BioWare has become synonymous with RPGs that give players moral choices. However, games like Mass Effect and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic often boil difficult issues down to saintly good or monstrous evil. While this works fine in some instances, players seeking a more nuanced binary should look into the oft-forgotten martial arts fantasy Jade Empire.

Released in 2005 on the original Xbox, Jade Empire was set in a world inspired by Chinese mythology and martial arts. It follows the Spirit Monk, a young student chosen by the divine Water Dragon to restore balance to the earth and heavens. What makes the game's ideological binary unique is that it isn't so much moral as it is philosophical. Its competing ideas, the Way of the Open Palm and Way of the Closed Fist, embody elements of real-world beliefs and politics without mapping neatly onto any one system players might recognize.

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Of the two, the Way of the Open Palm is more diplomatic. These choices encourage harmony, often advocating for charity, cooperation and the protection of the innocent. Despite prioritizing care for the vulnerable, however, Open Palm choices are often pro-establishment. They protect the power of the gods and ruling classes, neither of which are portrayed as perfect.

Jade Empire's pantheon is powerful, but its members are every bit as prone to failure and pettiness as mortals. The nobility and government, meanwhile, are usually inept, corrupt or both. There is good to be done by helping these people, but it often feels like treating the symptoms rather than the disease. Devotion to the Open Palm will ensure a peaceful future, but not necessarily one with the reforms society clearly needs.

This is where the Way of the Closed Fist becomes relevant. This philosophy advocates self-sufficiency and motivating people to stand alone without relying on others -- including their government. In fact, Closed Fist choices often undermine the powerful. They may sabotage ministers or overthrow the gods themselves, but they can also empower ordinary people to grow stronger. This can be as simple as the Spirit Monk encouraging a childhood friend to grow a backbone or inspiring slaves to win freedom by killing their masters.

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However, the Closed Fist has an ideological trap. Uncritically pursuing strength can quickly lead to becoming a bully, which is why many of the game's antagonists and more obviously malicious choices default to this alignment. A Closed Fist world would not be peaceful, and may dissolve into selfish anarchy -- but its people would be strong enough to resist the challenges of life.

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By forgoing the usual Light versus Dark dichotomy, Jade Empire becomes a role-playing game that actively encourages role-playing. It can be hard for players to stay true to their pre-existing notions, as each Way is comprised of various ideas from different beliefs. Players will have to either compromise their values or accept they are playing a part in this constructed world and think critically about what their characters would choose.

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It's a fascinating attempt at a more nuanced moral choice system, but to be fair, it is not always executed perfectly. While character dialogue throughout the main quest is full of interesting personal and political dilemmas, the game's endings don't quite convey the same level of moral ambiguity. Still, one must respect BioWare's ambition in trying to craft a deeper set of beliefs for its characters.

Plans for a Jade Empire sequel were canceled, but its concepts trickled down into BioWare's later games. Mass Effect's Paragon/Renegade binary is similarly not good versus evil, but it lacks the nuance of the Ways. The loudest echoes of this system are arguably heard in Star Wars: The Old Republic, as the freedom to play a Light Sith reveals aspects of the Dark Side not well-shown in most Star Wars media.

None of these, however, can really be called a full spiritual successor to Jade Empire's Ways. While binary moral choices are increasingly a thing of the past, that doesn't mean the idea of players being able to explore fictional philosophies should vanish too. Hopefully, with both new Mass Effect and Dragon Age games in development, BioWare will be able to take the best parts of the Ways and update them for a modern audience.

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