First Encounter

By Bobby Stein

It ain't easy being BioWare. Last year, the company's famed Xbox RPG Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic topped just about every awards list under the sun. Boasting a deep story, cinema-quality voice acting, and a cast of characters more worthy of the Star Wars name than the last two films combined, KOTOR was the must-have title for console gamers with discriminating tastes. Jade Empire, the next Xbox RPG exclusive from BioWare and Microsoft Game Studios, has some pretty big shoes to fill, indeed. Recently we spent some time with a demo build of the game; our guide was William Hodge, the game's program manager at Microsoft Game Studios. Read on to learn a bit about this ambitious title that will be turning heads on the E3 floor.

The game's environments are visually stunning and clearly inspired by Asian mythology and architecture.

Knights of the Rising Sun
The most obvious differences between KOTOR and Jade Empire are the setting and combat. For setting, rather than work off an existing intellectual property, the game's writers and designers crafted an entirely new and unique world inspired by the myths and legends of ancient China. Players assume the identity of one of six characters, each with different strengths spread across primary skills of Mind, Body, and Spirit, as well as secondary skills of Health, Focus, and Chi. Only three characters were available for play in this build—Furious Ming (a well-rounded fighter), Wu the Lotus Blossom (a nimble female), and a brutish third character (who shall remain nameless for the time being). Throughout the course of the game, players will have opportunities to gain experience and unlock new fighting styles and conversational paths, as well as come to a crossroads where they'll need to make difficult moral choices. No skills will be out of reach of any character, though initially some will rely on brute force attacks while others rely on speed or magic. We opted for Furious Ming so we could check out his hand-to-hand combat skills. All player characters have a Focus ability, which allows them to temporarily slow time. By carefully doling out precise attacks in Focus mode, you have the ability not only to take down masses of opponents, but also to hack away at the more difficult bosses that deal out death with a handful of blows.

Engage in fantastic battles with other-worldly creatures while wielding a variety of weapons and fighting styles.

Kung Fu Theater
The combat system of Jade Empire is real-time, rather than turn-based. Rather than stack actions in a queue system, fighters will have to think quickly to fend off the hordes of foot soldiers, mystical creatures, and martial arts masters. Button mashers beware: Wild and random flailing might have won some bouts in your favorite 3-D fighter title, but you'll need finesse to take down your opponents in Jade Empire. Depending on the situation at hand, you may have to change fighting tactics on the fly, switching between magic and weapon attacks to bring down your foe. Through your choice of fighting styles, you'll be able to exploit the weaknesses of every enemy.

In the first fight scene of the demo, we took on about a half-dozen foot soldiers with our NPC comrade. Switching back and forth between Legendary Fist and Paralyzing Palm styles, we made short work of the bunch. As a reward we got some easy experience points, plus we recovered a stolen sword that triggered a quick cut scene. Our victory was short-lived, as a magic wielding "mini-boss" showed up and vaporized our friends with some fire magic. To counter his ranged attack, we entered Focus mode and continued our assault switching between fighting styles and weapon combat. After some hard work, he went down like a house of cards.

Similar to the fantastic and wildly absurd acrobatics found in classic Hong Kong kung fu flicks, Jade Empire boasts outlandish choreography. We were leaping over the heads of enemies, taking the form of vanquished demons, and crushing the bones of all in our way in true Godzilla fashion. At one point during the game, we took the form of a giant creature called a Heavenly Gate Guardian and went toe-to-toe with a huge lion-man. Sound strange? The combat was nothing short of incredible. It truly is a unique feeling to knock a 10-foot giant across town square. Trust us on this.

The second-generation graphic engine boasts improved lighting effects, bathing the world in a warm "magic hour" glow.

Treasure from an Ancient Dynasty
The visuals in Jade Empire are as wondrous as the history that inspired it. New features such as a physics-based cloth system and bloom and rim lighting give the game a fluid warm look similar to the "magic hour" technique used in film productions. After fighting off a group of thugs, we took a look around one of the demo environments in the current build. Trees swayed in the wind, while distant mountains were bathed in a soft swath of clouds. As our character moved about, the ribbons on his outfit fluttered with each step. We flipped back and forth between first and third person view to compare the surroundings. Both were rendered in exquisite detail. Eye candy junkies will get their fix, no doubt, when Jade Empire ships.

A Master of Many Styles
Though our time with Jade Empire was painfully short, it was enough to satisfy our appetite for hyperactive combat and deep (and often humorous) storytelling. With the release still some months away, it's becoming difficult to contain our excitement. If there ever was a game worthy to follow in the footsteps of KOTOR, this is it. We'll keep you posted with more info as the game continues development.