The character was very well received by the gaming media outlets, with many publications considering SHODAN one of the top villains in the history of video games. GameSpot named her one of the ten best computer game villains, comparing her to HAL 9000, though noting that unlike Hal, SHODAN was unquestionably aware of her actions and the consequences of them. GameSpot also chose her as one of the 64 characters competing for the title of "All-Time Greatest Game Villain". In 2006, IGN listed SHODAN at number four in their list of top most memorable video game villains, praising the character for her constant physical and mental assaults against the player throughout the games. In another such list, IGN stated that "her villainy and voice won't ever be forgotten by anyone who checked out the "System Shock" games, and no doubt influenced other video game villains, such as Valve's GLaDOS from "Portal"." In 2008, "The Boston Phoenix" named SHODAN as the greatest boss in video game history, while "GamePro" ranked her as the 12th "most diabolical" video game villain ever, calling her "far more crafty than Skynet or the machines of the Matrix, simply because she's omnipresent and constantly taunting," and adding that "you'll want to kill SHODAN more than you've ever wanted to kill any videogame enemy. Ever." That same year, Joe Martin of Bit-tech ranked SHODAN as the fourth top PC game NPC of all time, while GameDaily ranked her at number eleven on the list of top evil masterminds of all time, stating that even "Halo"'s 343 Guilty Spark "got nothing" on her and expressing hope for the character's return in a new game. "Complex" ranked her as the third "coolest" video game villain of all time in 2012. GamesRadar too praised SHODAN's role as an antagonist, putting her in their 2013 list of the best villains in video game history at number 15.