NA April 12, 2005
EU April 22, 2005 JP June 16, 2005 AUS June 30, 2005 Microsoft Windows XP: NA February 26, 2007 EU March 2, 2007 AUS March 2, 2007 INT February 27, 2007 (Steam) Xbox Originals: July 21, 2008 Mac OS X: NA August 18, 2008 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game developed by Canadian developer BioWare and first published in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios as a worldwide release for the Xbox.[2] The later, two-disc Limited Edition contained extra content.[3] On May 10, 2006 BioWare announced a version for Microsoft Windows XP, to be published by 2K Games and developed by LTI Gray Matter, which was subsequently released in North America on February 26, 2007 as a Special Edition.[2] The Special Edition was also released through the Steam delivery system on February 27, 2007 published by Valve Corporation. Jade Empire was released as an Xbox Original on Microsoft's Xbox 360 on July 21, 2008. TransGaming Technologies announced immediate availability of the Special Edition for Intel-based Macs on August 18, 2008.[4]
GameplayOverview
Jade Empire follows the style of the wuxia genre within a mythical setting inspired by ancient China. The player, who can be either male or female, progresses through an adventure based on traditional martial arts and can discover and develop new fighting styles:[5] martial arts,[6] weapon styles,[7] magic styles,[8] support styles, or transformation styles. Combat is not turn-based, but is in real time, granting players control over how and when characters dodge or attack. In this fashion the player may change styles during combat and possibly initiate a Harmonic Combo.[9]
The role playing statistic system in Jade Empire uses a tri-stat system Body, Mind, and Spirit.[10] These primary stats control the secondary stats of Health, Focus, and Chi (respectively), and the conversation skills of Charm, Intuition, and Intimidation. Focus is used by fighting with weapon styles (such as a longsword or a staff) or by choosing 'focus mode', which slows the movements of other characters, allowing the player to attack at high speeds. Chi is a character's spirit energy. The player can use it to heal himself, to charge up a powerful 'chi strike' to deal large damage, or to use it as 'mana' when casting spells or transformations. Health, focus, and chi can be replenished by collecting power-ups left by defeated enemies in combat or by using Focus Shrines and Spirit Fonts found in the game world. Additionally, certain party members[11] have the ability to add their power to yours—refilling your stats while they remain out of harm's way.
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Certain aspects of Jade Empire's gameplay engine, dialogue and quest systems are handled in a way that is very similar to BioWare's Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic games for the Xbox and PC. Players can speak to NPCs in the game's towns and other areas, asking questions for information to learn more about the world, the storyline, and other characters. Many of these NPCs will offer the player side quests that can be completed for experience points and items. These quests often have more than one method of completion depending on whether the player chooses to follow the 'High path' (in the game referred to as The Way of the Open Palm[12]) or the 'Low path' (The Way of the Closed Fist[13]). The player can respond to questions or take courses of action that are consistent with the philosophy he or she follows; different actions will affect a character's alignment and his or her ability to cast certain spells or equip certain items.
There is also a vertical-scrolling airplane shooter included in Jade Empire as a mini-game, which is triggered by certain events in the storyline. In the mini-game, only the health and chi bars are active. Chi is replenished by shooting enemies, and is used for special attacks specific to the mini-game. The yellow focus spheres will upgrade your primary cannon up to three times. Red health spheres refill your health bar as in the main game.
Jade Empire also features the constructed languageTho Fan developed by Wolf Wikeley, a Ph.D. candidate in linguistics at the University of Alberta.[14]
Philosophies
Much of the game places emphasis on the two major philosophies in the world of the Jade Empire, the Way of the Open Palm and the Way of the Closed Fist. These paths bear a close resemblance to the 'Light Path' and 'Dark Path' described in the BioWare title Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic; however, a minor character states 'I believe there can be intrigue behind the Way of the Open Palm, and honour behind the Way of the Closed Fist'. Thus one who follows the Way of the Open Palm is not necessarily good, and one who follows the Way of the Closed Fist is not necessarily evil.
According to the 'Way of the Open Palm', the key to maintaining the universe is by being in harmony with nature, one's surroundings, and one's station in life. As an effect of being in nature with one's surroundings, one is expected to actively assist in lessening the chaos in the area, through the assistance of lessening burdens. While this seems 'Peaceful', the Way of the Open Palm is strict in another form: one should not act outside their station and purpose in life.[12]
According to the 'Way of the Closed Fist', on the other hand, the purpose of life is to follow the ways of serving oneself — to face one's challenges head on, challenge one's station in life, and work to become self-reliant. The emphasis of the Way of the Closed Fist is combat, turmoil, and constantly challenging oneself, which is why many of those who are evil tend to be considered to follow the Way of the Closed Fist, in that they bring about chaos in the universe.[13]
Context plays a large part in the interpretation of these philosophies. For example, an evil follower of the Open Palm path could enable the suffering of others in order to achieve greater order,[12] and a good follower of the Closed Fist path could encourage self-reliance in others, thus making them happier.[13] For instance, if a follower of the Open Palm came upon a peasant being attacked by a gang of bandits, he would help because it is the right thing to do. Conversely, if a follower of the Closed Fist encountered this situation, he would reason that the peasant must survive on their own merit, or die. However, the Closed Fist student might also help the peasant if he felt that the peasant was too far out of his league for such a battle to be a valid test of his strength. For example, if a common thug came upon this situation he may not help the peasant due to concern for his own safety, but then later claim he was merely following the way of the Closed Fist. In this way, the Closed Fist tends to be misconstrued as evil.
Despite the philosophical nuances, the actual game play in Jade Empire for the most part casts Open Palm actions as selfless and heroic, and Closed Fist actions as selfish and thuggish.
