Mortal Kombat is known for its bloody fatalities, and for its amazing roster of kombatants. Here is a list of the most popular characters in the Mortal Kombat franchise.
15. Smoke
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Smoke’s chapter in Mortal Kombat 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSNColaHeS8
Let’s start things off with someone who debuted as a secret character in Mortal Kombat 2. Smoke is a ninja who was part of the Lin Kuei; he has the power of smoke (as his name suggests). A lot of people like him because he looks cool, his moveset is cool, has an interesting backstory, and probably his secret nature (in Mortal Kombat 2, and Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 in his human ninja form) helps make him intriguing.
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Figure 1 Smoke being confronted by Sektor in Mortal Kombat 2011.
As mentioned, his first appearance was in Mortal Kombat 2 as a secret ninja character. In Mortal Kombat 3, he became a cyborg and has, since then, fought on both the evil side and the good side. He will fight on the side of evil if he is programmed, but when he isn’t programmed to be a certain way and he has free thought, he fights alongside Earthrealm warriors. In Mortal Kombat Armageddon, he fights with Earthrealm against the bad guys.
Fun Facts about Smoke
Even though he has been around since Mortal Kombat 2, his special moves consist of Scorpion’s moves (as a ninja) or robot-like moves (as a cyborg); it wasn’t until Mortal Kombat Deception that he finally got special moves using smoke.
Smoke was the first unlockable character of any Mortal Kombat game in Mortal Kombat 3 as a playable cyborg.
14. Jax
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Both past and present Jax save Jacqui’s life in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zx5uj5qK7S0
At 14th place is the military officer Jax. In the games, he is part of the special forces and is Sonya’s superior. Throughout the series, he fights alongside Earthrealm’s warriors to fight against the forces of Outworld. People like him for being a strong fighter and that he looks cool with robotic arms.
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Figure 2 Jax is about to fight Kano in Mortal Kombat 11.
Being one of Earthrealm’s strongest warriors, he has protected Earthrealm and even made formerly evil warriors into good guys. The character I’m talking about is Cyrax. In Mortal Kombat 4 Gold, Jax, and Sonya helped turned Cyrax into a good guy.
Fun Facts about Jax
In the original timeline, it is unknown why Jax got his mechanical arms in the first place. However, in the current timeline, it shows that he got his mechanical arms after his arms were destroyed by Ermac.
During the development of Mortal Kombat 2, Jax was going to be a kickboxer. However, the idea was scrapped since the developers felt that it would make him too similar to Street Fighter characters such as Deejay and Sagat.
13. Shao Kahn
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Shao Kahn killing Kotal Kahn in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La3Q41zDsTc
The ruthless yet iconic ruler of Outworld marks his spot in 13th place. He was the main antagonist of Mortal 2, 3, Shaolin Monks, and Mortal Kombat 2011. The reason he is popular is due to the fact that he was the final boss in some of the most popular Mortal Kombat games and that people think he is a cool villain.
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Figure 3 Shao Kahn about to fight Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 11.
He relied on his Outworld warriors to win the Mortal Kombat tournaments, so he could invade and conquer Earthrealm. After Liu Kang won against Shang Tsung in the first Mortal Kombat game, Shao Kahn decided to take things into his own hands and host a tournament in Outworld in Mortal Kombat 2. He ultimately wants to conquer all realms that exist. In the original timeline, he won the Battle of Armageddon and became the most powerful warrior in all of existence… until Raiden reset the timeline.
Fun Facts about Shao Kahn
Shao Kahn does not have an animality in the games. However, in the movie Mortal Kombat Annihilation, Shao Kahn can transform into a hydra with five heads.
Shao Kahn’s helmet is actually based on a samurai helmet.
12. Kung Lao
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Kung Lao, with Liu Kang, fighting Scorpion in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJdBevZUD7E
In 12th place is the hat-wielding warrior, Kung Lao. He is a former shaolin monk, and he is part of the White Lotus Society. He is also a close friend of Liu Kang and works with him to protect Earthrealm. He is a popular character due to him being a great character and him using his sharp hat as a weapon.
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Figure 4 Kung Lao, and Liu Kang, being confronted by Scorpion in Mortal Kombat 11.
