Kitana was part of Mortal Kombat 11's 25 character starting lineup, and was available to play upon the game's release back on April 23, 2019.
First introduced back in Mortal Kombat 2, which released in arcades in late 1993, Kitana and her clone sister, Mileena, started the franchise's female ninja trend. She's since played a large role in MK's overarching story, often wrapped up in high level power dynamics with the Kahns and contributing both brain and brawn to team good guys.
Her blue color scheme and iconic weaponized fans have stayed with her through her many appearances over the last 30 years, and look arguably better than ever in Mortal Kombat 11. She's been more warrior and more princess over the years, but embodies both equally here with pristinely royal clothing modified perfectly for battle.
She prominently features her trademark fans with vicious blades protruding from their ends, ready to slice and dice any unfriendly acquaintances to bits. NetherRealm made many characters more realistic than every before in MK11, but Kitana stands out as arguably the most vividly lifelike of any of them.
With strong projectiles and long ranged specials, Kitana is mostly about zoning and keeping distance in MK11. She excels at maintaining advantage and stealing potential "turns" from opponents when she hits the right groove throwing fans from the right ranges. She can be extremely frustrating if you don't know how to adjust to counter her rhythms here. This is definitely a character to explore if you're a defensively minded player.
As one might expect, Kitana therefore struggles against characters who can relatively easily get up close and personal. She can be overwhelmed by effective rush down, and struggles with the few characters who can throw projectiles more effectively than she can. As such, she's often regarded as around the middle of tier lists by pro players. She may be a bit below average at the highest levels of play, but is the kind of character who excels at mid levels as she often puts the onus of "figuring the puzzle out" on opponents.
The 10,000-year-old assassin and Princess of Outworld is a series staple and a very welcomed part of the MK11 experience. She's got one of the most visually gorgeous models, offers a great experience for patient and projectile loving players, and appropriately carries the legacy of this fan favorite forward.
Here is a general tip for Kitana players:
It is important to save your krushing blows during the first round of the match and then use them in the second round (third round if you lose first round). What this will do is save you the damage since Kitana isn't as strong-hitting as the rest of the cast.
In my personal opinion, Kitana shares many similarities to Kabal, in the sense that they both have very easy krushing blows they can land without too many setbacks. Dark Deception (Back 1, 4, 2) is an easy damage dealer, Follow the Leader (Forward 2, 3, 4) can lead to combos and can trick many opponents, and her 8 hit combo krushing blow with Quick Execution isn't very difficult to perform with practice. She also has other krushing blows that I advise taking advantage of in the first round, but mostly you want to use her core krushing blows in the 2nd round.
Of course, you have to be careful of other things, but if you are patient and wait for the opponent to mess up, than you will have a lot more success with Kitana!