CharactersPlayer characters
Prior to starting the game, the player must choose one of either six or seven playable characters, depending on the game version. The sex of the character is by far the most important factor at character creation, since it will determine the various romance options as well as the responses of many non-player characters throughout the story. There are no differences in combat capabilities between the sexes.
The default playable characters are labeled 'fast' (Mind specialists), 'magic' (Spirit specialists), 'strong' (Body specialists), or 'balanced.' The male playable characters are Furious Ming (fast, tattooed), Lu the Prodigy (balanced, athletic), Monk Zeng (magic, dressed as a Buddhist monk), and Tiger Shen (strong, large & muscular). The female characters are Radiant Jen Zi (fast, diminutive), Scholar Ling (magic, contemplative), and Wu the Lotus Blossom (balanced, seductive). Monk Zeng is only available in the Limited Xbox and Special PC editions of the game. The names of the characters can be customized prior to starting the game. Other than sex-based differences, the Jade Empire plot does not distinguish among the player characters (e.g., all male characters will have the same dialog response options, and will be received the same way by the story). As a minor detail, some NPCs will give a vague description of the player character's appearance.
The player character models all share common expressive traits. Through most conversations, the faces of the playable characters are calm and expressionless. When choosing a rare humorous or witty response from dialog options, a slight, barely perceptible smile appears on the character models. When choosing a mean-spirited or angry response, a much more perceptible scowl shows itself. Many of the pre-generated video cut scenes are rendered separately for each player character model.
Non-player characters
During the course of the game the player will meet various non-player characters. Some will have the willingness to join the player's party and thereby become a 'follower'. Many more characters will not become followers, but will present opportunities for side-quests or casual conversation.
Romance
Jade Empire gives the player-character the option to form a romantic relationship with several of the non-player characters, including characters of the same sex. Successfully romancing a character results in them standing outside the player-character's tent on the eve of the battle against the golems, whereupon unless the player chooses to reject them, the player-character and the NPC will lean in to kiss (although if the character is of the same sex, the camera will pan away before the actual kiss itself). Male characters can romance Dawn Star, Silk Fox or Sky. Female characters can romance Sky or Silk Fox. Male characters can also romance both Dawn Star and Silk Fox at the same time. If this is the case, the cutscene and dialog at the tent implies that Dawn Star and Silk Fox spent some time together in their grief and lead the player character off for a menage-a-trois. When romancing a certain character, the opportunity arises to influence his or her way of thinking. For example, the normally calm and collected Dawn Star can be persuaded to stand up for herself and become an altogether less mellow person, effectively following the path of the Closed Fist.
PlotSetting
Jade Empire takes place in a fictional kingdom inspired by ancient China.
Tho Fan is a constructed language created by Canadian linguist Wolf Wikeley for the game. The language has been designed to sound ancient and distinctly Asian.[15]
Tho Fan does without the verb 'to be'; instead, articles — words like 'a' and 'the' — would be used to mark tense. In the game, the Tho Fan phrases do not actually match up to their on-screen translations — most of them are actually a set of a few dozen pre-rendered phrases. In fact, the game will often use the exact same audio track to say successive sentences, much akin to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.
Story
Chapter 1: Two Rivers
The game begins with the player cast as a martial arts student under the tutelage of Master Li, head of the Two Rivers martial arts school, based in the in-game geographical locale of the Golden Delta.[16]
The player's training is interrupted as the town of Two Rivers comes under attack from an aggressor in a strange ship who summons ghosts to attack the student. The attacker is defeated by Master Li, who comes to the student's rescue and reveals that the attacker was a member of the Lotus Assassins, a mysterious force serving the Emperor of the Jade Empire. Gao the Lesser, a rival of the student, issues a challenge for a duel and loses. He is expelled from the school after he attempts to use explicitly forbidden magic on the student. Master Li explains that the student is the last of the order of Spirit Monks. He, a brother of the Emperor and leader of the Empire's army, had ordered an attack on Dirge, where the Spirit Monks' temple existed, in order to end the Long Drought. He claimed to have opposed the act and to have saved the student and the Dragon's Amulet.
He sends the student to a cave beneath the school where he or she finds part of a Spirit Monk amulet and has a vision of the Water Dragon, the entity whose death at the hands of the Emperor ended the decade-long Long Drought but left spirits roaming the land. Dawn Star, one of the students at the school and a friend of the player, is kidnapped by Gao The Lesser. The student rescues her but returns to find the village in flames and Master Li kidnapped. The student, Dawn Star, and Sagacious Zu, a man whom they had met in the swamps around the village, head off in a borrowed flying machine towards the Imperial City, where Master Li has been taken.
Chapter 2: Tien's Landing
The party crash-lands their machine in Tien's Landing and sets out to find a new flier and a wind map that will show them the way to the Imperial City. The new flyer, called the Marvelous Dragonfly, is taken from the base of Gao the Greater, the father of the dead student of the first chapter. Gao the Greater is working with Grand Inquisitor Jia's elite subordinate, Inquisitor Lim, and is distressed to hear of his son's death. The player tracks down and kills him, and recruits Sky, a rogue, and Kang The Mad, Gao's personal engineer.
The party goes to a recently drained area near Tien's Landing, which flooded when the dam was first constructed. The Lotus Assassins opened the dam in order to search the ruins of old Tien's Landing. The student fights Chai Ka, a demon bound in the body of a little girl, and learns that Chai Kai was sent to protect the student and that the Lotus Assassins already have the amulet. The player can then close the dam or destroy the controls, keeping it open forever.
The student then heads to the Great Southern Forest, which is under the ownership of Lord Yun. The player then has the option of helping the Forest Shadow defeat a demon known as the Mother, or helping the Mother's cannibalistic demons destroy the Forest Shadow. In either event, the player can convince Lord Yun that the forest is recovering and get his wind map. Inquisitor Lim will ambush the player at this point; the player kills him and recovers a piece of the amulet.