While he does protect Earthrealm when the time calls for it, he also likes to be on his own in peace. Given that this is Mortal Kombat, he rarely gets the opportunity to do so. In Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, he teams up with Raiden to defeat Shang Tsung and Quan Chi to avenge Liu Kang and defend Earthrealm. In Mortal Kombat 11, he teams up with Liu Kang and Raiden to defeat the titaness Kronika.
Fun Facts about Kung Lao
In Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, his default costume is him without the hat on his head, but on his back. However, in the GBA version of the same game, his default costume is his classic Mortal Kombat attire where he wears his hat.
Kung Lao is one of the main two characters in Mortal Kombat Shaolin Monks alongside Liu Kang.
11. Noob Saibot
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Link to Noob Saibot’s fight against Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAqq0HSXjSI
Sitting in 11th place is the Netherrealm demon, Noob Saibot. His real name is Bi Han; he is the older brother of Sub-Zero (named Kuai Liang) and he is the original Sub-Zero before he was killed by Scorpion in the first Mortal Kombat. He was then resurrected as a demon by Quan Chi and has served the villains of the franchise since. People like him for being a character with an interesting backstory, amazing powers, and him looking cool and menacing.
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Figure 5 Noob Saibot showing himself after attacking Scorpion in Mortal Kombat 11.
As mentioned, he was the original Sub-Zero in MK1, but became Noob Saibot afterward. In Mortal Kombat Deception, he found Smoke (as a cyborg) and reprogrammed him to be his ally. In Mortal Kombat Armageddon, he fought on the side of evil against Earthrealm’s warriors.
Fun Facts
Noob Saibot’s name is the last name of both Ed Boon and John Tobias spelled backward.
Noob Saibot, as the original Sub-Zero, was the main character in Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero. However, the game got poor reviews.
10. Baraka
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Baraka deciding to team up with Kitana in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkJtxYkQ7D8
In 10th place is the vicious warrior with arm blades, Baraka. He is from Outworld and is part of a race of nomadic monsters called the Tarkatans. He, and other Tarkatans, serve Shao Kahn and other forces from Outworld. His blade arms, special moves, and his intimidating look help make him a popular character amongst fans.
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Figure 6 Baraka doing a fatality on Kitana in Mortal Kombat 11.
Not only is Baraka a Tarkatan, but he is the leader of his respective race. He has usually fought on Shao Kahn’s side throughout most of the series, but he will fight alongside the force of good if it benefits his people. In Mortal Kombat 11, Kitana convinced Baraka to join her side to unite Outworld.
Fun Facts
Baraka’s face, in Mortal Kombat 2, was a modified Nosferatu mask.
Before his appearance in Mortal Kombat Deception, fans believed that Baraka was dead due to his ending in Mortal Kombat Gold. However, his ending in Mortal Kombat Gold was not canonical, and Baraka was put in Mortal Kombat Deception as a playable character.
9. Sonya Blade
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Link to Sonya fighting and killing both past and present Kano in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Frtv4TtfHXc
Sonya is the original female character in Mortal Kombat because she was the only playable female character in the first game. She is part of the special forces that protect Earthrealm and is in constant conflict with a criminal organization called the Black Dragon. Her being a badass soldier, with amazing powers, has made her popular.
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Figure 7 Sonya about to fight both past and present Kano in Mortal Kombat 11.
Sonya started off tracking down Kano (the leader of the Black Dragon) to Shang Tsung’s island in Mortal Kombat 1. Afterward, she has become one of Earthrealm’s strongest warriors since she regularly fights Outworld’s warriors. She also eventually has a daughter with Johnny Cage named Cassie.
Fun Facts about Sonya
Originally, Sonya was going to be a male character in Mortal Kombat 1 but was changed into a female to add a female character.
Sonya was named after one of Ed Boon’s sisters.
8. Ermac
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Fun fight between Ermac and Scorpion in Mortal Kombat X (showing off Ermac’s abilities): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDC5EbsaE-Q
Ermac is a warrior with powerful telekinesis powers who made his first appearance as an unlockable character in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. People love Ermac since they see him (or them) as a cool, mysterious, and powerful red ninja character.
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Figure 8 Ermac doing a fatality on Kotal Kahn in Mortal Kombat X.
