Originally, Sindel is the deceased mother of Kitana whose husband was killed by Shao Kahn. The way Nightwolf’s character is handled and the added lore left me positive and hopeful for Sindel’s return. At the announcement of their return, I was ecstatic. Cianciolo is credited as the Story Director for Mortal Kombat 11, and thus responsible for the bulk of the plot.Īfter being unplayable in MKX, Sindel returns to the MK11 roster in a Kombat Pack, expansions featuring characters who aren’t present in the main story or are guest fighters from another franchise, such as Nightwolf and the Joker from the DC Universe. Dominic Cianciolo becomes co-writer, alongside Shawn Kittelsen. John Vogel is the lead writer for the franchise since John Tobias’ departure, writing the bulk of the story until he left around after Mortal Kombat X. However, there are some aspects of the game that left a bad taste in my mouth. Another example is Fujin’s ending, where he uses his power to experience the lives of mortals of different races, realms, genders, and faiths, putting emphasis on the value of integrating with the masses in order to understand and serve them better. The subject of race is also explored with Jax’s ending, where he uses the power he obtains from the hourglass to create a world where Black people were never enslaved, which garnered manufactured outrage despite the lack of any real controversy. In the rewrite, Nightwolf is depicted as someone who used to be angry that his people, a fictional Native American tribe called the Matoka, resigned themselves to colonizers in his youth, but was blessed by his tribe’s deity, the Great Spirit, with power to help his tribe move forward after he defended the Matoka’s honor against Kano. I felt good, because minorities like me are respectfully represented.Īs for its sequel, Mortal Kombat 11, there are some noteworthy depictions of real-life social issues in the game, such as colonization, which is explored with Nightwolf’s revamped lore. As a bisexual, an Asian, and a woman, I felt seen. It’s not perfect, but overall, Mortal Kombat X is a breath of fresh air to the franchise. Mortal Kombat X’s female character designs were diverse and realistic too there were some female characters whose designs didn’t show too much skin, like Sonya Blade’s main costume, befitting her role and demeanor as a tough-as-nails general, and there were female characters like Mileena who had more skin in her costumes, justified by her character’s desire to compensate for her monstrous Tarkatan genes. Mortal Kombat is one of the franchises that changed with the times, even introducing their first confirmed gay character Kung Jin in Mortal Kombat X, and depicting classic character Mileena and 3D era character Tanya as lovers in the same game, confirming that Mileena is indeed canonically bisexual. With the years that passed, there had been significant changes in the video game industry, and clamor for better depictions of women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and other minorities. However, seeing female characters such as Sindel gave me characters to identify with in my formative years.Ī decade later, I still am a fan of the franchise, and of those characters. Due to the stereotype that gaming is a masculine interest prevalent during those times, I felt alienated at times, having no other female playmate aside from my younger sister. Especially Sindel, whom I grew to adore because of her regal, gothic appearance. Admittedly I am one of the fans of Mortal Kombat who was late to the party, partly due to my age and inaccessibility of gaming platforms, only discovering Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 in 2010 while playing with my older cousins, who were mostly boys.Įyes fixated on the pixelated, motion-captured sprites on the screen in wonder, I remember being a fan of characters such as Raiden, Nightwolf, and Sindel. It’s also known for its controversial depictions of scantily-clad women however, did this not deter female gamers from becoming fans of the franchise, myself included. Image credit: Game RantĮver since its first release in 1992, the Mortal Kombat franchise is known for its extrem e, action-packed violence and gore that led to the creation of the ESRB. The new Sindel, assassinating King Jerrod alongside Shao Kahn.
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