Jade Empire review at IGN

[Llyranor]

I LOVE HIM MORE

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

So Harv, how soon until you buy an X-Box so you can play JE?  "

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I won't buy a X-Box but to be honest the specs of the X-Box 2 is mighty impressive. I might buy that and if the X-Box 2 can play X-Box 1 games, I will more than likely get JE. At least renting it.

[Drakron]

Considering there are NO official spec for the next Microsoft console ... not even name.

[Meshugger]

So Harv, how soon until you buy an X-Box so you can play JE?  "

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I won't buy a X-Box but to be honest the specs of the X-Box 2 is mighty impressive. I might buy that and if the X-Box 2 can play X-Box 1 games, I will more than likely get JE. At least renting it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

As Drakron said, it's not even known if it's backwards compatible.

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

That is why I said IF.

[Drakron]

I think it it will ...

 

The PS3 will since it gives a jump start to the PS3 in relation to titles since naturaly there will be few launch titles as PS3 launch year will see more PS2 titles that PS3 titles.

 

In a way that was killed Xbox chances, there was simply little choice as the PS2 had a extensive choice and the price slash made the Xbox look like a expensive toy.

 

I am looking at Nintendo for the next console, the PS3 is too much a entertaiment center to be inovative (not that its going to hurt sales) as the next Xbox appears to be following the same ideas behind the PS2, its a console and in my view that is a mistake, MS sould have continued with the idea of the Xbox being a stripped down PC.

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

A stripped down, standardized PC with moderate customizability would be nice (such as putting in a larger hard drive)..

[Drakron]

But that is not what they are doing, they making a PlayStation and not a Xbox.

 

The next Xbox will be more close to the Playstation design that the Xbox design, the PS3 is closer to the PSP design that PS2 design.

 

(And nobody knows what Nintendo is doing)

 

What I see is MS walking down the same path that Sega, they might be powerful and capable but that alone is not going to sell it enough to be self supporting.

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

Microsoft needs to find their own niche instead of trying to copy others.

[Drakron]

Like Nokia ...

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

Who?

[Drakron]

Nokia ...

 

Never heard of N-Gage, also known as the N-Taco?

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

Oh N-gage. I have heard of it but never saw it. Don't pay much attention to hand helds.

[J.E. Sawyer]

I am looking at Nintendo for the next console, the PS3 is too much a entertaiment center to be inovative (not that its going to hurt sales) as the next Xbox appears to be following the same ideas behind the PS2, its a console and in my view that is a mistake, MS sould have continued with the idea of the Xbox being a stripped down PC.

Why? The Xbox is already significantly more powerful than the PS2. And by now, it actually has a good game library. I play far more Xbox games than PS2 games these days.

[Setzer]

Why?  The Xbox is already significantly more powerful than the PS2.  And by now, it actually has a good game library.  I play far more Xbox games than PS2 games these days.

 

I'm the exact opposite. I own both systems and my PS2 gets a lot more use than the Xbox. The Xbox may have the hardware edge over the PS2 but it doesn't come close in the game department, in terms of the number of quality games. Guess its the type of game you're looking for.

 

I'll be picking up Jade Empire on Tuesday and my Xbox will finally get turned on for the first time in about 4 months.

[Drakron]

Same reason I would get a DS over a PSP.

 

The Xbox is nothing over the PS2 for me, only thing I like the Xbox is their hard drive but that is about it (Xbox Live is not even supported in my country, PS2 online on the other hand is ... damn pity that I have yet to see a PS2 HD on sale) and I play more PS2 games that Xbox games.

 

I dont see any decent Xbox exclusives yet, I see a lot of cross platform games that I can get to run better in my PC (that is nothing much) if I cared.

 

Besides I stand over my impressions over the next consoles, the PS3 and Xbox "2" will have a small technology gap since they will be released around the same time and as Sony is moving towards its DVD/MP3 player/God knows what/Console combo the Xbox decided to make a console instead of a stripped down computer with Nintendo appearing to wanting to inovate how games are "played".

 

Honestly I am tired of this "tech race" that simply downplays games to tech demos ... Fable is not better that FF X-2 because of the Xbox "capabilities" (both games stink, even if in diferent ways) and I seen Silent Hill fans saying that SH4 looks better in the PS2 that in the Xbox.

[J.E. Sawyer]

I dont see any decent Xbox exclusives yet, I see a lot of cross platform games that I can get to run better in my PC (that is nothing much) if I cared.

I have to assume that by "decent" you are excluding any games you aren't personally interested in. There are plenty of Xbox exclusives that are great, like Ninja Gaiden, Halo 2, RalliSport Challenge 2, etc. There are also a whole lot of multi-platform games that just plain look better on the Xbox (Riddick, Soul Calibur II, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, etc.).

[Drakron]

Ninja Gaiden and Halo 2 I recognize but that is pretty much about it.

 

I do play DOAEBV that is a exclusive but I dont see much of a Xbox exclusive lineup.

