Our Hopes for Shaggy in Mortal Kombat 11 Have Been Crushed

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By Mike Jones

Published Feb 7, 2019

The fan-led campaign to get the Scooby-Doo character Shaggy into the upcoming Mortal Kombat 11 as one of its guest combatants has reached its end.

Fan hopes for Shaggy appearing as a character in Mortal Kombat 11 have been crushed. The latest installment of the wildly popular fighting game is set to arrive in April and there has been much discussion as of late regarding exactly which characters could make a guest appearance in the gory game’s line-up. First and foremost, there has been talk of Shaggy from the acclaimed Scooby-Doo cartoon series making his way into the dark world of Mortal Kombat.

From single-handedly defeating a biker gang in the animated movie Scooby-Doo! Legend of the Phantosaur to fan artwork of the famed cartoon stoner brawling with Thanos as his new alter ego Ultra Instinct Shaggy, it appeared that the man whose most aggressive trait was once as harmless as exclaiming “Zoinks” was ready to take on the world in a very lethal manner. As momentum for this new Shaggy Rogers grew, fans began to direct their hopes toward the upcoming Mortal Kombat 11, which seemed like the next logical step for a character with Shaggy’s obvious skills. A fan petition was created to get Shaggy into the game, reaching more than 300,000. Even Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon got in on the fun with a screenshot of Shaggy battling Scorpion.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. In typically blunt Mortal Kombat style, the final word on the official Mortal Kombat 11 Twitt er account regarding Shaggy's inclusion in Mortal Kombat 11 was the simple tweet: "#RIPShaggy". With that, the hopes of Ultra Instinct Shaggy fans everywhere have been dashed. It appears that, while it was fun to imagine something as goofy as Shaggy clashing with classic Mortal Kombat characters like Kano or Reptile, the joke, as far as Ed Boon and the Mortal Kombat team are concerned, is now over.

Regarding character additions to Mortal Kombat, the game has a reputation for adding in often-hilarious combatants to the standard line-up. Past bonus characters have included A Nightmare On Elm Street’s Freddy Krueger, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s Leatherface and The Predator. Adding Shaggy would not have been that inexplicably odd and, to date, the now foiled campaign to have Shaggy included has very likely been the most loyally supported one that Mortal Kombat developers have seen since the incorporation of guest characters began. And, while Mortal Kombat 11 fans are aware that there will be new characters available as DLC at some point, exactly who those characters will be is still up in the air, despite leaked information regarding as much.

Losing the possibility of Shaggy is a let down for those sincerely hoping that it would happen. However, if the disheveled blonde stoner’s fanbase isn’t ready to let go of the possibility just yet, perhaps the "#RIPShaggy" message means something more. Maybe Mortal Kombat’s creators are saying goodbye to the version of Shaggy with which the world is familiar - the one who hangs out with a dog and spends most of his time fleeing and eating. Could it be that in that Shaggy’s place a new man will arise? A Shaggy Rogers with Ultra Instincts? For now, only the creative minds behind Mortal Kombat 11 know for certain.

More: 12 Craziest Fan Petitions Of All Time

Mortal Kombat 11 will release on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, and Xbox One on April 23, 2019.

Source: Mortal Kombat