This article is a criticism on the MOST RECENT iteration of this character. I will be referencing the older timeline to help branch this characters options for the future, but will mainly be sticking to material from MK9 ONWARD.
Preface
Fighting games in modern times are a true spectacle. From Jimmy’s GameCube to the Jumbo-tron at EVO, fighting games hold a very special place in the hearts of both players and spectators. Mortal Kombat is no exception to this. As the source of past controversy for its especially gruesome gameplay, as well as crafting an intriguing story, Mortal Kombat stuck out as one of the most revolutionary fighting titles in video game history. That said, with the recent release of Mortal Kombat 11, NetherRealm Studios had some work to do in order to keep the fans interested. Needless to say, when it came to a certain character, there was more to be desired.
Background
769–342. If you know this code and what it represents — and if you read the title — you know exactly who I am referring to. Noob Saibot is a returning fighter in Mortal Kombat 11, and has been a personal favorite for me since finding about him in Mortal Kombat 4 GOLD on my Sega Dreamcast. The mysterious ninja piqued my interest, and I could not bring myself to even try playing any other character after discovering him. Not all good things last forever, though; I eventually grew out of my Dreamcast and forgot all about MK, leaving Noob behind me. I picked up the Mortal Kombat franchise again back in 2011 with the release of Mortal Kombat (a.k.a. Mortal Kombat 9) and was delightfully surprised to see Noob on the roster. It was not just seeing him on the roster that made me giddy, it was hearing Jamieson Price deliver such an incredible performance on him as well. The way Noob looked, sounded and fought; it was amazing. I had regained my love for the franchise, and could not wait to hop back into it. In hindsight, I feel like I should have stayed away, because seeing how everything with Noob turned out just makes me disappointed.
Lore
The lore of Mortal Kombat is a very convoluted mass of missed opportunities and wasted potential, with some good things sprinkled here and there. To be perfectly blunt, Mortal Kombat as of late has been having a bit of a lore crisis and from the looks of how they did the story in Mortal Kombat 11, it does not look like it will be fixed anytime soon. MK9 sought to try and reboot the original MK1 through 3 story in 2011, giving a fresh perspective on an old story, and thus created the new timeline. Noob Saibot kept the same story up to this point, but it still is a lot to tell. I have included a video to watch if you are unfamiliar with his origin. If you are confident in your knowledge, please continue.
Finished? Wonderful. Let’s get right back to it.
Mortal Kombat 11
As previously mentioned, Noob Saibot made a return to the roster in MK11, and has certainly made a splash with his spectacular redesign, hoard of skins and gear, flashy intros, and of course, visceral fatalities. While I did not agree with the voice performed by Sean Chiplock at first, it grew on me given the context of Bi-Han’s “death” in MK9. Even though he looks amazing, the story paints a different picture. Kronika, the “big bad” this time around, employs the service of characters from both the current and past timelines, promising them power and authority in the “New Era”. Bi-Han, freed from Quan-Chi’s control after Hanzo Hasashi (Scorpion) beheaded him, decides to look into her offer. The player learns that Bi-Han is promised a new and deadly clan to lead in the New Era. After that, he is swiftly dealt with by either Scorpion or Sub-Zero. Bi-Han makes an escape, without any sort of extra dialog after the fight. I figured he would be back relatively soon, considering it was only 1 (one) loss. The next and final time Bi-Han showed up was just to be beaten by either young Jax or Jacqui. That’s it. A character that was unjustly killed, enslaved, corrupted, killed AGAIN, and then freed was nothing more than a basic minion. What about his encounter with Scorpion? What about the obvious stupidity in Kronika’s logic? What about trying to find recognition? What about attempting to reclaim the honor he lost in life?
Wasted Potential
Noob Saibot is a typical case of wasted potential. He is not the only character to be put in this position, and will certainly not be the last. Seeing as he is my favorite character, I took this personally, and decided to take a look at what exactly NetherRealm Studios did wrong, and what they could have changed.
- Powers and abilities: Noob Saibot has complete control over darkness, which supplies him with portals, clones, energy balls and more. He is a threat that can clone himself, teleport, displace his enemies at will and survived Shang Tsung’s strongest magic spell; on top of this, he is an experienced assassin and proficient with a myriad of weapons. How was he bested by a teenager?
- Motivation: With the established fact that he is unkillable, very dangerous, and apparently freed from all sort of control, why is his first instinct to blindly follow a leader with empty promises? Can he put together that once time is restarted, he will need to face the same fate again in order to exist; and that it is a bit preposterous for Kronika to fulfill the promises to those whom seek to control the new timeline?
- Absence: What happened in the time between his initial freedom and Kronika’s recruitment? Even if we had an answer to that, and he still played out the same way in the story, why would you bring back a dead character to have absolutely nothing interesting happen with them? It is cool that he was brought back, but the only thing he contributed was an unhealthy amount of narcissism and black clothing.
- Personality: In some of the intro dialogues, Bi-Han has these moments where he’ll seem to speak genuinely to some capacity. “Were we always enemies?” “Kuai Liang was a fool to trust you.” “Death is the coldest ice.” “I was killed unjustly.” “Not willingly.” These moments feel special because every other time Bi-Han speaks, it is usually to say how evil he is, how he is perfect, or something-or-other about the endless abyss. It feels like NetherRealm Studios sacrificed Bi-Han being an interesting character for the kicks of making him a really minor inconvenience.
Going Forward
Bi-Han and the story of Noob Saibot is far too interesting to be left where it is. Despite the fact Noob is not a main or relevant character, he is an absolute fan favorite and is named directly after two of the biggest minds behind Mortal Kombat. It would be such a shame to see him taken down a similar path in the next game he is in, especially when Mortal Kombat 11’s ending was so open-ended. I honestly think that NetherRealm should take a second to look at Bi-Han and his character arc; at this point, it should feel like a change is needed. If not a change, then resolution. I want to feel like Noob was brought back for a purpose not shown in Mortal Kombat 11, and that whatever follows will finally bring peace to those that wrote him, and those that enjoy him. All things considered, I love playing and customizing my very own Noob Saibot in Mortal Kombat 11, and cannot wait to see what other content NetherRealm Studios has for him in the coming years.
