Mai Shiranui (Japanese: 不知火舞, Hepburn: Shiranui Mai) (alternatively written しらぬい まい) is a player character in the Fatal Fury and The King of Fighters series of fighting games by SNK. She has also appeared in other media of these franchises and in a number of other games since her debut in 1992's Fatal Fury 2 as the first female character in an SNK fighting game. She also appears in the games' various manga and anime adaptations, and plays a leading role in the live-action film.
In the series' canon lore, Mai is a modern-world young female ninja and the granddaughter of the ninjutsu master Hanzo Shiranui, with the ability to create and control fire. She is a founding member of the King of Fighters Tournament's Women Fighters Team and is madly in love with the American fighter Andy Bogard who is ambiguous about their relationship but she chases him endlessly.
Largely due to her sex appeal, Mai has become one of the most popular, recognizable and celebrated female characters of the fighting game genre and video gaming in general, especially in Japan, China and some other East Asian countries, and often being compared to Capcom's Chun-Li. She has also become SNK's primary sex symbol and mascot character featured in many merchandise products and representing the company in several crossover and spin-off titles, in addition to licensed appearanced in several games by other companies, as well as becoming a trendy subject of cosplay and modeling.
Character design
Development and portrayal
Mai Shiranui became SNK's first female playable fighting game character upon her Fatal Fury series debut in 1992.[6] SNK had originally conceived two different characters—a male ninja master and a Japanese idol—for Fatal Fury 2 prior to her creation.[7][8] Inspiration for Mai's appearance and attributes came from a number of sources. According to the Neo Geo publication Neo Geo Freak, Mai's bust was modeled on Fumie Hosokawa and her buttocks on Ai Iijima,[9][10] while her breast "jiggle" was inspired by the tales of kunoichi using their bodies for seduction and distraction.[11] Designer of the fighting game Battle Master claims Mai's overall looks and costume might have been modeled after his game's character Ranmaru, as he has unsuccessfully pitched it for SNK to have it published for the Neo-Geo before Toshiba-EMI eventually released it for the SNES.[12]
In SNK games, Mai represents an ideal of a Japanese woman.[8] In her profile, her measurements are 87-55-91 cm (34-22-36 in); she is 1.64 m (5.4 ft) tall, and weighs 50 kg (110 lb) (later 48 kg (106 lb)[13]).[14] Her official character description in the games is listed as "The Gorgeous Ninja" or "Knock-out Ninja",[15][16] and sometimes as "Red Ninja".[17][18]The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact character Lien Neville conceptually began as a contrast to Mai Shiranui: while Mai represents a "sexy and beautiful kunoichi," Lien represents the "sexy Western femme fatale" and her outfits were purposely designed to be "tight and constricting" to contrast Mai's clothing, which is made to allow for easy and quick movements.[19]Shinkiro, an illustrator who worked on The King of Fighters, considered the character Leona Heidern with her "ice queen" persona as a complete opposite of Mai.[20]
Her first name, "Mai", is the Japanese word for "dance", and her surname is the title of a Japanese optical phenomenon similar to will-o'-the-wisp, in reference to the character's pyrokinetic abilities. These powers enable her to cloak herself in fire; channel it through her clothes, weapons and anything she touches; and cause explosions.[21][22] She can to change her clothes in an instant,[23] as well as to temporarily stay airborne, float, glide and control her movements and change directions in mid-air, and is also a master of climbing and stealth. Her fighting style is to "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee."[24] Mai's weapons are her "Fire Butterfly Fans" that can be used in close quarters and as projectiles.[21][25] She furthemore has a variety of hand-to-hand combat maneuvers, such as a diving attack ("Flying Squirrel Dance") and a rushing cartwheel kick followed by an elbow strike ("Deadly Ninja Bees").[26]
In most of the games, Mai's Japanese voice actress has been Akoya Sogi (dubbed by Sheryl Stanley in the English versions of the Maximum Impact series), until she was gradually replaced by Ami Koshimizu during the 2010s. Kotono Mitsuishi voiced Mai in the Fatal Fury anime films, with English dubbings provided by Sarah Sawatsky and Lisa Ann Beley, and Japanese voice actress and singer Megumi Hayashibara portrayed Mai in a series of drama CDs during the 1990s.
