62 réponses à ce sujet

[Apophis2412]

It was a good game.

[Apophis2412]

It was a good game.

[Apophis2412]

It was a good game.

[AntiChri5]

I think Apophis liked it.

[Apophis2412]

I did that by accident. I messaged a moderator, so they'll probably fix this soon.

[AntiChri5]

Apophis2412 wrote...

I did that by accident. I messaged a moderator, so they'll probably fix this soon.

Leave it! people will think it is....enthusiasm.

[flem1]

AntiChri5 wrote...

I think Apophis liked it.

I dunno, maybe he should tell us how he really feels.

[Noilly Prat]

I loved Jade Empire, but I disagree about the world being more immersive than BioWare's more recent offerings.



I couldn't help but to notice that, what with all the background and history and timelines and the prequel novel and everything, we knew more about the world of Mass Effect before the game even came out than we ever knew about the world of Jade Empire after finishing the game. That's not exactly all there is to immersion, but I also feel like the Dragon Age and Mass Effect settings have more self-consistency and do a better job taking an idea and developing it to its logical conclusion.



Not that there was anything wrong with the world of Jade Empire. I would love to see a sequel someday, but if BioWare wants to focus on ME and DA, I won't hold it against them.

[Bann Duncan]

I don't think it's more immersive than ME or DA; O - when I speak of immersion, I'm just talking about the strange 'dreamy' feel that doesn't seem unnatural in the game's context. Seagloom did a much better job than I in explaining what is pretty much my own view of JE, so I shall quote her post.

Seagloom wrote...



The technique combos were insane. I remember playing by just mashing on A my first game, then trying technique combos on the second run and steamrolling most enemies. My favorite had to be playing a kick specialist maxed in White Demon and Legendary Strike. She would start with two White Demon kicks then flow straight into Legendary Strike to finish it off. It was painful and unblockable, and it looked funny seeing a tiny Radiant Jen-Zi using what seemed like power moves. The only time she punched was when I switched to Hidden Fist.



That is what I loved about Jade Empire. It had style. It had charm and personality. I love Dragon Age but it feels like generic fantasy stuff. Mass Effect feels like typical sci-fi. KotOR felt like Star Wars... which was a good thing, but not unique. Jade Empire was just different. I had never played a story driven game with a wuxia backdrop before, and several things about it screamed cool. From the fighting to weapons, to over-the-top gory explosions when you completed a harmonic combo. It also had some of the funniest dialogues and most memorable moments of party banter.



The party members were likable for the most part and a few like Wild Flower were conceptually fresh. It was just a beautiful game, with incredible music. The music! It has, what I think is the best soundtrack in a BioWare game to date, and I make this claim having listened to them all again last night. The sheer number of listenable tracks is amazing. There's very few I feel inclined to skip.



Of course JE had flaws. It was way too short. The characters weren't as developed as they could be. The romances and inclusion of gay romances were great, but handled in a clumsy manner in my opinion. The combat system was a bit too simplistic, and the main plot was trite and predictable from the betrayal onwards. Worst was probably being limited to taking just one party member.

[Noilly Prat]

I did like the uniqueness of the setting. And when I say uniqueness, I just mean that it is something a little different for a BioWare game, or a Western RPG in general. I don't think that the setting is less derivative than Mass Effect or Dragon Age. I think BioWare were probably sticking pretty close to... I guess mythical Eastern-style fantasy tropes, just as they don't venture too terribly far from convention in ME and DA.



I don't consider this a negative at all. But if they revisit the Jade Empire setting in a future game, I would like to see more attention paid to lore, and maybe the whole Open Palm/Closed Fist thing reworked a bit. (Not a bad idea, but in practice it was just Light Side/Dark Side with a different name.)

[Amberyl Ravenclaw]

Noilly Prat wrote...

I think BioWare were probably sticking pretty close to... I guess mythical Eastern-style fantasy tropes, just as they don't venture too terribly far from convention in ME and DA.

Hodgepodge of mythical Eastern-style fantasy tropes is about right, though some of the references were more or less inspired by actual East Asian literature, myth and history. In the end, anyhow, the whole Jade Empire was pretty much several Eastern cultures (Chinese, Japanese, and Tibetan) collapsed into one. And oddly enough, the 'old language' spoken reminded me of Thai or Vietnamese. What also made me chuckle was the design for Silk Fox's form-fitting robe: that would actually be a qipao which was a modern turn-of-the-century Chinese invention inspired by Western dress, rather than a relic of 'ancient times'. But since the prevailing media image of the exotic Chinese woman is that of one wearing a qipao, I thought it wasn't surprising that they included that in the game. Basically, aesthetic appeal triumphed over historical fact, but that's perfectly understandable considering that it's an entertainment product and not a research project.

Nioilly Prat wrote...

But if they revisit the Jade Empire setting in a future game, I would like to see more attention paid to lore, and maybe the whole Open Palm/Closed Fist thing reworked a bit. (Not a bad idea, but in practice it was just Light Side/Dark Side with a different name.)

JE was basically your typical Bioware story structure transplanted into a mythical East setting. That said, it was a well-crafted game, although being very familiar with Biowarian tropes I thought things got rather stereotypical after a while.

Modifié par Amberyl Ravenclaw, 27 février 2010 - 12:38 .

[Dahn-Var Starcloak]

The JE Special Edition for PC was the first BioWare game I played after NWN and it got me pulled in immediately. I didn't get that same feeling with KotOR afterwards, nor with DA. Must be the setting that appeals to me so much.

[Noilly Prat]

Amberyl Ravenclaw wrote...