Chapter 3: Imperial City
The party lands in the Imperial City and meets up with Silk Fox, who is revealed to be Princess Lian the Heavenly Lily, daughter of the Emperor. She is unconvinced that her father is behind the sickness the plagues the land, and believes that Death's Hand, the black armor-clad head of the Lotus Assassins, is responsible. After joining either the Executioners or the Inquisitors, the student's party infiltrates the Lotus Assassin's training ground to recover the last part of the Spirit Monk amulet. Sagacious Zu reveals that he was one of the Lotus Assassins who killed Master Li's family. During their quest, the party helps Master Gang assassinate his superior, Master Shin, making it look like an accident, and puts a corrupted Spirit Shard into a Jade Golem, causing it to malfunction. The golems go out of control, damaging the underground complex. The party battles two Jade Golems and a handful of Lotus Assassins, killing Master Gang in the process. They also find Grand Inquisitor Jia, who reveals that the Emperor knew about what Death's Hand and the Lotus Assassins were doing and had, in fact, ordered them to do it. The player kills her, but Death's Hand arrives. Sagacious Zu sacrifices himself to save the student, burying Death's Hand in rubble.
Chapter 4: Imperial Palace
The party fights their way to the Emperor's throne room where Silk Fox learns of what her father has done. He is aware that the Water Dragon's death is stopping the dead from reaching the underworld but is mad with power. The Emperor knocks down everyone in the throne room with a blast of magic and summons guards to attack the student, who defeats them. The student battles the Emperor, who is able to alternate fighting styles and damage immunities. The student kills the Emperor, but Master Li gets up, takes the Jade Heart for himself, and kills the student.
Chapter 5: Spirit Monk Temple
The student wakes up in the underworld as a spirit. The Water Dragon reveals that Sun Li had planned this all along; he wished for the Water Dragon's power and needed to obtain the amulet and defeat Emperor Sun Hai. The student meets up with the spirit of Abbot Song, who tells him or her what truly happened at Dirge. He reveals that Sun Li wore Death's Hand's armor and killed the abbot when he tried to stop him and his brothers. The brothers arrange for Dirge's fountains to be tainted with human blood, weakening the Water Dragon, and Emperor Sun Hai killed Sun Kin when he and Sun Li attempted to oppose him. Abbot Song then reveals that one of his order attempted to escape with the student, but Sun Li, who had escaped from Sun Hai, killed the student's guardian and assumed his identity. The player and Abbot Song make their way through Dirge and learn that an evil being has taken control after the fall of the temple. The student reaches the place where the Water Dragon was slain, and defeats aspects of his or her darker emotions. The student then returns to life, and the rest of the party, who learns about this through Dawn Star, flies to Dirge to reunite with their friend.
Chapter 6: Defending the Temple
While the student was dead, Sun Li realized that action would have to be taken in case the student managed to return to the realm of the living, and he retrieved Death's Hand from the rubble of the Lotus Assassin headquarters. He then sends the Imperial Army against Dirge. Sky pretends to betray the group, and lures Death's Hand out so that the student can defeat him in single combat. However, this is not enough to defeat him; Death's Hand rises again, but the student uses the force of his will to expel Sun Li's influence. The player may then release Death's Hand, use him as a slave, or convince him to seek redemption.
Chapter 7: Back to the Palace
The party flies back to the palace to confront Master Li, now the Emperor. As they make their way through the palace they discover that Emperor Sun Hai had stopped the drought by cutting open the Water Dragon's corpse and letting the water that flows from it feed the Empire. The student chooses either to destroy the Water Dragon's body, thus freeing her spirit and allowing the dead to find the underworld, or defile the water to weaken the Dragon and claim her power after defeating the new Emperor.
The student reaches Emperor Sun Li, who first sends Constructs of Bull and Elephant demons, the most powerful in the game, after the player. Sun Li then encases the student in stone and attempts to defeat the player with the force of his own doubt. However, if the student's companions survived, they will reduce the number of enemies that must be fought in each of the two stages. Sagacious Zu appears and helps free the student from his mind.
Emperor Sun Li offers to help his student live in legend forever, if the student dies without fighting. If the player makes this decision, the student is remembered as a hero for knowing his or her place as Sun Li looks on and laughs. If the player does not, Sun Li attacks, and the student defeats him.
Endings
If the student chooses to free the Water Dragon's spirit, then the end sequence shows the people of the Jade Empire cheering the student and their party. If the student chooses to enslave the Water Dragon, the end sequence shows the Lotus Assassins kneeling at the feet of the student. After this end sequence, there are short text summaries detailing the fate of any characters who survived the adventure. These vary depending upon whether the student chose to enslave or free the Water Dragon, and also what romance options the student pursued.
Dawn Star: She either settles down with the student, settles down on her own, rules the empire with the student, or if the student talked her into a Closed Fist philosophy and/or abandoned her, wanders the Jade Empire alone.
Silk Fox: If the student does not romance Silk Fox, she will become Empress of the Jade Empire. If the student does romance Silk Fox and the student is male, the student and Silk Fox will rule the empire fairly, or with an iron fist. If the student is female, Silk Fox will either rule the empire fairly with her 'companion,' or will again rule with an iron fist, and both the student and Silk Fox don the Silk Fox costume to silence dissenters.
Sky: Sky will use the Guild for good purposes, or serve as the student's consort or as the new Death's Hand. If the student romances Sky, they leave the imperial city and live on the outskirts of Tien's Landing, unless the student is male, in which case they continue on their adventures through the Jade Empire, not complacent to settle down in one place.
Black Whirlwind: Black Whirlwind will roam the empire cutting off heads, eventually making his way around the world.
