Earlier this month, Mortal Kombat 11 received a big patch that added some extra features and some quality of life changes. However, the biggest changes were balance adjustments for all the characters. Many fans were hoping some characters would be made better and others would be made less powerful. (We're looking at you, Geras! You and your three crushing blows in one combo!) One character that could have really benefited from the patch was Frost.
The final character to be announced to the base roster, Frost was hotly anticipated. She had a cool new design and new cybernetic powers. However, her final gameplay left a lot to be desired. She was much slower than she needed to be and many of her special moves were lackluster. Unfortunately, this giant patch does little to improve her and it seems like the developers didn't understand what she needed.
WEIRD NORMALS
One of Frost's biggest issues is her normal attacks. While a lot of them have good range, many of them are these esoteric attacks take too long to come out and are rarely positive on block. One of her strings, Freezer Burn, has been buffed and it's really the only buff that matters. It's been made faster and more positive on block. That's great for combos and pokes.
However, nearly everything else has been left alone. The few changes that have been made to her other normals are inconsequential at best. She still has moves that are mids when they should be highs, and normals with weird hitboxes.
Her standing front kick is a perfect example of that. That move needs to be buffed because it begins what could be her best string. It's a high low mix-up that is cancelable into a special. It's good damage and it can't be broken because you're always on the ground. However, it's not ideal because the first attack has a shallow hitbox that sometimes just doesn't connect, leaving you wide open. That's exactly what a patch should fix.
IGNORED SPECIALS
Frost's Microburst is faster now, and that's fine, but it needed a wider hitbox. Instead, her Cryogenic Crown attack received the wider blast radius, which is also fine. Finally, her Glacier Calving lasts longer and recovers quicker. A move that is mostly seen as worthless. That's the problem with the special buffs: they're all moves that are rarely used.
One of her most-used moves is the Auger Lunge. It's a go-to combo ender for Frost but its damage isn't very good. The Arctic Barrage is another move that is like the Auger Lunge and has better damage but it's often too slow to combo into. None of these moves have been touched.
Originally, this piece was going to break down each and every change Frost had and why each amounted to very little. However, after looking through the very few changes Frost got, it became clear that the developers didn't do much with her. The lack of changes and the changes to unused moves tells us that NetherRealm Studios doesn't have a Frost main on the team. We hope that changes in the future.
Frost, despite her flaws, is a fun character and we wish she were more viable from a competitive perspective.