the invasions to Mortal Kombat and defeated them one-on-one. In MKDA, they used this against him by having Shang Tsung challenge him to Mortal Kombat, and then have Quan Chi interfere. It was against the rules, thus unexpected, thus what led to his downfall.

I also used it to explain how the Deadly Alliance defeated the Earthrealm warriors despite being outnumbered 5-2. Kung Lao being the hot-head he is challenged Shang Tsung to Mortal Kombat in revenge for Liu Kang's death, and was beaten squarely since he's nowhere near as good. Quan Chi defeated Kitana, who was also kind of stoopid about challenging him because he'd allowed Shinnok into their world. The other three non-magical kombatants were then easily dispatched with.

Basically, Mortal Kombat is just a fight, pre-announced and one-on-one. The first two games were a tournament of Mortal Kombat contests, while the next four (MK3, MK4, MKDA and MKD) were just wars that, in the end, came down to one bout of Mortal Kombat to save or doom the world. The arcade modes are never canon because they either require you to fight with everyone on the roster (not how you would set out a tournament), or with people on the same side as you (not how a war would occur). Only the stories that come from the endings are canon.

Yeah, I have to agree with Weskerian. Mortal Kombat can be like a challenge. It makes no sense that MK3 - MKD were tournaments. There's no logic that can be used to explain that they are, because they aren't. Even if you bring up the non-structured concept, there's still no logic to it. Why? Because there is no reason to have one, regardless of how the structure (or lack thereof) is.

okay but dont u think that if they werent tournaments then the game wouldnt be a sucess? It makes no sense. In the first tournament the went up the ladder and got to the boss just like in every game to follow that.In my opinnion MK1-MKD are tournaments.

And no one can tell you that your opinion is wrong, because you are entitled to it the way that everyone else is. Its just widely accepted that the only real MK tournaments were MK1 and MK2, and the rest were all just wars that happened to feature bouts of Mortal Kombat. Believe what you will, you have the right, but don't expect people to see your point if they disagree with you, particularly if canon is not on your side.

So? That doesn't necessarily make it a tournament. MK3 - MKD aren't tournaments, because the villains have no reason whatsoever to have one. Mortal Kombat isn't just some tournament. It's also a challenge you make. Even though the Deadly Alliance defeated Kung Lao and his allies, that doesn't make them the Champions of Mortal Kombat, because Liu Kang is the Champion of Mortal Kombat. Yes, Shang Tsung and Quan Chi defeated Liu Kang and Shang Tsung took his life and soul, but there was no challenge issued, therefore Liu Kang is still the Champion of Mortal Kombat. If you notice in Liu Kang's MKD ending when he comes back together, he's still the Champion of Mortal Kombat despite being killed by Shang Tsung. Also, if you notice Kira's ending, it talks about how Kabal wants to get two more recruits so that he can pit them against one another in Mortal Kombat. So you see, no tournament involved.

wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. I didnt hear anything so far about my two new stories about Quan Chi and Scorpion. What do u all think of my two new stories?

You need to work on your spelling and grammar. Also, you need to learn the storylines and pay attention to the details. You say you know the storyline very well, but you don't, especially if you think Stryker was in MK1.

With Quan Chi's story, like I said before, he's from the Netherrealm. Drahmin and Moloch wouldn't be his allies, because he ditched them in the Netherrealm even though he promised them freedom from it. Also, you don't seem to be aware of where Quan Chi's story left off. If you've ever seen or know about what happens in MKD's intro, you'd know that he was caught in the explosion by Raiden's ethereal blast. Now, some speculate he escaped the last second, but either way, you need to continue the story from there and not start off his story from some arbitrary place and put a boring storyline.

Very good post. That’s how I see Mortal Kombat too.

I might be wrong, but if Im not mistaking the Deadly Alliance didn’t exactly face the 5 warriors at once. Before fighting them I believe the Tarkatans attacked them all. You can see a huge number of dead Tarkatans in MKDs intro, later you can see the 5 warriors lying dead. It looks like the 5 had to battle a wide number of this monsters before reaching the sorcerers, who were obviously in better stamina then the others, so they easily had the upper hand.

Actually, you know what MK reminds me of a lot, the matches at least? Anyone seen the show Xiaolin Showdown? If you understand my signature then you'll know I am a huge fan of kids' cartoons, and this is one of them. Anyway, Mortal Kombat reminds me of the Xialon Showdowns, where one character says to another: "I challenge you to a Xiaolin Showdown" and then the two or more people involved are transported into battle.

Obviously the MK version would involve less cooky level designs and variations on the one-on-one battles (they would just be fighting contests rather than tests of skill), and would just involve one person saying to another: "I challenge you to Mortal Kombat" before the two engage in a battle. But that is basically how I see them; a holy battle fought for honour, power, eternal life, etc. that is the traditional way of getting things done.

Ah yes, I understand what you're saying, and I know what you're referring to. Yeah, you do have a good point there and it does make a lot of sense.

ok im 12 years old i watch the show everyday but what the hell does Xiaolin Showdown have to do with this thread!.....Sorry i lost my temper. its just that people seem to get off the topic of the thread that they'ree posting messages on.

