And as you venture forth through Jade Empire, you'll be challenged with questions that will ultimately lead you to discover the darkest secrets of the world. The game begins when a series of sinister events disrupt the peaceful harmony of an isolated martial arts school. You'll be forced to confront a slew of shady characters, evil warlocks, demonic beasts, and other atrocious villains that protect the Jade Empire's deepest secrets. Jade Empire offers you the chance to become a martial arts master. You'll assume the identity of one of six different characters and begin developing your skills. Each character has a unique appearance, voice, and fighting style. As you progress in the game, you'll decide whether to adopt the ways of good or evil, and your choices will affect your reputation. Jade Empire matches the frenetic pace and fury of Hong Kong cinema. As you progress in the game, you'll upgrade your combat ability and learn new, specially tailored moves for your character. Only by mastering your moves and defeating the most powerful enemies will you earn your place as a master in the world of Jade Empire.

Gameplay is an abbreviated form of Wizards of the Coast's d20 Star Wars RPG game system-anyone who has played Dungeons & Dragons will be familiar with the abilities, stats, feats, and bonuses in this game. The player creates a character as a member of one of three starting classes (soldier, smuggler, scout) and then later chooses a Jedi class (guardian, consular, sentinel). Joining the player's character are other Jedi, warriors, thieves, droids, a wookiee, and even a Mandolorian. Unlike the faceless non-player characters of other games, each member of the supporting cast has an intriguing history and even agenda. Up to two of these other characters can join your character at any time. Depending on who you chose to take with you, new dialogue and even intra-party arguments come into the game (put the Mandalorian veteran with the Republic patriot and you'll see sparks fly). Combat is real-time turn-based, meaning the turns are seamless but the player has the option of pausing the action at any time to issue orders or direct any character to use a certain Force power, ability, feat, or item. Graphics range from adequate to exceptional. Building and character models are not impressive-about what you get in GTA 3. Lightsaber graphics and environmental effects (like waving grass, clouds, and weather) bring the world to life. Battles are just brilliant, with characters pumping out blaster fire at Jedi who dash, dodge, and even deflect the bolts back toward their assailants. Complete with sounds straight out of the movies, the thrilling combat is pure Star Wars. All in all, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is a masterpiece of Star Wars gaming. The pacing, balance of action and dialogue, clever puzzles and quests, and loving attention to detail have set the bar very high for role-playing games in general and Star Wars games in particular. Consider this a must-have game. -Mike Fehlauer Pros: Captivating storyline Clever dialogue Star Wars feel True story and dialogue support for either Light Side or Dark Side play Brilliant combat graphics Fascinating characters (the loyal-and homicidal-droid HK-47 is truly unique) Cons: Occasional bugs in dialogue, movie playback Cannot transfer equipped gear between characters while on your ship.

Spider-Man: The Movie allows fans to play as Spider-Man in several highly detailed 3-D environments inspired by the Columbia Pictures/Marvel Entertainment live-action feature film (due for release in May of 2002). This full-roaming action-adventure game allows players to jump into the suit of a fledgling Marvel superhero and learn how to battle the forces of evil. Players crawl, leap, and swing from the dizzying heights of skyscrapers to catch criminals and supervillains, and, ultimately, come face-to-face with the Green Goblin in a death-defying display of aerial combat. During the course of the game, players must use Spider-Man's spider-sense, agility, quick wits, and strength to evade the pursuit of the bad guys and overcome obstacles.

People comment on your successes and failures, your appearance, and your behavior. Fable: The Lost Chapters offers gamers character customization choices that will impact your appearance. The denizens of Albion's many opinions are expressed through applause, mockery, trepidation, panic, and even flirtation if they feel so inclined. Each person you aid, each flower you crush, each creature you slay, will change this world forever. In Fable: The Lost Chapters, gamers decide: "Who will I be?".