Henpecked Hou: After a series of mishaps, Hou starts a delivery business which he immediately uses as a method of escaping his overbearing wife.
Chai Ka: Chai Ka will either return to the heavens, freeing Wild Flower and giving her the gift of life, or he will remain trapped in Wild Flower's body causing her to wander the empire as a raving lunatic.
Ya Zhen: Ya Zhen will either serve the student until he or she passes away (resulting in him moving to bigger plans) or serve the student forever and loyally.
Death's Hand: Death's Hand will either become more evil, mutating so badly that his armor cannot hold his demonic form, or he will spend the rest of his days wandering the empire as a crusader for good, in order to make up for his past misdeeds.
Kang the Mad: Kang will continue to invent machines until an explosion appears to take his life, although strange machines continue to appear on the student's doorstep every year on his or her birthday. As Lord Lao, Kang's lack of danger affects his imagination in building machines, so as a radical solution Kang starts arming the mobs that chase after him. If the player chose the Closed Fist ending, Kang works for the emperor(player), worrying his use will eventually be worn out and he will be disposed of. Eventually, he crafts a portal to another dimension and disappears in a huge explosion, taking an entire lake with him.
A third, alternate ending is available if the Student agrees to the terms of surrender presented by Sun Li in the final confrontation. The ending sequence features a statue of the student being praised years later by a class of children with a skin condition similar to that of the Lotus Assassins. One child asks what life was like before the protagonist's honored sacrifice and is quickly shushed by his teacher as a Jade Golem readies an axe to quell such questioning. The sequence ends with Sun Li laughing evilly, as the decision to surrender has ultimately led to misery and corruption in the Jade Empire.
VersionsLimited Edition
A 'Limited Edition' of Jade Empire was available for those who pre-ordered the game, except in Canada where all copies were Limited Editions. Eventually, they would appear on all store shelves. The Limited Edition version has a different box art than the original. It has a red, reflective background instead of the sky blue, and the words 'Limited Edition' were printed on the bottom of the name. This version of Jade Empire was packed with an extra disc that contained the data for the character model Monk Zeng, a magic type character, a 'Making of' video by G4, and three game demos: Forza Motorsport, Conker Live & Reloaded, and MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf.
Special Edition
The Windows XP version of Jade Empire is known as the 'Special Edition'. It is based on the Xbox 'Limited Edition', and also includes the Monk Zeng character but not the Tien's Justice weapon style (both of which are available in the Limited Edition described above). Changes from the Xbox version includes increased resolutions up to 1600x1200 (1920x1200 in Widescreen), new special effects and redrawn textures, two new martial styles (Iron Palm and Viper), a new rhino demon transformation, new monsters, new high level weapons, an improved AI with enemies able to take cover more often; a new 'Jade Master' difficulty level, with ability to import save games; a new world map interface; and keyboard and hotkey support. It also contains a bonus art book and poster.[17] Windows Vista is not a supported operating system.[18] The game runs without problems in Windows 7 64-bit.
Reception
The Xbox version of Jade Empire received positive reviews from most critics. Garnering a 89% from Metacritic, based on 84 reviews, indicating generally favorable reviews. On Game Rankings the game also received an average score of 89%, based on 98 reviews.
IGN praises Jade Empire as 'A completely original universe, hard hitting combat, accessible controls, and the story in an RPG on Xbox'.[29] The graphics were also commented by IGN stating, 'Environments are beautiful and the characters are real enough to fall in love with', though it was criticized by its slight camera issues. Gamespot states that Jade Empire gives 'Open-ended role playing involves you in the storyline and fosters replay value' though was poorly received due to its unbalanced Combat system and lack of depth and challenge.[25]
Like the original version, the Special Edition has also been criticized for being too short and for having rather easy battles using a simplistic battle system,[31] getting an average review score of 80% according to Game Rankings.[32] Other criticisms included a lack of cheat codes, and the ease of changing your alignment (hence changing the ending) at a point near the end-game which effectively discounts any good/evil deeds you've done for the majority of the game.[33]
Sequel
In 2005, senior staff at BioWare suggested the possibility of a sequel;[34] however, on January 2007 BioWare staff stated there were no plans to develop Jade Empire 2.[35] Despite this denial, hints of Jade Empire 2 have surfaced as recently as December 2007.[36]
A part of an interview for GTTV published on GameTrailers website on November 13 2009 was tagged 'Jade Empire strikes back'. In this part Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka said a sequel was 'something they thought about' but they had 'nothing to announce'.[37]
References
External links
Go Back to main page of Jade Empire: Special Edition Cheats, Tips & Secrets Overview
Published by Microsoft Game Studios it was the last game developed by BioWare for the original Xbox and was released for the platform on the 12th of April 2005. An announcement on the 10th of May 2006 by BioWare revealed plans for a PC version of the game that would be published by 2K Games. It was released later for the PC on 26th of February 2007 and the Mac OS X version of the game was announced by TransGaming Technologies to be available on the 18th of August 2008.
It features an epic adventure for players to enjoy allowing them to pick from various male or female characters to play as before thrusting them into the rich world of the Jade Empire. From there players find they may interact with various NPCs in the game, some of which will join the players team and become a selectable companion to explore with. Others providing a romantic interest for players to pursue.
As well as this the game also boasts an intricate combat system that functions in real time with the players actions which allows them to block and/or dodge attacks when appropriate. Combat is focused on learning and developing martial arts styles, magical abilities and weapon techniques. Using aspects of all three groups players can combine them to varying effect from focusing on offensive, defensive or supportive results.
