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    Ace Attorney Just a reminder that Franziska was confirmed to have been an adorable child in the anime

    January 14, 2021

    Ace Attorney Just a reminder that Franziska was confirmed to have been an adorable child in the anime

    Just a reminder that Franziska was confirmed to have been an adorable child in the anime

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 11:51 AM PST

    [OC]There is absolutely no mercy for Phoenix Wright at all

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 09:57 AM PST

    An important new flash! (Read comments for more)

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 04:43 AM PST

    This took me so much time I hope you will enjoy

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 03:41 PM PST

    Edgeworth thinks nicely of you :)

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 11:32 AM PST

    The patron saint of dumbasses that want to be better

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 06:59 AM PST

    Send help

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 03:06 AM PST

    Why is SoJ rated T for Partial Nudity ?

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 10:57 PM PST

    I finished Ace Attorney for the first time! I want to share my thoughts on the first game including a video of some of my favourite parts from my playthrough!

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 03:51 PM PST

    I really enjoyed the first entry in the series, coming into this game I knew absolutely nothing prior other than the "Objection!" meme which definitely enhanced the experience. I found the gameplay interesting - the investigations were very reminiscent of the Danganronpa and the trials felt like a very unique logic comprehension puzzle.

    What I specifically enjoyed though was that no case felt like filler and all the events in the game flowed really well and none of the cases felt specifically "independent". Even between cases it still felt like I was still connected to one overarching idea or theme tying the whole game together.

    By far my favourite case was Case 4 just due to the nature of the case and gave me the most satisfying conclusion and constantly kept me wondering and creating new theories to what happened. My least favourite was Case 3 just because it felt the least necessary but was by no means bad and was still very fun and had my least favourite cast of characters in the game.

    I definitely had the most trouble with Case 5 as it was such an insanely long one and there are still some aspects to it I don't fully understand but it was fun, exciting and engaging nonetheless. This one was definitely more disjointed to the others but knowing this was an extension to the DS version it makes sense.

    This is the video for all of my first reactions from the first game - be sure to let me know what you think about this if you do decide to watch as it took me quite a while to make but I really enjoyed it and appreciate any feedback! Am also thinking about making a similar video for when I finish Phoenix Wright Justice for All! https://youtu.be/SvaGUTXzK38

    I've been starting to play through the second game on my Twitch Channel and am currently nearing the end of that game as I have just started Case 4 of Justice for All so if that's something you are interested in you are more than welcome to join in. I don't particularly liked to be helped and there are times I absolutely struggle but if you're interested in watching my experience live. I do also plan to stream the last game in the trilogy also. https://www.twitch.tv/lsinda

    submitted by /u/Lsinda
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    TAKE THAT! prosecutor maya fey exists now.

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 05:36 AM PST

    The Judge

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 11:11 PM PST

    First of all, is the Ace Attorney judge immortal? Second of all, do we ever get to meet the grandchild he repeatedly mentions?

    submitted by /u/Section_Away
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    Franziska the mean

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 03:13 PM PST

    Typo in Switch Remaster, Game 1 Case 3

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 12:26 PM PST

    Some In-Depth Thoughts on Turnabout Sucession

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 06:29 PM PST

    Apollo Justice is a...complicated game to talk about. It's a game which AA fans have fiercely debated the merits of for over a decade, arguing for and against every creative aspect of the game. Was Apollo an excellent protagonist screwed over by poor sequels, or a faulty protagonist not given the development he needed? Was Phoenix's characterization a bold and fascinating creative direction, or a betrayal of the hero Shu Takumi created? Is the game ambitious and breaks new ground, or meandering and incoherent?

    Above all else, however, is the final case. Is Turnabout Succession one of the best cases in the franchise, or is it a meandering, directionless mess which damns the entire game? I have opinions on both sides, and this in turn colours how one perceives the game as a whole.

    If I had to give my own take, however...

    I think Turnabout Succession as, while not without some merit, the worst case in the franchise, and one which I believe irrevocably damaged it long-term.

    This may sound...harsh, you could say, but sit around, and we'll see if I give my case.

