The STRONGEST Competitive Mortal Kombat Characters Of ALL Time

[@PNDKM]

Soundtrack Used - Dark Rift (PC)

[@Giffsen]

A game with a great soundtrack and that's it lol

[@PNDKM]

@@Giffsen It had cool characters and some interesting lore etc, just mechanically wasn't quite there yet. Really loved it as a kid but it's definitely not aged well :(

[@stevepowers9388]

It would cool to make a video on who is the strongest (damage wise) character in each MK game. Aside from bosses. Or who is the fastest.

[@FelipeSS98]

Thank you for posting the track you used, please do this more!

[@PNDKM]

@@FelipeSS98 Will do! It gets asked about in almost every vid so I thought I'd start doing it.

[@hatefulvengeance]

Reptile in competitive: *One of the most consistently powerful and strongest characters in MK* Reptile in MK lore: *Walking punching bag*

[@RoyArkon]

Reptile is not a punching bag, he beat both Nitara and Cyrax in MKDA story, while other characters never won a single match in any story mode of either timeline.

[@hatefulvengeance]

​@@RoyArkonDon't know about the Cyrax fight, but Nitara deliberately lost in DA, as it was a trap for Reptile to fall to Onaga.

[@RoyArkon]

@@hatefulvengeance It wasn't a trap. Onaga used Reptile the moment he arrived there, it had nothing to do with Nitara. As for Cyrax, that was one of those fights that you win but then lose the cutscene afterwards, the fight itself was still won by Reptile however.

[@pious83]

He is in the Jobber class of Kharacters, like Baraka.

[@mr.raikage164]

​@@pious83 baraka isnt a jobber in any game but 9 he is commonly referred to as a serious threat being one of shao kahns highest ranking generals. They jobbbered him in mk9 and killed him in 10 but he arguably lost to one of the strongest characters in modern mk

[@ThorfinJ]

A competitive history of scorpion and sub-zero and how that classic match up has progressed could be interesting?

[@RocketPower95]

I 2nd this

[@lb3613]

1M subs special maybe?

[@glawrk2861]

Will probably be a monster to research considering they've been in every game in the franchise (except for Scorpion in MK3) but I second this. I'm more than willing to wait a year if necessary.

[@The4thGear]

I agree

[@RazuX5]

@@glawrk2861 Sub-Zero missed a game too it was called MK Special forces even though it was a bad spin off.

[@khanage1344]

These videos are actually getting me back into MK! Haven't played it in a while but I used to love the series as a kid with MK9 and MKX. Keep up the good work, K&M!

[@Stephenc35753]

MK1 comes out in September, join us!!

[@khanage1344]

@@Stephenc35753 if I have money, I'll most likely get MK1. I'm a die hard Marvel vs Capcom fan, and if Capcom can't balance assists to make them fair, there's no way NRS will which makes me excited about the crazy stuff that can happen lmao

[@abbas-aliibnmohammadal-nam929]

Dead genre

[@helloimvon]

Its striker

[@PNDKM]

Sadly he's one of the weakest.

[@MrCutlis]

Wow, spoilers

[@KootenaiKing]

@@PNDKM yes, that was the joke. . . .

[@pyromaniacforhire]

🔫🔫 "Police Brutality comin' up!"

[@J0ulez5]

It's always been striker

[@AzureKite]

I would love now the opposite list, some of the weakest characters in MK history. That should be fun (poor Sheeva and Baraka)

[@hetoverseo3887]

Baraka weak? Lol.

[@ddf168]

@@hetoverseo3887yes

[@juanon_industries7256]

To this day i cant believe that the best version of baraka and sheeva was mka version

[@chiefinasmith]

At least Baraka is S tier in MK1

[@theiceman7590]

Trilogy Baraka is pretty broken

[@pious83]

I like to think Sonya's strength in MK9 was a knowing homage to her status in MK1.

