Jade Empire

Spiritual successor to KOTOR does it again!! on December 09, 2007

I tell ya, BioWare just knows how to make good, engrossing games. They start by building an exciting world (which was pretty much handled for them with KOTOR), then they fill it with interesting characters, and then write a great story to follow that has plenty of twists and turns and options for whether you choose a "good" or "evil" path. First of all, this is a role playing game. If you're looking for non-stop, mindless action, it isn't here. Bioware is old school when it comes to some RPG tenets, and one of those is "there's no need to fight anyone unless you are in 'battle-mode'". There's not a single turn-based game that allows you to kill/destroy everything in site, and even though the battle in Jade Empire is real-time, don't expect to be beating up people on the street for extra cash. Not gonna happen. Once you do enter "battle-mode" though, things are very smooth, with several combat options including magic, weapons, and open hand "styles" You learn these different "styles" throughout the game, and then can combine them during combat to pull off different combos, or simply counter whatever style an opponent may be using. There are also instances where a certain foe may be immune to a certain style. The story here is a very good one and you can either be a noble hero, or an iron fisted vigilante. Either way guarantees a good time. If you like kung-fu flicks or role-playing games, you can't go wrong here. If you're looking for a straight action game, you're not going to find it here.