    ~~

    The first thing I think is crucial to touch on is simple; the cases "pitch". Final cases in Ace Attorney are a complicated affair, as they carry the combined weight of being the longest section of the games while also having to be the culmination of everything which the game had established beforehand. This can be seen in how the final cases of the original trilogy are set-up:

    • Turnabout Goodbyes: The player is started on a shocking idea; Edgeworth, the rival character, is the one that must be defended. It is also quickly established the case is tied to the enigmatic "DL-6" incident established in an earlier case, which when put together instantly gives the case a far more relevant aura to it.
    • Farewell, My Turnabout: A purposeful subversion tactic. The case begins with the appearance of just being a sequel to the first games "Turnabout Samurai", complete with a return appearance by Will Powers. Then, soon as it seems more or less normal, Maya is suddenly taken hostage, and the player is sharply thrown into a scenario with am obvious, terrible truth they are constantly trying to deny.
    • Bridge to Turnabout: The case opens after we have already gone through the horrifying story of Mia's actual first case, setting up an entire assortment of events which link the flashbacks and the narrative of the Fey Clan together. The player is subsequently thrown into about an hour of exploration and slow build-up, developing aspects such as Phoenix's relationship with Iris, Maya's training, and the mysterious Elise. Then, in one fell swoop, Elise is found dead, Maya is again placed in direct danger, and Phoenix is nearly killed attempting to cross a burning bridge. Holy crap.

    All these cases have a very common pattern, they start in ways purposely meant to be striking in some way, and use the striking quality as a sense of forward momentum for the rest of the narrative. This allows important character development to be set in quickly, as well as a notable sense of weight. Note as well that all three cases narratives very specifically tie themselves to Phoenix. This is important, because Phoenix is the protagonist, and thus the narrative of the case needs weight to him. Without it, all the case is is a much of pointless mundanities.

    Succession does not start like this. Rather than finding some way of cohesively introducing the player to the scenario is some way to get the player attached, Apollo is instead walked through a very dry initial investigation which he has no narrative place in, relaying random exposition about the Gramarye and a murder of an artist who was actually a forger. Its not until the end of the case when anything actually meaningful beyond opaque hints show up, and it carries another very significant problem, because that cue means nothing.

    What, exactly, is the significance of Misham's paintings from a narrative POV? There's an explanation there, albeit not a very clear one, but it's not something with actual relevance to the story. Apollo never connects with Misham, nor does Phoenix for the most part beyond a single conversation. There's nothing to actually give weight to Apollo's cases in illustrated form beyond a random hook to make the case seem meaningful, because, indeed, the entire first portion of the case is like this.

    While I like the characters of Vera and Brushel quite a lot, the problem with the first part of Succession, covering the first investigation and trial, is that it's barely anything engaging enough to grab player attention. Rather than making them think of strong ideas, all it does is tease a few cryptic nods and leave it at that; there's little to concretely draw you in.

    Bare in mind, this is the good part of the case, the part which is actually constructively enjoyable and coherent. There's still some good stuff, including some fantastic Apollo/Trucy banter (one of the games best elements) and a strong, shocking twist when Vera falls over nearly dead after alluding to "The Devil". Finally, the lead-in to the true villain!

    And it's here the real problems start.

    ~~

    As soon as Vera falls to the ground, the player is thrown into a flashback sequence detailing Phoenix's final trial. Many, many people have debated the exact logic behind it, if Phoenix's decisions made sense and were in-character, and the presentation of it, but my sole pointer is that, from a narrative POV, this is the wrong place to include such a scenario.

    From a narrative POV, making Phoenix's flashback a separate case relayed to Apollo would've made far more sense. Not only would it function as Turnabout Beginnings does in effectively set the stage for the games final part, it would give the first section of Succession far more weight because, rather than it being the investigation of a completely random event, we would be given the formal intrigue of the man who was involved directly in that case perishing. This is far stronger, more intriguing conceit for a finale, but frustratingly there's virtually no hints to the Misham's involvement in Phoenix's disbarment before the flashback.

    After the (fairly short) flashback over, we are thrown into perhaps the greatest mess in the histories of ADV's, the MASON segment.

    Oh boy, the MASON segment.

    MASON roughly goes like this; Phoenix, talking to an individual we learn at the very end of the game to be the supposedly dead but was actually Lamiroir while she had amnesia Thalassa Gramarye, instructs through eight scenarios located in the timeline, four in the aftermath of the trial seven years ago, another four located in the timeline of the rest of the game. After these scenarios, a picture of the "true" narrative running throughout AA4 comes together, thus allowing for the final confrontation to occur.

