Intrepid Homoludens Posted October 11, 2004 Jade Empire BioWare, the company that allowed gamers to shape the path of the galaxy in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is now about to let us roam freely around their mythical vision of ancient China in Jade Empire, an action RPG that's set to hit the Xbox early next year. Featuring a unique fighting engine that lets you switch styles and weapons on the fly, as well as some deep character development, it's near the top of just about everyone's most wanted list....Rather than simply pounding the attack button until your foe's hit points are down, you're forced to adapt, switching styles depending on the situation. Sometimes, though, physical abuse simply isn't enough to take down a foe, so you've got to tap into your inner power, or your chi. ...Each character in the game has a variety of chi powers in their arsenal, and it looks like all of them can be used offensively as well as defensively. ...When you need absolute focus, however, it's time to hit the Y button, which slows down time. Using the focus feature, you can dodge and attack with more accuracy, and you can even juggle your opponents after they've fallen, building up your experience multiplier. The focus came in handy, as Wu froze Zeng, battered him with her fists, then picked up a nearby ham hock to shatter him. That's right, you can wield meat, as well as any other object that happens to be lying around. Gamespy preview I'm curious about this one. Upon finishing Fable (which I'm going to play again but develop my hero differently) I realized how much I like Action RPGs, or rather, that I like these kinds of single player games where I get explore and interact with NPCs within an overarching main story, as well as develop my character gradually over the entire course (such as with Deus Ex). I hope Jade Empire has a substantial enough story and freedom. Anyone else keeping an eye on this one? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ryam BaCo Posted October 11, 2004 what i read about jade empire sounds promising, but as long as there is no pc version in the works i won't have a detailled look at it. otherwise i'd be dependet on my brother's xbox... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jake Posted October 11, 2004 I saw this at E3 and was pretty impressed by it. I don't really know what else to say other than that, and I'll be watching closely as it gets close to coming out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris Posted October 11, 2004 Likewise. Also it has an awesome top-down scrolling shooter mini-game. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Erkki Posted October 11, 2004 I've read and watched everything GameSpot has about this game (besides Idle T, it's about the only gaming site I visit nowadays). I might be confusing it with some other game, but I think there was some talk about a PC version too... Oh yeah... Rumor #4: Jade Empire is coming to the PC. ...... Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus. It's just a matter of time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Intrepid Homoludens Posted October 11, 2004 I wouldn't dismiss the possibility. It would be shocking if Fable didn't port to PC, considering it sold over a million when it just came out. Jade Empire, if that successful, should naturally port over. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ryam BaCo Posted October 13, 2004 as long as i don't read something official about a pc version for jade empire i'm not excited about it (because i won't play it then...). i hate rumors... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris Posted October 13, 2004 Speaking of ham-fisted, what did you think of the dialogue and voice acting? It really came off to me as extremely clunky and definitely not up to KOTOR quality. That's not surprising given LEC's voicework tradition, but it was rather disappointing. That said, I still think the game is going to be loads of fun. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marek Posted October 13, 2004 Jade Empire blew me away at E3. Now that I've finally played KOTOR, I'm even more excited. Jade Empire is being written by the same... err, writers, so that's good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Simon Posted October 13, 2004 Personally I think KOTOR's voicework is good, but it doesn't spring to mind when I think of excellent game voice acting. There are even some badly-delivered lines in there, though with such masses of dialogue, you can't really demand perfection. The sound effects and music were brilliantly executed, but I was indifferent to the voices. Eventually, I was skipping over the lines once I'd read them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marek Posted October 13, 2004 I thought the voice of Bastila was super annoying, but all the other characters were voiced really well. Did anyone else catch the small role of Ethan Phillips? He plays a character on Manaan. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
