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The Look (7/10) - Apart from having a feminine form, there is nothing that stands out about Spirit. Her looks can be considered normal, earrings and black shoulder length hair. Her face is pretty without looking like a supermodel, hardly surprising as no one in the game is portrayed this way, and shows her emotions rather well. You can clearly tell when she's joking around, when she's serious, upset, whatever mood she might be in. Her flight suit is a bomber jacket and jeans with black boots and a flight helmet. However things change for the worst later on. Later in the game, Spirit becomes a Colonel, and her looks change for the worse. She does not age very well, having short cropped brown hair and her face showing the strain of fighting the war for so long. This however is realistic, as many of the characters age rather seriously throughout the game. The uniform Spirit wears has changed to a blue jumpsuit, and sometimes she will wear a kimono instead.Attitude (8/10) - This is the best thing about Spirit. She is consistently a caring individual who looks out for others. There are various examples of this. One is discussing tactics against the Kilrathi with the main character and another pilot. Another is trying to help a pilot deal with losing her wingman. A rather forgiving person, Spirit does not wish to go after the pilot who killed her father and not even holding a grudge against the Kilrathi for taking Philip as a prisoner of war for long. She will even ask to fly with someone who was convicted of treason, showing how trusting she is. Mariko is also set in her ways and beliefs, always acknowledging praise to others rather than herself and not shying away from being a killer and bringer of death. And she never backs down from a task assigned to her, unlike several others. Once she even volunteers herself and the main character for a dangerous mission. There are times when we do see weakness in her though, and these scenes display what angst Spirit is going through when the war hits her where it hurts, and again when she is faced with making the most important decision of her life.
Intelligence (7/10) - Several factors can be contributed to Mariko's intelligence. First and foremost is her philosophy and understanding of the war. She believes it is important to fight against a foe who seeks nothing more than to eradicate the human race. She accepts death as being part of the war, and will talk about leading the Kilrathi into asteroid fields to kill them or not being overconfident in the face of victory, warning to be cautious of a desperate foe. Second, Mariko is consistently able to outsmart the enemy in order to have survived as long as she had. And third is her earning a rank that would have her leading soldiers into battle. The fact she works alongside the commander of the Space Force's flagship suggests her intelligence in this field. One thing that may hold her back is that maybe she is too trusting, her willingness to fly with someone convicted of treason a prime example.
Stance (7/10) - Spirit has about four stances throughout the game. In the bar you'll find her playing a guitar, which is a neat addition to her character as opposed to reading, eating, looking around nervously, etc that the other characters do. At times you may also find her asleep in the cabins, sprawled about as if she had a rough night. When giving her debriefing, she stands with her helmet under her arm, back to the player like everyone else. Her only other stance is another one shared with all the other characters, which is basically standing straight with arms by her side. Also worth mentioning is when she talks to you, she looks directly at you. Several other characters do this, but others avert their eyes or head away instead of focusing on you.
Voice (8/10) - We only hear Spirit in the second game unfortunately. But that's okay because the voice work is very good. Spirit has a feminine Japanese accent, something that's hardly seen in games these days, and she will even use Japanese at times (Hai Captain). Her voice suits the character well and strikes a balance between not sounding butch or manly and not high pitched or whiny. What she says is as good. They are mostly general acknowledgments of commands. Script (9/10) - This would just about be the Saving Private Ryan of video games. The scripting is tight, with the main story flowing like a movie without it dragging along. You come across various plot devices and story arcs, centering around love, betrayal and the need to win against the Kilrathi. When your commanding officer says good-bye to all the characters before one mission, in case they don't come back, it adds to the game and the personality of the characters. When a character dies, it stings bad. And the script is very much character driven. Throughout the course of the game, you learn of your wingmen's fears and uncertainties of the war, their hopes and dreams and their personal lives. Several characters talk about their family, and one of the main characters finds it difficult to care about others because of a deep fear of them dying. The only thing stopping the script from earning a perfect ten is how some of the endings seem hokey and too easily resolved. One believable ending has you pulling out from defending a world from the Kilrathi, hoping that its inhabitants are nor slaughtered. But the script is still one of the best in a game and easily outclasses even some movies.
Marketing Effort (8/10) - You certainly won't see Mariko peddling the game in the same manner as Joanna Dark or Lara Croft. Wing Commander has been marketed solely on the basis of what the game has to offer. The cover breaks down exactly what you're in for, while hiding a few pleasant surprises such as the story elements. Basically, Wing Commander relies on the game to serve the story and it's characters, not the other way around. Later on the game would have real actors such as Mark Hamil (Luke Skywalker) and adult actress Ginger Lynn, but Wing Commander made a name for itself by providing a solid gaming experience.
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