    On paper, this is an interesting idea. Visual novels as a medium are famous for narratives which are constructed from combining the information of multiple isolated scenarios (YU-NO if I recall is what popularized it), so seeing Ace Attorney take a stab at it is an ambitious concept. It is, without question, an attempt at a much larger scale narrative than anything that'd been attempted in the franchise before.

    Unfortunately, being a theoretically good idea means very little if it doesn't actually work in practice, and the MASON segment almost instantly opens up major, major cracks in the games foundation which essentially swallow up all story whole. And it starts from a very basic issue, that we learn this information as Phoenix Wright, and not Apollo Justice.

    Apollo is the main protagonist of the AA4. For the first 80% of the game, he is the character we follow, as we see him solve mysteries, interact with the new cast, and grow attached to. As Ace Attorney is not a story which jumps constantly between protagonists, this primes the game to be about his experiences...only its not.

    In placing all of the games exposition around the MASON segment, however, all narrative cohesion regarding Apollo Justice is lost. Suddenly, the game becomes about a drama which only loosely involves anything that the player has been through. All level of emotional connection is lost completely because Apollo is completely removed from all of it, indeed, everyone is, as what the MASON segment amounts to is not narrative development, but about two hours of dry exposition.

    This is further worsened by how inherently incoherent that exposition is. The problem is that the way information in MASON is relayed is impossible, because much of it hinges on Phoenix having information he chronologically learns later. The common explanation fans like to give is a simple "It's a simulation" (despite the game visually implying in the segments closing moments everything was actually recorded), but that fails to get down to a much more pressing issue that this essentially coats literally bit of information in this thick layer of confusion.

    Take, for example, Zak Gramarye. Zak is a mess of a character, simply put. His actions are incoherent, making him look utterly heartless while at the same time showing a contradictory level of concern for Trucy and Valant, displaying a complete lack of any self-preservation, and being somehow the most selfless man in the world and a petty, vindictive bastard. Maybe.

    You see, while the information we're given leaves Zak a pretty big mess on its own, what's really baffling about his character is the framing of it, or how little concrete framing there really is. The incredibly confused nature of the MASON segment contributes to the incoherent nature of the character, because Zak there exists as essentially an exposition machine in a dump which could not have happened. What, then, are we meant to make of Trucy's biological father? Even Takumi has admitted to being stumped, as nothing about the facts presented to the player remotely mesh.

    This is all damned more by the issue that the games "conclusion" (more on that in a bit) has only the most tangential connection to what about 85% of the MASON segment is about, the story of Trope Gramarye. There is zero attempt done to coherently tie the threads explored in the section, Trucy's performance rights, Thalassa's "death", the true story of Magnifi's death, in with the thing the game actually leads to. This culminates in a thoroughly rushed conclusion where Valant suddenly reveals the whole story behind him framing Zak and then just...leaves, never to be mentioned again. Even Trucy doesn't acknowledge him.

    What this however means is that MASON, and consequently at least half the case, is about practically nothing. Rather than investigating some kind of "shocking truth", what Turnabout Succession turns into is a very, very long exposition dump about the games backstory which does nothing to really tie into what's actually happening. The forgery case could've been about anything, because nothing about the Trope really if at all contributes to the logical or emotional narrative.

    Which, neatly, leads into the third, and most disastrous part of the case.

    ~~

    The final trial of Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney, is nothing.

    That seems harsh, but what exactly happens in it? Kristoph comes on stand, Apollo and Klavier recap everything that we already know, Kristoph gives an incredibly rushed motivation that doesn't really match with the tease it was given earlier, says you can't beat him, then out of nowhere the Jurists come in. The game attempts to make it seem meaningful, there's some very cumbersome wrap up...and that's it.

    This might seem harsh or an over-exaggeration, but it's literally as I specified. Very little in the way of deduction work (with literally a single testimony, contradiction and one last Perceive) or plot revelations are made in the final trial, its all busywork as the game attempts to frame how this adds up into something resembling a cohesive whole.

    The problem is that, because of how massively botched the case is, nothing present in the final trial really means anything. Apollo, Trucy, Klavier, none of them matter to the conclusion, because the game barely involves them in the proceedings. Even Phoenix barely matters, he spends the entire thing completely absent. The only thing which matters...is the Jurist system.