Animation and costumes
An example of Mai's famous breast-bounce effect as seen in 2010's The King of Fighters XIII, in which her design and stance are based on her appearances in the Fatal Fury series[27]
Mai—the character who’s taken the world by storm! How did she achieve such fame? One day, Mai's designer asked me if they could add some more animation for Mai's resting pose (aka 'neutral' pose, when the player is not taking any action). I thought we still had a little extra memory left (in fact, we did not) so I quickly said "Go ahead." When the designer came back with that 'swaying bosom', it was so amazing that it left us awestruck, jaws agape. By the way, we had to censor that animation for the overseas console release.[28]
Mai's appearance changes only slightly through most of the Fatal Fury and King of Fighters games. She has long hair (usually brown or red, but sometimes black) tied in a ponytail, with long bangs framing her face, and normally wears a sleeveless red tunic with a decorative waistband—sometimes with long, decorative tails, and a loincloth with a thong (shorts in the U.S. version) around her crotch. In Fatal Fury 2, Fatal Fury Special (1993) and The King of Fighters, Mai Shiranui wears a pair of soft-soled tabi. From Fatal Fury 3: Road to the Final Victory to Real Bout Fatal Fury (both in 1995) she wears instep guards, exposing her heels and toes. In the former, she also wears a red vest and eye shadow. Mai's hairpin is her beloved grandmother's keepsake.[13]
In KOF: Maximum Impact (2004), Mai has much shorter and darker hair,[38] and ninja clothing resembling that of Kasumi in the Dead or Alive series.[39] Shinkiro said that Mai was the most difficult character to draw as he "thought she was going to burst out of her costume."[40][note 2] In KOF: Maximum Impact 2 (2006), one of Mai's color schemes matches Andy Bogard's and she has blonde hair. Another outfit of Mai's with long green hair, tiger-print clothing and a hairpin with horns resembles that of Lum Invader from the manga and anime series Urusei Yatsura and is based on Cham Cham from SNK's Samurai Shodown series. The Maximum Impact series' producer, Falcoon, said that designing Mai's alternate look was "unforgivable" as he was uncertain of fan reaction to the changes.[41]
Appearances
In video games
In main SNK fighting games
According to SNK universe' early canon, Mai Shiranui was born on January 1, 1974 (later the year was omitted[14]). Usually relaxed, enthusiastic, uninhibited and cheerful, Mai has a charismatic, flamboyant and flirtatious personality, as well as exhibitionistic[42] tendencies. She is a practitioner of her family's ancient Shiranui-ryūninjutsu, the empty-handed art of koppo-ken, and has also been taught additional close-combat techniques by her grandfather's friend judo master Jubei Yamada.[21] Mai is madly in love with Andy Bogard, an American who studied the arts Shiranui ninjutsu with her grandfather Hanzo since their early teens. She is also a friend to Joe Higashi and to Andy's older brother Terry Bogard.[21] Mai deeply cares for her family's traditions, including battle outfits and ceremonial clothing,[22][43] but also enjoys modern foreign things, such as Western casual fashion and heavy metal music.[44] As a girlfriend, she is gentle, kind and enjoying cooking, and only occasionally losing her temper.[45][46]
The King of Fighters series tournament also features Mai as a regular character participating in the annual tournaments in the Women Fighters Team (also known as the Woman Fighters Team,[48] the Fighting Gals Team,[49] and the Gorgeous Team[50]), which she founds in The King of Fighters '94 after Andy refuses to let her enter and form a team with her. Initially, the team is composed of Mai, King and Yuri Sakazaki from the Art of Fighting series, with Mai aiming to help encourage King and her fellow team members and to prove to Andy the error of his ways. In The King of Fighters '99, the teams were expanded to four members, and so Mai goes to the Fatal Fury Team composed of Terry, Andy and Joe, being finally able to join the tournament in the same team as Andy. In the following tournament in The King of Fighters 2000, however, Mai is asked to step out to allow Blue Mary investigate a case. Denied again, she is angered by the request and joins the Women Fighters Team again and has remained a reoccurring member ever since. In the various team endings, she is often celebrating the team's victory at King's bar or fantasizing about Andy.
