Western influenced role playing games (RPGs) have been rather a hit and miss affair with many gamers either loving or hating them. The term RPG has also been under scrutiny from gamers as often Western developers opt for a more action orientated adventure, leaving the turn based antics of the Japanese firmly behind. Games like Fable and Sudeki have pretty much established that Western RPGs do have their own quirks and personalities that make them unique and somewhat will appeal to a different type of gamer.

Bio-ware had done a great job with its previous Star Wars themed title Knights of the Old Republic (Kotor) where the turn based combat was still in place but retained that action adventure feel. Opting to not include the traditional and perhaps the bane of many western gamer, random battles every few steps. This approached worked extremely well for the developers and with an engaging storyline and charismatic characters ensured that all eyes were on Jade Empire prior to its release. Well Jade Empire is upon us and the question one must ask is does it retain that classic Bioware feel as seen in previous games or does it branch out even closer to the action adventure games of its peers?

Jade Empire is set in a fictional China where ancient technology and mythological beliefs collide to create an epic action role playing game that will give rise to many emotions and great stories to behold. Players will lead a path to discover their true destiny in the grand scheme of the empire. From the offset players choose their character and begin the story which starts at the Two Rivers School under the tutelage of Master Li. As an aspiring and model student showing much promise it is here that the quest for greater things begin and where the player is thrust into the epic tale of Jade Empire.

Gameplay:

From the start players choose from 6 characters which include 3 female and 3 male. Character attributes are broken down into 3 main categories which are as follows: Body, determines how much damage you can take during battle. Spirit, determines your level of Chi, which can be used for added attack power or magic. Finally there is Mind, which determines how long you can use weapons during combat and how well you can focus your mind to seemingly slow the World around you, giving you a helpful edge during combat. The 3 primary attributes also determine the levels of conversational skills that will affect how well your character can banter with the many people that you will meet on this epic adventure.

Each of the 6 characters has his or her own characteristics such as being a balanced fighter, a magic user or a fast fighter with attributes in the 3 primary categories being predetermined. What is good here is that using any of the 6 character templates on offer, players can customise their chosen one to suit their needs so in effect there are plenty of variations to mess around with.

Once the basic character is chosen players can then decide which fighting style they are to adopt. There are several to choose from and more can be learnt as you progress through the story. The fighting styles fit into one of 5 groups which are Martial, a more practical style for out an out combat. Magic, this draws from Chi levels to perform devastating attacks. Weapon, this draws from the players focus level but is fast and has reasonable reach. Transformation, which as the name implies will magically transform the character into the spirit of certain fallen enemies. Support, which generally offers status changing attacks such as the ability to slow down opponents. Whilst all of this may sound a little complicated, in reality it is actually very simple and easy to understand. The way in which it is presented via the game menus means that players should have a good understanding from the offset.

The combat itself is handled in real time, making Jade Empire’s combat very action orientated in a similar way to say Fable. However the real mastery of the combat lies in the ability to switch fighting styles at the touch of a button (d-pad). There are a number of enemies throughout the game ranging from ghostly forms to humans and demonic monsters that are all baying for your blood and hoping to put an end to your quest. Certain enemy types are immune to a number of attacks, therefore meaning that players will have to learn to switch styles as often as they can, and any way it looks cool as well.

Throughout the game players will also find a number of gems which can be purchased or sold via a wide number of merchants scattered around the land. These gems when equipped can offer a boost to various attributes which can aid in making your character even more powerful or handy with words. Another excellent feature and one that has been present in previous Bioware games is the option to change the level of difficulty on the fly which means that if you are finding the game too easy or perhaps too hard then you can simply change the difficulty with ease. The higher difficulty definitely requires a lot more thought in combat and ultimately makes it more engaging for those looking for the extra challenge.

If you look at Jade Empire from the combat side of things then you might be mistaken about whether this is an action game or a true RPG. However, Jade Empire does feature a whole mountain full of dialogue which offers players willing to find out everything they can about the empire the option to do so. With the wide number of non playable characters (NPCs) who all have something to say and may also lead to one of the many side quests available there is certainly a lot to take in.

At various points during the game players will amass a group of followers who will offer their assistance during combat; however this is limited because only one character can assist you at a time. Players can choose which character will aid them at any given time and if inquisitive enough can learn about their history as the story progresses.

To me this aspect of the game is rather a hit and miss affair and may dissolution some players more used to the action side of things. The combat is definitely cool and engaging when handled correctly however the sheer amount of dialogue may simply be too much for those in it for the action alone. Whilst it is possible to ignore many side quests and the like there is a lot of dialogue in general that cannot be avoided, and whilst this will no doubt please the die hard RPG fans it kind of paints a picture of Jade Empire being a game which isn’t sure exactly who it wants to appeal to.

Graphics:

Jade Empire has some rather great looking environments at times and some others that are not so pleasing on the eye. In general they do a fine job of conveying the visions of a Chinese empire, but in my opinion aren’t as polished as they perhaps could be. The character models generally look good and fairly detailed but often you will find repetitions in the character models used which can be quite annoying given that the rest of the game’s looks has quite a lot of variation.

I also noticed a fair amount of slowdown which I wasn’t sure was deliberate or not in some fight scenes (almost like The Matrix Bullet time). Whether this was simply a case of my Xbox struggling to read the disc properly or an actual game bug I cannot say for sure but I am aware that I’m not the only one to notice this. Despite some minor pop up and perhaps characters suddenly appearing from no-where Jade Empires graphics are good enough for what they set out to do and kudos goes to the creators of some of the environments portrayed here.

Sound:

As mentioned earlier, there is a lot of dialogue in the game and pretty much all of it is spoken. The voice actors do a convincing job and some players may even recognise certain voices from the Kotor games. The music is generally non intrusive and fits the period quite well with its Eastern tones throughout. Other in game sound effects are of a reasonable standard and amidst the kicks and punches do an adequate job of sounding correct especially the ambient sounds that you hear throughout the game.

Longevity:

With 3 separate endings to view and various dialogue options which will sway you to good, bad or neutral there is enough here to warrant at least a 2nd play through. With the various character templates to mess around with and mini games which can be unlocked means that players can opt to try something different on subsequent plays. However the story will remain the same for the majority of the game and the differences in combat will require a little imagination from the player to get the most out of a 2nd or third play. With over 20 hours of game play to be had on a first play and a number of side quests to undertake doesn’t make this game as in depth or as long as the Kotor games but is still very fun and intriguing all the same. Again it’s a game that will reward those that spend the time with it properly rather than rush through.

Overall:

Jade Empire is a welcome addition to the Xbox roster of games and definitely is a game full of character. With easy to understand combat that will appeal to action players and some level of depth that will appeal to RPG fans makes Jade Empire a game that should appeal to both types of player. Whether this is actually the case, well the jury is out on this one as I’m still not sure whether the game is too vague in each area to be enough. That said, if you are willing to indulge then you will find a game that is impressive, different and generally very fun, despite maybe having some clichéd and overly drawn out dialogue at times. The similarities between this and Kotor are apparent at times and makes one wonder if the developers rested on the success of those two games when making Jade Empire. Either way I like Jade Empire as it is full of some neat ideas and I think that the majority of players with an open mind will like it too. If you lack any sort of patience then I might suggest that you stay clear as the game might prove to be too much.