Reiko

"I am Reiko. General to Shao Kahn's Army."

- Reiko introducing himself to Taven in Mortal Kombat Armageddon

Reiko is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. He made his debut in Mortal Kombat 4.

About Reiko
Reiko is a grim and stoic looking man with black and white hair, glowing blue eyes, and a penchant for brutality. He was originally introduced in a typical ninja archetype in Mortal Kombat 4. He also has a mask-like black tattoo over each of his eyes. Reiko also has several similarities to Shao Kahn and has developed a desire to become the ruler of Outworld.

Appearance
In his first appearance, Reiko appeared as a male adult with glowing blue eyes and black markings on his face, similar to Shang Tsung's in MK3, and black hair featuring white highlights on the sides. Much like many of the characters that debuted in MK4, Reiko bore a facial semblance to another person in the MK team, with the case of Reiko being Ed Boon himself. His attire was the standard ninja outfit with a maroon sheen, although he lacked the traditional mask. This outfit was used in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon as his alternate costume. On the back of the outfit was the insignia of the Brotherhood of Shadow. Making his reappearance in Armageddon, he was redesigned to feature an outfit strikingly similar to Shao Kahn, as referencing to him fancying wearing his helmet and pretending to be him when he was not around. However, unlike Shao Kahn, he wears pants and his skin is slightly tanned.

Character development
Originally, Noob Saibot was to be in Reiko's place on the character selection grid for Mortal Kombat 4. It was decided that the game had too many ninjas already, which was a subject of complaint from Mortal Kombat Trilogy, the game most immediately prior to Mortal Kombat 4. Also, Noob Saibot was described as being too hard to see in some stages as he blended into the background very easily, so he was renamed and made into Reiko. The outfit for Reiko was not changed from the outfit created for the Noob Saibot character model; only the character's head and spiked gauntlets were added. Home versions of Mortal Kombat 4 included Noob Saibot as a secret character, and it can clearly be seen that the character model is virtually identical to Reiko.

With  Mortal Kombat 4' s arcade release, it was hinted that Reiko has an affiliation with Kia and Sareena, as was mentioned on the game's official website and in the official strategy guide. This was justified by both wearing the emblem of the Brotherhood of Shadows on their clothing and that the events of Mortal Kombat 4 mostly followed up on the events of Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero.

There was initially some confusion as to what weapon Reiko would use in Armageddon. Early videos showed him using a giant sword called the Devastator, but a later versus screen render showed him wielding a hammer known as the Crude Hammer, similar to Shao Kahn's Wrath Hammer. However, another versus screen render released soon after this showed him holding the Devastator once again, causing question as to which was correct. Upon the release of the game, it was revealed that Reiko was indeed using the Crude Hammer as his weapon, while the Devastator was given to Fujin.

Signature moves

 * Assassin Throwing Stars: Reiko throws a stack of shurikens at the opponent all at once. In Armageddon, he throws them one-by-one. (MK4, MKG, MK:A)
 * Quick Spin Behind: Reiko does a quick top-like spin and slides around the opponent to their back in one quick motion. Also known as "3D Teleport", as it is a prime example of MK4's quasi-3D. (MK4, MKG)
 * Vertical Teleport: Reiko leaps upwards disappearing in the air, then reappears behind the opponent coming up through the ground. This attack was borrowed from Noob Saibot. Reiko can forego the slam & instead attack the opponent normally when he comes up, whereas Noob could not. (MK4, MKG)
 * Shadow Grab: While performing the Vertical Teleport, Reiko grabs and slams the opponent to the ground upon reappearing behind them. Copied from Noob Saibot's Teleport Slam. (MK4, MKG, MK:A)
 * Devastating Flip Kick: Reiko twists his body in an impossible fashion, landing a backflip kick with one foot without his opposite foot even leaving the ground. Li Mei received this move later in Deadly Alliance and Deception under the name Carnival Spin. (MK4, MKG, MK:A)
 * Charging Pain: Reiko performs a shoulder ram like that of Shao Kahn's, but with a blue-ish energy representation of Shao Kahn's helmet covering his head. (MK:A)

Other Moves

 * Throw: Reiko lifts his foe up & power bombs them into the floor while shouting random gibberish. If performed too close to a wall, Reiko will instead whipslam his foe to the ground. (MK4)
 * Shoulder Break: Reiko turns his foe around & quickly wrenches both of their arms upward in reverse. His foe can be attacked before they are able to turn back around. (MK4)

