The character has received a generally positive reception. Shepard was voted number 2 by readers in "Game Informer"s poll of the top 30 video game characters, behind "Halo" protagonist Master Chief, and "Game Informer" similarly listed them as 99 on their countdown of 100 favourite video game heroes – though squadmate Garrus Vakarian was placed significantly ahead, at number 15. GameZone's Eric Zipper listed the character as one of "the 8 coolest video game heroes who wouldn't be any fun to actually hang out with", citing how, as they're controlled by the player, their actions could be "wildly erratic".