[Monte Carlo]

A quick question for J.E. if he returns to the thread re. console games development.

 

I finally bought an Xbox (they are very cheap in the UK at the moment) before Xmas. I enjoyed games like Full Spectrum Warrior (the graphics are incredible, BTW), the wife likes The Sims crossovers etc but why are there no decent strategy or RTS titles on the Xbox?

 

Along with RPGs these are my favourite types of games, and the fact that there are none (not even a Command & Conquer title) means that I'm using the thing less and less. Is it an Xbox performance issue or do these games simply not shift enough units?

 

Cheers

MC

[Child of Flame]

Has to do with a matter of a joypad pretty much sucks a fatty for controlling units in an RTS, and an RPG to an extent.

 

Did Microsoft scrap the '3 Xbox Next' lineup plan? I was kinda hoping to see them pull a Sega CD, considering not only did they MURDER Sega by coding poor OSes for the consoles, but then releasing their own superior console, with a superior OS (pretty much right after the Dreamcast too). Yes, I'm a vengeful bastard.

[Musopticon?]

It's rather hard to make an easily controllable rpg for a console, without resorting to first person perspective. As the svirfneblin guy said, controllers are too clumsy. And RTS's? Ever played Age of Empires 2 on PS2? Horrible, absolutely horrible. :ph34r:

[uncdeez]

I enjoyed games like Full Spectrum Warrior (the graphics are incredible, BTW), the wife likes The Sims crossovers etc but why are there no decent strategy or RTS titles on the Xbox?

 

Cheers

MC

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

RTS games don't usually transfer well onto consoles. If they did, I imagine Microsoft would make the Age of Series an Xbox exclusive (or time exclusive). Lots of people have tried to make good console RTS games: Blizzard made Starcraft 64, EA put C&C on the N64 and the PS1 and none of them turned out very well. Hell, they even made Civ I for the NES and Civ II for the PS1 and let's just say that those didn't turn out quite as well as their PC counterparts.

 

As for strategy games on Xbox there's the strategy/rpg Gladius, the strategy/action game Kingdom Under Fire: The Crusaders, and there's the pure RTS Goblin Commander: Unleash the Horde. I haven't actually played any of these games but I've heard a lot of good things from Gladius, a game from Lucasarts that sold like crap. I've heard decent to good things about KUF but I have no idea if it came out in the UK. As for Goblin Commander its biggest claim to fame was that two former Blizzard designers were the lead designers of it. I heard it was mediocre and I have no idea if it was released in the UK.

 

There's also Phantom Dust, which is kind-of an action/strategy game with cards. Before you ask, yes it was made in Japan. It just came out in the States about a month ago so I don't know if it's out in the UK or if it will ever come out there. The game was made by Microsoft Japan and MS didn't want to publish it anywhere else in the world. Majesco picked it up and released it as a budget title. It got some pretty good reviews but once again, I haven't played it and couldn't give you an opinion on it.

[uncdeez]

Did Microsoft scrap the '3 Xbox Next' lineup plan?  I was kinda hoping to see them pull a Sega CD, considering not only did they MURDER Sega by coding poor OSes for the consoles, but then releasing their own superior console, with a superior OS (pretty much right after the Dreamcast too).  Yes, I'm a vengeful bastard.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Uh, the Dreamcast was dead (sorry, discontinued which is as good as dead) by the time Xbox came out.

[Child of Flame]

Did Microsoft scrap the '3 Xbox Next' lineup plan?  I was kinda hoping to see them pull a Sega CD, considering not only did they MURDER Sega by coding poor OSes for the consoles, but then releasing their own superior console, with a superior OS (pretty much right after the Dreamcast too).  Yes, I'm a vengeful bastard.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Uh, the Dreamcast was dead (sorry, discontinued which is as good as dead) by the time Xbox came out.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

When they asked MS to design the OS for both that system and the Saturn, they wanted something that PC devs would be able to develop on easy, thus getting more third party titles. Let's just say neither were. Also, yes, I know it was discontinued, but do you honestly think the Xbox wasn't in preproduction when it came out?

[Monte Carlo]

^ Thanks for the info chaps.

 

However, (this is slightly regurgitated from another thread) I remember playing Warcraft 2, Sim City, C&C2: Red Alert, X-Com: Enemy Unknown and Warhammer: Shadow of the Horned Rat on PS1 with a PS mouse. All of them were perfectly enjoyable (especially X-Com) and the mouse functionality was as good as on the PC.

 

So although I agree joypads are cumbersome I'm still not completely convinced; after all a bundled Age of Empires Xbox title bundled with a Xbox mouse would sell like hot cakes I'd imagine (geez, look how much you could spend on games with specific guns or Steel Battalions control gizmos).

 

So, why not RTS/Strategy and no Xbox mouse? BTW, thanks for the heads up about those other games, I'll be sure to look them up.

 

Cheers

MC