Gamespot review of Jade Empire

FrankySox

FrankySox

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Ok so after I was done reading this I thought that this review and IGN's review completely contradicted each other. What's the deal? Does IGN have a deal with Bioware to give them a good review? Gamespot thinks this game is a step backwards while IGN thinks it's the best thing to touch the Xbox console, and they say that they wanted to make every other RPG's score lower because JE was SOOO good. They also say that the game is over 22 hours, and Gamespot says it's under 20. Another contradicition is that IGN says the combat is SOOO fast, and SOOOO fun, but once again Gamespot says that the combat in Jade Empire is the weak point of the game. I hate IGN! They almost bamboozled me into picking up this game. My birthday is this Friday and I told my mom to pick it up for me, however if she does it's definitely going back.
 
I'm not sure who to trust on this one, but I usually find Gamespot to be more accurate. Still, they gave JE an 8.4, which is a great score.
 
[quote name='Kaijufan']I'm not sure who to trust on this one, but I usually find Gamespot to be more accurate. Still, they gave JE an 8.4, which is a great score.[/QUOTE]
Yes 8.4 IS a GOOD score, however these reviews are contradicting on a lot of different levels, and now I don't know what to think.
 
Gamespot almost always give games lower scores then IGN..

They rated DMC 3 8.6 because it was to hard. I usually don't trust gamespot scores alone.

Anyways, if you notice gamerankings.com has it reviewed 14 times, with an average score of 94%. Not bad.
 
[quote name='Calamityuponthee']Gamespot almost always give games lower scores then IGN..

They rated DMC 3 8.6 because it was to hard. I usually don't trust gamespot scores alone.

Anyways, if you notice gamerankings.com has it reviewed 14 times, with an average score of 94%. Not bad.[/QUOTE]

DAMNNN, 14 reviews. Nice I'll have to check that out. Also I've heard Devil May Cry 3 is hard, and both IGN and Gamespot said this Gamespot just docked them more points. But in the case of Jade Empire both these sites say different things about the game and contradict each other in a lot of areas. So we'll see I guess. If anyone has any impressions of this game please post.
 
[quote name='FrankySox']Ok so after I was done reading this I thought that this review and IGN's review completely contradicted each other. What's the deal? Does IGN have a deal with Bioware to give them a good review? Gamespot thinks this game is a step backwards while IGN thinks it's the best thing to touch the Xbox console, and they say that they wanted to make every other RPG's score lower because JE was SOOO good. They also say that the game is over 22 hours, and Gamespot says it's under 20. Another contradicition is that IGN says the combat is SOOO fast, and SOOOO fun, but once again Gamespot says that the combat in Jade Empire is the weak point of the game. I hate IGN! They almost bamboozled me into picking up this game. My birthday is this Friday and I told my mom to pick it up for me, however if she does it's definitely going back.[/QUOTE]


Just because they contradict each other and IGN happens to have a positive spin on similar topics does not mean IGN is necessarily wrong.
 
That is why you need to use GameRankings. You never know when a single reviewer might have a bug up his ass about aspects of a game that almost anyone else wouldn't notice. I preferred those magazines that had a cross-section of reviewers on each item for just this reason. If one guy out of three gave a significantly lower score you could usually determine from other reviews in the same publication whether this person was perceptive or just contrarian.
 
[quote name='epobirs']That is why you need to use GameRankings. You never know when a single reviewer might have a bug up his ass about aspects of a game that almost anyone else wouldn't notice. I preferred those magazines that had a cross-section of reviewers on each item for just this reason. If one guy out of three gave a significantly lower score you could usually determine from other reviews in the same publication whether this person was perceptive or just contrarian.[/QUOTE]

Gamerankings or metacritic, whichever you prefer.

I'd have to agree, the lone review with the bug-up-the-rectum review can make you say "WTF?". 3 reviews is my minimum for an "educated" opinion about a game.
 