[@MegaZeta]

The funny part about Sonya in the first Mortal Kombat game is that her stealth top-tier/broken status was likely a result of an audience composed almost entirely of teenage boys who were reluctant to pick "the girl one". Certainly almost no one back then realized that Sonya had an infinite combo, and word-of-mouth in arcades was pretty powerful (one common trick people taught each other was slapping a newer joystick to the left so the springs would do Raiden's torpedo for you).

[@derekwilson792]

Yep! And for the easiest acces to scorpions spear (get over here) was the back of the hand! Lol

[@paulmann8570]

@@MegaZetaA Joystick replacement? Now Raider really needs his money.

[@Nhan6241]

It's interesting that Scorpion and Sub Zero have spawned many consistent top-tier characters (Reptile, Smoke, Ermac), as if they always have the recipe for being a top tier, but not always use it.

[@superubergoober]

king crimson fan spotted

[@TheHeisenBuldge]

​@@superubergooberyes

[@gaigeriel]

Love Reptile and I'm glad his competitive viability isnt shafted like he is in the story. Nimble Reptile in MkX is one of my favorite characters to play in any fighting game

[@B1g_B0sssss]

No longer is he shafted in story.

[@gaigeriel]

@@B1g_B0sssss For sure 💪 Such a charming and interesting character now. I would love to see his relationship with Kotal be reignited in the new era

[@Cezkarma]

Awesome vid! Would be intriguing to see a similar vid on the weakest characters in MK history. (Baraka squad) Also, would you ever consider continuing your MK Meta series? I really love those vids. Anyway, great stuff! Love your content creation.

[@Clonekiller66]

Kabal has always been my favorite character :) I love the aesthetic of Kabal. I love the hookswords. I love how FAST he is. He's so cool. And I'm always so happy playing him in any MK Game, because he's always really good. It's great

[@Riderbooker]

I think like the one hit against Kabal I could make was his MK9 default look giving him the weird messy twintails. I just felt like he couldn't really rock the Miku look very well.

[@supersamschwartz]

I love these videos a ton! I kind of feel like one of the other OG characters was missing. King Lao comes to mind with his strong appearances in most games and certainly at the beginning of the life of all the Netherealm games

[@nekotori7043]

Everyone knows the strongest fighter is "kreate a fighter"

[@shanggodaygang8388]

That Jon Style...

[@Zoth87]

Speaking of Competitive History, is there a chance we see a "main" character in it, like Johnny or Scorpion? I understand it would be multiple times more time consuming than most of the characters you already covered, but I would love to see it happen.

[@JaimeAGB-pt4xl]

The 6:39 mark still makes me believe we will eventually get the History of Kompetitive MK2 episode 🥲 Thanks for the great content as always

[@DAGG0]

Man that soundtrack from Dark Rift gave me goosebumps. Great video as Always I hope we are getting all cyber ninjas Back.

[@israel4506]

Looking at all these older mk games makes me want to have a collection for modern consoles with netplay. I'd love to play ultimate mk 3 at home.

[@LloydTheZephyrian]

Instructions unclear, accidentally added more arcade trilogy DLC costumes to the latest MK game.

[@Just.Kidding]

Too bad you'll have to """settle""" for Fightcade

[@philbuttler3427]

I always found the design ethos of Sub Zero and Scorpion to be fascinating cause they're kind of the shotos of the entire series and you can tell what the designers thought would be good and how far the competitive meta has mutated from what they expected based on how well they've stayed competent competitively.

[@asianonboard9695]

Finally, a longform video all about Mokap

[@GymnasticsCoach83]

Binge watching these! Amazing analysis and quality. Thank you.

[@daviddimitrov3696]

I appreciate the Reptile appearance. From what I've heard people tend to think he's weak and he's my favorite character so I like using him

[@enderhx]

Absolutely love this. Great work!🎉🎉🎉

[@jekylwhispy4181]

Ok but what kinda mf ninja can you be if you're smoking all the time? Where'd he go? He's right there. Smells like a camp fire. He's crouching behind that garbage bin see look at all that smoke

[@monasteryfounder]

This sounds like something GSTAR321 would say during a retro-MK playthrough while ranting. Outstanding comment.

