History VideoGame / TheKingOfFightersXI

* '''Team ''VideoGame/FatalFury'':''' [[LivingLegend Terry Bogard]] once again joins the tournament, this time teaming up with [[FunPersonified Duck King]] and [[JusticeWillPrevail Kim Kaphwan]].

* '''Team Secret Agent:''' [[EyepatchOfPower Ramon]] and [[StatuesqueStunner Vanessa]] once again find themselves on a mission together, joined by [[GorgeousGaijin Blue Mary]].
* '''Team K':''' [[NinetiesAntiHero K']] and [[{{Cyborg}} Maxima]] recruit the young [[AnIcePerson Kula Diamond]] into their team, as they investigate Those from the Past.

* '''Team ''[[VideoGame/IkariWarriors Ikari]]'':''' [[BashBrothers Ralf Jones and Clark Still]] continue their mission, this time joined by [[WhipItGood Whip]] rather than [[ReiAyanamiExpy Leona Heidern]].
* '''Team Anti-Kyokugen''': [[HiddenWeapons Malin]] teams up with [[HighlyVisibleNinja Eiji Kisaragi]] and [[BadassAdorable Kasumi Todoh]] to seek revenge on the Sakazaki family.

* PlotLineCrossover: The Art of Fighting Team's ending has Anti-Kyokugenryu members suddenly showing up and getting beat up by King along with the Sakazaki family. You get to learn their side of story in their own team ending, where they try (and fail in) ambushing the Kyokugenryu.

** Mid-Boss 1: Depending on how well you do, you could end up fighting [[WellDoneSonGuy Adelheid Bernstein]] (returning from ''KOF 2003''), [[BadassNormal Gai Tendo]] and [[FurAndLoathing Silber]] from ''VideoGame/BurikiOne'' (making their 2D fighting game debut), or [[BattleBoomerang Sho Hayate]] and [[WhiteHairBlackHeart Jyazu]] from ''VideoGame/SavageReign''

** ''KOF XI'' brings back the Blow Back attack, and Blow Back Guard Cancel does minimal damage like ''2002''. However, unlike ''2002'', you can't KO an opponent with its Guard Cancel version.

** A player on the receiving end of Normal Grab can't just Tech Grab by randomly pressing one of two Heavy Attack buttons like before; in ''KOF XI'', they have to guess if their opponent used Heavy Punch or Heavy Kick, and perform Tech Grab with corresponding button.

** The Shift Attack is changed so that you have a lot more freedom to switch members during a combo.

* GameplayGrading: Unlike previous ''KOF'' games, when the timer runs out, the winner is not decided by who has more health. Instead, both players are judged with their general performance, displayed as an indicator in real-time between health meters. After Time Over happens, the color of this indicator determines the winner (red means the player 1, blue is the player 2), but if its color is yellow, meaning both players are even, whoever has the surviving Leader wins.

** Mid-Boss 1: Depending on how well you do, you could end up fighting Adelheid Bernstein (returning from KOF 2003), Gai Tendo and Silber from ''VideoGame/BurikiOne'' (making their 2D fighting game debut), or Sho Hayate and Jyazu from ''VideoGame/SavageReign''
** Mid-Boss 2: Shion - A member from ''Those From The Past'' who meets the winning team at the finals area (having likewise destroyed it) and Magaki's subordinate, waiting to test their worth.
** Final Boss: Magaki - The sponsor of this year's tournament, likewise who takes his turn to test the worth and skills of winning team for their plan to awaken Orochi.

* '''Bosses''

* '''Team Rival:''' [[EveryoneLooksSexierIfFrench Elisabeth Blanctorche]], a noblewoman who Ash was once friends with, now joins [[RubberMan Duo Lon]] and [[AgentPeacock Benimaru Nikaido]] to stop whatever misdeeds Ash is planning.

* '''Team Kyo & Iori:''' [[PlayingWithFire Kyo Kusanagi]] and [[AxCrazy Iori Yagami]] team up to prevent the resurrection of [[GreaterScopeVillain Orochi]], with [[TagalongKid Shingo Yabuki]] joining his hero on another journey.

* '''Team ''[[VideoGame/IkariWarriors Ikari]]'':''' [[BashBrothers Ralf Jones and Clark Still]] continue their mission, this time joined by [[WhipItGood Whip]] rather than [[ReiAyanamiExpy Leona]].