    The Jurist system is, simply put, a horrendous idea, albeit one which was not Takumi's fault persay. It was something he was specifically told to do by management to tie into IRL events surrounding Japan's legal system, and was even drafted with the intent of doing a tie-in with the Japanese Ministry of Justice. Which is where the problem lies, actually.

    Ace Attorney, as the original trilogy is concerned, is not a series about law. It isn't, wasn't, and shouldn't. As Takumi has made clear multiple times in official interviews, he knew jack shit about the legal system when he made the original trilogy, and indeed the only reason why the series is set in the courts to begin with was as a means of controlling information. All the trilogy is is all it needs to be, which is a series of serialized mystery stories.

    When you try to make Ace Attorney about law, a pretty fundamental fault line emerges regarding that, because the franchises entire formula is built on a kangaroo court where everything is stacked against the defence, and yet they still have to find the truth. Trying to argue "the law is flawed" is inherently a faulty direction to take because it is completely attempting to undermine the practical basis of the series.

    Like, put it like this, how the hell could the Jurists, as introduced in AA4, work from a narrative conceit long-term? Either they're like the DGS jury and are utterly useless, completely and comically undermining the argument the game presents atop of essentially proving Kristoph right, or everything about finding the truth and exposing the culprit is completely undermined to where nothing is of the protagonists, and the players, own achievements, just that of an autonomous pack of NPCs.

    This is made all the worse by how hollow the Jurists are. Beyond very minor references, there's very little in the way of legitimate buildup to it, so much about Succession being built on threads which ultimately don't matter. The game doesn't even feel the need to ask basic questions, such as whole a disgraced former attorney could organize something so important, or the fact that Phoenix's actions completely undercut the "message" is going for. All the Jurists reduce Turnabout Succession to is a nothing story, where little meant anything.

    And that, in turn, makes the game nothing.

    ~~

    Despite what people may think from this very long word dump, I do not hate AA4. There's actually a lot I like about it, the first case, Apollo and Trucy's characters and dynamic, the more consistently mature tone, those are things are can really praise Takumi for as a writer, and they show that he genuinely did care about creating an ambitious work of fiction, now that the original story was concluded.

    Thing is, though, I think all of that fundamentally falls apart once the finale begins. Suddenly, the story we were lead into falls apart, and the game just mindlessly derails itself into an ending where it feels like nothing matters.

    I haven't mentioned until now, but the Thalassa reveal, while I don't hate it on paper, is a horrendously handled plot device which is not only given too little build-up to mean anything (we learn nothing about Apollo to suspect some deeper backstory to him), but the game leaves the plot thread dangling in the most unsatisfying way possible, with Thalassa and Phoenix choosing to not just...tell Apollo and Trucy the truth, for no adequately explained reason.

    Like, even if that was meant to be a "hook", how the hell was Takumi planning to resolve this? "Apollo and Trucy get new mom" is hardly a satisfying or very "Ace Attorney" resolution, but there's very little in the way of additional question present about who she is, so what, was he planning to just kill her off? That seems like the only way to not create something comically sappy, but as it stands, all the twist does is leave me incredibly confused.

    So, with everything about the game out of the way, we go to two points. The damage I think Succession left on the franchise, and the fan defences I see given to the game.

    First off, the damage to the franchise.

    I think it's hard to deny that, even if you like the games, the Ace Attorney games made after Apollo Justice are...cumbersome. Be it the first Investigations lacking virtually any kind of story, Dual Destinies unstable, scattershot and yet uninspired narrative, or Spirit of Justice's far more "game-like" story design (more on that here), AA is a franchise which has developed a bit of an identity crisis, especially in correlation to the popularity of a certain franchise it directly inspired, and this can be felt in every aspect of them. They're games which seem confused as to what they even want the franchise to be...and I have to blame Sucession for that.

    Let's go with a theoretical here; What if AA4 ended on an, admittedly somewhat more mundane, final case where Apollo and Trucy gradually uncovered the truth behind Phoenix's final case, climaxing in you proving Kristoph's true goals, with no jurists and a proper satisfying resolution to the Gramarye that tied into the full narrative? You wouldn't even need to change much in the way of story facts, the story of Trope Gramarye given in the game is just fine, it just needed to feel more implemented into the plot.

