Jade Empire is a game that combines action and role-playing elements. It was created by BioWare and first released by Microsoft Game Studios in 2005 for the Xbox. Later, the game was adapted for personal computers running Microsoft Windows and released by 2K in 2007. Additional versions for macOS in 2008 and mobile devices in 2016 were developed by TransGaming and Aspyr, respectively. The game takes place in a world inspired by Chinese mythology. Players control the last remaining Spirit Monk, who must rescue their teacher, Master Li, and stop the dark forces responsible for his capture. The game follows a set storyline, with players completing tasks and participating in combat. During conversations, players make choices that affect the story and how the game progresses.
Development of Jade Empire began in 2001 as a special project for BioWare co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk, who served as the game's executive producers. It was the company's first original role-playing game and reused the morality system from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, but changed to a real-time combat system. The game's features, including its combat, world design, script, constructed language, and music by Jack Wall, were influenced by Chinese history, culture, and folklore. When released, the game received mostly good reviews but did not sell as well as expected. A version for personal computers was later released, which received positive feedback and formed the basis for future adaptations.
Gameplay
Jade Empire is an action role-playing game (RPG) where players control a character often called the "Spirit Monk." The Spirit Monk has six pre-made character types, each with different abilities: health, magic energy (chi), and Focus, which helps slow time during combat or use weapons. There are three male and three female characters, with an additional male character available in later versions. Players explore the game world from a third-person view, moving through mostly linear or hub-based areas where quests can be accepted from non-playable characters (NPCs). Completing quests gives rewards like experience points, in-game currency, and sometimes new fighting techniques. In addition to main gameplay, players can play a shoot 'em up mini-game using a flying machine, earning items and extra experience.
Combat happens in real-time, with the main character and a chosen follower fighting enemies alone or in groups. Enemies include humans, monsters, and spirits. Attacks are divided into normal attacks, heavy attacks (which take longer but deal more damage), and area attacks (which harm multiple enemies). Both the protagonist and enemies can block or dodge attacks. The protagonist can use various techniques, such as offensive moves, healing, or buffing abilities. Some styles are hand-to-hand, while others depend on specific weapons. On the console version, techniques are assigned to four face buttons, while the PC version uses number buttons. Magic attacks and techniques require Chi to function. Using Focus during combat slows time, letting the protagonist attack more freely as long as Focus lasts. Defeated enemies may drop health or Chi.
Dialogue choices affect the game's moral alignment, called "Open Palm" and "Closed Fist." These paths are not based on good or evil but on a character's intentions. Open Palm focuses on helping others, while Closed Fist emphasizes self-reliance and may involve more violence. Choosing dialogue aligned with either path changes how party members and NPCs react to the protagonist. A major choice near the game's end affects the protagonist's alignment and the story's ending. Players can also romance certain followers: one female and one male follower can be romanced by any protagonist, while the second female can be romanced by a male protagonist. A male protagonist can also romance both females, creating a love triangle.
Synopsis
The game takes place in the Jade Empire, a fictional kingdom inspired by parts of Ancient Chinese history and mythology. People live with mystical creatures and monsters in the mortal world, while the heavens are ruled by the August Personage of Jade through a system called the Celestial Bureaucracy. Human sorcerers use the Five Elements in their magic. Two languages are spoken in the Jade Empire: a main language (shown as English in the game) and Tho Fan, the "ancient tongue." Once common, Tho Fan's speakers have become fewer in the Empire, though most people can understand it. In the Jade Empire's recent past, a severe drought almost destroyed everything, but Sun Hai, the current emperor, ended it, making him a hero. Important places include the remote village of Two Rivers, where the story starts; Tien's Landing, a former port now avoided because of its dark history; the Imperial City, where Sun Hai rules and the empire is centered; and Dirge, a ruined temple haunted by spirits.
The main character, whose name and gender the player can choose, is a Spirit Monk who was saved as a baby when Sun Li's forces destroyed their order. Raised in Two Rivers, the protagonist learned martial arts from Master Li. During their journey, the protagonist is joined by several followers. These include Dawn Star, a student from Two Rivers who can talk to the dead; Sagacious Zu, a hermit with a troubled past; the Black Whirlwind, a strong but not very smart mercenary; Henpecked Hou, a former fighter who now makes buns; Wild Flower, a girl who shares her body with two spirits; Sky, a thief seeking revenge for his daughter's death; Kang the Mad, a genius inventor who is actually the banished god Lord Lao; Zin Bu the Magical Abacus, a celestial trader who records the damage caused by the protagonist; and Princess Sun Lian, Sun Hai's daughter who uses the alias "Silk Fox" for secret missions.
