Mass Effect players who picks the starting version of the game's Commander Shepard character are a rare breed, according to BioWare. The studio says that a mere 13 percent of players pick the default version of the male avatar. The remaining 87 percent tweak the character's appearance, class, or gender, before heading out for the stars.

That bit of information comes from an interview with BioWare's marketing director, David Silverman. Speaking to VG24/7, Silverman discusses the allure of female Shepard in particular, who he says 18 percent of players choose in one form or another. So far, the company hasn't shown off the female version in any of the promotional materials leading up to Mass Effect 3. BioWare says that will be changing soon, with an appearance in an upcoming trailer as well as on the box of the collector's edition of the game.

Silverman says he's been surprised by the amount of interest that Shepard's female version has generated, but that it's something that the team has embraced. “There aren’t enough female heroes in games in general, so it’s something that people can rally around and celebrate," he says, adding "Jennifer Hale does an absolutely incredible job doing the voice of FemShep, so people really connect with that.”

I've played through Mass Effect twice, as both male and female versions of Shepard, before deciding to continue the series as female Shepard. I just felt that Hale's voice acting was far better than Mark Meer's, as good as his work might have been. Did any of you have a similar experience?