Mai eventually leaves the KOF tournament competitions in The King of Fighters XI (2005) to search for Andy who was absent in The King of Fighters 2003 (she appears in KOF XI only as an unlockable character in the PlayStation 2 version).[51] In The King of Fighters XII (2009), Mai is completely absent from the game itself (except a mention in Andy's profile) and appears only in the tie-in manga series, even as she has been was "teased" in a trailer and official website, and has been rumored to be added through DLC for the home version.[52][53] In The King of Fighters XIII (2010), Mai returns to the series when she feels that the KOF tournament is not complete without her and so decides to enter it along with the other two original members of KOF '94's Women's Team.[54][55] She is not upset at Andy while making her choice, content to enter a tournament with both her and him in it once more. Mai returns in The King of Fighters XIV (2016), in which the new character Banderas Hattori is obsessed with her but she is not interested[56] and Andy is now in relationship with Mai.[57]
Gameplay-wise, Mai has been the fastest but also the weakest fighter in her first game, Fatal Fury 2.[58]Super Juegos noted that Mai, "despite her fragile appearance, is one of the more effective contenders" in Fatal Fury Special.[59]Sega Saturn Magazine described Mai as "one of the easiest characters to master" in Real Bout Fatal Fury, who "also has a huge range of pyrotechnically astounding special moves."[60] According to a GamePro guide to Fatal Fury 3, "Mai's excellent speed and air superiority give her an advantage over some fighters, but her moves inflict little damage" and thus Mai players need to constantly keep on attacking their opponents in order to prevail.[61] Mai has been improved for the home version of The King of Fighters XIII in comparison to the game's original arcade edition, yet 1UP.com verdicted it was still not enough for her to get on equal footing against some others such as Shen Woo.[62]
In other games
File:Mai Shiranui DoM.pngAn alternative version of Mai Shiranui from Days of Memories dating sim series
Mai is a playable character in many SNK titles such as the fighting games SNK Gals' Fighters (2000)[63] and NeoGeo Battle Coliseum (2005),[64] shooter games KOF Sky Stage (2010)[65][66][67] and Neo Geo Heroes: Ultimate Shooting (2010),[68][69] and the quiz game Quiz King of Fighters (1995). In the dating sim series Days of Memories, Mai Shiranui retains her name and general design but is an otherwise unrelated character with a different role in each game: a rich maiden and protagonist's neighbor in Boku to Kanojo no Atsui Natsu,[70] an office lady by day and a masked vigilante by night in Koi wa Good Job!,[71][72] a popular school beauty and the protagonist's classmate in Kaze Maou Miyako de Tsukamaete!,[73] and a school beauty with strange motives in Sekai de Ichiban Atsui Fuyu. Mai is further featured as a playable character in every game in the SNK vs. Capcom series crossover fighting games since 1999 (including as one of the four playable characters in the demo version of 2003's SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos[74]), as well as in the 1999-2006 spin-off crossover card battle series SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters Clash.[75] In the crossover tactical role-playing game Queen's Gate: Spiral Chaos (2011), Mai is a rival to Street Fighter character and fellow in-game playable Chun-Li.[76]
She features, usually as a playable character, in many mobile games either developed or licensed by SNK, including Fatal Fury Mobile,[77]The King of Fighters,[78]The King of Fighters Mahjong, The King of Millionaire, The King of Fighters Volleyball, The King of Fighters: Battle de Paradise, Garou Densetsu vs Fighter's History Dynamite, The King of Fighters-i,[79]KOF Gals Mahjong,[80]KOFM for Kakao,[81]The King of Fighters 97 OL (a beat'em up),[82][83]The King of Fighters 98 Ultimate Battle OL,[84]Mini King of Fighters,[85] and The Rhythm of Fighters.[86] Non-Fatal Fury/KOF mobile games featuring Mai include SNK Dream Battle, SNK Beach Volley Gal's Attack,[87]SNK Gal's Open: Cutey Shot,[87]SNK Gals Island Dokidoki Puzzle Shock! (and its sequel), Neo Geo Tennis Coliseum,[88] and Dai Shingeki RPG! Sister Quest.[89][90] She is also featured in Samurai Shodown Slash (a beat 'em up crossover of Samurai Shodown and The King of Fighters),[91][92]Metal Slug Defense (a tower defense crossover of KOF and Metal Slug),[93][94] and a mobile remake of the rail shooter Beast Busters (in a nurse outfit).[95]