The main villains are Emperor Sun Hai, a cruel and corrupt ruler, and his black-armored enforcer, Death's Hand, who leads the Lotus Assassins, a group that used to be monks but now use terror tactics. Other characters include Gao the Greater and his son Gao the Lesser, who are villains early in the story; Abbot Song, the leader of the Spirit Monk order at Dirge; and the Water Dragon, a guardian of the dead who helps the protagonist.
After finishing training in Two Rivers, the Spirit Monk helps stop an attack by a Lotus Assassin, facing undead enemies. Master Li reveals the Spirit Monk's past, explaining that he is Sun Li, Sun Hai's brother, and that he destroyed Dirge. He also shares that Sun Hai's actions are causing the undead to rise. During a final training session, the Spirit Monk meets the Water Dragon's spirit, who says Sun Hai has trapped her and left the Spirit Monk as the only hope. Master Li's favor for the Spirit Monk angers Gao the Lesser, who is expelled. Gao the Lesser then kidnaps Dawn Star and calls in Lotus Assassins with his father, Gao the Greater. The Spirit Monk rescues Dawn Star and defeats Gao the Lesser with Sagacious Zu's help, but the Lotus Assassins destroy Two Rivers and capture Master Li.
Using one of Gao the Greater's airships, the Spirit Monk travels to Tien's Landing. There, they defeat Gao the Greater and learn Master Li was taken to the Imperial Capital. They find two missing pieces of the Spirit Monk's amulet, get a map of wind currents to reach the capital, and help the village by clearing a corrupting force from the Great Southern Forest and reopening a dam to allow trade. They are joined by Wild Flower, who protected an amulet piece; Black Whirlwind, who was hired to fight monsters;
Development
BioWare created Jade Empire after making successful games like Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. These games were based on existing fictional worlds from Dungeons & Dragons and Star Wars. Jade Empire was the first original role-playing game (RPG) idea from BioWare. The idea for Jade Empire existed since the company was founded by Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk. They wanted to make a game where players could become powerful martial arts masters. The game was first made for the Xbox. Later, Zeschuk thought they should have waited for the Xbox 360. Around 105 people worked on the game full-time.
Art director Matt Goldman used ideas from different periods in Chinese history to design the game’s world. He focused on the Han and Ming dynasties. The environments were inspired by landscape art from the Song dynasty, and the colors came from the Tang dynasty’s art. For ancient artifacts, he used designs from bronze items from the Shang and Zhou periods. The wild areas were based on the Huangshan region. Different parts of the game showed different social classes in the Jade Empire. Goldman also used styles from Japan, Thailand, Tibet, the Khmer Empire, and parts of South and West Asia. The monsters were mostly new ideas, though some were inspired by Asian stories. Years later, Goldman said he had "fond memories" of the Canadian team working to create an Asian-inspired story.
Creating the combat system was a big challenge. Unlike earlier games, which used turn-based battles, Jade Empire used real-time combat. This fit the game’s setting better. The martial arts styles were based on real-life techniques like karate, aikido, and capoeira. The team had to design systems to handle combat without using pre-planned fight scenes. Character stats were kept simple to avoid distracting players. The Dragonfly mini-game was created by assistant producer Sheldon Carter. He based it on classic arcade games like Xevious and 1942.
BioWare used a new graphics engine for Jade Empire, similar to what they used for Knights of the Old Republic. They used rim lighting to highlight character edges and make them look alive. Pixel flare was used to make bright areas, like sunlight or parts of Heaven, look realistic. The user interface, map, and journal systems were improved from earlier games to help players. This was the first BioWare game to use motion capture for all human characters, unlike Knights of the Old Republic, which used hand animation. Motion capture was chosen because of the many animations needed for combat. Some enemy characters used hand animation. Lead animator Deo Perez created the "Deo" fighting style by studying martial arts from movies featuring Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, and Michelle Yeoh. Motion capture actors later refined the styles. Each fighting style was based on one real-life martial arts technique.