Why don't you actually read Weskerian's post? You haven't done much in terms of putting up bios and the bios you do have make no sense.

oh well you do have good point. im sorry Weskerian. I apologize.

There's no need; MK fandom is a matter of opinion, taking existing plots and evidence and turning it to the storylines that you want to use. There is no right and wrong, just how you interpret the information you have into something you can use. I've only been an MK fan for just over a year now, but as far as plot goes I've thought about a lot. I find the best way to do things is to get all the information you can and then find an angle that you like.

Just as an example: I read in an FAQ that "Drahmin's voice is not what you would expect for such a savage creature", so I made him cultured and rather more sophisticated than the other demons, despite being made of rotten flesh. Why would he be more cultured, you ask? Because he used to be human, something which is actually a canon part of his storyline taken from his concept drawings. I decided not to make him a Warlord though; instead I made him Shinnok's High Priest, so he would have history with Quan Chi, and have a reason to make a deal with him. Quan Chi was also said to have been an Oni at some point, so I had it be that, for serving an evil Elder God, those two were banished to the Netherealm and turned into demons for eternity. Except that when Shinnok came to rule the Netherealm he gave Quan Chi his humanity back and forgot about Drahmin altogether. I set up bitterness and resentment between them, and I've been told it came out great.

Anyway, obviously you need to do something different and original if you want to be appreciated, so I would suggest finding out all you can about Mortal Kombat and THEN formulating your ideas. Think about them from every angle, criticise every point and find a reason for it, and eventually your ideas will be watertight and you can argue plot with the best of them. The best part about it is that your research consists of playing a load of video games.

Quan Chi was born an Oni. He changed sometime after learning sorcery.

O_O

That I never knew. Where did you get this info Zubir?

It's in MKD's Konquest. There's an area in the Netherrealm outside the city walls in which there are a bunch of Oni wandering around and if you find the right one, he says that he knew Quan Chi before he became a sorcerer and that back then, Quan Chi did not look much different from him. Also, I do recall that Quan Chi's MKD trading card bio states that he is from the Netherrealm. In addition, I do remember in Konquest about how the sorcerers there used to be demons, so I think it does make sense that Quan Chi was once an Oni. I guess he wanted to create something for himself, something great as in achieving great power and status thus learning sorcery.

Just because they have a ladder,doesn't make it a tournament.

I think y'all's definition of Mortal Kombat is probably correct and very interesting, and definitely accounts for some of the hanky panky that went on before and after Deadly Alliance. However, it raises some questions: while I've no doubt someone like Kitana or Kung Lao might challenge Shang Tsung to Mortal Kombat, is that true of say... Sonya or Jax? Outside a tournament setting, neither of those two strikes me as the type to make a formal challenge like that as opposed to just busting the other person's ass, particularly when encountered with a member of the Red or Black Dragon.

Why not? Sonya and Jax are both chosen warriors that represent earth in Mortal Kombat. While they don’t have the royal likes of a princess or the wise humanity of a shaolin monk, they both have been through enough battles to actually know what they are doing.

Sonya has practically been involved in every single tournament/kombat and fought along side the other main heroes, and lived long enough to tell the story. Sharing the same experiences with her hero friends, and being still the only chosen female of earth, there is definitely enough power and intelligence in her character to challenge any boss to Mk. She is no princess, but she is tough in spirit, a loyal friend, a deadly weapon (as stated in MKGold prima guide).

As for Jax, while he has been seen only as Sonyas shadow, he too has fought bravely ever since his debut in Mk2. I do agree he seems to be less likely to formally challenge a boss, maybe because he doesn’t look wise, but he has the power. I think Jax was the first human Rayden visited during the events of MKDA, he obviously needed him to win the battle, just like he needed Sonya and Johnny Cage, just like he needed Kung Lao.

Johnny Cage is another good example. He is an underrated warrior because of the whole Hollywood storyline, the supposed cocky attitude doesn’t help much either, but he has just as much (or even more) aptitudes to challenge a boss to Mk then Kitana.

Remember that the chosen warriors were chosen for a reason, any of them could had defeated Tsung in the first tournament, but only 1 could actually grow faster then the other 2 in the maturity required to win the battle, that’s were Sonya and Johnny Cage failed, and Liu Kang succeeded.

I don't think he meant they couldn't beat Shang Tsung or Quan Chi, I think he meant he doesn't seem them being very formal about it...like walking up to them and say "I challenge you to Mortal Kombat."
I think he means, they'd just run up and jump them...which I could see. Sonya's all business. I don't see her bothering with such formality.

On that subject, in regards to the final fight with the Deadly Alliance, I don't think there was any formal challenges thrown around. From the way it was described in Deception, it sounded like the heroes just stormed Shang Tsung's Palace and it was a big melee with the heroes, the Deadly Alliance, a couple dozen Tarkatans and maybe even some of the Dragon King's army.