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JADE EMPIRE (XBOX)
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Publisher: Microsoft.
Developer: BioWare. Released: April 2005. Genre: WRPG. Other versions: PC. Posted 28th January 2019. By Shane Battams © 2019 |
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After devising one of the Xbox’s finest games in Knights of the Old Republic, BioWare would work with Microsoft to fulfil a dream concept that the company’s founders had held on to since their inception. The result was Jade Empire. A labour of love, sadly it sits as an oft-forgotten RPG due to the proximity of its launch with the Xbox’s successor. But this does not reflect the quality of the game, which boasts a unique and engrossing world, a layered story with lore and twists to spare and a technical presentation which pushes the Xbox to the limit. Not everything is superb, including issues with combat and length, but these aren’t enough to stop Jade Empire delivering a great time.
Jade Empire follows a martial-arts student, one of a number you can choose between at the beginning, who was rescued by Master Li and groomed as a superb warrior. After an attack on the village escalates with assassins and undead ghosts invading, Li informs the hero of their purpose and potential, to help bring balance to the Jade Empire, only to be kidnapped and spark the quest which will see this character realise their destiny. The story, like much of BioWare’s output from this era, is top notch. Writing is deep yet accessible, hooking you in with a bounty of fascinating lore inspired by Chinese mythology. You’ll meet a multitude of characters who are not just combat assistants, but deep personalities with their own stories to uncover, and they may not even get along with other party members. A myriad of twists (some minor, some far bigger) keeps you on your toes, and despite nearly treading into clichéd territory with the old hero and his destiny yarn, Jade Empire’s complexities keep it afloat.
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As you'd expect from BioWare, there's plenty of side-quests and numerous ways in which to engage with others
The world of Jade Empire remains one of the most distinctive to grace gaming. Infused with Chinese mythology, locales not only look gorgeous but are a joy to unravel. As man and mythical creatures stand together in bustling cityscapes, rural countryside and darker caverns, plenty of side quests open up along with the main thread. Some seem menial, like fetching items, but many are deep sub-narratives with multiple outcomes depending on your actions. Rather than simple good/evil morality, BioWare would implement the Open/Closed palm, where one priorities ingenuity and using cunning, the other a thirst for violence and selfishness. Missions, thanks to this system, can offer a handful of outcomes depending. In one mission, an Ogre ox-carrier causes a scene in a Teahouse, which can be dealt with using Intuition and persuading him the oxen are lonely, Charm and helping it realise the owner needs help, or just fight it instead to help the Teahouse. It’s these little diversions, outside of the linear main quest, that lend the player lots of incentive to explore and engage.
When the talking’s done, fists must fly, and this component is perhaps Jade Empire’s weakest. Not that its combat is bad, because the martial arts infused styles are quite exciting. Along with a starting style, you can learn and equip up to three more techniques which allow you to wield weapons, cast magic spells and even transform into demonic creatures. But even with these flourishes, combat feels a tad basic. You’ll often find yourself in a loop of striking, using a stronger strike to break an opponent’s guard and occasionally diving overhead to avoid attacks. The lack of customisation feels like a missed opportunity, with only three key stats to manage through level-ups, and outside of equipping gems to your hero’s amulet, it feels kind of gaunt. The action focus and real-time fighting definitely is more accessible, perhaps to placate console users on a gamepad, but even on higher difficulty settings, later combat becomes a breeze.
Jade Empire is also surprisingly short, with a lengthier set of initial chapters that include a healthy dose of side-quests seemingly giving way to a rushed quartet of concluding ones with very little additional content to speak of. Even if you invest in the side content, you’ll struggle to break the twenty-hour mark on an initial run. But the key word here is “initial”, because the malleability of the story, the range of starter characters and alternate outcomes for smaller quests does warrant at least another run-through, just to see how choosing the opposite approach can alter the end result. There are also other elements to consider, such as romancing your party members and being able to replay the mini-games encountered, including the shoot ‘em up segments which serve as your method of travel between locales. It’s just a shame that Jade Empire ends just as momentum really starts to build.
When the talking’s done, fists must fly, and this component is perhaps Jade Empire’s weakest. Not that its combat is bad, because the martial arts infused styles are quite exciting. Along with a starting style, you can learn and equip up to three more techniques which allow you to wield weapons, cast magic spells and even transform into demonic creatures. But even with these flourishes, combat feels a tad basic. You’ll often find yourself in a loop of striking, using a stronger strike to break an opponent’s guard and occasionally diving overhead to avoid attacks. The lack of customisation feels like a missed opportunity, with only three key stats to manage through level-ups, and outside of equipping gems to your hero’s amulet, it feels kind of gaunt. The action focus and real-time fighting definitely is more accessible, perhaps to placate console users on a gamepad, but even on higher difficulty settings, later combat becomes a breeze.
Jade Empire is also surprisingly short, with a lengthier set of initial chapters that include a healthy dose of side-quests seemingly giving way to a rushed quartet of concluding ones with very little additional content to speak of. Even if you invest in the side content, you’ll struggle to break the twenty-hour mark on an initial run. But the key word here is “initial”, because the malleability of the story, the range of starter characters and alternate outcomes for smaller quests does warrant at least another run-through, just to see how choosing the opposite approach can alter the end result. There are also other elements to consider, such as romancing your party members and being able to replay the mini-games encountered, including the shoot ‘em up segments which serve as your method of travel between locales. It’s just a shame that Jade Empire ends just as momentum really starts to build.
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RPG elements come to the fore during combat, which is perhaps Jade Empire's weakest suit
Jade Empire would push the Xbox, even more so than the technically uneven KOTOR, but the engine does seem more stable this time around. Characters bear intricate clothing and emote quite well, environments boast gorgeous lighting and vibrant colours, and plenty of neat touches creep their way in such as the striking gore when using certain weapons, beautiful FMVs and a plethora of varied and eye-catching creature designs. The audio side benefits greatly from superb voicing, including some unique tongue certain characters will use. The music, composed by Jack Wall, is seeped with Chinese culture, proving an apt accompaniment for the game, and sound effects, be it the hard hits of combat or magical incantations, are good too.
Jade Empire is a one-of-a-kind experience that, despite some deeper flaws, was kept afloat with BioWare’s penchant for excellent world-building, fantastic storytelling and considerable technical aptitude. Its mythical world of martial-arts, conspiracies and demonic creatures is one you’ll be sucked into with ease, and finding all of the alternate paths missions offer will keep you coming back for more. Despite a shorter runtime than most other RPGs and the combat being a touch cursory, Xbox owners would do well to pick this one up, even if you aren’t especially keen on the genre. It’s a gem that, amongst the Xbox’s dense library, was cruelly overlooked.
Jade Empire is a one-of-a-kind experience that, despite some deeper flaws, was kept afloat with BioWare’s penchant for excellent world-building, fantastic storytelling and considerable technical aptitude. Its mythical world of martial-arts, conspiracies and demonic creatures is one you’ll be sucked into with ease, and finding all of the alternate paths missions offer will keep you coming back for more. Despite a shorter runtime than most other RPGs and the combat being a touch cursory, Xbox owners would do well to pick this one up, even if you aren’t especially keen on the genre. It’s a gem that, amongst the Xbox’s dense library, was cruelly overlooked.
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VERDICT
"Jade Empire is a one-of-a-kind experience that, despite combat being a touch cursory, is kept afloat thanks to excellent world-building, fantastic storytelling and considerable technical aptitude” OVERALL: 8/10 |