BioWare wanted to create an original world and story without limits, unlike their earlier games based on other licenses. They avoided setting the game in real historical China and instead used ideas from Chinese mythology. Lead writers Luke Kristjanson and Mike Laidlaw said they wanted a world that felt alive with diverse cultures and traditions. Like other BioWare games, the story was the focus, but extra details were optional to give players freedom. Dialogue mixed BioWare’s usual writing style with Eastern influences. The morality system was an improvement on the one used in Knights of the Old Republic. The menu-based dialogue choices were taken directly from that game.
The game’s story was inspired by classic Chinese novels like Outlaws of the Marsh, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and Journey to the West, as well as modern works like The Deer and the Cauldron and Lone Wolf and Cub. It also drew from Wuxia and samurai movies like Seven Samurai and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The character Black Whirlwind was inspired by Li Kui from Outlaws of the Marsh. Henpecked Hou was a comic relief character, following a BioWare tradition. Sir Roderick Ponce Von Fontlebottom, a foreign explorer, was also for humor and based on Medieval European explorers.
Most of the game’s script is in English, but many characters speak Tho Fan, a fictional language inspired by Asian cultures. Tho Fan was created to add realism and immersion, like the Elvish languages in The Lord of the Rings. BioWare asked the University of Alberta’s linguistics department for help. Wolf Wikeley, a student with a background in linguistics, helped design Tho Fan. He said the language uses soft sounds and resembles Mongolian. Developers told him about the people of the Jade Empire’s temperament to shape the language. A basic dictionary was created, with some words as inside jokes, like "wankaawayi" (director), referencing Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai. Once the dictionary was ready, Wikeley created grammar rules to make the language unique.
Release
The game was first mentioned in 2002 when BioWare announced a new partnership with Microsoft Game Studios after releasing Knights of the Old Republic. It was officially announced in September 2003, with more details shared at that year’s Tokyo Game Show. Originally planned for release in March 2005, the game’s release date was moved to April 2005. A standard edition and a limited edition were created. The limited edition included an extra male character with special fighting skills and a DVD about the production of several Xbox games, including Jade Empire. The limited edition was made for people who ordered the game before its release and was developed at the same time as the standard version. By February 2005, the game was nearly finished, with workers focusing on final improvements. It was released on April 12, 2005, two days earlier than planned. The game was later released in Europe on April 22 and in Australia on June 30. The limited edition was only available in North America and Europe and came out with the standard version. In Japan, the game was released on June 16 under the title Jade Empire: Hisui no Teikoku.
The game’s marketing cost $5 million.
A version for Microsoft Windows computers was developed by BioWare because of high demand from their PC-based fans. During development, BioWare improved hundreds of textures manually and added new fighting styles, enemies, and a seventh character from the Xbox version’s limited edition. They also improved the behavior of enemies and followers and adjusted controls for keyboard and mouse. Although BioWare could have published the PC version through Microsoft Game Studio, Microsoft was focused on games for Windows Vista, which conflicted with BioWare’s goal to reach a wide audience. For this reason, BioWare made the PC version themselves and found a different publisher.
The PC version was first announced at the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo. Unlike the Xbox version, the PC version was published by 2K. The game was completed in February 2007 and released in North America on February 27. It was later released in Europe and Australia on March 2. The downloadable version was available on Steam and BioWare’s online store on February 28. It was later released on GOG.com on June 11, 2013. A version for macOS was developed and published by TransGaming on August 18, 2008. Later, versions for iOS and Android were developed and published by Aspyr on October 6 and November 15, 2016, respectively.
Reception
Computer and Video Games praised the game. They said the game's accessibility would attract players new to BioWare's Knights of the Old Republic. They called Jade Empire "imaginative, accessible, beautiful to look at, and incredibly immersive to play." Rob Fahey of Eurogamer praised the game's visuals and how much fun it was to play again. He noted that some players might not like the simple combat or limited character options. Greg Kasavin of GameSpot said the game was mostly good. His only complaints were about unbalanced combat and the game's short length. Will Tuttle of GameSpy praised all parts of the game, calling it "the best [RPG] to ever hit the Xbox." David Clayman of IGN was also positive, but mentioned camera problems that made combat harder to follow. Luke van Leuveran of PALGN called Jade Empire "an amazing action RPG," praising its story and combat system. Most reviews of the Xbox version were positive, with many praising the graphics and story. While the gameplay was seen as solid, some critics said it was too simple.
