Mortal Kombat 1 Liu Kang guide: useful normals, combos, best Kameo pair, and more

Mortal Kombat 1’s beta has begun, and it’s time to check out Liu Kang. He’s the most familiar face in the game, and fans around the world know exactly what the monk brings to the title. However, he’s now the God of Fire, and his moveset has expanded quite a bit. He’s got some fun tricks to employ. No matter what part of the screen you’re on, he’s got the tools to be incredibly deadly.

Today I’m going to go over a few of the useful normals that can open him up for combos, some fairly easy setups you can do for damage as Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 1, and who his best Kameo is going to be. As the game gets its full release, we will likely come back to this and update it further.

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Why play as Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 1?

Liu Kang is a pretty easy character to get a handle on in Mortal Kombat 1. His normals are great, he has a meterless knock up to start air combos/juggles with, and his special attacks are also amazing. He has useful ranged attacks at ground, air, and low levels.

His damage is solid, and you don’t have to work incredibly hard to get it out of him. Liu Kang, in general, is an amazing character. Whether you play a ton of MK or want to get into this game for the first time, he’s an exceptional pick.

Note: This article will use 1, 2, 3, and 4 for notation for normals (Front Punch, Back Punch, Front Kick, Back Kick), and K for Kameo.

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Liu Kang’s best normals for starting combos in Mortal Kombat 1

One thing that makes it easy to understand Mortal Kombat 1 is that the moves list also shows his powerful normals. The normal inputs that combo together nicely and can be used to link into other moves, as seen above. I want to highlight just a few of these.

1) Cosmic Fire

• 1, 2, 1

You'll find that you use a lot of Cosmic Fire in your MK1 matches as Liu Kang. It's an incredible way to start combos, and you can even pause between the 2nd and 3rd hit if necessary. I also love that you can bring in Sonya to assist towards the end to set up further damage.

2) Twisted

• Back+2, 3

While Twisted lacks some of the screen presence and control that Cosmic Fire has, the purpose of this is on hit, you can confirm into a knock up. That means it's time for air combos and anything else you can think of.

It's a great whiff punish opener as well. The back punch perfectly leads into the up-kick and pushes him forward on screen just a tiny bit.

3) Too Easy

• 3, 3

Personally, Too Easy is my favorite opener for Liu Kang. It's easy, simple, and it has an enormous amount of combo potential.

It's a series of rapid kicks, and you can use it nearly anywhere on the screen. It's best in the corner, can combo into itself, and even add further damage with specials and Kameos.

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Easy and useful combos for Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 1

1) Back 2 3, Jump Forward 1 3 4, Back-Forward 1

These combos, provided by theRealKaaayle will take a little practice if you aren't used to MK1 gameplay. It opens with Twisted, followed by a Jump Forward - that's the hard part. From there, you hit the 1, 3, 4, and before they can fall, hit the Air Fireball. It's solid damage and is a reliable air juggle.

2) Back 2 3, Dash, 3 3 3 Back-Forward 3

Instead of going with the jump forward, you can also dash in after the Back 2 3. In fact, I recommend practicing this a great deal.

Lots of Liu Kang's more advanced tech is going to require you to learn to dash in mid-combo. theRealKaaayle suggests you could even walk in, but it's risky. When the enemy is close to you while falling, start the Too Easy string, and finish with the Dragon Kick.

3) Corner Combo: Forward 1 4 Down-Back 4, Back 2 3, 333 Back-Forward 3 (EX), 3 Back-Forward 3

This must be done in the corner if you want it to pop off and deal tons of damage. You can be fairly close, though, because the F14, DB4 should carry someone close enough to start really going in.

In the corner, the DB4 will knock them up higher, letting you keep them in place for the remainder of the juggle. As you can see, you start hammering them with kicks, dealing a monstrous amount of damage.

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The best Kameo pairing for Mortal Kombat 1’s Liu Kang

Without a doubt, Sonya Blade is the best Kameo for Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat 1. She has all the perfect tools to make him even more frustrating. She can easily extend his combos and keep people out.

Her Leg Grab knocks enemies up off the ground so you can immediately start comboing and her Charge/Superman Punch is a solid anti-air. Her ranged attack (Energy Rings) also neatly pairs up with his fireballs. Other characters could come close, but nobody matches the sheer utility and power of Sonya.

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Mortal Kombat 1 will release on September 19, 2023, for PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, and Microsoft Windows. The beta test will end on August 21, 2023.