This is a couple days late but it feels wrong not giving this at least something despite my internal love for it, so here's a "brief" gathering of what thoughts I have. (it was not brief, oop!)

Unfortunately, I really struggle to focus on VNs for long periods, and with these games being pretty lengthy with huge chunks of reading, the duology ended up taking me around 15 months to finish... Which as you can imagine means that thanks to my awful memory, I really don't remember all that many specifics, and therefore only the positives are left.

As such, I've simply forgotten about any gripes I took with either game, any weak or flawed case has been condensed so much that I can't recall anything negative to say, and what I'm left with is a heavily biased adoration for these games based on what I do remember: The characters.
(... and the music)

The cast of the Great Ace Attorney Chronicles is nothing short of delightful. One of the better parts of playing this in chunks with such long breaks was that each time a character came back on screen I was beaming with joy. Those with their own themes would be especially welcome, making every time I picked the game back up feel special, like reuniting with an old friend.

I can say undoubtedly that some of the witnesses in the series bothered me, be it for their designs or disgusting animations, but everyone I remember strongly, I remember fondly, and that's pretty awesome. Susato is my precious bean, of whom I will hear no criticism whatsoever. Ryunosuke is an excellent protagonist - I haven't played any of the older Ace games but I'd be surprised if old fans thought he didn't fit the bill nicely, am I wrong? - Herlock Sholmes was a hugely pleasant surprise, Iris, Gina, Gregsy, TOBY! I love them all honestly. And of course, pray forgive the discourtesy of leaving Barok Van Zieks until last, a prosecutor so good that I'm genuinely a little worried the ones from earlier in the franchise won't live up to his impeccable demeanor.

Aside from the characters, the music in these games slaps, hard. Every song is a banger and I must've spent at least 90% of my playtime bopping or humming along while I read. I also got to enjoy the music for a lot longer on account of me getting distracted and having the game serenade me while I do shit on my other screen, making this game one of few that truly benefitted from me being really bad at playing it

As for the story, there are huge chunks of my memory missing but from what's covered in 2 and what 2 recounts of 1, I really like what they did. The whole foreign student practicing law in Britain (my homeland 😌) angle fit perfectly into the overarching plot, as well as making for some really interesting relationships and scenarios between the characters, even before establishing any personal history that may have played a role.
Hell even the journey itself plays a role! When I started I had basically no idea how Ace games worked, so there were multiple times where I felt like Leo DiCaprio in that meme, snapping my fingers at the screen thinking "No way! The thing!"-- It was just really fun to play, idk how else to say it. Nothing stuck out to me as feeling forced or shoehorned in, (but ofc take that with a grain of salt bc I played it over 15 months so) it just worked, and I think that's neat :)

Overall, while my memory is foggy as hell, I am absolutely certain that I adored these games. Resolve served as both a step up from the first game as well as building on it's story and cases for what I found to be a satisfying conclusion. Maybe the very very end wrapped up a little quickly but idk, the actual ending of the game was so long already idk that I would've even wanted to spend longer getting the specifics of the outcome, so it's forgiven.

If you like the Ace Attorney games then you'd be a fool not to try these two. I believe the cases may be longer but there is so much to each of them between the trials and investigation that I don't think that's a bad thing at all. Capcom have been killing it in recent years and I'm really hoping they plan to port/remaster 4-6 of Phoenix's games as well, at least before I beat 1-3.

That's about all I have to say, leave it to me to write walls of text just to say "character and music good :)" but y'all know what you're in for by now :p

Much appreciated to anyone still reading these, regular amount of thanks to those who just like the review or gloss over a few sentences 🙏 Next review is looking likely to be Lost in Play, possibly Like a Dragon: Ishin! after, as I need to beat both before Resident Evil 4 drops. Stay tuned.
Have a great weekend!

This game, bar none, is the best Ace Attorney experience I’ve ever had, one of the greatest gaming experiences I’ve ever had, to the point I doubt these two incredible games will ever be topped, in their series or otherwise. They didn’t drop the ball a SINGLE time in this entire collection, to the point where “good” doesn’t aptly describe a single one. Every single case is on par with some of the series’ greatest, a great cast of interesting characters, a great overarching story, great investigations, great trials, it has EVERYTHING. Truly deserving to be named "The Great Ace Attorney".

For followers of the Ace Attorney franchise, Dai Gyakuten Saiban appeared to be an unattainable mirage. Released in 2015 and never localised, the title was a distant beacon that players were desperately trying to experience. The situation had already happened in the past with Gyakuten Kenji 2 (2011). The game was a follow-up to the first spin-off which already featured Miles Edgeworth. In that case, the combination of the disappointing sales of the first opus and the impossibility of splitting the localisation team on both Gyakuten Kenji 2 and the upcoming Dual Destinies (2013) prevented the game from being released outside Japan. The Ace Attorney community being tenacious, they set about an unofficial translation, the quality of which must be underlined for amateur work. Thus, it was the Scarlet Study team that took on the unofficial translation of Dai Gyakuten Saiban, shortly after a playthrough with English subtitles was released online.