[@joshuaadams5295]

I guessed on smoke kabal and sonya but did not think reptile would been there. Great list and video! Human Smoke for MK12! #SmokeGang!

[@chupamafabla77]

This video was AMAZING, i know you did one for the worst characters but those were specific game appearances, it would be super interesting to have one like this one, taking all the appearances of the character, even if you include the ones with less games... Kai cough cough.

[@Jordan13299]

If it wasn’t for MK11 I think Kitana would’ve been up there. 2, UMK3, Gold, 9 and X in all those games she ranges from fantastic to top tier. I presume DA, Armageddon and 11 kinda leave her out of the list

[@ryanchase9332]

She's mid-tier or worse in all 3D playable appearances.

[@AkamexAris1023]

They ruined her in MK 11 😢

[@zzodysseuszz]

@@AkamexAris1023they ruined most characters in mk11. F

[@davidmace4353]

Almost forgot how high quality your guys' videos were somehow. Video couldn't be more well done!

[@thaisennj9781]

It’s the Mortal Kombats we met along the way.

[@osirisatot19]

I hope Smoke comes back, he's a fun character and was one of my mains in MK9.

[@OCDGaming]

I don't even play MK but these videos are my absolute favorite to listen to

[@slyfry101]

I would love to see a video on DLC characters and how they shook up the meta of games when they were introduced!

[@B1g_B0sssss]

There already is one. Though its only on guest characters

[@domidoodoo]

Ngl I was expecting Johnny cage in this video with the amount of times I heard that he’s strong

[@RippahRooJizah]

I got an idea: Most inconsistent (either in tier or playstyle) characters.

[@bloodmarth]

New post during work!!! AWESOME! 😮 😎

[@rileyk5228]

Haven't played MK3 and UMK3 in well over a decade. And still have my combo memorized Jump kick, teleport punch, spear, hp hp, lk, hk, lp

[@toastertubbo]

looking at mkxl and the mk11 immediately after really shows how much that slight camera rotation added to the game

[@SidneyMosley]

When are we gonna get a Liu Kang episode?!

[@camgoodkicks]

THIS ONE GETS IT. This was a fun video but c’mon K&M, just knock out the original MK lineup and be done with it before MK12 hits

[@zSilverEye7]

I'm a Liu fan and I do want a video about his competitive history, but to be honest I prefer the other characters histories than the original characters

[@J-Katz]

i was like hold up is that a dark rift ost and i looked at the comments and was pleased

[@Ape_Man_Trent]

The Sonya Short competitive history makes me want a full vision

[@PNDKM]

It will come! Don't worry.

[@B1g_B0sssss]

​@@PNDKMand it hasn't come yet...

[@ConsarnitTokkori]

at the start of the video "make your guesses! it might even not be kabal!" at the end "it's kabal"

[@temhzz11]

Nice work 🔥 But never forget that Liu Kang Dragon's Fire (from MKX) is the strongest and most complete character in the history of 2D fighting games

[@PNDKM]

Thats just one appearance, which is not what this list was based on!

[@temhzz11]

@@PNDKM Yep exactly i watched all the video & the rules at the begin, its just a reminder 😅 Nice job as usual PND

[@Bruno-gb1gi]

Bro tripping💀 u never played against mk9 cyrax man

[@opo3628]

Yeah, Sonya has *always* been a consistently strong character. Even her very worst incarnations are decent.

[@2ndai385]

I would love a video essay on your MK commentary and how to commentate MK

[@raystinger6261]

Competitive history of Liu Kang? He's the OG protagonist and yet the impression I get is that he always seems not good enough to be top tier and not bad enough to be a joke, so he ends up being completely forgotten.

[@NabaniSaa]

So, if Kabal gets announced for MK12, it be silly to not main him, given his track record.