Suzy Wallace of Computer and Video Games said the Special Edition improved the game for PCs, even though the graphics and pacing were outdated. Rob Fahey, reviewing the PC version, was disappointed that the graphics and technical features were not better than the console version. Kevin VanOrd of GameSpot had similar praise and criticism as the Xbox review but noted the PC version had few improvements. Allen Rausch of GameSpy liked the story and gameplay but mentioned grainy cutscenes and technical problems. Steve Butts of IGN enjoyed the game but found combat repetitive and noted a lack of new content. Niel Booth of PALGN said the game was enjoyable despite its technical issues. While the story and gameplay were the same as the Xbox version, some players said the controls on PC made the original flaws worse, and the graphics looked outdated by modern standards.
Later reviews remained mostly positive. In 2010, the game was included in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die. In 2015, Mike Williams of USgamer said, "Jade Empire was such a unique game for BioWare, but it's one the studio never followed up on."
At the 9th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences gave Jade Empire awards for "Role-Playing Game of the Year" and "Outstanding Character Performance – Female" (Kim Mai Guest as Dawn Star). It also received nominations for "Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction," "Outstanding Achievement in Original Musical Composition," and "Outstanding Character Performance – Male."
When it was released, Jade Empire was ranked third on The NPD Group's video game sales chart for April 2005. GameSpot's Tor Thorsen noted this was "despite [its] being released in the middle of April." It also reached second place on the Xbox chart that month, behind the debut of Doom 3. By May, the game dropped to last place on NPD's multiplatform top 20 and seventh on the Xbox chart. It was not listed on either chart by June. According to NPD, sales in North America reached over 385,000 units by May 2006.
In the United Kingdom, Jade Empire debuted at #7 on Chart-Track's multiplatform sales list for the week ending April 23. David Jenkins of Gamasutra called this "an unremarkable opening" and said competition from Unreal Championship 2 hurt its sales. It fell to 12th place in its second week and 20th in its third. IGN's staff noted, "The Bioware-developed game has been well reviewed over the past month, but that hasn't helped it from rapidly dropping down the charts." It was not listed on Chart-Track's multiplatform top 40 by its fourth week. However, on the Xbox sales list, it opened at first place and held that position for 14 days. It dropped to #5 in its third week but remained in the top 10 until June 18. By the end of 2005, sales in the United Kingdom totaled 45,000 copies, a performance described as poor by Eurogamer's Kristan Reed.
By July 2005, sales of Jade Empire reached 500,000 units. BioWare's Greg Zeschuk later said releasing the game for Xbox instead of as an Xbox 360 launch title was a mistake. In 2013, he noted that "game sales are down [right now] because people are waiting for new consoles, and we released Jade Empire into that kind of window." Zeschuk concluded, "It would've been great to delay the release a bit and polish the game more."
Legacy
In 2003, BioWare chose to develop two games, Jade Empire and Dragon Age: Origins, instead of creating a sequel to Knights of the Old Republic. Because of this decision, the sequel to Knights of the Old Republic, titled Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, was developed by Obsidian Entertainment. During this time, Wikeley worked on Jade Empire and also created four made-up languages for the Dragon Age series. Wall later returned to work with BioWare on Mass Effect and its sequel.
In January 2007, BioWare announced there were no plans to make a sequel to Jade Empire. However, in September 2011, BioWare co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk said they still cared about the Jade Empire game and its setting. They explained they were looking for the best way to use the game’s story and characters in the future. In 2009, GamesRadar listed Jade Empire as a game with potential for more games in the series. The article noted that the original game had strong characters, interesting settings, and a unique style of combat that could support future games.
Dakota Grabowski of GameZone ranked Silk Fox as #10 and Death’s Hand as #8 on their list of top BioWare-created squadmates. Kimberley Wallace of Game Informer included Wild Flower in her list of best BioWare characters. She described Wild Flower as unique because of her childlike perspective on difficult situations and her ability to help players understand complex ideas. Jason MacIsaac of EP Daily also listed Wild Flower among nine of the best BioWare characters.