Fatalities

 * Thrust Kick: Reiko delivers a mighty kick to the opponent's torso which causes it to fly straight off as the arms and head are left spinning in midair. The legs crumple to the ground, with the arms and head landing on the ground one-by-one moments later. (MK4, MKG)
 * Shuriken Barrage: Reiko throws a deadly multitude of shurikens at the opponent, covering the entire body before throwing the last one to the head. The opponent then dies in a puddle of their own blood. (MK4, MKG)

The Reiko/Kahn controversy
For the most part, Reiko began as a simple new character added to put new faces in Mortal Kombat 4. However, as the game arrived on PlayStation and Game Boy Color, some alarming and heavily-debated developments took place. In the early releases of Mortal Kombat 4, Reiko's ending showed him stepping through a portal and nothing more. However, as the game made its way into home systems, this scene was further elaborated on. On the other side of the portal, Reiko arrived in Shao Kahn's throne room, where the Emperor's skull mask lowered onto his face. This quickly led to a division among fans, some believing that Reiko was actually Shao Kahn or becoming his successor, with others rejecting the idea entirely.

The "Reiko is not Kahn" faction put forth the arguments that many MK character endings are not canon; many previous endings had been neglected in developing the story to date. Another argument was the great difference in heights of the characters, Shao Kahn being much taller than Reiko. Also given is an episode of Mortal Kombat: Conquest in which Reiko and Shao Kahn are seen together. On top of that, used as evidence was Ed Boon's confirmation that the two were not the same.

In truth, little thought was put in either version of Reiko's ending. His original ending, in which he simply walked into a portal and disappears, was created as a joke, nothing more. As the home versions were released, it was decided Reiko's joke ending was not funny, and the extra scene in which Reiko dons Shao Kahn's mask was added to give an element of mystery to the character (this ending is only seen in the PC and Playstation versions, however; the Nintendo 64 version of Reiko's ending does not include the scene after he crosses the portal).

Due to the fact that the Game Boy Color version of the game lacked full motion video endings, the developer, Digital Eclipse, was forced to elaborate on Reiko's ending and its meaning on their own. Therefore, they followed on Reiko's extended ending mentioning his quest to conquer Earth. But due to the fact that not even the makers of Reiko's extended ending were sure if he would indeed be Shao Kahn, the Game Boy ending was kept vague and non-specific. Later this ending along with the other home version endings were all put to rest with an official statement that Reiko and Shao Kahn were not the same person and never were meant to be.

Mortal Kombat: Deception used its Konquest mode to debunk the myth that Reiko is Shao Kahn. There is a mission in which Shao Kahn sends Shujinko to give Reiko a warning, after Kahn hears a rumor that Reiko has been sneaking into his chamber to wear his helmet. Reiko tells Shujinko that he likes to wear Shao Kahn's helmet. Moreover, Reiko claims he is a commander in Shao Kahn's army. The anticlimactic nature of this explanation is probably the result of Midway poking fun at the situation. John Vogel, who is currently in charge of Mortal Kombat's storyline, has confirmed that Reiko and Shao Kahn are not the same person. Additionally, backwards speech given during Deception ' s Konquest mode by male residents of Chaosrealm and Netherrealm (who are actually voiced by Vogel himself) very bluntly state, when reversed, that Reiko is not Shao Kahn.

Reiko's return in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon finally put the issue to rest with him and Kahn being included as separate characters. However, Reiko's attire was changed to even further resemble Kahn's, including a hammer weapon similar to Kahn's own Wrath Hammer and a special move in which Reiko charges the opponent with what appears to be a glowing energy version of Kahn's helmet covering his head, further poking fun at the fan controversy. Also, his ending in this game, as stated above, can be seen as some kind of joke after the parallelism between him and Kahn, as it happens much like the way his Mortal Kombat 4 ending does – with Reiko wearing Kahn's helmet and becoming the new sovereign of Outworld.

In a GameInformer review for the Nintendo Wii version of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, a screenshot showing Reiko performing his charge move at Liu Kang is present. In the screenshot's caption, the authors mistakingly joke that Shao Kahn is teaching Liu Kang dance moves to pick up women, while in reality, the character charging at Liu Kang in the photo is actually Reiko.