    I think, in the long term, this would've been far, far healthier for the franchise in practically every way. Sure, some people would be split on the new cast and setting, but I'm pretty sure that, if they were given the room to actually the room to develop, most would get over that far more easily, and the actual merits of the character writing would be easier to grasp as a result. Removing the Jurists would allow have allow for an actual satisfying climax to the game as well that felt actually in line with the rest of the franchise, and there wouldn't have been a frustrating half-conclusion where the "protagonist" is barley even a character.

    Latter, is the most common defence people give the game.

    "It just needed a sequel."

    This is the argument I see over and over regarding AA4. That the problem isn't the game itself, but somehow, magically, that Dual Destinies "ignoring" the game was somehow the big problem, and had its story been continued it would've been perfect.

    The problem is that this argument isn't an argument, it's practically in many ways an admission of defeat. Rather than admitting to AA4's faults, the defence is given that the real problem was somehow a lack of follow-up on ideas, characters and concepts which would be incredibly difficult to follow up on. Like, if you think AA4's "problem" was that it needed another game to develop, that's you admitting the game is flawed, because that game does not exist. The entire defence is built on, in a sense, proving the opposition is completely right.

    I don't like Dual Destinies, but I hardly think it's fair to complain about the game "not continuing" AA4, because the way the game ended left it near impossible to continue. Like, what were they left with? A main cast who was barely developed? A "new court system" that would undermine the entire series if implemented? A plot thread essentially impossible to resolve in a satisfying manner? There was practically nothing to easily work with, which is why Apollo is such an infamously schizophrenic character in subsequent games, because there is genuinely nothing to cohesively work with.

    Simply put, if Takumi's problem was that he didn't get to make "that game", he should've made that game. Not limply tease people to it through a game with no actual direction. In acknowledging that, all of it essentially just argues one thing, that, as a work of fiction, AA4 really was just a poorly conceived, poor developed mess.

    ~~

    Aaaaand that's all my thoughts about Succession dumped onto page. This I admit was quite disorganized, but I guess that comes with me going through all my significant thoughts on the case.

    I would however be genuinely interested in an actual defence of the case, and AA4 as a whole. Not one which attempts to argue for a non-existent continuation or that I "don't see the subtle character arc of Klavier" (which is a whole other kettle of fish), but an actual, constructed argument about the narrative merits of the scenario. That sort would be interesting and cool!

    Until then, though

    Live Happily

    submitted by /u/RainSpectreX
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    I tried combining Omen 2017 and Pursuit 2015 from DGS2 and DGS1 respectively since I haven't seen anyone did it yet. What do you guys think?

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 08:04 AM PST

    Plot hole in 3-5?

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 10:32 PM PST

    SPOILERS for Trials and Tribulations Case 5.

    >! So when Maya channeled Dahlia, didnt Dahlia noticed she had Black hair instead of Brown hair? Surely she shouldve noticed she had the hair of her sister instead of her cousin's. !<

    submitted by /u/dileloco15
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    Mr. Edgeworth got a cold.

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 02:59 PM PST

    Phoenix Wright & Girono Giovanna Duo

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 05:35 AM PST

    What Is Your Ideal Episode Format?

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 07:40 PM PST

    If you were to imagine the perfect episode format for a game, what would it be? How long would it take to beat? How many witnesses, pieces of evidence, investigations and trials should there be? Do you prefer it to be connected to an overall story or just be its own little story? How often should the gimmicks be used and how complicated should the story be? You can go into little or major detail describing your ideal/perfect episode format.

    submitted by /u/KaleBennett
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    The thing I love about Guilty verdicts.

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 09:27 AM PST

    I love how brief and eerie they are. Once you get that last penalty,and Judge slams his gavel — you quickly understand,that there is nothing you can do now. And when His Honour hands out the verdict,you see your client at the stand,Judge slams his gavel again,court doors close...All of this happens in mere seconds,with no ceremonies,just to throw you back to the title screen for you to swallow that you've basically sent an innocent on the death row,with the only option is to try again.

    submitted by /u/paulvanzieks
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    Yes!

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 11:59 PM PST

    Which Game In The Series Would You Be The Most Fine With Getting A Rewrite?

    Posted: 13 Jan 2021 04:19 PM PST

    All other games stay the same, but this one game and all that it has set up gets changed. Which game would you be most fine with that happening and do you think it would be good for the series (Fix hated cases, fix plotholes, act on missed potential) or bad for the series (Less buildup to future events, masterpiece cases being erased, new potential messups in the continuity)?

    submitted by /u/KaleBennett
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