Fighting games are so competitive - it's not enough to just play, we want to win matches, and we want to become better as players to win even more matches.

Mortal Kombat 11 is filled with the competitive spirit. And we always look for new ways to improve our skills in these bloody but exciting fights. To be especially effective here, players should develop the habit of thinking outside the box. Yep, you need to be creative and innovative in your practice.

Arguably the most popular thing for every MK11 player is practicing combos. You may land many neutral attacks and take away small pieces of the opponent's health. But then they activate a tricky combo, and your character is suddenly totally destroyed, with all the neutral efforts becoming pointless.

Learning and training combos is undoubtedly significant for your success as a Mortal Kombat player. The game itself gives everything needed to make progress, but is this the only thing you need to grow in MK11 and to actually have fun in it?

Some other aspects of your practice are of the same importance. So, let's discuss them here.

Movements

Landing devastating combos is a crucial part of winning matches in Mortal Kombat 11. But to do so, you should never forget about the fundamental aspects, such as character movements. It's something so basic that many players ignore this part of their gaming training. "Isn't that just pressing left and right? What can be difficult about this?"

You can't stand on one spot and hope that the opponent will gently come closer and allow you to deliver that combo opening attack. Moving back and forth on the fighting ground helps to take a proper position for offensive actions and be always ready to start your defense.

Pay attention to how you move your character and try to improve this aspect. Get inspiration from professional players - watch their matches and notice how they move during the fight.

Think about the best distance to keep between your character and the opponent. It differs from fighter to fighter.

Practice jumps and air attacks. They might give you an advantage, but if you can't add them properly to the game, jumps will be your weak point.

Defense

Many beginners in fighting games make this mistake - they rush into offensive style and forget to block the opponent's attacks. You absolutely must practice your defense in Mortal Kombat to survive tense matches and hope for victory.

Defense in fighting games is a kind of an art. You should keep an eye on the action and predict the moment when you better press back or crouch-back. There is no absolute defense as different types of block work in different situations. Practice makes perfect! But you need to put effort especially into defense.

First, it might even be frustrating. You have developed an offensive pattern that brings you victories, and practicing defense causes annoying losses. But this happens only in the beginner stages. The further you go in your development, the more skilled opponents you meet. Sticking to your early patterns means limiting your progress. Spend some time working on blocks in MK11 and get prepared for high-level fights!

Know the characters

To become good at Mortal Kombat 11, you should learn all the features of your character. That's quite an obvious thing, but some players ignore everything beyond the actual fighting abilities.

Mortal Kombat has a very interesting story. Playing this mode allows you to try out different characters and discover interesting stuff about them.

MK11 offers an unusual adventure - Krypt. It's a dark place where players can take a break from traditional matches, explore dungeons, and collect various items. This mode might seem a bit disconnected from the primary experience, but still, you discover many layers of the game universe and become more familiar with the characters. Sometimes, the puzzles are too complicated, and you might need this MK11 Krypt guide to find shortcuts.

Knowing the characters' background is only one side of this aspect. The core is to make a proper decision on your Mortal Kombat main. Players spend many hours with fighters of their choice - training and fighting in real matches. And this time should be comfortable for you. It's like feeling and enjoying unique vibes around your character. Make a good choice now, and it will bring a lot of fun in the future.

Feel free to experiment with new characters while you discover their stories and motivations. Who knows, maybe your real power will be unleashed with this new guy or with that new girl.

Mix-ups

This technique is a deep feature of the fighting games genre, but again, it's not that obvious for newcomers. Not only should you be able to perform great combos and protect your character, but also you need to deceive opponents with unpredictable actions.

This aspect is pretty much connected to the defense section. You need different types of blocks to be protected from low or high attacks. And when you can trick your victim into activating the wrong block to land your blow and deal damage, it's part of the mix-up strategy.

Some characters are especially good for the mix-up style. Their animations have been made in such a way that you can't understand what kind of attack will come next. Even if it's not true for your MK11 fighter, you could bring this trick into your matches.

Learn where different attacks land and mix them in one flow (they don't have to form a combo for this). And learn how to perform deceiving moves to trigger specific actions and then land your favorite devastating kombo.

Regular practice

It's the best advice you can get to become good at anything. Practice regularly, and you will be a good MK11 player in no time!

Regular practice means playing the game every day (yes, exceptions are possible) for a reasonable amount of time.

In the beginning, some players are filled with enthusiasm, and they are ready to play Mortal Kombat many hours per day. After a while (pretty soon), this enthusiasm tends to disappear. "Ok, I'm tired of this game, I'll take a break and then return to MK." Playing seven hours three days in a row and then taking a break for a week is not as effective as playing one hour per day with no breaks. You work on habits and muscle memory, persistence is a crucial factor here.

This doesn't mean you can't take breaks or play any other games. Successful professionals often distract themselves to other gaming experiences – to have fun and develop various subtle skills (attention, reaction, memory). It's a good way to refresh your mind and return to Mortal Kombat with new energy. Of course, pro players know the value of other things in life, so don't become a fanatic of any gaming practice – just stick to the reasonable path.

And the most important thing has been kept for the end of this article. Have fun playing Mortal Kombat - that's the ultimate recipe for your success in this game. When you enjoy this virtual fighting, you become self-motivated to practice movements and defense, go deeper into the lore, train tricky techniques, and do all of this on a regular basis. So, enjoy your ride!