Mai is further a playable character in several other games, including Thailand-only[96]MOBA game The King of Fighters Online,[97][98][99] and China-only dance game Dazzle Dance.[100] To celebrate the 15th anniversary of The King of Fighter in 2009, Mai Shiranui joined the Chinese game Prophecy Online.[101] In 2010, she was added as a player character to the Korean multiplayer beat 'em up Dungeon Fighter Online.[102] In the Korean free-to-play 3D fighting game Lost Saga, Mai is a premium character that was added for the Japanese edition in both female and male variations in 2012,[103][104] and for the Chinese and Spanish-language versions in 2015.[105][106] In 2013, Mai also joined the character roster of three more Korean video games, Ace Duel,[107]Mad Blade,[108] and KaKaKa Together.[109] In 2014, Mai was featured as an avatar replacement model to promote the Japanese MMORPGWizardry Online.[110][111] In 2015, Mai was added to the Chinese MOBAs 300 Heroes (as a player character),[112]Chi Bi Zhi Zhan,[113] and King of Soldier II (as character costumes).[114] That same year, she was also included as a player character in the Chinese beat' em up Arcade All Star,[115] and featured as a variant of the character class Kunoichi in the Korean MMORPG Black Desert to promote it in Japan.[116][117][118] In 2016, Mai was licensed as a bonus hero to the Chinese version of Tencent's online multiplayer game King of Glory,[119] and additionally starred in an official tie-in webcomic.[120] She was included as a collectible fighter in Brave Frontier[121] and Dead or Alive 5 Last Round;[122] in Dead or Alive, Mai is a speed type of character who is easy to handle and thus recommended for beginners.[123]
Mai Shiranui has made her first anime appearance in Fatal Fury 2: The New Battle (1993), where she follows Andy on his search for Krauser in Germany. She is approached and later attacked by Laurence Blood, but Andy defeats him and rescues her.[128] In Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture (1994), Mai is present with Terry, Andy and Joe when Sulia gives them the quest to find the Armor of Mars and stop Sulia's brother Laocorn Gaudeamus. After the villain Hauer fails to seduce Mai, he takes her hostage after a fight, but she is again saved by Andy. Mai then defeats the henchwoman Panni and participates in the final battle against Laocorn, which ends with Laocorn dying to save her from the god of war, Mars.[129] Mai has only a minor role in the 2005 original net animation The King of Fighters: Another Day, voiced by Akoya Sogi and Sheryl Stanley.
Mai is a protagonist in the 2009 live-action film The King of Fighters, which is loosely based on the games. She was played by Maggie Q, who performed her own stunts.[130] Like the other series characters, she bears little resemblance to her in-game incarnation,[131] in that she is instead an undercover CIA operative and a girlfriend of Iori Yagami.[132]
In books and other media
Mai appears in Dengeki G's Magazine drama CD series Fatal Fury, and in licensed manga and yonkoma comic books based on both the Fatal Fury and King of Fighters series.[133] She is the main character in one of the Queen's Gate erotic gamebooks published in 2008 as part of the Queen's Blade series, in which she hopes she will be finally able to conquer Andy's heart if she proves herself the top female fighter of all time.[134][135]
Mai's image was additionally licensed as a roulette character for pachinko machines.[136][137][138][139][140] In 2003, SNK sued machine manufacturer Aruze for copyright infringement after Mai's and Terry Bogard's likenesses were used without permission for their pachinko game "Iregui".[141] A 1994 single by Japanese singer Reiko Chiba titled Non Stop! One Way Love included the vocal track Kachou Fuugetsu Otome Mai, which was released by Pony Canyon.[142]
In promotion and merchandise
Four models dressed as Mai Shiranui, with the middle dressed as Bonne Jenet, at Tokyo Game Show 2007
Mai Shiranui was used extensively by SNK for their games' promotion. She was featured in live-action television commercials for Fatal Fury Special and Fatal Fury 2 in 1993.[143] Multiple Mai "booth babe" models were fixtures at the Tokyo Game Show[144] and other events in Japan and East Asia.[84][145][146][147][148] Japanese actress and pinup model Sayuki Matsumoto was hired by SNK as an "image girl" to portray Mai for promotion of The King of Fighters XIII.[149][150] Asian musicians such as Korean idol Kyungri of Nine Muses[151] and actress-singer Li Bingbing[152] have appeared in costume as Mai to promote the games, while a 2005 fan-voted "Ultimate Mai Shiranui Cosplay Tournament" promotional event in Taiwan exhibited 98 women who dressed up as the character.[153]
