Jade Empire is one of those games that Xbox gamers have been patiently anticipating for quite awhile now. It may not have had the hype that Halo 2 had, but this game has had a large amount of work put into it by Bioware, the company behind the smash hit KOTOR. This game takes place in the ancient time of the Jade Empire, and you must fight your way through the empire to find items as you progress throughout the game to discover the secrets that are held in this Jade Empire.
Jade Empire plays similar to a mix between Fable and KOTOR. Though the game is an RPG, it is very free flowing and plays very easily.
"Jade Empire plays similar to a mix between Fable and KOTOR"
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The controls are every fluid and easy to lean and use including switching between fighting styles which is conveniently mapped to the d-pad allowing you to switch on the fly. The game includes many different styles for you to use throughout the game, and each style is unique and has its own benefits and advantages for each situation, as some enemies are resistant to certain types of attacks.
The story of Jade Empire is a huge part of the game and is very involving like other Bioware games. The story throughout the game is very involving, and will lead your character on his quests to find answers. Jade Empire start out with you choosing of a few different looks of characters. You begin in at the martial arts school of Two Rivers, and this is where you learn the skills needed to play the game, including combat and interaction. You interact with the NPC’s in the game and you can talk with them using a systems like which was seen in KOTOR. You have a choice of what phrase to say and you can answer in some situations with a variety if answers, some bad and some which are good. This changes the way people react to you, and skills you have gained, such as persuasion will help with certain line choices.
Jade Empire is filled with large landscapes full of many interactable objects and characters. This creates a very lifelike game. You can travel around and talk to characters gaining information and even training. You can buy upgrades for your character such as different game items. You can also find various objects that can help you throughout the game. These objects can help your different abilities such as chi. Jade Empire allows these subtle upgrades, but unlike KOTOR, you cannot customize your character to the extent where you seem them wearing different clothes, etc. It leaves us desiring for further character customization.
Jade Empire plays like all great RPG’s should. It is a lot of fun to play because you are not swept into combat situations like traditional RPG’s, but instead fight in real time much like Fable or Morrowind. This is a great relief to gamers who don’t enjoy traditional RPG’s and want to try something new or even casual gamers. This game is quite a diverse title with an assortment of NPC characters that join your cause, this can help by spreading out the enemies to various characters in your party.
The gameplay in Jade Empire is very well done with it’s impressive story and massive amount in detail, especially in the language the players speak, the
"leaves us desiring for further character customization"
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amount of dialogue and just the entire game package, Bioware has done an impressive job with this title and it shows the amount of work put into this smash hit.
Visually, the game is stunning. The environments are full of interactable objects and the character models in the game look great. This game is full of detail and objects like a glistening pool of water all the way to a burning fire look amazing, with excellent particle effects implemented in this game. The characters models look great throughout the game, especially during dialogue. This game highlights the power of the Xbox.
The animations of the characters are very life like, and the effects when you use powerful attacks look great, and the effects in this game add to the atmosphere during intense combat sequences. Jade Empire looks excellent in motion and the features such as the spirit world have a very artistic touch and look amazing. The buildings and environments in the game look excellent and are full of detail and look reminiscent of buildings that would have been found around the time. This game gives you the look and feel of ancient Asia and creates an amazing gameplay experience.
The audio in Jade Empire is second to none, and includes a great musical score along with thousands of lines of dialogue. The voice acting in this game is outstanding and shows the amount of detail that Bioware puts into each of their games. The music in the game is excellent and gives a greater feel of the time period of this game and action going on in the game. The game sounds great through out the story and the sound
"Bioware has created a fun, expansive title"
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effects such as the impact of a punch all the way to the roar of a powerful fighting style, this game has it all.
Jade Empire may be one of the handful of RPG’s on the Xbox, but it is also one of the best. Bioware shows why they are one of the top RPG developers in this ever-expanding game market. Jade Empire is an excellent example of the amount of time and work Bioware puts into their game, and items such as the expansive dialogue and the stunning graphics show why games from this company are in such high demand. This game was a change from Bioware, creating an RPG title in an area and era where not much time is spent in games, and Bioware has created a fun, expansive title for the Xbox.
