Hardcore PC gamers who swear by their mice and keyboards are typically more than apprehensive when it comes to console ports--and most of the time, they have every right to be nervous. Limited control options, low graphics resolutions, and aggravating save points are all valid reasons to shun console games that make their way to the PC, but in the case of Jade Empire: Special Edition, an exception can be made. Though Jade Empire debuted on the Xbox in 2005, it has the likeness of a game built from the ground up for the PC in 2007.

You start off by selecting a character type attuned to various skills: physical, mind, or magic-based attacks. "Chi," Jade Empire's stand-in for mana, allows your character to heal and deal more damage with attacks. "Focus" represents mind power, and is essential for wielding weapons. You can create a character whose specialty lies in one of the three, or a balanced character who relies equally on mind, body, and magic. Should you feel too restrained by the available types, you can always choose to go the custom route and define your avatar as you go.

It stands to reason that since Jade Empire is a martial arts-based action RPG, you'll get to do more than your fair share of kicking, punching, and weapon-wielding, all of which are accomplished through fighting styles. The styles include hand-to-hand, magical, and weapon-based attacks, and you'll need a mix of all three in order to defeat your adversaries, as certain creatures are only vulnerable to certain attacks. For example, ghosts cannot be killed using standard weapons. You earn quite a few styles as the game progresses, and in the Xbox original, it was more than a little annoying to constantly pause the game and remap fighting styles, as they could only be assigned to the four d-pad directions. The default keys for combat styles in the PC Special Edition are the number keys running along the top of the keyboard, which becomes convenient as you earn fighting styles faster and faster as the game progresses. The only time you will need to remap keys is to move older styles further down the list of commonly used styles; you'll spend quite a bit of time leveling up skills only to find better alternatives along the way, but even so, there's no reason to completely disregard a style you've spent so much time upgrading, as it could still come in handy at some point.

Since combat is the crux of the gameplay, it's important that the fighting styles not disappoint, and they are each unique enough in both aesthetics and implementation that you'll find yourself trying each of them at least once as opposed to becoming dependent upon one or two exclusively. The combat takes place in real time, though you can pause the action to reassign fighting styles and call out a different henchman should you need to. Each style serves a different purpose, and it is this component that makes the combat in Jade Empire stand out as more than just kicking in punching: fighting is the key to attaining power-ups. You do not open a menu to drink a health potion; rather, you perform specific harmonic combos to restore your Chi, Focus, and health. To perform a harmonic combo, you start out by switching to a support style and executing a strong attack via the right mouse button by default. This will slow or stun the enemy, allowing you to switch to a primary style such as Legendary Strike and execute another strong attack--which will cause your enemy to explode and drop a power-up, but only if they are vulnerable to harmonic combos; some creatures and ghosts are not. You can also slow down time via Focus attacks, allowing you to rush up to enemies and pummel them as long as you have enough juice in your Focus meter. This technique works well against enemies that are faster than you, as well as against many of the ghosts in the game with access to fast projectiles.

So, really, you can only restore health and energy in the middle of a fight if you're adept at executing harmonic combos. How can you possibly manage all of the enemies that will rush you, some with melee attacks, others with magic, by yourself? Luckily, you won't have to. Over the course of the game, other characters with different agenda will join your cause, and each has something unique to bring to the proverbial canvas. Most characters can be assigned to either Attack or Support, the latter manifesting itself in the form of your character meditating and restoring health or another stat. Some hireables only have the option of filling one of the two roles. One character teaches you drunken boxing, which you can only use by keeping a steady supply of alcohol in your system. When this henchman is summoned, he will support your character by throwing out bottles of wine when needed. Those characters that have a set boon to give you provide originality to what can sometimes be an otherwise cookie cutter selection of henchmen.

As fun as it is kung fu-ing everything in your path, the process of slowing down time and performing harmonic combos remains the same throughout the game. Once you figure out the strategies necessary to defeat each type of adversary, you'll often find yourself growing annoyed through yet another combat sequence when all you're trying to do is explore. Even gaining more advanced fighting styles loses its luster when you realize that they are simply alternatives to others that you've already received; they may be more powerful, but none of them really offer anything new.

Turn the page to read more about Jade Empire: Special Edition.