One of SNK's attractions at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) was the signing of limited edition posters of Mai Shiranui by Falcoon.[154] In 2009, Capcom also teased UDON's SF20 art book by showing Akira Yasuda's image of Chun-Li and Mai Shiranui "almost kissing and almost punching each other".[155][156] Mai featured heavily in promotional materials for The King of Fighters XIII,[157] and an exclusive Mai Shiranui T-shirt given to all registered participants in the KOFXIII championship at the fighting game event EVO 2012.[158]The King of Fighters IV Premium Edition included a soundtrack with a Mai Shiranui illustrated case[159] and the game's pre-order bonuses included a Mai PlayStation 4 theme.[160]
According to Kotaku, there have been "literally a gazillion" Mai Shiranui figures[161] and "when you think of SNK figures, you think of curvy Mai Shiranui figures."[162] Scores of figures, statuettes and dolls have been made in her image,[163] including those by A-Label,[161][164] Aizu Project,[165] Alphamax,[166][167] Daiki,[168][169] Max Factory,[170]Volks,[171] and SNK themselves.[172] Some of them can be stripped topless,[173] and an exclusive Volks figure was sold in an auction for the Make-A-Wish Foundation in 2009.[174] Two action figures of Mai were made in the Cy Girls series,[175][176] and her figurines were included in the Pinky:St series.[177] Other licensed Mai-themed merchandise include several official T-shirts[163][178] and a Neo Geo joystick controller for PlayStation consoles decorated with Mai-related imagery,[179] and a number of cards in the Universal Fighting System collectible card game, producers of which too has used her broadly for promotional purposes.[180][181]GungHo Games offered their users a Mai avatar skin.[182]
Kotaku's Patricia Hernandez wrote in 2015 that Fatal Fury 2 was "the first game to introduce a character with breasts that moved on their own … Though Fatal Fury may not be a huge franchise nowadays, its legacy is very much alive: many top fighting games include a similar jiggle effect."[183] Mai and other KOF characters became especially popular among young people in Hong Kong during the late 1990s, when their character design impacted on local youth culture that "has penetrated Hong Kong street fashion, action figures and martial arts comics."[184] Brian Ashcraft of Kotaku opined that rather than fans showing a following for the King of Fighters games, the character herself became popular on the basis of her "skimpy and revealing" outfit.[185] French magazine Hardcore Gamers commented in 2002: "Mai has become a leading figure in fighting games to the point that many fighting games feature characters looking oddly like her, such as Jam Kuradoberi in Guilty Gear X and Kasumi from Dead or Alive."[186]Akane the Kunoichi designer Giovanni Simotti modeled the title character's design on the game cover as "a small tribute to two of the most famous kunoichi from the history of video games ... Mai Shiranui with a bit of Ibuki."[187]
The character is popular among cosplayers around the world,[188][189][190][191][192] and particularly Asian actresses and models.[193][194][195][196][197] British entertainer Cheryl Cole appeared in a Mai-inspired costume on her 2009 television special Cheryl Cole's Night In.[198] Singaporean pop-culture site Lollipop commented: "[The] Mai Shiranui outfit demands a special kind of physique, which is probably why it seems to be the go-to cosplay of models."[193]GamePro noted Mai for being "the favoured costume choice for cosplay attention-floozies."[199] Mai has additionally been depicted in unofficial erotic and pornographic dōjinshi fan comics and film productions,[186][200] and in Japanese adult films.[201][202][203][204]
Reactions
Critical reception and popularity
Like it or not, Mai Shiranui is the most popular character from The King of Fighters. Yes, Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami are the ostensible mainstays … but it's Mai that everyone remembers for one reason or another. And it's Mai who gets the most merchandise, Mai, whose absence from The King of Fighters XII set off a fan chorus of “No Mai, no buy,” and Mai who crosses over to other series.