[@MasterMewtwo239]

Are you going to be making a list of best characters per game, one per game? Basically, I'm challenging you to pick one character per game. Meaning you can, for example, only pick Kabal for UMK3 and no other games.

[@nickdavid1846]

Instantly thought kabal and smoke

[@littlemacisunderrated412]

“Mk9 kabal had zero losing matchups” Kratos:

[@B1g_B0sssss]

Was banned in komp

[@JahlisMan]

great one, as always. here's to hoping one day you'll get to my favourite character of all time, Raiden:)

[@gabrieldemaria117]

I suck at fighting games; the noobiest of noobs, yet I can’t stop watching these videos

[@jerrytee4239]

I like how smoke stayed true to top tier in mk1 too. Sn im so happy baraka is great instead of being secret sauce

[@vox8402]

i know shiva just barely missed this list

[@Omega_Weapon15]

Ngl, watching the clip in the beginning at 0:15 where Mileena's axe kick tracked Raiden's teleport fucking threw me for a loop lmao. Had to pause the video for a sec and reflect on that lol.

[@MKKTeam]

Yay the Soundtrack! ❤

[@kruegerpoolthe13th]

I really hope that if Kabal comes back as a playable character in MK1 they’ll focus more on his rushdown

[@ltsAndys]

Man I love Reptile

[@RoyArkon]

Same here dude

[@B1g_B0sssss]

Me too, expecially his mk1 appearance, man is a sexy, long toungey, hot, handsome reptile whos also a man.

[@lordronn472]

I wish Taekwondo was her staple fighting style from MKA on! Sonya should have been a Taekwondo fighter like Juri from SF or Kim Kaphwan from KOF, that way she would have been more interesting and appealing than with this military weapons and bombs…

[@temp-td2uk]

Ngl Kenshi deserves a mention on this list as well.

[@strato991]

gotta guess either Kabal or Smoke, lets see what the data says lol

[@kalvinsapmaz2869]

It has to be Kabal he’s been solid in ever game if not broken.

[@uigabe5064]

Now he’s back men

[@Felipera_]

putting all my chips on Kabal, Sonya, Kung Lao and Reptile

[@Felipera_]

3/4, I'll take it.

[@psychotroniccity]

Suppose you could consider this vid a compliment to your prior Kabal competitive history. "Yes, we all know that Kabal claims the undisputed #1 spot for the entire franchise, but to better explain why that's the case, here's how other top contenders stack up."

[@starzz7221]

And Kratos was a counter to mk9 kabal but was banned in comp

[@philbuttler3427]

I think a game where Sub or Scorpion are top tier I think are in a generally good place just because it indicates fundamentals are a solid part of the meta versus Kabal mix up/zoning nonsense

[@lb3613]

Depending on exactly how you ask i could easily say Smoke, Kabal or Sonya, but thats the type of question i dont think needs an exact answer, its just interesting and entertaining to see the possible answers

[@sanblue303]

PNDK&M are you going to be at EVO ???

[@PNDKM]

Unconfirmed right now!

[@ComboSmooth]

I used to watch a bunch of competitive MK9, and I very much remember there being a Ketchup (sektor player) and a Mustard (Cyrax player). That must be you guys. jeeez smokes design in armageddon is so ugly. i had forgotten.

[@mr.j0368]

Hope i can see the competitive history in deception soon

[@GanonAutumn777]

The intro music Is there a full version thats a remix of the stage theme its based on?

[@PNDKM]

It was a custom commission, so no full version im afraid!

[@GanonAutumn777]

@@PNDKM ah thats unfortunate ;_; It sounded so good i wanted to hear a full remix in that style

[@xcrackervolleyx]

So when MK players mean reset combos, do they mean the normal “restart the combo when the opponent is caught sleeping” or something else?

[@freerf2459]

It means its guaranteed in most cases. Like Mk9 cyrax could end his combos with an unblockable bomb setup which was impossible to avoid, launching them and reseting the combo.