Don't go by just one review. Each reviewer looks for certain things in a game and if they aren't there he will take the liberty to bash it or give it a lower score. Jade Empire is avg. 94.2 on gamerankings so I wouldn't sweat it too much, but you never know. You might end up agreeing with his review. Picked up the game today but I have yet to play it.
 
Allright thanks for the input guys, and I'll probably keep it just because of the average reviews on Gamerankings. But it just sounded like the Gamespot guy hated the game even though he/she gave it an 8.4. Please post impressions ASAP Calamity!
 
This reminds me of when Game Informer reviewed Enter the Matrix. They kept complaining about the game in the review and basically said it sucked, yet they gave it an 8.5. Shessh. At least Jade Empire looks like its worth playing, unlike that crappy Matrix game.
 
Someone PLEASE answer this once and for all, this determines whether or not I pick this game up:

Is combat push and wait like KOTOR, or real time like Fable?
 
[quote name='Scorch']Someone PLEASE answer this once and for all, this determines whether or not I pick this game up:

Is combat push and wait like KOTOR, or real time like Fable?[/QUOTE]
Yeah someone answer this PLEASE. From what I've read it really sounds like Fable.
 
It's not like KOTOR, where you queue up actions and he does them. You click B, you dodge. You click X you strong attack which breaks through blocks, ect. Happens right away.

Great game so far imo. The story is shaping to be killer.
 
[quote name='Calamityuponthee']It's not like KOTOR, where you queue up actions and he does them. You click B, you dodge. You click X you strong attack which breaks through blocks, ect. Happens right away.

Great game so far imo. The story is shaping to be killer.[/QUOTE]
Would you compare the combat to Fable then?
 
Gamespot and 1up are the only ones to rate it that low...

gr4un.jpg


Use gamerankings.com

http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/918890.asp

Using only one source for rankings is crazy nowadays.
 
Uh, kind of.

I don't remember Fable much, wasn't a memorible expierence as it was hyped to be.

And it's not as easy as the guy on gamespot says.. You don't have infinite health, and I've already died once thinking I was a badass and didn't need to block.

I need to play it more I think to give an accurate description, i've barely broken the tip of the iceburg.
 
[quote name='Calamityuponthee']
And it's not as easy as the guy on gamespot says.. You don't have infinite health, and I've already died once thinking I was a badass and didn't need to block.

[\QUOTE]
lol Thanks for your impressions, I'll deffinitely keep this and try it out on Friday. I'm kind of excited that the battling is not like Star Wars KOTOR. So hopefully it will be fun and I'll enjoy it. Thanks Calamity
 
So far, from the LITTLE bit I played, this game is shaping up to be pretty cool. I'm gonna play some more, once The Shield is done. Though I know that though the reviewer claims he has no bias, he never seems to love any Xbox game, regardless of whether it is good or not. He seems to have a preconception that nothing good can be on the Xbox and starts out docking about a point.
 
If you liked how the story on KOTOR flowed, and how the menus were, this isn't much different. The only difference is the combat, and atmosphere. This isn't in the starwars universe.. heh. Bioware makes some quality products. Give it the chance it deserves.
 
I usually trust Gamespot. When I played the demo of Jade a few weeks ago, the combat immediately stuck out as being unenjoyable. And now that its been confirmed that the combat isn't that great, I'll definitely be waiting for a price drop or two before I pick the game up. IGN gets a little too ridiculous with their overhyped scores, at least Gamespot tries to be honest with their reviews.
 
[quote name='mmn']I usually trust Gamespot. When I played the demo of Jade a few weeks ago, the combat immediately stuck out as being unenjoyable. And now that its been confirmed that the combat isn't that great, I'll definitely be waiting for a price drop or two before I pick the game up. IGN gets a little too ridiculous with their overhyped scores, at least Gamespot tries to be honest with their reviews.[/QUOTE]

Excuse me while I slap myself in the head...No one should judge this game by the demo. That was a pretty decently old build with only a few things in it. You can't judge a game like this based on a demo. Apparently the later fighting styles are amazingly cool. Don't forget, Gamespot did review one game without even playing it all the way through. They decided to just quit halfway through, even though the game was a good game (I forget what it was). I tend not to trust Gamespot, but I don't trust IGN's glowing reviews either. I look on Gamerankings and see where it's average rating ranks.
 