Mai Shiranui's sex appeal escalated her popularity in Japan and worldwide, while the character herself is regarded as a female icon of SNK.[6] German magazine Play Time claimed that "already a cult" of Mai had existed in Japan by 1994, two years after the release of the original Fatal Fury.[206]UGO commented in 2008, "Mai is an unapologetic sex symbol ... While some decry Mai's ubiquitousness as pandering fan service, we're more than happy to pick up the yearly iterations of the King of Fighters franchise just to get fresh hands on this fetching fighter.[207] Japanese magazine Gamest named her one of the best characters in arcade gaming for five consecutive years, placing her second in 1994, tenth in 1995, 21st in 1996, 28th in 1997, and 25th in 1998.[208] Mai was the most-illustrated character in a 2009 fan art contest held by SNK Playmore and Pixiv to commemorate the fifteenth anniversary of the King of Fighters series.[209] Spanish magazine Games Tribune, in 2013, described her as not only one of the most admired characters of SNK but also in the entire history of video games.[210] Chilean publication CerUno ranked Mai as the sixth-most memorable heroine in their 2008 top-ten listing.[211] The Spanish edition of IGN ranked Mai as the eighth-top female video game character in 2012 and further described her as "one of the biggest legends of the '90s."[212]Engadget's Colin Torretta opined: "The King of Fighters games come heavily recommended ... if only for Mai Shiranui."[213] Sara Sundman of ScrewAttack Magazine noted Mai's chest "as an example of well-animated breasts" in video games: "They move when she does, just like mine do."[214] Seraphina Brennan of Joystiq wrote in 2009: "We've always asked ourselves one important question: 'Where is Mai Shiranui and why can't I be her?'"[215]
Mai Shiranui has drawn comparisons to the fighting-game genre's other early female icon, Chun-Li.[186][216][217][218] Ed Laurence of Sinclair User wrote in 1993 that Mai was able to "out-Chun Li Chun Li".[219]Joystiq's Richard Mitchell said in 2007: "There is one thing Street Fighter will never have, and that's Mai."[220] Mai received 62% of votes to Chun-Li's 19% in a 2009 South Korean online poll held on White Day, in which fans voted for their "most wanted" female fighting-game character.[221] According to Crunchyroll's Nate Ming in 2016, Mai has continued to represent "SNK, Fatal Fury, and KoF in the same way that Chun-Li reps Street Fighter."[222] Aleksander Borszowski of Polish magazine CD-Action described Mai as the "second dame" of 2D fighting behind Chun-Li.[223] Mexican publication Chilango grouped Lara Croft, Chun-Li and Mai together at the top of their 2014 list of "the women we have dreamed of in the nineties."[224] Mai has appeared on several lists of top video game ninjas by CrunchGear,[225]PC World,[199] UGO,[10] Arcade Sushi,[226]GameHall,[218] and the Filipino edition of FHM.[227]Complex named Mai the number-one "hot female killer" in video games.[228]
SNK's decision to feature Mai in an unplayable cameo in 2009's The King of Fighters XII was met with media criticism and fan backlash,[53][229][230][231] which in turn sparked the phrase "No Mai, no buy".[205][232] Shane Bettenhausen of Ignition Entertainment likened the omission to Capcom leaving Chun-Li out of the original release of Street Fighter III,[233] while Destructoid'sJim Sterling compared it to "releasing Street Fighter without Ryu."[234] Upon Mai's addition to The King of Fighters XIII in 2010, Spencer Yip of Siliconera opined that "SNK isn't going to make that mistake again" in omitting Mai from future series installments.[235] Adam Biessener of Game Informer said of Mai's return: "Sometimes fan service is all a franchise needs to stay relevant—and SNK Playmore is certainly delivering that."[236]
Sex appeal
Thanks to Street Fighter II (specifically the leggy Chun-Li), every [fighting game] out there had to have a sexy combatress in its ranks, with each new franchise trying to "out-sex" the other. Chun-Li was slutted out of town by Cammy, but none could hold a candle to Mai, who may very well be the first case of bouncy animated boobs. … What these games taught us: If a girl hasn't been kidnapped, it's because she's a thick-thighed master of combat who fights with as little clothing as possible. It would just get in the way, after all.
