Jade Empire: Special Edition

Much has been said about the rather unique setting, the surprisingly good fight system and the stunning lack of serious bugs. Those things are all good. Only one thing dampens this gem: The romances are exceedingly dull. Sky is almost as obnoxious as Dragon Age's Alistair and Silk Fox is almost as bad as Morrigan, the living embodiment of pathetic male fantasies. Adding to the distinct "meh" that hangs over that aspect is the fact that an astonishing amount of sexual tension seems to come from the character who is ostensibly your sister. Some may find that a bit disturbing. Nevertheless, this is great. The last, triumphant breath of Bioware, before the weight (haha) of Mass Effect and the Dragon Age series dragged off the RPG throne forever. Well worth playing.

I pre-ordered this one the Xbox Original many moons ago and the only reason I stopped playing because the Xbox died. It's very much worth the getting and the fact that it is here on GOG DRM Free is icing on the cake.

This game is just awesome and worth every cent! One of my all time favorites.

To be fair, I find most Bioware games overrated. This game has a good story that feels kinda rushed near the end. It's path is linear and character interaction boils down to standard good vs. evil choices. That's really disappointing, especially in an eastern setting. Character building is non existent (except that you can spend points on level up to either one of 3 stats. Unfortunately they are pretty much all needed throughout the game). It wouldn't be much of a problem if they gameplay was solid. Unfortunately it's just standard block, dodge, and hit mechanic. You can use some kind "finishing moves" (harmonic combos) that either outright killed the enemy or applied a debuff, but those only worked against weaker enemies and were pretty much useless. The fighting styles itself are pretty much uninteresting. They are supposed to differ in speed and damage, but the one I started with was always the weakest and consequently whatever I found later was stronger than what I found before. It's the same with the weapons. The fights itself can be won by 1 or 2 different tactics, except if you are outnumbered. But you just have to cut them back to a workable size. Sometimes I wished I could end a sequence with a quick time event, it was that bad. It's unfortunate. I really try to love it, but it friendzoned me.

The epitome of Bioware's cliches. A boring RPG-on-rails with a thoroughly unenjoyable combat system and meaningless (mostly-)binary dialogue options. Will you be Open Palm or Closed Fist--who cares? Vacillates rapidly between frustrating and yawn-inducing. I spent $9.99 picking up a used copy back when it was still 2-3 years old and I regretted not having the cash to buy some cheap disposable plastic crap from Wal-Mart in place of this exercise. If you're trying to unlock "Achievement: Played Every RPG Made in the Continental U.S." then by all means, have at it. Otherwise, see title.