Hodgepodge of mythical Eastern-style fantasy tropes is about right, though some of the references were more or less inspired by actual East Asian literature, myth and history. In the end, anyhow, the whole Jade Empire was pretty much several Eastern cultures (Chinese, Japanese, and Tibetan) collapsed into one. And oddly enough, the 'old language' spoken reminded me of Thai or Vietnamese. What also made me chuckle was the design for Silk Fox's form-fitting robe: that would actually be a qipao which was a modern turn-of-the-century Chinese invention inspired by Western dress, rather than a relic of 'ancient times'. But since the prevailing media image of the exotic Chinese woman is that of one wearing a qipao, I thought it wasn't surprising that they included that in the game. Basically, aesthetic appeal triumphed over historical fact, but that's perfectly understandable considering that it's an entertainment product and not a research project.

Interesting insight, that.  I do think that a game with a setting and subject matter like Jade Empire, made by a Canadian developer like BioWare, is probably more likely to have somewhat mixed historical referents than, say, something like Dragon Age.

All things considered, though, I did really enjoy JE.  In fact, all this talk is tempting me to play it again, damn you all.

[Punahedan]

Jade Empire was special. It's the first BioWare game I finished, and what made me finish the others. It's where my name here comes from. There was a menagerie of stuff in there, of little things that made it wonderful. Some of them were stereotypes, yes, but other things were hints of other places. I've never played a game like it before... I don't think I've ever even seen/heard of one like it. It had the BioWare Formulas, but it didn't seem to matter.



But it also hinted at a larger world, beyond what we had before us. Yes, we hear things like that in other games - DAO itself is made to be bigger than what we have - but none of them wove it quite so deftly as JE.



I wish they'd make a sequel. Something, maybe, in another time where Spirit Monks are more common, or maybe something set in the Prosperous East, or...something.



Now that I've donned my rose-colored glasses of nostalgia, I want to play again. Damn. (My most vivid memory is, oddly enough, playing Jade Empire after I got a few teeth pulled. I associate mashed potatoes with JE because that's all I could eat for while, and it's when I played the bulk of it for the second or third time.)

[Dahn-Var Starcloak]

One more thing to add- that sidequest with orphanage in old Tien's Landing sent shivers up my spine- one of the most memorable moments in my history of gaming.

[Seagloom]

Dahn-Var Starcloak wrote...

One more thing to add- that sidequest with orphanage in old Tien's Landing sent shivers up my spine- one of the most memorable moments in my history of gaming.

That scene was beautiful playing an Open Palm character. It brought me to the verge of tears.

[Seraosha]

This is the best thread on the forum >.< I also think Seagloom did a terrific job of summing up just what was so wonderful about Jade Empire.

Let's be honest, a lot of the RPG's we play here in the West are fairly predictable. We've kind of seen it all before. With Jade Empire we had something very fresh. Fair enough, it might have travelled into routine Bioware faire past the betrayal, but the betrayal itself was something I never saw coming.

The characters as well, were very well done. Wild Flower was intriguing and watching as Death's Hand turned from your cold and deadly nemesis to something to be pitied was shocking. The Concept of the Celestial Bureaucracy and travelling through the gods lands as well, was pretty cool. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who got through the Mages Tower on Dragon Age, and then the minute they landed in the Spirit World, instantly thought back to Jade Empire.

All of the sidequests had something unique and sublime about them as well. Dealing with Sir Roderick was comedy, sorting out the riven training academy at the imperial city was interesting too and just discovering Henpecked Hou being bossed around by those little demons was fairly cool.

Jade Empire is easily BioWare's best game to date.

[Ahisgewaya]

Come on, Bioware! Make another Jade Empire already!! Please?

Modifié par Ahisgewaya, 01 mars 2010 - 09:34 .

[RetrOldSchool]

Ahisgewaya wrote...

Come on, Bioware! Make another Jade Empire already!! Please?

JE2 and KOTOR3 would make my life complete
Well, that and my wife taking a 2 week long vacation with the kids timed with the launhc of the games...

[Bann Duncan]

Of course, let us not forget the music! JE had an epic score and I loved the themes that would play when you spoke to each character (particularly Silk Fox's theme). The main JE theme has been stuck in my head on-and-off for five years.

[Seagloom]

Bann Duncan wrote...

Of course, let us not forget the music! JE had an epic score and I loved the themes that would play when you spoke to each character (particularly Silk Fox's theme). The main JE theme has been stuck in my head on-and-off for five years.

This is something I miss in current BioWare games. Romance characters no longer have their own themes. Okay, so they only used it in two games... Baldur's Gate 2 and Jade Empire... but it was a good idea and added a personal touch to each character. I would like to see them return.

Modifié par Seagloom, 03 mars 2010 - 06:04 .

[caradoc2000]

JE is definitely Bioware's best game.

[Jonp382]

Bann Duncan wrote...

Of course, let us not forget the music! JE had an epic score and I loved the themes that would play when you spoke to each character (particularly Silk Fox's theme). The main JE theme has been stuck in my head on-and-off for five years.

That's because Jack Wall worked on it. BioWare's very lucky to have him.



Silk Fox's is one of my favorite tracks too. Excellent choice. Her theme and Sky's are great.

[komenusai]

I really enjoyed playing Jade Empire. I really loved fighting up close and personal with the enemy. I would love it if Bioware decided to actually make a new Jade Empire. I know most of the casual gaming world is use to gunning down people rather than working a blade or fighting hand to hand. But I think if bioware made another Jade Empire, they may rack in a lot of business.



If they do make a new Jade Empire I hope they can have many more styles and be able to switch styles on the fly in a more seemless manner. Striking with hands and feet than being able to fire off a fireball than all of a sudden change into a Jade Golem or something. THat would be pretty amazing.