Jade Empire maintains the quality we expect from a developer like BioWare. Original world/story, same old design.
User Rating: 7.1 | Jade Empire: Hisui no Teikoku XBOX
Jade Empire is one of those games that comes along every so often that you really have a great time playing, but you can't help but think of all the things you would do differently if you were making the game. Don't get me wrong, this is a good game, a fun game even. But I regret that it's just not as great as it could have been. They say you should start with the good before you get with the bad, so keeping in that tradition, let's talk about the graphics first. Jade Empire is a beautifully drawn world of Asian mystery. The environments are richly detailed and very vibrant in color. There are a few special realms, called Haven’s, where several god-like spirits live that are truly breathtaking. The designers really captured the look and feel of a medieval Asian world. The character designs were very well drawn, and the outfits looked colorful and appropriate (most of the time) to the setting, which is a big plus. Unfortunately, there are a few times when the characters are bending down or in an awkward position that the character models seem to break apart. The joints looked very strange and they took on a bend-i-can look, however, other then that, the graphics were top notch. The story for Jade Empire is also excellent. It takes you back to the quality that you received in KOTOR. Every character feels fleshed out and a part of the world. Few characters (with one notable exception) seem appropriate to the setting and you believe that they could live in this well thought out world. The main plot is not very complex, but it’s an interesting tale. You play a student at a school run by Master Li, and old but wise Kung Fu Master. You learn that you have a great destiny to fulfill and that the time is drawing near for you to start down that path. Then all hell breaks loose. The plot carries along very well, and you’re moved from location to location to complete each of the area’s quests. As with KOTOR, there are some places you can never go back to (poor Tarsis), so you should try to finish everything you can in each are before moving on (like the Great Dam, for instance). All in all, though, I think you’ll have a good time exploring the story and listening to the characters relate their tales to you. Okay, let’s trash the game a bit. We’ll start with the character system. It just doesn’t have the impact that you got from KOTOR. I know I keep bring back this comparison to KOTOR, but you can’t deny the similarities between these two game systems. Instead of Light Side/Dark Side you have the Way of the Open Palm (Light) and the Way of the Closed Fist (Dark). You even have the slider bar to tell you where you fall in the grand scheme just like KOTOR. It’s not an inspired engine, by any stretch. When you level you receive points to spend in your primary stats (Body, Mind, and Spirit) and then you can spend more points on your styles to make them more effective. However, there doesn’t really seem to be a great impact unless you singly mindedly raise one style at a time. And as you can probably guess, there are more styles then there are points to spend. It’s hard to know where to put things when there are so many choices. Then there are the combat styles and the combat system. There are tons of styles including Martial, Magic, Transformation, Support and Weapon. Each style has its own look and feel, but each is very simple to use. Since combat is real time button mashing, it’s limited to A-A-A which is you standard attack, X which is your powerful attack, and X+A to do a group attack. Every style is the same and has the same button combos. There are no counter attacks or grapple moves so it all feels very arcade and less realistic. Last is the sound. Think Kevin Costner from Robin Hood Prince of Thieves. Remember how Kevin spoke with an American accent while everyone else decided to “act” and use British ones? Yeah, it’s kinda like that. Everyone looks Asian, but they all sound American. And since they do such a great job with dubbing, you can’t help but think that they intended it that way. Other then that misstep, the game music is very well done. The music gets you in the mood and helps to sell the graphics and story. In that respect, the music score does its job perfectly. Over all, this isn’t a bad game. I am enjoying the play experience, but having played KOTOR I am left feeling that there could have been more. More gameplay, more polish, more something? If you like Asian kung fu movies and enjoyed KOTOR you will probably enjoy this one too. It will take you anywhere from 15 to 20 hours to complete on your first run through. Unless you are diehard, you may want to consider renting this one before you purchase it. Jack