Voted Game Of The Year by IGN. com, Electonic Gaming Monthly, and Xbox Magazine. More often than not, when a game is in development for more than three years, it does not live up to the hype. Bungie's Halo is the exception. Not only does it meet expectations, it greatly exceeds them. This sci-fi first-person shooter is a nearly perfect blend of gameplay, graphics, and sound. The story revolves around the conflict between humans and an alien race known as the Covenant. The aliens have discovered a powerful artifact-on the ring-shaped planet called Halo-that will shift the balance of power, and it's up to the player to stop them. In addition to several first-person-shooter levels, the game offers numerous opportunities to engage in vehicular combat. Both the enemy and allied artificial intelligence are extremely impressive. Enemies will use the terrain and layout to put you in tight spots. Allies will know when to cover and aid you. For instance, if you hop into a jeep, an ally will know to jump in and man the turret on the back of it. The graphics are exquisitely detailed, but only move at 30 frames per second rather than 60. The sound effects and voice acting are superb. The level design is among the best ever; most of the game is engaging and challenging without being frustrating. There's also high replay value thanks to the built-in single-player, cooperative, and deathmatch modes. Much like the outstanding GoldenEye 007 for Nintendo 64, Halo raises the bar for console first-person shooters. All console action games will be measured against Halo for years to come. -Raymond M. Padilla Pros: Outstanding game design High replay value Impressive AI Cons: Several maps are used multiple times Save functions could have been better implemented Graphics move at 30 frames per second, not 60 This action shooter takes place on a mysterious alien world. It offers a combination of team-based first-person-shooter gameplay (reminiscent of Tribes) and third-person vehicle combat elements. Gameplay kicks off with the player heading down to the planet's surface in a troop carrier, à la Aliens. As the player and fellow marines exit, the remaining troopers form a flank in reaction to an oncoming onslaught of human and alien enemies. It's this smart AI system that makes for a noticeably unique gameplay feel. Another very nice feature is the seamless transition into vehicular elements. As you venture through mission objectives, a variety of enemy flyers and on-ground buggies are yours for the taking. Come across a vehicle and the camera will pull back to a third-person view as you strap in and motor through crossfire. A co-op mode allows a friend to join you in the single-player missions. For chaotic fighting action, up to four players can duel in split-screen deathmatch mode or link systems for LAN play. However you choose to hero your way through Halo: Combat Evolved, the action should break in your new Xbox in explosive style.

In the end, though, Halo 2 is unabashedly a first-person shooter. It has a Mature rating and is not meant for kids. Gameplay is constant and intense. No sooner is one bunch of aliens taken care of than another descends. The controls are identical to the first game so those familiar with it will be up and blasting in no time. And the sound and graphics have been beefed up so that Halo 2 is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful console games available. Opening Fire Most of the weapons from the first game return, although strangely the MA5B Assault Rifle (the default weapon in the first game) is not available. There is a single melee weapon known as the Covenant Sword, but the controls for it are the same as that for all the shooter weapons, making it difficult to direct. Also, for a new twist, you can hold two of the smaller guns at the same time and shoot double-fisted. As for vehicles, the old favorites are back and joined by a few new, mostly Covenant wheeled monsters. Some improvements have been made to the AI so that the nonplayer characters can drive without running into too many obstacles while you man the turret. This improved AI also has enemies ducking for cover, and the banter from both the Marines and the bad guys has undergone massive improvements so that it no longer sounds quite so repetitive. On Your Own The most significant change in the single-player game is with Master Chief's much-touted defensive suit. At the beginning of the game, he is told that the suit has been upgraded, but it's really undergone a severe downgrade. In Halo 2, the player has only one lifeline. Unlike in the first game, there is basically no defensive shield on the suit, making gameplay tougher. It can often take multiple-sometimes a maddening number-attempts to make it through thorny parts of the game. Or with a Friend Finally, no review of a Halo game is complete without mentioning multiplayer. One of the main reasons to buy Halo 2 is the ability to play through Xbox Live, a feature not included in the first game, which was among the original releases for the Xbox. Multiplayer for Halo 2 uses all of the same weapons and vehicles as in the single-player game, and the types of games available in Halo (King of the Hill, Slayer, Capture the Flag) return with a host of new maps. Multiplayer Halo 2 offers customizable profiles, control layout, and screens as well as a voice proximity feature, where you can talk with other players via an Xbox Communicator so that those closer to you sound louder than those farther away. Players can also create both permanent clans and temporary parties in the Xbox Live world. Undoubtedly, this multiplayer feature alone ensures that Halo 2 will remain a top-selling game for years to come. -David Morel Pros: Lush graphics and orchestral sound Constant, thumping shoot-'em-up action Multiplayer available through Xbox live Cons: Suit downgrade makes single-player often overly difficult Get ready for some bleary-eyed mornings.