A mysterious spy and fighter, she is the female protagonist of the series, along with her younger brother Jago, and is one of the most popular Killer Instinct characters, though her sexualized portrayal in the games has also been subject to criticism.

Created and designed by Kevin Bayliss for Rare, the character was originally a blonde woman called "Wanda" made for the fighting game Brutal Force.

Wearing a red leotard, matching knee-high boots and headband, and using a long pole as a weapon, she was described in the design document simply as "a fearless acrobat".

Art director David Robert Donatucci incorporated goggles and her original batons into her design, and as it progressed he wanted to emphasize a panther aesthetic in her appearance.

"[10] As introduced in the 1994 fighting game Killer Instinct, Black Orchid is a secret agent infiltrating the corporation Ultratech through its martial arts tournament, to discover the truth behind disappearances related to the company.

[11][12] In the series reboot, Killer Instinct (2013), Orchid exhibits emotional instability from a young age due to inheriting the ability to summon the "Firecat" from her grandmother, who underwent a secret experiment during World War II.

Fearing the government or Ultratech would use her as a tool, her Seal Team 6 father Jacob begins training her in combat, weapons usage, and summoning the Firecat.

[13][14] When fellow Disavowed member Eagle is reported dead, Orchid joins the Killer Instinct tournament to find out what happened, where she is almost killed by Jago before discovering he is her half brother.

Sullivan examined her appearance in the 2013 Killer Instinct game, stating "Orchid's attire this time around actually matches her profession: secret agent, looking to expose UltraTech as the evil megacorporation that it is.

"[28] In a review of the aforementioned 2013 game by Polygon, Arthur Gies stated "It can be a little hard to handle some of the more blatant stereotypes and overt sexualization of Killer Instinct's currently available roster of characters," highlighting Orchid and Sadira as examples.

"[31] Retropolis magazine author Trev was negative of her being the only human female character in the original Killer Instinct game, due to "[boosting her] sex appeal to 300%," and estimated her measurements to be "around 100-40-90.