Since her introduction, Mai has been featured in numerous lists of the sexiest female video game characters. Salehuddin Husin of GameAxis Unwired said in 2007: "Sex sells, and everyone knows it. Mai Shiranui from Fatal Fury first stumbled into this magical power when she captivated thousands of Ah Bengs the world over with the heaving bosoms during her matches."[238]
She was named the "Hottest Game Babe of 1994" by the staff of Electronic Gaming Monthly.[239] German gaming magazine Mega Fun called Mai "a favourite of the editors that could leave the likes of Cammy from Super Street Fighter II or Blaze from Streets of Rage downright pale with envy."[240] In 2011, French site JeuxActux chose Mai as one of the game heroines they would like "to repopulate the Earth", alongside Lara Croft and Bayonetta,[241] and in 2012 Brazilian website Tribuna Hoje included her among the ten game heroines and villainesses they would like "to come in flesh and blood".[242]Wired.com's Daniel Feit called Mai a "buxom fan-favorite",[157] while Bryan Johnson of GameSpy ranked Mai the fourth-"top babe in games" in 2003: "With sexy babes being a part of fighting games, SNK set out to design a sexy fighting babe of their own. They probably went a little over the top."[243] UGO placed Mai seventh on their 2008 selection of the top eleven "girls of gaming";[207] in 2009, MSN declared Mai the "fifth-hottest babe" in video games;[244] and Robert Workman of GameDaily ranked the "Asian beauty"[245] as the "sixth-hottest game babe".[246] In 2011, UGO ranked Mai the sixth-"hottest videogame hottie".[216] She was featured in a 2012 listing of the ten "sexiest girls of games" by Polish site Onet,[247] and rated first in the 2014 list of GameHall's 100 sexiest female video game characters.[248] In 2013, João Vitor de Oliveira of Official Xbox Magazine ranked Mai as the number-one sexiest woman in fighting games and expressed satisfaction that she was created in the place of a male character, as was originally planned by SNK.[249]
Adam Wears of Cracked.com described Mai as "a fighter with so little clothing covering a pair of breasts so meticulously animated that we suspect they're constantly huddling together for warmth."[250] According to Sherilynn Macale of The Feed in 2011, "if there's one female fighter who really is just the Queen of the Bosom, it's Mai Shiranui from King of Fighters. She is boobs."[251] MSN commented in 2009: "There is no denying the fact that most gamers know of Mai Shiranui … The developers may have created a character that will upset every feminist out there, but the guys ain't complaining."[244]GameDaily discussed her in their 2007 article "Boobs Through the Years", stating that "when it comes to 2-D breasts, no character tops Mai Shiranui."[252] In 2011, Ross Lincoln of GameFront ranked her bust as the fifth-best in gaming history.[253] Rich Shivener of Joystick Division ranked her first in his list of "incredible chests" in video games.[254] In 2012, Mai's breasts were rated the second-best in video games (behind Soulcalibur character Ivy Valentine) by Drea Avellan of Complex.[255] Zachary Miller of Nintendo World Report ranked Mai as his third-favourite "chesty heroine".[256] French gaming publication Retropolis placed Mai and her "heavy artillery" third in a 2013 ranking of the sexiest fighting-game girls that was judged on their busts.[257] Craig Skistimas of ScrewAttack rated Mai's "Everyone-Pleaser" costume from the original Fatal Fury the second-"sexiest outfit" in 2011.[258]
However, some have commented negatively about the perceived sexualization of the character.[259][260] In citing Mai and Dead or Alive characters Kasumi and Ayane as "the 'fan favourite' lady ninjas", Kotaku's Matthew S. Burns said: "Why are the costume designs for female ninja often so...fanservicey? A lot of [game] creators seem to feel that female ninja are ok to treat as sex objects."[261] Lyle Masaki of NewNowNext said in 2008: "Fighting games have a long history of sexualizing female characters (remember Mai Shiranui’s 'Me Bouncy!' victory cry?), but the same doesn’t happen as often with the male characters".[262] Chris Jager of PC World remarked in 2010: "How she manages to stay upright with those things grafted to her chest—let alone engage in martial arts—is a mystery for the ages."[199] In 2011, Winda Benedetti of NBC News included Mai's original Fatal Fury outfit in her list of top five "most preposterous getups in games" in 2011: "Oh Mai! When you arrived on the scene in the early '90s, you set womankind back decades."[263] Chris Heyward of SNES N-Force commented in his 1994 review of Fatal Fury 2, "Unfortunately … Mai Shiranui's boobs are the only interest in this game. And it's not just me; everyone who had a go retorted, 'What a crap game…nice pair though.'"[264]