* '''Team Kyo & Iori:''' [[PlayingWithFire Kyo Kusanagi]] and [[AxCrazy Iori Yagami]] team up to get revenge on Ash for stealing the Yata Mirror's power from [[BarrierMaiden Chizuru Kagura]], with [[TagalongKid Shingo Yabuki]] joining his hero on another journey.

* '''Team Rival:''' [[EveryoneLooksSexierIfFrench Elisabeth Blanctorche]], a noblewoman who Ash was once friends with, now joins [[RubberMan Duo Lon]] and [[AgentPeacock Benimaru Nikaido]] to stop whatever nebulous plans Ash seeks to fulfill.

* GameplayGrading: Unlike previous ''KOF'' games, when the timer runs out, the winner is not decided by who has more health. Instead, both players are judged with their general performance, displayed as an indicator in real-time between health meters. After Time Over happens, the color of this indicator determines the winner (red means the player 1, blue is the player 2), but if its color is yellow, meaning both players are even, whoever has the surviving Leader wins.

* RankInflation:

''KOF XI'' takes [[TagTeam the tag battle mechanics]] from ''2003'' and crank up their intensity. The Tag move is now separate from the Power Gauge and depletes its own resources, Skill Stocks, which can be charged two stocks at maximum and fills up gradually during a match. The Shift Attack is replaced by Quick Shift, which is much more lenient about creating a combo. Shifting while performing an attack will perform a [[LagCancel Quick Shift]], allowing you to continue your combo with a different character. Meanwhile, the defense can spend two Skill Stocks and perform a [[ComboBreaker Saving Shift]] when they're on the receiving end of a combo, allowing you to escape deadly combos. ''KOF XI'' also expands on Super Cancel system of ''2002'' by introducing Dream Cancel, which lets you chain a Super Move into Leader Desperation Move instantly.

The tag battle mechanics from ''2003'' were overhauled for this game. The Shift Attack was removed, and in its place, new ways to switch characters were introduced. Shifting while performing an attack will perform a [[LagCancel Quick Shift]], allowing you to continue your combo with a different character. Shifting while in hitstun will perform a [[ComboBreaker Saving Shift]], allowing you to escape combos.

The game would eventually be released for UsefulNotes/Playstation2 on June 22, 2006.

* AdaptationExpansion: The Playstation 2 version introduces new stages, new modes, and several new characters[[note]]Mai Shiranui, Robert Garcia, Hotaru Futaba, Tung Fu Rue, Mr. Big, Geese Howard, and an alternate moveset for Kyo[[/note]] ported over from ''VideoGame/NeoGeoBattleColiseum''.

** Some DMs can be "Dream Canceled" into an LDM at the cost of 2 bars of meter and 1 Skill Gauge stock.

** Hayate and Jyazu can chain their normals together. The former is limited to chaining his light punch into heavy punch or heavy kick, while the latter can chain all of them together ''Franchise/Darkstalkers''-style.

** Magaki is unable to crouch, and he lacks a neutral shift animation -- instead, he performs his standing heavy punch before switching out.

** Magaki is unable to crouch, and he lacks a neutral shift animation -- instead, he performs his standing heavy punch before switching out.
** Hayate and Jyazu can chain their normals together. The former is limited to chaining his light punch into heavy punch or heavy kick, while the latter can chain all of them together ''Franchise/Darkstalkers''-style.

The tag battle mechanics from ''2003'' were overhauled for this game. The Shift Attack was removed, and in its place, new ways to switch characters were introduced. The Quick Shift allows the player to change into another character in the middle of any combo, prolonging it, or in the middle of any attack, no matter if it was blocked or not, canceling the frames of animation of the attack, if it's needed. The Saving Shift allows the player to take out a character when he is being hit as soon as he is hit, or in any moment, at the cost of both skill bars. This effectively cuts many combos that otherwise would do a lot of damage, eliminates the possibility of infinites by repeating chains of attacks on the ground (excluding aerial juggles) and brings an element of balance to the game. While it is possible to escape from any combination of attacks on the ground, it is not possible to use Saving Shift to get out from a Desperation or Leader Desperation move.

The tag battle mechanics from ''2003'' were overhauled for this game. The Shift Attack was removed, and in its place, new ways to switch characters were introduced.