[quote name='mmn']I usually trust Gamespot. When I played the demo of Jade a few weeks ago, the combat immediately stuck out as being unenjoyable. And now that its been confirmed that the combat isn't that great, I'll definitely be waiting for a price drop or two before I pick the game up. IGN gets a little too ridiculous with their overhyped scores, at least Gamespot tries to be honest with their reviews.[/QUOTE]

I don't know what you expect from the fighting. This isn't suppose to be a fighting game like DOA, hell it's not even suppose to be like Ninja Gaiden. The demo was pretty good and keep in mind it was only a glimpse into the game. This is an RPG. Plus when was the last time you played a game and the fighting didn't become repetitious.
 
I really disliked the demo. The combat felt clunky and unresponsive, now that I've been playing the final version for 3 hours, I can say that I am learning to kick much ass and the fighting system feels more fluid than it did from the demo. No, it still isn't as fluid as something like DOA or Tekken, but I find the combat satisfying.

Dodging and blocking is definately important (I'm playing as the fast type female character), she can't take too much punishment. Taking on 5 or 6 guys at a time is no problem now, evasion is a lot of fun, the staff is an effective weapon(you have a choice between staff and long sword near the start), and all of the fighting styles I've tried are awesome.

Story - Looks like it is going to turn into something truly awesome. I was hooked after the first hour of play, and I can't wait to see what happens next. I like the characters that have been introduced so far, and they all have their own unique personality.

Graphics - Dreamlike and detailed, think Fable but more "little things" that stick out and make them impressive. The models animate well, though the polygon count on them is lower than some of the more impressive games on xbox. The environments are what really steal the show here, I'm sure I've hardly seen anything yet, but the swaying grass, falling blossoms, rippling water and realistic lighting all contribute to a very impressive display.

Presentation - Quite cinematic. The cutscenes are well directed, and I've yet to encounter any dialog that is not voiced. Interface is easy to use and fits the theme of the game. So far, my only complaint is the loading times, but the areas it loads are large, so they have not become a burden. I do believe they are quite a bit shorter than KoTOR, contrary to what Gamespot said.

Sound - The music is absolutely perfect for the game. So far, the music has never seemed out of place and some of the music during the cutscenes is especially enjoyable. The voice acting, for the most part, is excellent. I've noticed a few voices that don't sound as well suited as I'd like them to, but most of the characters have the right level of emotion for the situation and the delivery is spot on. Sound effects are good, hits sound powerful instead of hollow; thus far the game is aural bliss.

Overall - While I haven't progressed far enough into the game to give an overall rating, I'll just say that I can't wait until I get the chance to play more of this.

Predicted final scores:

Presentation: 9.2 - Leveling up feels somewhat cumbersome, and changing some equipment isn't as intuitive as I would like it to be. Loading can take you out of the game for a bit, but the artwork displayed on the loading screens is great to look at and the tips are helpful. However, Bioware loses some points here for advertising their website in the game. (some tips on loading screens direct you to the site, and the title screen does as well.. it kind of annoys me)

Sound - 9.5 - Some of the best voice acting I've heard in a video game. Excellent music, I'd buy a soundtrack if they released one. Solid sound effects all around.

Graphics - 9.3 - As a whole, stunning. These aren't the highest polygon count characters I've ever seen, but they run around in some highly detailed environments and the framerate almost never drops. A joy to look at, though the experienced is marred somewhat by the presence of "jaggies" on various edges.

Gameplay 9.0 - The combat is fun, though difficult to master at first, the exploration elements are well done and are helped by the environmental detail. I have not found it to be a chore to explore the environments. Saving anywhere is a big plus, because if you're not careful you will die.. often.

