Rate the Fighter (MK11): Scorpion

Rate the Fighter: Mortal Kombat 11 Edition!

Welcome back to Rate the Fighter: Mortal Kombat 11 Edition. Last time we took a look at one of the most powerful character in the entire franchise, Raiden. Today we'll be looking at the most iconic character in the entire franchise. Let's not waste anymore time and let's get to talking about Scorpion.

Scorpion, Grandmaster of the Shirai Ryu

Scorpion as he appears
in Mortal Kombat 11.

Scorpion aka Hanzo Hasashi, appeared in the original Mortal Kombat all the way back in 1992. If you are someone you know has fond memories of playing the game in the arcades or on their SNES/Genesis, chances are you/they picked Scorpion first before anyone else. Sporting a cool ninja getup, his iconic rope spear, and a fatality that revealed that his mask was covering up a flaming skull for a head, gamers quickly fell in love with the character, essentially making him the mascot of the whole franchise. In Mortal Kombat 11, Scorpion and Sub-Zero, having finally become allies in the previous game, must work together to accomplish their missions given to them to help stop Kronika from erasing time. But when the Scorpion of the past meets with the Scorpion of the future, who will come out on top as the one true Hanzo Hasashi?

Appearance

Given the fact that both alive and undead versions of Scorpion appear in the game's main story mode, it should come as no surprise that he has gain a lot of different skins. His living form, which I'll refer to as "Hanzo Hasashi" from now on, can be modified to either have a hood or not, revealing his hair. His undead form, which I'll call "Klassic Scorpion", is quite the blast from the past. In this undead form of his, his outfits happen to be designed to match his appearance in the first few Mortal Kombat games, complete with a simplistic design to his robes and hood.

An example of one of Scorpion's "Klassic" skins.

This is one of those rare times where I actually can't decide on which version of the character I like more. Both Hanzo Hasashi and Klassic Scorpion have amazing designs, with Hanzo being more complex and Japanese while Klassic Scorpion is simple and a great callback to the past games. Basically, Scorpion's appearance in this game is perfection. 10/10.

Equipment

Scorpion's mask, sword, and iconic spear are all your to customize. Well, after you unlock the items through playing the game, that is. Damn loopholes. Just like before, I will provide a list of my favorite equipment pieces for all the three different items.

Ninja Masks

• Visage of Blazing Anger
• Tachijutsu Master
• Fudoshin Warrior
• Furious Akuma
• Pouncing Tiger
• Grandmaster's Godai Mask
• Kazan Inferno

Katanas

• Dojigiri
• Juzumaru
• Muramasa
• Burning Blade of Netherrealm Rage
• Folded Makuri Katana
• Wariha Tetsu Devil Edge

Spears

• Donryu's Fire
• Fiery Hell Spear of the Mejin
• Flaming Rope Dart of Goko
• Wani's Tail
• Ryujin's Claws
• Revenant's Devil Dart

The developers did an absolutely fantastic job at capturing the Japanese and the history of their ninja ancestors in Scorpion. I'm going to go out on a limb and honestly say that Scorpion has the most beautiful looking gear in the game. My favorite colored gear pieces were the ones that were glowing hot, as they just add onto Scorpion's whole hellfire powers shtick. These equipment pieces deserve a 9/10.

Moveset

Scorpion's special moves make great use of his hellfire and ninja abilities. For instance, his Demon Dash engulfs his body in flames, dashing through the opponent an then grabbing them by the back of their neck, sending them flying with a burst of fire. Misery Blade allows Scorpion the ability to enter a defensive stance and pressing any of the attack buttons will result in him doing a different type of attack. And of course, I'd be doing everybody a great injustice if I didn't mention Spear. This move has been with Scorpion since the beginning and involves him throwing his kunai at his opponent. Should Scorpion manage to snag his target, he'll yank them all the way towards him after yelling out "GET OVER HERE!" or "COME HERE!" For combos, I find myself utilizing the Death Spin move, which ends up hitting multiple times and can be chained into other attacks. The video below goes into great detail about how to pull of some of Scorpion's trickier combos.

Scorpion's moveset gets a perfect 10 outta 10.

Fatalities and Fatal Blow

Just like in the last post, the video below starts off with the fatal blow and then shows the two fatalities.

Fatality #1, You're Next:

• This actually happened to be the first fatality shown off for the game when it was revealed. They made the right call choosing this fatality to show off because holy crap is it good. My favorite part has got to be the opponent's head reacting to the spear being shoved through its mouth. I do find it a little strange though that when Scorpion burns through the opponent, he doesn't burn up their spine, either. Strange. 9/10.

Fatality #2, Chain Reaction:

• A fun, creative fatality that utilizes two of Scorpion's most iconic abilities: his hellfire and his rope spear. 9/10.

Fatal Blow, Get Over Here:

• If it weren't for the fact that Scorpion absolutely destroys the opponent's eyes, this fatal blow would just be average. But because of the fact that he targets the eyes specifically, it hurts to watch, in a good way that is. 8/10.

Closing Thoughts

It should come as no surprise to everyone that the franchise's mascot is an extremely well developed, fun to play as character. Much like Raiden, I feel that this character will be easy to pick up for newer players. At the same time, however, I also feel like he'll be hard to master.

With all that said, I give Scorpion a final rating of 9 out of 10.

Who's Next?

In the next blog post, we'll be taking a look at a character I mentioned earlier in this blog post. He used to be Scorpion's most hated enemy until the two made peace with one another in Mortal Kombat X. Yep, I'm referring to Sub-Zero, the grandmaster of his own clan of assassins.

Stay frosty, everyone!