[@AlmostLakai94]

I've never looked up who was "good" or anything but it's funny that I ended up only being able to beat Shao Khan on 9 with Sonya out of everyone I tried 😂

[@LordRaptor]

Another great honorable mention would be Sareena, such an obscure character that was only playable in 2 MK games (one of which is a handheld port) yet so...freaking...OP! being arguably the strongest character in both of her only playable appearances, perhaps Mavado can be another honorable mention, as he's high tier in DA and I believe top tier in Armageddon.

[@Euro.Patriot]

He sucks in Deadly Alliance, too heavy.

[@LordRaptor]

​@@Euro.Patriot Who sucks in DA, Mavado? clearly you're not very familiar with him, his Hookswords stance is the best weapon stance in the game and what do you mean by heavy? if you're talking speed and evasiveness, Mavado is pretty fast and evasive, he has two special moves that allow him to be very evasive and long ranged attacks that help him play a good keep-away, he's might not be top tier, but he is high tier.

[@Tony-Madisson]

❤ love the content, Mileena is my favorite :)

[@cslack813]

The way you say launcher sounds like you’re saying “lawn chair” Cool video though!

[@TOASTDD]

surely kenshi was on the table for being mentioned at some point right

[@devinfarmer6308]

I hope does a competitive history on Jax

[@DavidPROstoy]

Havik is my favorite, I really want to see him in the new Mortal Kombat 12, as well as the Orange Ninja under the name Neuron...🙏😔

[@thecatplayer9684]

Tremor from mkx,one time i was playing against a tremor player (don't really remember the variation) and i was playing as takeda takeda (shirai ryu variation),he wiped the floor with me by cornering me and using low & overhead hits,and i was barely able to scratch him

[@kylenguyen7371]

While Tremor is certainly strong, he has only ever truly been playable in MKX (and briefly on the PS Vita iteration of MK9 during its expanded challenge tower). He doesn't fit the criteria for this video, as Ketchup lays them out before delving into his list. Additionally, many pro MKX players will tell you that Tremor isn't the best at a competitive level. While he is very strong and damn near defines the competitive meta for MKX/MKXL, characters such as Liu Kang and Kitana are actually much more dangerous to face off against.

[@thecatplayer9684]

@@kylenguyen7371 can you please tell me some names of some pro MKX players? I main takeda,liu kang (flame fist),and scorpion (ninjutsu)

[@kylenguyen7371]

@@thecatplayer9684 while I am subscribed to PND Ketchup & Mustard on both Twitch(dot)TV and KZbin, you can also catch the likes of other Twitch/KZbin personalities: AF0xyGrampa (plays more MK11 these days), DestroyerFGC (hosts MKX events regularly on his channels and has an in-game handle of "StackBossGerson"), UnbearableSkill (streams MKX almost daily on Twitch, and plays host to many other top players). If I recall correctly, DestroyerFGC mains Predator and plays a small handful of others. F0xyGrampa started off MKX as a Kung Lao main, but picked up Mileena and a few other characters over time. UnbearableSkill plays a lot of characters, which includes Tremor; what I first thought was him downplaying Crystalline Tremor was later confirmed by MANY other players who still compete in MKX events. Ninjakilla has one of the best (if not *the best*) Dragon Fire Liu Kang's in the competitive scene; he shows that execution pays off incredibly well in MKXL. RevetLeafing (sp?) Is also a notorious player in the scene. Lastly, Shujinkydink has retired from the competitive scene but remains the "QuanFather" of the Bonehawk Brotherhood; if you ever want to play Quan Chi, he has videos here on KZbin to teach you everything there is to know about the character.

[@thecatplayer9684]

@@kylenguyen7371 thanks for this comment man

[@kylenguyen7371]

@@thecatplayer9684 you are most welcome!