Gameplay
Jade Empire follows a tried and true method of RPG gameplay where players choose a character to begin the game with, customizing their initial stats and then proceeding to start the game where they begin in a tutorial environment. As they progress through the story the game become more challenging and the player gains experience from fulfilling quests and killing enemies which allows them to increase their stats and upgrade their fighting styles as they gain more levels.
There are three primary stats in the game: Mind, Body and Spirit, which control the secondary stats Chi, Health and Focus as well as the conversation specific stats of Intimidation, Charm and Intuition. Chi is similar to mana as it is used when players heal their character, cast spells or choose to charge up a 'Chi Strike' which will deal additional bonus damage when they next attack an enemy. Focus is used for when players primarily opt for utilising weapons in combat instead of martial arts styles that focus on hand to hand techniques. Or when they initiate 'Focus Mode' which is very similar to ' Bullet Time' slowing down enemy actions and allowing players to attack swiftly dealing extra damage.
Focus, Chi and Health can be replenished by collecting orbs that drop from fallen enemies. Or additionally the player can visit any Focus or Chi shrines they can find and replenish themselves from there. Certain companions in a player's group can also help bolster their abilities or replenish their stats if needed.
Combat is in real time which allows the player to dodge and/or block incoming attacks as they occur while also attacking enemies when the opportunity presents itself. This also allows the player to switch between various styles of martial arts, cast various spells or equip different weapons during the middle of a fight as the situation calls for it.
Plot
Players begin the game as a student at the Two Rivers academy under the guidance of Master Li who considers the player his most promising student. As the player takes part in a training exercise the local village is attacked by a group of pirates and it is up to the player to protect the local villagers and fend off the attackers. This sets the stage for a tutorial section of the game and allows the player to get acquainted with the controls and combat system early on in the game. After fighting their way to the shore the player finds the ship that the pirates have arrived on and confronts the leader who summons ghosts and spirits to attack the player.
However Master Li arrives just in time and defeats the pirate leader who he reveals was a member of the Lotus Assassins who are servants of the Jade Emperor. Master Li explains further that they had come for the player character and a piece of the Dragon Amulet and then goes on to explain that he is in fact a brother to the Emperor and had saved the player when they were a child during the attack on Dirge, the monastery of the Order of Spirit Monks. And that the player is the last Spirit Monk alive.
The player is then tasked with retrieving a piece of the Dragon Amulet that's underneath the academy and during their task they are confronted by a vision of the Water Dragon. A mystical entity who was 'killed' during the attack on Dirge and her death ended the Long Draught that had fallen over the lands of the Jade Empire back then. But since her death spirits of the dead have begun walking the lands as ghosts causing havoc around the country. As the player retrieves this piece of the amulet their life long friend Dawn Star is kidnapped by a rival student, Gao the lesser, who was earlier exiled from the academy for using deadly magic to fight the player. As the players rescues Dawn Star they also find a new companion, Sagacious Zu, who accompanies the player and Dawn Star back to the village which they find is in flames with Master Li kidnapped and enemies crawling all over the place the trio decide to escape using a flying machine in pursuit of Master Li and his kidnappers who are headed to the Imperial City.
However on their way to the Imperial City they crash land at Tien's Landing where they must now find a new flying machine and a wind map to show them the direction. As the player explores the area they locate a new flying machine, the Marvelous Dragonfly, which is located in the middle of the Gao the Greater's base. Gao becomes angry when he hears that his son was killed and the player must kill him as well when it becomes obvious Gao the Greater is working with the Lotus Assassins. Its at this point in the game the player also recruits two new companions, Sky and Kang the Mad.
Upon further investigation the player finds the Lotus Assassins are searching some old ruins for another piece of the Dragon Amulet and it is here the player comes into contact with Chai Ka, a celestial demon trapped inside a young girls body sent to protect the player. The adventure takes the player to a great forest where they can either help the cannibals overthrow the Forest Guardian or help the Forest Guardian kill the cannibals. Whichever choice is made the player can then retrieve the wind map they require and the piece of the Dragon Amulet that the Lotus Assassins had found.
Using the Marvelous Dragonfly the group finally reaches the Imperial City where they encounter a mysterious woman by the name of Silk Fox who in fact is Princess Lian the Heavenly Lily, daughter of of the Jade Emperor and niece to Master Li. She does not believe her father is the evil man the player says he is but in fact thinks it is Death's Hand, leader of the Lotus Assassins who is the one responsible for the suffering that is occurring throughout the lands of the Jade Empire. The player then infiltrates the Lotus Assassins underground fortress to find the last piece of the Dragon Amulet and they cause the complex to begin collapsing in on itself. After killing Grand Inquisitor Jia the group is confronted by Death's Hand himself and Sagacious Zu sacrifices himself to buy the player and his friends time to escape, both Sagacious Zu and Death's Hand get buried in the rubble of the collapsing fortress.
The adventure continues with the player fighting their way into the Emperor's throne room where Silk Fox / Princess Lian finally gets to see her father's true nature and realizes he is the one responsible for the troubles within the Jade Empire. The Emperor however has gone mad with power and knows that the Water Dragon's death has stopped the spirits of the dead from reaching the underworld but doesn't care due to his own insanity. Master Li sits as a prisoner and watches as the player fights the Emperor and defeats him using the Dragon Amulet. However Master Li takes the Emperor's jade heart for himself and uses its power to kill the player who wakes up as a spirit in the underworld.
As the player enters the underworld they are confronted again by the Water Dragon who explains that Master Sun Li had planned all along to use the player to defeat the Emperor that is why he saved him/her as a child when the Emperor attacked the Dirge Monastery. It is also revealed that Sun Li and Sun Kin (who is in fact Death's Hand) tried to overthrow Sun Hai, the recently killed Jade Emperor, but when it proved a fatal mistake Sun Li escaped and assumed the identity of the player's guardian and went into hiding. The Player fights their way through the underworld version of Dirge along with Abbot Song and when they come upon the place where the Water Dragon was slain the player must fight their doppelgangers. Once defeating them the player is transported back to the world of the living where their friends fly to Dirge and meet them.
