Rain has been confirmed not to be in MKX.

So all the others... except Tremor.

I think Ermac is the most likely to return.

Slim chance of rain, possible eathquake alert.

Ermac and Nub are the only ones I need.

Ermac and Reptile I guess, but, they are not actually "ninjas" though.

"Ground rumbles"
"Ground breaks open"
"Gravel takes on a form"
"Oh look, it's...."
Tremor!

The only one I would bet my ass on is Ermac. As for the rest of them, in order of who I think is more likely to return:

1.Reptile - One of the most iconic ones. If they manage to flesh his story out a bit, I can see him returning.
2.Smoke - If he returns, it's gonna be because of how popular he became after MK9.
3.Noob - Don't think he will return in MKX but is still more likely than Rain & Tremor
4.Rain - Stopped hoping for him after Boon's interview. If you asked me a few weeks ago, I would place him 2nd. But it seems MK seems to hate my fav characters.
5.Tremor - I can't see him making an appearance really

Reptile: Sure, as long as he is in lizard form. Boon mentioned "cousins", so if we don't get Reptile, could we possibly see Komodai?

Ermac: He is a must!

Noob: Not sure about his where abouts or if he survived the soulnado.

Smoke: Yes, but, only as cyborg or demon (MK9 ending).

Rain: confirmed not to be in MKX, but, Boon can be trolling hardcore.

Tremor: I'll give him 50% chance of being in the main roster as an unlockable.

I am so happy you posted this topic!

Lets break it down:

Reptile- I believe has a solid chance. He has been in nearly every game (minus deception). He is considered an icon. That being said, NRS clearly showed little to no love with him in mk9; story-wise. He is expandable at this point, however he is among the surviving members.

My guess: IN main Roster

Ermac- Has a solid chance of returning with high fan support emerging with one of the best character designs in the franchise. He has successfully transformed away from his palette swap days.

My guess: IN

Noob- intriguing story, combined with an emergence of one of the most original moveset abilities in mk9 makes a strong case for Noob. However story elements may prevent/suspend his inclusion in mkx. Hopefully whether he is playable or not we receive answers as to his ultimate fate in the soulnado.

My guess: DLC

Smoke- NRS showed love for human smoke this time around, would be surprised if they did so just to let him rot in the netherrealm. They added possible story elements to his ending pointing to a possible demon enenra form mixed with his human form not yet seen in the franchise. Would be very cool to explore.

My guess: DLC

Rain- Showed little love beyond a DLC cameo. Character design is outstanding; story line is dwindling with no reassurance from mk9 besides confirming his god ancestry and thirst for power. This combined with recent Boon comments Rain's chances have fared better.

My guess: OUT

Tremor- Strong fan base and support. A recent petition for his inclusion has been circulating and already been quipped upon by Ed Boon. MKX serves as the perfect platform for his revamped unveiling. Thought to have an immense potential for gripping move-sets by fans and with little done in the past to flesh out these possibilities; he is the perfect candidate for 3 variations. All of this along with a throw-of-a-bone in his direction in the PS Vita version of MK9 things are looking up for Tremor.

My guess: IN

Possible new 9th male ninja: We are long past the days of palette swapped digitized male ninja characters. However I believe we will see a masked male warrior amongst the new roster.

I feel upset about Rain not coming back.

Reptile: If Reptile doesn't make it, at least maybe a new saurian warrior to take his place. Perhaps any way to have a warrior mixed with lizards & dinosaurs?

Ermac: Hope he returns as King Jerrod takes over.

Noob Saibot: Maybe he'll return in MKXI

Smoke: I hope his enenra powers are true if he comes back from the grave.

Reptiles back round is a mix of dinosaur/lizard. MKDA bring back memories?

That would be interesting.. hmm

Reptile is beloved because of his status as the first hidden MK character. So, there is big chance that he'll return. Besides, I have a feeling NRS have a soft spot for him, much like for Baraka and Kano, who otherwise not really note-worthy, aside from being "classics".

Smoke is dead and useless.

Ermac is a recent fanfavorite and I'd be really surprised if he would be ignored. After MK9 revelation about him (partially) being Jerrod, I think it would be strange if he is absent from the game.

Rain...basically deconfirmed.

Noob Saibot is dead. Much like Smoke he had his time to shine in MK9 and that's enough. Besides, some of his tricks have been given to Scorpion, so yeah...

Chameleon...who?

Reptile and Ermac I can see. Noob and Smoke will be DLC most likely. Rain was deconfirmed. Tremor lolnothappening.

I just noticed Noob has made a appearance in all of the MK games(excluding MK vs DC). :c

No, there's not going to be a reject from the MK cartoon (Komodai) in the game.

Plus, we could do without Noob for a game or two. IMO, of course.
And if Tremor is included then Boon has truly run out of ideas.

Hopefully Reptile and Smoke, at most.

But i'm expecting Ermac, unfortunately.

LOL at anyone who expected Rain to be in the game

Goodnight, sweet prince...

I wonder how Ahnka feels about this

Does it matter? My relief over it's noninclusion or his sorrow is equally worthless.

The only victory here is that a new slot opened up for a potential new character which is -statistically- better than Rain.

Not that I disagree with you, but I'm curious about your usage of the word "statistically".

Classic Chrome

I'm fine Whopper. It's disappointing of course to have your favorite character ousted (and have people rejoice in your sadness) but oh well, it happens. *shrug* He got treated well in MK9, gained a new following of fans, and kicked all around ass in that game so I'm satisfied for now.

There are still a lot of other characters I'm campaigning hard for. Definitely supporting my fellow Mileena/Ermac/Reptile brothers and sisters!

This game would feel weird to me with Reptile and Mileena especially not in it.

It basically means "according to his opinion".

It basically means that from MK4 onward every character has an identifiably larger information content than previous newcomers - conitained in either name, garbs, clothing, design, story, coloring etc. Allow me to demonstrate:


Jarek: basically nothing is identifiable from him other than being male, human and black dragon due to the sign on his jacket's back.


Moloch: Oni, because:

-specifically referred to as a demon from the Netherrealm. An Oni is a Japanese supernatural ogre, a brute.

- colored blue, while Drahmin is red. Japanese provberbs state that two onis are in pairs blue and red. This refers to their difference in behaviour, but both are savage rowdy creatures at the base.

-Moloch: name. Canaanite deity often referred to as a demon in post-Christianity medieval lore. The expression of Moloch of War refers to the imminent threat of abuse, war and tragedy. Those are exactly what Moloch represents - > blind devastation.

- his owl in the concept art further reinforces the canaanite demon origin.

Everything else is furhter reinforced in the backstory, basically building on the preestablished information gained out from looking at the damn thing. This is an indicator of research. The same way you can get the idea that
Kotal Khan is an mayincatec mixture of South and Central American animism and religion, therefore blood, sun and obsidian weaponry.

You cannot do this with characters from MK4. What information can you get out of Reiko for example by simply analyzing anything else without looking at what his bio states? That character required ZERO creative workout compared to researched characters or something so phantasmagoric, that there are no references beforehand.

TLDR, In other words, MK4 charaters were mostly lazy design-wise.

I think you need to look up the definition of statistically