[@luci0rullz]

Awesome stuff as always. Stay awesome :>

[@vt_973]

folks, it's syzoth saturday

[@ztv1990]

Great video and why does History Behind the Warrior tries so hard to sound like you

[@Euro.Patriot]

Shang Tsung was really good in Deadly Alliance, IX and XI.

[@Euro.Patriot]

@SupaChef DMoney I never played MK2 higher than casual, haven't beaten a single ladder from a combo of the horrible ai and horrible controls.

[@Euro.Patriot]

@SupaChef DMoney I never got up to him, I have MK2 on PS3.

[@hugosenshida999]

I am the strongest character You just haven't unlocked me, you got to unlock me on the krypt by: >Watching ermac die >give 9999999999999 koins to that coin god, he will give you a talisman >revive ermac >he will follow you to face hornbuckle >You must double flawless him with only low pokes and hit 5 flawless blocks Then you can fight me

[@MaskedGuyCh]

Oh yay another Kabal video. God this character bores me to no end...

[@MrTravyTrav]

Before I watch the video or look at the comments, my guess is Kabal. Edit: Great video as always :)

[@elegantzoom5486]

We all actually know it’s meat

[@StarCharger28]

Nice list fella! IMO, Kitana absolutely deserves to be an hm at least. MK2 & UMK3: top tier. MK Gold: aight. 3D era was tame for her to say the least. But MK9 & MKXL: she was MUSTARD! MK11 is where she tailspins downward though. Ermac, Cyrax, Sektor, Kenshi, Raiden, & Scorpion also have great competitive histories too.

[@PNDKM]

It's actually why she wasn't a mention, she's been top tier in some cases but has had a few not so great ones, so the inconsistency makes it hard to list her. Similar to mileena actually. One correction though, MK Gold Kitana was INSANE

[@StarCharger28]

@@PNDKM fair enough. I just figured the times she was Viable/strong af (MK2, UMK3, MK Trilogy, MK Gold, MK9, & MKXL) would have offset her meh years. Perhaps if MK DA, MK A, MK vs DC, & MK11 didn’t do her so dirty, she would have made the cut lol.

[@wolfieboy4452]

NRS fumbled Sonya in MK11 when they got rid of her acrobatics

[@samuelsabourin342]

Unrelated to the video but whatever happened to mk9’s battle damage mechanic it added a sense of immersion to me and was just cool seeing chunks of skin and clothing being ripped off as you take damage but now all we have is bloodstains. Now I don’t have mk1 yet because I’m waiting for the premium version to go on sale for switch I don’t know if it returned or not and if anyone is playing mk1 on switch is it as bad as people say because my brother says it crashes often, graphics suck, takes up too much space and supposedly people have had their switch catch on fire. Or is it like a security breach situation where it works fine. I want to ask the community because my brother is just biased towards the ps5

[@EdTheCreator]

I always wanted to know Jax’s competitive history. I feel like i always gravity towards him, Johnny, and Sonya every game but he’s always my first pick.

[@pauliusgecas472]

lol, protruding strings of a thong trend was a thing even in MK (Sonya)

[@justrandomstuff6828]

I feel like Triborg (Smoke) is a bit slept on, first time i played against him with a character i was good at, i got absolutely destroyed, gave him a try, he's very intuitive and mix ups for days, he's a bit unfair, i truly think he's THE best

[@eternal327]

>I will add only long running franchise characters >Drahmin

[@B1g_B0sssss]

That was honorable mention... U know, specificaly for those who were strong but had few appearances?

[@thatoneguy1232]

Gee I wonder if MK11 Sonya would have been stronger if she had REAL Sonya’s moves. Imagine the leg grab, cartwheel, arc kick, bike kick, kiss stun.

[@pcutta24]

I am just guessing Sonya number 1 before looking

[@Magus1213]

Hey Ketchup, where’s Mustard?

[@guikfm2744]

Its Kabal, just, Kabal.

[@beefpiston5824]

The real question is who we WANT to be number one...which is obviously Hsu Hao