Sun Li ever the master strategist raises Death's Hand from the dead and sends his imperial army to Dirge to finally destroy the player and their friends. However, Sky manages to fool Death's Hand into coming alone and the player engages the armor clad warrior in single combat. However even after defeating him Death's Hand continues to rise again and again and eventually the player must use their force of will to break Sun Li's control over his brother's spirit. At this point the player can choose to enslave Death's Hand to his or her own will, set him free or force him to seek redemption for his past sins. Having defeated the army sent to Dirge the player then flies back to the Imperial Palace to finally put an end to Emperor Sun Li's machinations.
Upon making their way to confront Sun Li the player and friends encounter the body of the Water Dragon which has been cut up to allow her blood, which is water, to flow into the lands of the Jade Empire and stop any future droughts. At this point the player can decide to destroy her body and allow the spirits of the dead to reach their final resting place in the underworld or control her body for their own use once Sun Li has been defeated. The player then confronts Sun Li who sends constructs to attack the player, once they are defeated he turns the player into stone and tries to break their will by use of mind control. At this point the player is essentially having a battle of wills with Sun Li in their mind and has the support of their friends and companions they've picked up along the adventure.
The final fight with Sun Li is now at hand and the player is offered the chance to submit their surrender and be killed quickly so that they may live on in legend for not defying the new Emperor's will. Or the player can choose to refuse and have one final battle with their old master.
The Endings *spoilers!*
The game has endings for not only the player character but their companions as well.
Player Character / Student
Sky
Silk Fox
Dawn Star
Chai Ka
Black Whirlwind
Death's Hand
Henpecked Hou
Kang the Mad
Ya Zhen
Fighting StylesMagic
Martial
Support
Transformation
Weapon
Other
Techniques
Alloyed Body
Balance of Nature
Belly of Iron
Boar's Strength What is a pk3 file.
Bone Splinter
Broken Wheel
Chaotic Strains
Cleansed Body and Mind
Clear Mind
Communion of the Dragon
Communion of the Ocean
Conditioning of the Body
Craftsman's Litany
Deadened Nerves
Duchess of Ulmsbottom's Rules of Engagement
Eye of Inner Darkness
Fearsome Visage
Fitness for the Upright Gentleman
Friends in High Places
Gaze of the Lion
Guardian's Strength
Hawk's Elegance
Heart of Gold
Heaven Mantra
Hunter's Spirit
Legacy of Death's Hand
Legacy of Master Li
Lessons of the Forge
Loutish Approval
Manual of Trepanation
Mastered Evil
Mind of Steel
Mother's Touch
Path of the Monk
Path of the Scholar
Path of the Warrior
Perfected Warrior
Porcelain Skin
Predatory Intuition
Replenishment of the Mind
River of Time
Rote of the Endless Mind
Scales of the Serpent
Spiritual Sacrifice
Strength of Wood
Structured Body
Swallow's Grace
Turning Wheel
Theories of Medicine
Tiger Mantra
Tracking Eye
Vigorous Body
Viper's Wit
Warrior of the Infinite Spirit
Warrior of the Inner Eye
Warrior of the Unyielding Heart
Window to the Abyss
Minigames
In addition to the regular gameplay for Jade Empire, there is also two minigames available for players:
Romance Options
Jade Empire has a number of romance options for players to experience and try out enticing some replay value for the game. This is done through in-game dialogue between the player and their companions, saying or doing certain actions will increase your standing with certain companions resulting in the possibility to romance them.
What is notable about the romance options in the game is that there is the choice for heterosexual and homosexual encounters for both Male and Female player characters. The scene for the romance option occurs on the eve before the battle at the temple of Dirge against the Imperial Army. However it should be noted that if the character and their partner are of the same sex the camera pans out before the actual kiss unlike the heterosexual romance scene where the kiss is shown.
There is also the possibility for male player characters to romance both Silk Fox and Dawn Star at the same time, although this is rather difficult, and as the dialogue for the romance scene hints at, the player appears to sleep with both of them. Resulting in a threesome.
Open Palm & Closed Fist
Just like many other BioWare games (such as the games of the Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect franchises), Jade Empire offers a behavioral spectrum that the player's choices will effect. In Jade Empire, the spectrum exists between the extremes of the Way of the Open Palm and the Way of the Closed Fist. The game stresses that these are not analogues to ' good' and ' evil' however - the Way of the Open Palm stresses a connection and interdependency between oneself, other people, and the world; the Way of the Closed Fist stresses competition and self-reliance. One's position along the spectrum affects what styles are available to be learned and what quests are available to be completed.
Mods
Unfortunately Bioware decided not to release any modding tools for Jade Empire. In hindsight it could be speculated that this is one of the reasons - if not the main reason - why the game did not leave the same lasting impression as other Bioware titles. There is no toolset and no source code for most of the game's scripts. The modding community jumped in and ported most of their KotOR tools to Jade Empire - except one: MDLOps. MDLOps made it possible to export KoTORs models to 3d-editors and import them back into the game. Without MDLOps the world of the Jade Empire remained ineditable. It's quite possible that this missing puzzle piece is the reason why the modding activity around this game fizzled rather quickly.
There were some smaller mods - most of which are lost now. The majority of these made NPC styles available to PCs. In 2011 however a rather large mod named Jade Empire in Style appeared. This mod more than doubles the number of styles and adds a substantial number of techniques, gems and other items. It also alters the game's rules to give it more replayability.
