BioWare has always been known to have been the go-to developers for action RPGs. From their work on the spectacular Mass Effect trilogy, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic as well as the many titles in the Dragon Age franchise, all have been met with renown success stories of the last decade. While their latest projects may not have lived up to the potential of their previous works, BioWare is still regarded as one of the best developers in the business and will most likely find a way to bounce back from the shortcomings of both Mass Effect: Andromeda and Anthem. Many of us are eagerly waiting for their next entry to the Dragon Age project, however, there is a forgotten cult-classic entry that BioWare should consider bringing back after a fifteen years absence and that is with none other with the Jade Empire series.

Jade Empire started as a Microsoft console exclusive for the original Xbox and since then has seen releases on both PC and mobile devices. Its console iteration reigns supreme in terms both of critic acclaim and players alike, with favorable scores with the controls and gameplay style on the original Xbox being far better than its PC counterpart. While the game was a cult-hit in many terms, it wouldn’t reach the level of sales that the company would have liked, and this could be due to the fact that Jade Empire released quite late in the original Xbox’s lifespan and people were eagerly waiting for next-generation tech with the Xbox 360. Still, even with that playing a factor to the success of the title, Jade Empire was considered to be one of the greatest titles on the Xbox and has grown in popularity since, even without a new entry to the series.

Since 2005, BioWare has struck gold with other big projects such as both the Mass Effect trilogy, the three separate Dragon Age titles as well as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic have all reached critical success with some of these entries being considered as some of the greatest games in all of history. Even some of their past work with Baldur’s Gate franchise and Neverwinter have been held in higher regards in comparison to the Jade Empire series, but that hasn’t stop fans looking for a sequel to the cult-classic title. The unfortunate thing is that BioWare doesn’t seem keen or ready to return to the Jade Empire IP just yet but with the less than good reception of both Mass Effect: Andromeda and more recently with Anthem, there may be hope to see a return to the classic title in some way, shape or form.

We all know that BioWare is hard at work on their next recently announced Dragon Age project, which should leave fans happy, but it will take more than just another entry to ensure the company is in the good grace of gamers. Both Mass Effect: Andromeda and Anthem were hugely hyped as the defining games of this generation only to fall well short of those expectations, mostly due to trying too hard to deliver an experience that they clearly weren’t. While fans can surely look past these titles and hope for that BioWare’s next game doesn’t follow suit, many have already turned away from the beloved developers, saying they have strayed too far as to what made them such a reputable developer. It may sound extreme, but we’ve seen this far too many times before where a developer overachieve expectations only to falter later on as they weren’t able to recreate those experiences and later to be easily forgotten in what has become truly an unforgiving market.

Looking past the company’s past underachieving projects now is a good time as ever to bring back the Jade Empire IP and luckily for BioWare, there are a few ways it can do so. The easy one would be to look to bring the classic entry back by offering an enhanced and completely redefined HD version of the original Xbox title to current gen hardware. It may sound like a cheap cash grab, and we have seen many companies try this approach only to blow up in their faces, but if done correctly, BioWare could not only bring back their classic IP for a new age of players but also gauge the interest of its fan-base and see if investing more into the series is well worth it. Again, if such a project were to become reality, it couldn’t just be an up-resed version of its former self as there are many quality of life improvements that the original Jade Empire would need to undergo drastic changes to accommodate the changes that video games have gone through over the course of the last fifteen years, but if reworking those features were possible, then a remastered version could truly be a success.

Another possible avenue would be what fans have been asking for and that is with a sequel to the original Jade Empire. While there is no doubt that BioWare holds this IP in high regards. it may be too early to consider a sequel a possibility at this point. Nowadays, video games are massive undertakings and pushing as many titles as quickly as possible isn’t much of a reality anymore and even though the masses were upset how both past BioWare entries were, there is still no denying the amount of time and pressure companies face when trying to release for a scheduled release, let alone handling two or more projects all at once. It isn’t to say that it wouldn’t be possible for BioWare to be working on two major projects at once, but given their past history, it is far more likely that they will be handling the new Dragon Age game first and then work on whatever comes after.

Lastly, the team could go through the unfavorable route and that is by catering for a completely different market with a mobile entry. Many fans would surely disagree with this sentiment, but given the rise in popularity of mobile games as a whole and the profits it can bring, it wouldn’t be an awful idea to look into as a stop-gap to try to gauge the audience as well as pushing the Jade Empire brand to a new fan-base. Now, understandably, many people turn a blind eye when it comes to mobile titles as they can be a poor experience that doesn’t always appeal to the masses, especially to a dedicated group such as those who are looking forward to a new Jade Empire entry, but there are still many games that hit cellphones and tablets that have reached the level of success needed to bring back long forgotten franchises and if done right, the same could be said with BioWare’s fantasy RPG.

Whichever route that BioWare takes for the Jade Empire series, there is no denying the love that fans have for this IP. The expectations for a sequel may need to be placed on hold for the time being, but let us hope that the company knows that fans want and demand for a new entry is there. Whether we end up getting a remaster, a re imagining or a proper sequel, the original Jade Empire was a cult-hit that deserves to be recognized and become one of BioWare’s most prominent franchises moving forward. This beloved IP would surely have many people excited and now, more than ever would be a perfect time for BioWare to bring back the Jade Empire series.