Story - Can't be rated, as I'm only 3 hours into a fairly long adventure, but I can't wait to see what happens.
 
I'm about five hours in.. great game so far.

Load times arn't bad at all, when you die or switch between one huge area to the next it will take awhile.. other then that it's minimal. Saving takes 2-3 seconds.

I haven't found it to be difficult, but it's not to easy either. The story is a bit dull at first, but after about an hour of play It really hooked me.
 
[quote name='karsh']Excuse me while I slap myself in the head...No one should judge this game by the demo.[/QUOTE]

A demo is a promotional tool in order to presell you on the game. If I didn't like the demo, why would I bother with the full version of the game?

I'm sure the game is fine, all I'm saying is that my initial feeling of unfun combat was confirmed by a review from a website I typically trust and I'll wait for a price drop. That's all. Calm down.
 
The game looks great, but that fact thay Gamespot said the game was EASY is enough to make me wait for a few price drops.
People who have the game what do you think, is it Easy as Gamespot claims?
 
[quote name='Cpt Hooks']The game looks great, but that fact thay Gamespot said the game was EASY is enough to make me wait for a few price drops.
People who have the game what do you think, is it Easy as Gamespot claims?[/QUOTE]

It's not like it is DMC3, but it definitely is more difficult than Gamespot claims. I've died a couple times thinking I can take on guys with weapons and tons of other guys without blocking and dodging. I'm telling you guys, GregK has always seemed to have a bias against Xbox games. Don't completely trust his review. Don't completely trust IGN's review. Look at what the average rating is. And to the guy saying the demo is a premotional tool, yeah, but they were forced to put a demo out, and all they had was an outdated build, so they had to put that out. The fighting is amazingly good. It's simple enough that anyone can play it, but it's complex enough with all the various styles and other things.
 
Yeah, I have a hard time trusting Gamespot's estimates on times to complete ANYTHING after the guy who reviewed chaos legion said you could beat it in 5 hours. My friend finally beat that game at 50 hours. And both hea nd I whipped through DMC 3 in a week. A lot of times, it really feels like reviewers at gamespot don't play the games they review. BUt whatever..

As for JE, I like it so far. The combat flows pretty weel, especially once one gets style switching down. The plot is pretty typical RPG stuff, but decent. The game is hilarious, though I don't know how much of that is on purpose. It is a blast to be a dick in it though.
 
This is the scores so far. (Received by email through Microsoft)

Current Average Review Score = 94%


Site Rating
Gamespy 5 out of 5
IGN 9.9 out of 10
GameSpot 8.4 out of 10
Official Xbox Magazine 9.4 out of 10
Game Zone 9.8 out of 10
GameDaily 4.5 out of 5
Console Gold 98 out of 100
Official Xbox Magazine UK 9.3 out of 10
Electronic Gaming Monthly 9.33 out of 10
Gamer Feed 4.5 out of 5
 
I'd like to point out for anyone claiming this is too easy: you can pause and adjust the difficulty level of the game at any time. If you're not getting a challenge, bump it up. The most difficult setting is on par with Ninja Gaiden. You can get a challenge if you want it.

And as for the demo, I really don't think that companies should demo RPG's. A good RPG draws you in over time and hooks you. A demo can't do that. It can only turn you away. Had I played a demo of KOTOR and its turn based combat, I'd have never touched the finished product, and likely would've missed one of the best games on Xbox. For that reason alone, my demo went on ebay untouched.
 
Just to briefly bring it back to the GS review real quick-- if you read the actual review, it isn't bad at all.. he even says that the positive outweighs the negative. He just let's people know exactly what they'll get along with an awesome game. the score means nothing, it's all about the content of the review.
 
Ok.. I just beat it in under 15 hours. Did a few sidequests, and I was probably away from the game for about an hour of that. I was expected it to be a little longer.. i beat it in three sittings. Very fun game, I'd rank it right up there with KOTOR. Story was great, and had quite a bit of depth if you payed attention to it.