Other versions
In 2016, GameZone's James Wynne wrote that with the inclusion of Mai, the 3D fighter "Dead or Alive 5: Last Round wins our brand new award for most appropriate fighting game cross-over in history, while the game featured "the best looking iteration of the Mai Shiranui character."[265] In a review of the 3D The King of Fighters: Maximum Impact, the staff of Official Xbox Magazine opined that "Mai Shiranui's heaving bosom redesigned to fully use the immense funbag recreating power of the Xbox" was "exactly what the doctor ordered."[266]
The character has received mostly negative reception in regards to her film appearances. GamesRadar's Henry Gilbert commented in 2014 that Fatal Fury: The Motion Picture director Masami Ōbari "never miss[ed] a chance to fill the screen with her heaving chest" while devoting more attention to her shower segment than to the film's fight scenes.[267] John Funk of The Escapist wrote that Mai's costume in The King of Fighters was "not nearly as cleavage-tacular as it needs to be" and recommended "getting some members from Tecmo's Team Ninja as consultants."[268]Jeff Gerstmann of Giant Bomb remarked in 2009, "Maggie Q … as Mai Shiranui? Let me be the last to say 'that seems like an awful choice.' That seems like an awful choice."[269] Tein Hee Seow of Stuff.com described the "oddball" casting as "quite a departure from how the amply endowed character is portrayed in the game."[270] However, Peter Rubin of Complex placed Mai second in his 2011 ranking of the "hottest women in video game movies": "We're sold. Beautiful, badass, and more proof that 'SNK Games' stands for 'Sexy with No Klothes.'"[271]
^Mai's breast motion as well as blood effects in some games (including KOF'94[34][35] and KOF '95[36]) can be restored through the use of special cheat codes.
^Conversely, when asked which character from which game he was happiest with, King of Fighters logo designer and illustrator Nao Q answered: "You know full well it's Mai from Fatal Fury! As a fan of full-figured females, I can't do without her!"[20]
^Falcoon. "February 2006 Entries" (in Japanese). Falcoon Blog — KOF Maximum Impact 2 Develo-Diary. Archived from the original on 2008-03-08. Retrieved 2008-03-21. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^David Martínez (July 26, 2013). "Top chicas Dead or Alive" (in Spanish). Hobbyconsolas.com. Archived from the original on June 27, 2014. Retrieved 2014-06-30. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^アナザーコスチュームのこと （一回目） (in Japanese). Falcoon's official blog. Archived from the original on 2014-12-01. Retrieved 2009-01-21. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^ abSNK Playmore. "スポーツ：SNK WORLD-i". SNK Playmore (in Japanese). Archived from the original on July 28, 2009. Retrieved February 27, 2008. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^SNK Playmore. "NEOGEO TENNIS COLISEUM". SNK Playmore (in Japanese). Archived from the original on September 14, 2007. Retrieved February 7, 2008. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^Michael McWhertor. "More Mai Shiranui = More T&A". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on October 25, 2010. Retrieved 2016-01-01. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^Staff (February 1994). ベストキャラクター賞 [Best Character Award]. Gamest (in Japanese) (107). Shinseisha: 32. Staff (30 January 1995). ベストキャラクター賞 [Best Character Award]. Gamest (in Japanese) (136). Shinseisha: 50. Staff (30 January 1996). ベストキャラクター賞 [Best Character Award]. Gamest (in Japanese) (162). Shinseisha: 48. Staff (30 January 1997). ベストキャラクター賞 [Best Character Award]. Gamest (in Japanese) (188). Shinseisha: 54. Staff (30 January 1998). ベストキャラクター賞 [Best Character Award]. Gamest (in Japanese) (212). Shinseisha: 102.
^"不知火舞成为玩家最想表白的角色 COS赏_网络游戏新闻". News.17173.com (in Cantonese). March 14, 2009. Archived from the original on March 17, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2016. ((cite web)): Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^Gonzales, Gelo (March 29, 2012). "9 Sexiest Ninja Babes in Games". FHM Philippines. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012. Retrieved January 1, 2016. ((cite web)): Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
^João Vitor de Oliveira (December 2013). "Ranking: As lutadoras mais gatas". Revista Oficial No Xbox (in Portuguese). p. 88. ((cite web)): Missing or empty |url= (help)