Limited & Special EditionsJade Empire Viper Style
The Xbox Limited Edition of the game came with extra content such as a video detailing the making of the game as well as an extra character skin for players to choose from named Monk Zeng. It also came with demos for Forza Motorsport, Conker Live & Reloaded as well as MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf.
The PC Special Edition of the game consisted of the following:
Soundtrack
Xbox Originals
On September 22, 2008, Jade Empire became available on the Xbox 360's Xbox Originals download service for 1200 Microsoft Points.
We take an updated look at the PC version of BioWare's Xbox martial-arts-themed action role-playing game.
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Canadian studio BioWare first made a name for itself with PC role-playing games that let you create parties of stout warriors and wizards to battle with evil goblins and dragons. Since then, it has expanded its horizons beyond the PC, and last year, the studio released the martial-arts-themed Jade Empire, its second game for the Xbox console. This was a new project that went off in an entirely different direction than BioWare's traditional games, where heated battles were usually decided by role-playing hack-and-slash systems. Instead, Jade Empire was an action RPG that let you roam the countryside as a fledgling martial artist, using various combination attacks and different fighting styles to pummel bandits, warlords, and even otherworldly demons. The game is now headed for the PC as Jade Empire: Special Edition, and we got an up-close look.
BioWare project director Diarmid Clarke suggested that the new version of the game will add 'three layers of development.' These layers include technical upgrades that take advantage of modern PCs, additional game content, and expanded gameplay in such areas as smarter enemies and more-balanced combat. As we saw, Jade Empire will definitely take advantage of the greater technical power of modern PCs to offer better lighting, much better particle effects for smoke and fire, higher-resolution graphics up to 1600x1200, and more-detailed textures (Clarke noted that more than 300 of the original game's textures have been redone). The PC version will also offer better loading times for most PCs, which will be especially helpful in such areas as the game's arena, where you are pitted against successive opponents that have to be loaded each time. You'll also be able to control the game by using a traditional mouse-and-keyboard setup and by using hotkeys to quickly switch to the game's many different fighting styles, which offer varying degrees of offense, defense, speed, and power.
Jade Empire Wiki
The extra content in the PC version will include a new weapon (a new type of sword) and a new playable character, Monk Zeng (who was available only in the Xbox limited-edition version of the game). It'll also offer two new fighting styles: the sumo-wrestling-inspired iron palm, which uses heavy palm strikes, and the swift viper style, which lets your character deliver rapid sequences of punches that somehow poison your foes. Viper style is a sinister fighting style that your character will learn only if he or she follows the 'closed fist' fighting philosophy, the game's equivalent of 'evil' and counterpart to the 'good' philosophy of 'open palm.' And in keeping with Jade Empire's themes of mysticism and supernatural summoning, the PC version of the game will also include a new high-level power--transforming briefly into the squat, ugly, but extremely powerful 'rhino demon' form. This new form will join the other shapes into which your character can change from the Xbox version, which all remain intact.
The PC version's gameplay enhancements will include smarter enemies that offer more of a challenge. Clarke said, 'Enemies will dodge and take cover more often,' and the designer suggested that thanks to the PC's increased processing power, the game will be able to throw more enemies at you onscreen at any given time. This new challenge will be best represented in the new 'jade master' difficulty level, which will appear only in the PC version. Jade master difficulty will be much tougher than any of the game's other modes and exists partially for players who want to make the most of their highest level abilities. Clarke explained that the jade master mode will let you import characters you've used to complete the game before, so you'll be able to run through the game with a much stronger character in much tougher conditions.
Otherwise, Jade Empire's campaign, characters, and story will all make the jump to the PC intact. Like in the Xbox version of the game, you'll be able to enlist a small party of adventurers to join you, choosing a limited number from a character selection screen, similar to BioWare's previous role-playing game, Knights of the Old Republic. You can expect to meet many colorful characters, including the forthright female martial artist, Dawn Star; the gruff Black Whirlwind, whose only goal in life is to fight stuff; and the reluctant hero, Henpecked Ho, who fears bodily harm in battle but is most afraid of his own wife.
Jade Empire: Special Edition is shaping up to be a great-looking conversion of the Xbox game that will offer the kind of role-playing, story, and memorable characters you'd expect from a BioWare RPG, along with unique action gameplay you don't normally find on the PC. The game is scheduled to ship in January.
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The PC version of Jade Empire retains the great story and setting of the Xbox original, but the streamlined combat and core design haven't aged as gracefully.By Kevin VanOrd | @fiddlecub on
PC gamers have been waiting patiently for almost two years for BioWare's Asian-themed role-playing game to make it to their platform of choice. And in many ways, it was worth the delay for anyone who hasn't already played the Xbox version. Jade Empire: Special Edition features a terrific story that, like most great tales, is as engaging now as it was when it was first told. It's set in a marvelous mythological land of monstrous demons and martial arts that's inhabited by hysterical and heartbreaking characters, each with his or her own fascinating story. If you cherish strong narratives in games and have appreciated the developer's previous efforts, this one won't disappoint you.
Still, two years is a lot of time for the cracks to start showing, and even with the added benefit of slightly improved artificial intelligence and a couple of new fighting styles, the shadow of other role-playing and adventure games looms more heavily over the simple combat and scant leveling options. Enemies do exhibit better defensive behavior this time around, but battles retain their general simplicity. You still collect amulet gems and have a large variety of combat styles to upgrade, but without an actual inventory to manage or gear to collect, Jade Empire feels less fulfilling next to more full-fledged RPGs. With both the combat and the customization options left underdeveloped, it doesn't matter whether you look at the game as an RPG or an action adventure; either way, there is some noticeable missed potential.