Ermac is actually a warrior who is created with the souls of many powerful warriors; because of this, Ermac refers to himself as “we”. In the original timeline, Ermac served the forces of Outworld but eventually turned to the side of good in Mortal Kombat Deception after Kenshi freed him from Shao Kahn’s influence. In Mortal Kombat Deception, Ermac helps free the souls of warriors (including characters like Kitana and Sonya) from Onaga’s control.
Fun Facts about Ermac
The developers created Ermac, for Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, after rumors about him existing in the first two games as a red palette swap of Scorpion.
In Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, his skin tone is darker than other ninja characters. However, in Mortal Kombat Trilogy, his default skin tone is lighter thus matching other ninja characters.
7. Kitana
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Kitana becoming Outworld’s new ruler in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObWm9VqtMEI
Kitana is the fan-wielding princess of Edenia who has been in the series since Mortal Kombat 2. She is another iconic character due to her being a powerful and compassionate warrior who fights with her fans. Not only is she the Edenian princess, but she is also Shao Kahn’s stepdaughter.
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Figure 9 Kitana, and her army, attacking Shao Kahn and his forces in Mortal Kombat 11.
Despite being Shao Kahn’s stepdaughter, Kitana understands that Shao Kahn is evil, so she sides with Earthrealm and fights Outworld throughout the series. In Mortal Kombat 11, she leads an army to save Kotal Kahn and unite Outworld. She ends up becoming Outworld’s ruler after Kotal Kahn decided to concede the throne to her.
Fun Facts about Kitana
Ed Boon describes Kitana’s rivalry with Mileena as being the female equivalent of Scorpion and Sub-Zero.
In Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, Kitana’s default costume is her typical blue ninja-like attire. However, in the Game Boy Advance version, Kitana’s attire is her alternative unmasked costume from the PlayStation 2 version.
6. Johnny Cage
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Johnny Cage fighting Scorpion in the Mortal Kombat 1995 film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dz0YU0jJr4
Unlike other characters who are ninjas or soldiers or monsters, Johnny Cage is just an actor (although a struggling one). Fans love Johnny Cage as being a unique character (with him being an actor) who is cocky and funny and has iconic moves such as his shadow kick.
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Figure 10 Johnny Cage about to fight D'Vorah in Mortal Kombat 11.
In the series, he begins by going to the Mortal Kombat tournament (in Mortal Kombat 1) to prove his martial arts skills and to help with his acting career. However, he would go on to actually be one of Earthrealm’s most powerful warriors. Johnny Cage even went on to have a powerful daughter with Sonya Blade named Cassie Cage.
Fun Facts about Johnny Cage
In Mortal Kombat 1, Johnny Cage’s appearance is based on the main character of a 1988 movie called Bloodsport.
Although he is an action movie actor, Johnny Cage has actually been in Western films based on his conversation with Erron Black in Mortal Kombat X.
5. Reptile
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Reptile’s iconic fight with Liu Kang in the 1995 Mortal Kombat film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJOJTsmJLLA
Starting off in 5th place is the humanoid reptilian ninja, Reptile. He is part of a species of humanoid raptors that originated in Earthrealm but left for another realm and made it their home. His species’ new home would eventually be invaded by Shao Kahn which resulted in the enslavement and killing of his kind leaving Reptile as one of the last remaining raptors. He serves Shao Kahn and other villains in the hope that his species would be resurrected.
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Figure 11 Reptile doing his iconic acid spit on Kung Lao in Mortal Kombat X.
People like him for being this mysterious green ninja with an interesting yet sad backstory. His special moves such as his acid spit and invisibility are some of the more iconic special moves in Mortal Kombat. As mentioned before, he serves the bad guys and is usually screwed over. In Mortal Kombat Deception, his body is used as a host to bring back Onaga, the dragon king.
Fun Facts about Reptile
Reptile started off, in the series, as a humanoid ninja. As the series went on, his appearance became more reptilian. This is because he has been away from others in his species which caused him to degenerate both physically and mentally.
In his appearance in the first two games, he bled red blood like other characters. In Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, he began bleeding green blood to reference him being reptilian.
4. Liu Kang
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Liu Kang final confrontation with Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFZk_JtDW8g
The 4th most popular character is the champion of Mortal Kombat, Liu Kang. He is a popular character due to him being a powerful and compassionate warrior with iconic moves such as his bicycle kick.