I'd probably rank it 9.5/10 if i had to give an average.
 
I'm not an RPG fan. Have played through the first half of FFX and KOTOR, but I really like this game so far. The combat's fun and there isn't much item management that I have to worry about. It's nice how some of those are handled during the battle sequences with enemies dropping health or magic behind.

Playing on normal and it's definetely not easy. I died in the first "major" battle of the game. You really have to keep an eye on your attacks and your movement.
 
[quote name='Calamityuponthee']Ok.. I just beat it in under 15 hours. Did a few sidequests, and I was probably away from the game for about an hour of that. I was expected it to be a little longer.. i beat it in three sittings. Very fun game, I'd rank it right up there with KOTOR. Story was great, and had quite a bit of depth if you payed attention to it.

I'd probably rank it 9.5/10 if i had to give an average.[/QUOTE]


yikes. did you do any sidequests? did you use focus run the whole time? How about conversation options-- did you listen a lot or just find out what you need and go?
sounds like a speed run...
 
I didn't exactly walk around towns for 2 hours, It was defenetely not a slow run through.

I focus ran a little bit, whenever I had to backtrack. A few sidequests. It was just.. not a long game.

You could probably cram an extra 2 hours if you did more sidequests and stuff.

I don't regret the purchase.. however, If I knew I could beat it in a 24 hour period I might have rented it.
 
about 11 hours into the game I am really enjoying it. at first I didn't think I'd like the real time combat (tried to like it in Fable but didn't) for RPGs, but the fighting system as others have mentioned in Jade Empire is pretty fluid for a game like this. in the beginning it is really easy to just upgrade certain styles or weapons and just wail on people by simply executing a combo and quickly flipping or dodging. later on though as I'm sure many of the people who have beaten it can attest to, you face enemies that not only have stronger attacks but are immune to probably 90% of the styles that you put a lot of level up points into.

the only downside to the experience so far is the Imperial Arena in the Imperial City. Not that it isn't fun, but the load times kill it. Every time you die or win in the arena it loads you all the way back to the tavern with the promoter. the load times for this aren't too fast and it really slows down the game at that point.

the story is really good so far, as others have said typical RPG, but there are some really neat surprises.

great game thus far, not sure if I am nearing the end of completion of it, story-wise it might be but they could always throw a curveball.
 
I just started playing it last night and I played for about 2 hours and so far I am liking it. It is completely what I expected it to be coming from BioWare. I don't think the game is that easy, but not drastically hard. I imagine if I uped the difficulty it would be insanly hard. After I am done playing it this time I will definetly play through again. How many people on here think they will play through it again?
 
[quote name='slipkornotpsu']I just started playing it last night and I played for about 2 hours and so far I am liking it. It is completely what I expected it to be coming from BioWare. I don't think the game is that easy, but not drastically hard. I imagine if I uped the difficulty it would be insanly hard. After I am done playing it this time I will definetly play through again. How many people on here think they will play through it again?[/QUOTE]

I'll definitely be playing it more than once.

Anyone else think this is the last current-gen Bioware game? If they make another one, I hope they find a way to make the dialogue a little more interesting...not that it's bad...but maybe they could do something to make it a little better.
 
I hope they make the conversations a bit more cinematic. It's getting a bit dull staring at the back of my character's head as the other person speaks and sometimes at length, too. Some of the "speeches" I was hoping would be broken up by some sort of flashback scene to help you visualize things more.
 
just beat the game in around 12 1/2 hours total. I skipped over 2-3 optional side quests in the Imperial City which probably would've added around 2 hours onto the total play time. I definitely enjoyed this game and will be playing through it again when I get some time, with another character type.

upgrading your Spirit Thief, Jade Golem transformation, main weapon, and a way to damage spirits, makes the game go a whole lot quicker. also balancing out your character is good. you won't have to dump all your experience points into one of the 3 areas (spirit, mind, body), because later on you'll eventually get many different gems to equip that will greatly enhance one or more areas for you.
 
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