Meat (Mortal Kombat)
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Meat is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series.
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[edit] About Meat
Originally introduced as a bloody skeleton without a canonical story in Mortal Kombat 4 and Mortal Kombat Gold (see Character development), Meat is a human-like being that possesses a genetically-altered composition. He made his first official appearance as a fighter in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon with a more muscular physique, depicted as a person that only has skinless human flesh with one of his eyes hanging out of its socket and blood constantly flowing down his body.[2] This appears in the same amount as the blood in the rest of the game, and also disappears altogether when the blood level in the options is turned off.
[edit] Storyline
Meat's backstory in Armageddon, actually revealed during his game ending, stated that he was a horrific experiment created by Shang Tsung. He escaped the sorcerer's clutches before he could be fully completed.[1] The official strategy guide for the game describes Meat as being "a fun character who assists Shinnok," although this relationship is not made clear in the story.[3]
In his Armageddon ending, it is said that while the other fighters focused on each other, Meat rushed past them up the pyramid. Once he defeated Blaze, he gained the power to shape-shift. With the ability to be anyone he pleased, Meat lost his sense of identity and went into obscurity.[1]
[edit] Combat characteristics
[edit] Signature moves
- Head Roll: Meat tears off his head and rolls it at his enemy like a bowling ball. (MK:A)
- Meat Leg Slide: Meat slides to his opponent with a kick, leaving a trail of blood behind. (MK:A)
- Body Mutilation: Meat stretches the nerve holding the eye that's hanging out of its socket and then lets it snap back. This move serves as a taunt for Meat and heals him when done in combat. (MK:A)
- Flesh Teleport: Meat falls flat on his face and disappears in a bloody gunk, reappearing in the same fashion behind his opponent. (MK:A)
[edit] Character development
Meat initially served as a "skin", created by art director Tony Goskie, for each fighter in Mortal Kombat 4.[2] The name "Meat" was simply a designation given to the model so it could be used in the game. It was later decided to make him a playable character as part of a hidden Easter egg.[2] Players first learned of the character's given name after the text "Meat lives!" was placed on Ed Boon's website promoting Mortal Kombat 4's 3rd arcade revision.[4] The later released strategy guides also referred to the character as "Meat", subsequently making it an official moniker.[5][6] For a long time afterwards, his existence as a true character or a joke character was heavily debated amongst fans. Some believed he wasn't a character as he was really nothing more than an alternate costume for all other fighters and had no storyline. Still others believed the opposite, citing the fact that many Mortal Kombat characters in the past such as Reptile, Noob Saibot, Smoke, and Jade all started with no original moves or storylines in their first appearances either. Meat also appeared in Mortal Kombat: Deception's Konquest mode, giving more credence to establishing him in the canon plot. Finally, with the development of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Midway decided to make Meat an official character and wrote him a story.
During the character's video in IGN's MK Fighter of the Wiik series, Mortal Kombat art director Steve Beran humorously states that Meat has a cousin named "Skully", who is just a skeleton with no muscle or tissue. However, Beran laments that he never made it into the game.[2]
[edit] Game information
To access Meat in Mortal Kombat 4, the player had to defeat all challengers in Group Mode, which would have to include every single character. After that, any selected character became Meat.[5] The character resembled a bloody skeleton, but its move set took after whatever character was selected. The template design for Meat was taken from the many fatalities that render a victim into a gory cadaver.[2] In Mortal Kombat: Deception, like many other characters, Meat makes a short cameo appearance during the game's Konquest mode. The player as Shujinko finds him standing in a small cave in the Netherealm. If interacted with, Meat will reward the player with some koins and then flee soon after.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Meat's Ending. Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Midway Games, 2006.
- ^ a b c d e MK Fighter of the Wiik: Meat. IGN (2007-04-19). Retrieved on 2007-04-22.
- ^ Dawson, Bryan (2006). Mortal Kombat: Armageddon Prima Official Game Guide. Prima Games. ISBN 0-7615-5448-3.
- ^ Mortal Kombat 4 - Revision 3.0. Brady Distributing Company (1998-10-06). Retrieved on 2007-01-28.
- ^ a b Fink, James (1998). Official Mortal Kombat 4 Fighter's Kompanion. Brady Publishing. ISBN 1-56686-795-9.
- ^ Cain, Joe (1999). Mortal Kombat Gold: Prima's Official Strategy Guide. Prima Games. ISBN 0-7615-2329-4.
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