Yet Jade Empire: Special Edition is a very good game with a lot to offer those who haven't glimpsed the beauty of its world. From start to finish, the enhanced graphics rarely fail to impress, thanks to lush landscapes and unusual and fascinating character designs. Your journey takes you from a martial arts school, to spirit-infested ruins, to the blue-tinged afterlife itself, and it's easy to get swept up in the artistry of such fantastical places. Blocky character models and washed-out textures may occasionally catch your eye, and you wouldn't use Jade Empire to test the limits of your fancy graphics card. Still, the game is colorful and full of life, and it runs amazingly well, without the occasional frame rate hiccups and long load times of the Xbox version.
While the visuals enrich the game with a storybook glow, the audio design truly brings it to life. The combat effects are satisfactory, if not particularly noteworthy, but the voice acting is mostly superb, capturing the essence of each character. What makes it more impressive is that there is simply so much of it, and none of it is difficult to listen to. The Eastern-hued symphonic soundtrack fits the visuals nicely and is both beautiful and understated.
The detailed production values will pull you in, but it's the impressive number of choices that will keep you engaged. You'll be faced with a lot of decisions that push you in the direction of either the 'open palm' or the 'closed fist,' rough equivalents of good and evil paths. These choices are found within the dialogue, most of which is lengthy and all of which is written with finesse. For instance, at one point you are faced with the option of poisoning an upcoming martial arts opponent before your fight begins, which earns you some coin but is a less honorable approach. On the other hand, you can tip off the intended victim to the plot, retain your honor, and earn a new combat style in the process. Or perhaps you refuse to do the dirty deed, but don't say a word. Whenever you are faced with such a choice, your decision will affect your alignment, which in turn affects elements of the story and other factors, such as which fighting styles you get to learn. Most--if not all--of Jade Empire's replay value is in finding out just what happens if you follow one path or another.
Battles aren't nearly as dynamic as the dialogue, although on the surface, the fighting sounds appealing enough. You'll gather a number of fighting styles along the way that you can map to the number keys, and you can activate any of the 10 you've assigned during combat, which is an improvement over the Xbox version's maximum of four. Styles include martial arts styles like Legendary Strike; weapons styles like Dual Swords (learned from the aforementioned potential poison victim); magic styles like Ice Shard; transformation abilities, such as the endlessly useful Jade Golem; and support styles like Storm Dragon, another helpful skill. The PC edition features two new styles, Iron Palm and Viper; however, though they're fitting additions to the existing styles, they bring nothing new to the table, and you get to use only one of them depending on your alignment. It's also perfectly possible that you may not earn either one, since you have to read the correct scrolls to unlock them.
The choices sound interesting, but once you get used to the different types of enemies, it usually boils down to the same rote clicking. Each style has main and alternate attacks, as well as a power attack. You can also activate focus mode, which is essentially like bullet time. The majority of your attacks will use up one of your two sources of strength, chi or focus. On paper this sounds fine, but in practice, you merely lock on to an enemy and slash or punch him a few times, and he dies. If it's a larger enemy, maybe you'll use Toad Demon to poison him or Paralyzing Palm to stop him in his tracks and then slash him up without too much interference. Most encounters--even many boss fights--really are this simple. To help alleviate this carryover problem from the Xbox version, enemies in this translation block attacks noticeably more often, and there is an unlockable mode of difficulty available for players looking for a greater challenge. But the added level of difficulty it imparts doesn't make the combat more interesting. That's not to say it isn't enjoyable at a basic level, but it's relatively mundane.
If you're a keyboard jockey worried about how combat will control on the PC, you'll be pleasantly surprised to find that it works smoothly with a keyboard and mouse. When you enter combat, you will automatically lock on to the nearest enemy, and your movement will center around that enemy until you kill him, choose another enemy, or disengage from targeted combat completely. It's a console-centric system, but it doesn't feel out of place on the PC, and the camera is good about repositioning itself behind you when you leap over an enemy or tumble to the side. You attack with the mouse buttons and move in a mostly traditional manner with the WASD keys. Switching styles can be somewhat of a pain in the midst of combat if you need to activate one mapped to a higher number key, but as a rule, the controls work perfectly fine. If you prefer to use a gamepad, however, Jade Empire also supports that option, and it functions much as it did with the Xbox original.
You may initially find yourself fumbling in the menus looking for an inventory screen, but you won't find one--at least, not the kind you're looking for. Your character has no kind of armor, and if you purchase a weapon, it always replaces the one you were using before it. Instead, you'll search for gems to insert into the amulet you wear, which offer buffs to your health, chi, intuition, and more. Aside from quest-specific items that automatically enter your inventory when you discover them, these are the only things you will ever collect that you have any semblance of control over. As you level up, you will earn points you can spend on your health, chi, and focus, as well as skill points to spend on whichever fighting styles you prefer. However, leveling up doesn't bring with it the excitement you may be used to with other RPGs, simply because gaining a level doesn't open anything up to you that you don't already have.
Jade Empire: Special Edition overcomes these nitpicks with plenty of small details and surprises. You'll build a little collection of companions throughout the game, and you can choose which one to have at your side at any given point. While they are only a minor help during combat, each one brings a unique perspective, and several offer a sorely needed flash of humor and attitude. Some side quests, such as one in which you memorize some lines for acting in a play, are well designed and add some variety to the dialogue and combat. There's also a top-down arcade shooter minigame to play whenever you take an airship to another city. It's just a little throwaway entertainment, but it's fine as a change of pace.
Whether or not you should play Jade Empire: Special Edition entirely depends on whether you've already played it on the Xbox. If you have, the few additions and enhancements aren't worth another purchase since they don't add anything truly noteworthy, and unlike the Xbox-to-PC conversion of Fable, which extended that game by several hours, the PC and Xbox iterations of Jade Empire take the same 20 hours to complete. But if you missed it the first time around, the great story and fleshed-out setting make it well worth a look.
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