Television
Reiko's sole live appearance on the aforementioned Mortal Kombat: Conquest partially acknowledges his early video game biographies as a devout general of Shao Kahn. Though he is never seen in combat, Reiko acts as a military messenger for the emperor, informing him of developments in Outworld that Kahn himself cannot witness firsthand from the throne. Reiko encountered the encroaching armies of Kreeya on the borders of Outworld and engaged in their destruction while fighting Kreeya's Amazonian forces. Reiko was one of the few warriors unshakably loyal to Shao Kahn, swearing fealty on the emperor's sword and threatening death by his hand to anyone who betrayed Kahn.

Comic books
Reiko also has a very minor one-frame appearance in the official Mortal Kombat 4 comic that was distributed with some versions of the game. He was shown as one of the hundreds of warriors travelling to Edenia through a portal to aid Shinnok in his invasion of the realm.

Game information
In Mortal Kombat: Deception ' s Konquest mode, in addition to appearing in Outworld regarding the mission involving Shao Kahn's helmet, Reiko also appears in Edenia. He orders the player, as Shujinko, to bring a secret communication to a soldier in Shao Kahn's army. Reiko is also seen as a prisoner in the background of the "Dark Prison" stage in the game.

Though this character is male, Reiko is actually a feminine Japanese name, causing another bizarre controversy. When mentioned in Mortal Kombat 4 and Mortal Kombat Gold, his name is clearly pronounced "REE-ko." However, Reiko is a common Japanese name which is pronounced "RAY-ko", although it is a typically female name (Hotaru is another male character in the series who uses what is normally a female Japanese name). In Deception ' s Konquest mode, Reiko's name is pronounced "RAY-ko," causing debate among fans over how his name is meant to be pronounced. More recently, the "RAY-ko" pronunciation of his name is continued in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, however, John Vogel and Ed Boon pronounced his name "RAI-ko" in his Armageddon Kombat Card video.

Original Timeline

 * Once a general in Shinnok's army.
 * Once a member of the Brotherhood of Shadow.
 * Joined Shinnok's forces to fight the Earth warriors in MK4.
 * Went to work for Shao Kahn after Shinnok's defeat.
 * Was ordered to protect Shao Kahn's allies.
 * For unknown reasons, he despises Quan Chi.
 * Encountered and defeated by Taven.
 * Joined the Forces of Darkness to the final battle in Armageddon.

Alternate Timeline

 * Fought against Kenshi in Shao Kahn's tournament but the outcome is unknown.
 * Seduced Mileena and became her advisor after Shao Kahn’s demise in the MKX comics.
 * Recruited the Red Dragon and Rain to join Mileena’s forces.

Mortal Kombat 4

 * His face has markings on it that are vaguely similar to Shang Tsung's appearance in MK3.
 * Has the same fighting stance as Jax, Jarek, and Noob Saibot.
 * One of two characters (the other being Sektor) to never speak in their respective ending.
 * His face is modeled after that of Ed Boon's.
 * Although Reiko's outfit is essentially a minor modification of the standard Male Ninja outfit, he is generally never grouped with them.
 * Reiko's ending in the arcade and Nintendo 64 versions of MK4 was lengthened in other releases. He is the only character to receive such a change.

Mortal Kombat: Deception

 * He is one of the unplayable characters seen trapped in a cage in the Dark Prison stage.
 * In Konquest mode, he can be found in Outworld and Edenia.

Mortal Kombat: Armageddon

 * His alternate costume is his MK4 appearance, although missing the Brotherhood of Shadow symbol on the back.
 * He uses the Ying Yeung fighting style that Mileena had in Deception.
 * Originally, Reiko was given a sword, the Devastator, but it was later decided to instead give him the Crude Hammer in the same manner as Shao Kahn to further push the idea of Reiko attempting to mimic Shao Kahn. The sword was instead given to Fujin.
 * In his in-game Special Movelist, Reiko's Flipping Strikes throw attack is misspelled as "Flipping Stikes".
 * Reiko's Assassin Throwing Stars special move allows the player to make 50 coins per every use, making him a candidate for an easy way to make money in the game. Using only his Assassin Throwing Stars attack in versus mode for 2 rounds without any damage happening to him allows a guaranteed 1100 coins per match [+___ (coin amount) depending on which kind of Fatality you perform afterwards].

Mortal Kombat (2011)

 * He appears in the background of the Pit II stage fighting Daegon, Frost, Kenshi, or Sareena.
 * After Sub-Zero is taken away, Shang Tsung mentions his name in the next match against Kenshi.
 * Also, in the cutscene before the battle between Kabal and Cyber Sub-Zero, in the latter's POV, one of the pictures is that of Reiko.