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Figure 12 Liu Kang (as a fire god) facing off against Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 11.
In the first 4 games, he was the one who always fought and defeated the main villains. He defeated Shang Tsung, Shao Khan twice, and Shinnok. While the following games focused on other protagonists, he eventually became the lead hero once more in Mortal Kombat 11 where he became Fire God Liu Kang and defeated Kronika and Shang Tsung.
Fun Facts about Liu Kang
He was originally going to be named Yoshitsune Minamoto but was changed to Liu Kang since the developers wanted him to have a shorter name that was easier to pronounce. Yoshitsune Minamoto was a real samurai who was part of the historic Japanese Minamoto clan; the developers may have also wanted to avoid putting in real life people in Mortal Kombat, so they changed the name of the character.
There is a real-life wrestler called Human Tornado who has a kick called the “Liu Kang Kick”.
3. Raiden
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Raiden fighting and killing Shao Kahn in Mortal Kombat 2011: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wSB4BH4nwY
Even more popular than Liu Kang is Raiden, the god of thunder. He acts as a leader and mentor to Earthrealm’s warriors but can be ruthless towards his enemies as corrupted Raiden. He is one of the most iconic characters due to him being an amazing lightning god with iconic moves such as his Thunder Fly move where he flies across the stage.
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Figure 13 Raiden fighting Shao Kahn in Mortal Kombat 2.
He has fought many powerful foes throughout the series including Shang Tsung, Quan Chi, and Shao Kahn. His biggest achievement was in Mortal Kombat 2011 when he reset the timeline and defeated and killed Shao Kahn thus saving Earthrealm.
Fun Facts about Raiden
Raiden’s name is pronounced as “Rayden” by the games and the players. However, the actual Japanese pronunciation of the name is “Ryden”.
In Mortal Kombat Annihilation, Raiden was actually going to have an extensive fight with Sheevah. This was changed to him fighting two reptiles. It is unknown why they changed it.
2. Sub-Zero (mainly Kuai Liang)
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Sub-Zero working with Scorpion to infiltrate a cyborg factory in Mortal Kombat 11: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-21uvs1nfeE
The iconic blue cryomancer ninja, Sub-Zero is the second most popular character from Mortal Kombat. He is one of the few characters who appeared in every main Mortal Kombat game since the first game. People love him as being this powerful ninja with ice powers.
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Figure 14 Sub-Zero confronting Noob Saibot in Mortal Kombat 11.
There are two Sub-Zeros in the series. The first one was Bi-Han who was killed in the first game by Scorpion, and then became Noob Saibot afterward. Bi-Han’s younger brother Kuai Liang is the second and current Sub-Zero. Kuai Liang goes on to become one of Earthrealm’s strongest warriors. He went on to become the grandmaster of the Lin Kuei and he has even successfully defended Earthrealm from Kotal Kahn’s army in Mortal Kombat X.
Fun Facts about Sub-Zero
Kuai Liang originally called himself Tundra, but changed his codename to Sub-Zero to honor his older brother Bi Han after Bi Han was killed by Scorpion.
Despite Sub-Zero being of Chinese ethnicity, he has a sword in Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance, Deception, and Armageddon called the “Kori Blade”. Kori is the Japanese term for ice.
1. Scorpion
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Scorpion fighting Quan Chi to avenge his clan and family in Mortal Kombat X: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-wT2Gs3IDo
The most popular character in all of Mortal Kombat is the yellow ninja spectre, Scorpion. Just like Sub-Zero, Scorpion has been around since the first Mortal Kombat game. Fans see him as a cool yellow-colored demonic ninja with iconic moves such as his spear move where he pulls in an opponent as he yells “get over here!”.
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Figure 15 Scorpion confronting Quan Chi in Mortal Kombat X.
Throughout the series, he usually is to himself and doesn’t work with anyone, but he has occasionally worked for the forces of evil at times. However, in the current timeline, he was turned back into a human and has fought for Earthrealm since and even became close allies with Sub-Zero (Kuai Liang).
Fun Facts about Scorpion
Scorpion’s iconic “get over here!” line is voiced by no other than Ed Boon himself.
In the Game Boy Advance game Mortal Kombat Advance, Scorpion would always be the first character that the player fights.
Scorpion is Ed Boon’s favorite Mortal Kombat character.
