设计师们最为期待的事情之一就是可以不受版权限制地自由创作。构建游戏框架的时候，若有版权作品作为参考是很好的，光是研究原作就收益颇丰。《星球大战（Star Wars）》便是很好的例子——我们能很好地诠释原作。不过，知道自己能够随心所欲地创作，不会违背规则、和别人的想法相悖或是妨碍整体进程，这种感觉很不错。

One of the things that the designers were looking forward to the most was not having the restrictions of a licence. A licence is really beneficial when it comes to structure and the framework of a game, and you can take a lot from research. Star Wars was a great example of that – we were really able to reinterpret it all.
However, just to be able to do anything you want, and know that you're not contravening the rules or someone else's idea of how it should all go, is cool.

Diarmid Clarke
《翡翠帝国》项目总监

Diarmid Clarke,
Jade Empire's project director

你要知道该在什么时候用什么战斗风格，这是战斗的一大特色。你结束连招的方式会决定敌人被打倒后掉落什么类型的能量——生命值、法力值或是专注值。

生命值字如其名；治疗和施放魔法会消耗法力值；专注值可以给武器的战斗风格充能，还能让你的角色使出灵感来源是《黑客帝国（Matrix）》的时间减缓能力。这个专注技能是最好用的技能之一，因为游戏控制起来手感飘忽不定、镜头视角的表现也只不过堪堪超过及格线，导致一对多的战斗总是十分艰难。

在角色个性化方面，游戏几乎没有什么自由度。最开始，你能在七位预先设定好的战士中选择一位，然后你可以调整他们的属性和初始的战斗风格。

《翡翠帝国》只有三种属性，每一种都和你的资源系统绑定，对话判定的时候也会依据属性来进行。战利品和装备管理系统也被大大地简化了——你只会找到能让主角装备到护身符上的宝石，一般来说会给你一些简单的属性加成。除此以外就没了。

Knowing when to use each style makes up the bulk of the combat. The way you finish your combo will determine the kind of energy your defeated foe leaves behind. It can either be Health, Mana or Focus.

The first is self-explanatory; healing and magic attacks consume the second, while Focus fuels weapon fighting styles and your character’s time-slowing, Matrix-inspired ability. This Focus ability is one of the most useful, as the floaty controls and sub-par camera make fights against several opponents a harsh affair.

Character customisation is minimal. You start with a choice of seven pre-made warriors to pick from, and can alter their stats and initial combat styles.

Jade Empire only has three stats, each tied to your resource pools. They also double as skill checks during conversations. Loot and equipment management are also heavily streamlined – all you’ll find are gems that the main character can affix to their pendant, usually offering simple stat boosts. That’s it.

那些想要拓展《翡翠帝国》可能性的人可以尝试一下“翡翠帝国豪华版”mod（Jade Empire in Style mod），这个 mod 新增了好几种不同的战斗风格，还对已有的战斗风格进行了平衡性调整。

Those seeking to expand Jade Empire can try the Jade Empire in Style mod, which adds several new combat styles and rebalances existing ones.

至于探索部分，《翡翠帝国》是个线性游戏，主线以外的部分都没什么值得探索的地方。有些主线可以以不同的方式解决，而选择往往是互相矛盾的。根据你的选择不同，最终会对别的角色造成影响，并让你往开掌之道（Path of the Open Palm）或是闭拳之道（Path of the Closed Fist）上前进——这是两种不同的武术哲学流派，听上去很厉害，但其实差别不大，展现出来也只不过是普通的“善恶”派别罢了。

虽然《翡翠帝国》游戏机制薄弱，需要增加人物对话，创建世界观的时候也只是一股脑把设定倒给玩家，但它还是颇有几分魅力在的。不仅在于你能探索这个潜力没有被完全开发的世界，同时游戏的美术风格十分契合其世界观，每片地区都能充分展示远东的神秘美感。更何况，主线故事依然是 BioWare 的拿手好戏。

不过，多年以前被玩家们囫囵吞枣的这些缺陷，放到今天来看就显得有些不能容忍了。BioWare 旗下的其他游戏都还算成功地经过了时间的考验，但《翡翠帝国》失败了。

As for exploration, Jade Empire is a linear game, with very little to find off the beaten path. Some of the main quests offer several, often diverging paths toward a resolution. The way you choose, in turn, will influence other characters and push you towards the Path of the Open Palm or the Path of the Closed Fist – two martial arts philosophies that aim high, but lack nuance and play out as “good and evil” alignments.

Despite the weak mechanics, the need for an extra dialogue passes, and a lore-dump approach to world-building, Jade Empire still retains some charm. Not only is it a chance to adventure in an underused setting, but the art style hold up well, with each area showcasing that Far Eastern mystique. And the central narrative is still BioWare at its finest.

However, the many flaws that players stomached years ago have became harder to forgive today. While the rest of BioWare's catalogue has aged somewhat gracefully, Jade Empire has not.