Well, time for me to put my 2 cents in. (Damn these things not allowing the use of alt text input!) Don't mind if I rehash some of the other critiques here as I don't like to read the more in depth ones to keep an untainted view.
First off, the life bars, timer, and dragon symbols are all misplaced. Every bit of them is pushed too far down into the screen. The dragon symbols aren't far enough below the life bars, nor are they set far enough into the screen. I could rant on for ages on every part of that section that is screwed up but I'll stop now. Just remember, a reference photo is only
www.mkw.mortalkombatonline.com away to get this right.
The fact that you actually edited the gore onto Baraka instead of using an existing sprite with the gore attached is a step in the right direction. Now you need to work on your cutting and pasting, and then especially the editing involved to make the two pieces flow together. Look at the in game sprites. Even they used tattered clothing with exposed skin before the guts when a body was torn in half.
The spine coming out of the body looks like crap btw. I know it's not your fault since Midway designed it that way, but it is your fault for not noticing it and fixing it.
The blood is way over done and none of it is original. Just a smathering of effects from in the game that don't fit well when that crowded into the screen.
The two characters should be placed a little closer to each other. Right now it looks as if Sub-Zer.... er, Tien Shen (isn't that a mix of DBZ characters?) miracled all the damage that is affecting Baraka. Good placement can make or break a fake. So for God's sake, do what it takes! :hmmmm: (ugh... I feel stupid after doing that)
The gore attached to the blades and Baraka's forearms is just a clever usage of pre-existing sinew that is coming from all of the torso gore throughout the game. No points there.
Your full sprite edit leaves a lot to be desired... The inversion of colors to get the blue has the lighting all kinds of jacked up. The parts that are supposed to be dark are light and vise-a-versa. It gives it a surreal look that doesn't flow well with MK. Also, it looks over saturated and very rough around the edges. Work on your pixel by pixel blending when using MSPaint. It's not as hard as it seems, just time consuming. The over saturation is killing the pants and the shin guards and well, basically the whole thing. It's too sharp and contrased. He's also got about 3 different skin tones going on at once. His arms don't even look real they're so bright. His hands are a disaster in action. They look like little fleshy balls growing out of his wrists and nothing like hands at all. The one closest to the viewer even looks like it's been put on backwards (palm facing out when it should be facking in).
I do have to say though, this Tien Shen must be one bad mutha to just hold on to some razor sharp blades with his bare hands.
Overall, you've created a Frankenstein type monster. What I mean is, that it's great and all for experimentation, but this should never have seen the light of day, KAI.
In the future, find a harsh critique who is willing to point these flaws out before you actually post your work. There's nothing wrong with getting advice from someone you consider to have an eye for the art. I'm always greatful for Khaos, Sapphire, and VenoMark for showing me where I've gone wrong and where I've gone right. I just don't like that they say my stuff is cartoony :reddy:
Better luck next time.