A titanic task if ever there was one. This fan localisation also shines through in its tendency towards professionalism and was well on its way to completing the entirety of the two games released, before leaks took the public by surprise, announcing the official localisation in a single collection, The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles. The following months would confirm these rumours and the localisation was carried out by Janet Hsu, whose challenge here is particular. Unlike the main series, for which the localisation embraced an Americanisation of all Japanese place names and cultural markers, The Great Ace Attorney only makes sense by respecting the spirit and letter of the terms used.

Indeed, the title places us in the shoes of Ryunosuke Naruhodo, ancestor of Phoenix Wright, and young Japanese student. His adventures will lead him to become a defence lawyer and to cross the globe to settle in the Victorian United Kingdom, with Herlock Sholmes. He is accompanied by Susato Mikotoba, a legal assistant caught in the conservative fire of legal institutions. This historical context is the cornerstone of the title's social and political discourse, as well as the narrative economy, so that it is impossible to transpose Meiji era Japan to a fantasy creation that copies the United States. This historical stability thus brings an element of complexity, since it is a question of translating dialogues, but also a continuum of reactions – drawn from reality – that underlie behaviours at the turn of the 20th century.

It would be difficult for me to set out here all the issues related to translation, as they are so rich and plural. Nevertheless, I would like to insist briefly on the ability to transcribe strangeness in the official localisation, something that is lacking in the fan localisation. Indeed, for a Western audience – especially if they are familiar with the mysteries of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction – the Victorian spirit should not be too disorienting. For our protagonists, the situation is quite different, and conveying this impression of surprise and novelty is a difficult operation, when all the text is in English. Susato and Ryunosuke use idioms and comparisons with Japanese elements to express their perplexity and it is the translation of such elements that is the great challenge of the localisation. For more on this, I can only recommend the extremely interesting blog posts by Janet Hsu.

But what about the game itself? I'm not ashamed to say that the title has quickly become one of my favourite games, crowning an exceptional franchise in my opinion. The Ace Attorney formula is generally well known: a succession of four or five cases, in which our protagonist alternates between investigation and trial sequences. In the former, the gameplay is close to traditional point&clicks, in a tradition that may remind us of The Portopia Serial Murder Case (1983) and all the games that follow. The trial phases are visual novels with cross-examination sequences where the aim is essentially to dismantle the testimonies by pointing out the contradictions they have with the case file. If the formula has always worked well, it must be said that certain recurrent criticisms point to the length of the investigation phases and a certain artificiality in the rhythm of the cases. I agree with them overall and was very surprised to see that The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles sweeps away these problems with exceptional ease.

For the first five cases, the pace is impeccably supported by a single investigative sequence, followed by the trial court portion. Even when the traditional formula returns for the last four cases, the pace is judiciously thought out, thanks to an elegant tangle of narrative threads. Indeed, in the vein of Gyakuten Kenji, The Great Ace Attorney has several overarching mysteries, within which are nestled smaller mysteries, solved with each case. This matriochka structure keeps the dramatic tension high and highlights the corruption that permeates the British Empire and its Japanese counterpart.

The Great Ace Attorney is a far cry from Apollo Justice and does not omit the political aspect in its criticism of the judicial system. This was very bland in the main series with a dark age of the law that had no formal consequences, so it was more of a background that awkwardly justified Phoenix Wright's suspension. Here, the corruption is felt in the gameplay from the third case onwards, and it persists throughout the rest of the game, through subtly revolting elements that challenge Ryunosuke and Susato's certainties.

In general, all the elements, beyond their comic and narrative strengths, aim to highlight structural problems in British and Japanese society, indirectly shedding light on very contemporary concerns. The plunge into Victorian London for Japanese students is highlighted by the main cast, but also the figure of Natsume Souseki, whose restlessness helps to convey the difficulty of adapting to a decidedly foreign society. The insistence on taxes points to the horror of the British social classes, in contrast to the aristocratic image that some characters give off – van Zieks, but more generally the entire judicial institution. Whether in the third, fifth, seventh or eighth case, The Great Ace Attorney is careful to highlight the problem of science at a time when a methodical revolution is taking place. The birth of forensic science and forensics allows the title to discuss what science is and what it can do.

For the game takes up the character of Sherlock Holmes – here localised as Herlock Sholmes, as Maurice Leblanc did in his time – but all the themes that are addressed in the Doylian stories. Shu Takumi shows a remarkable love for the Holmesian canon, reinterpreting and blending iconic investigations into his own universe, as well as classic detective fiction, as references abound and there are more or less sustained tributes to Ellery Queen and John Dickson Carr, Edogawa Rampo and Gilbert Keith Chesterton. I would have loved to go into more detail about these references, but that would require a full explanation of the cases, and I prefer to leave the pleasure of discovery to the reader. In any case, lovers of classic detective stories can only be seduced by Shu Takumi's approach, which offers an exceptional recital on well-known themes and tropes.

Finally, a word on the technical achievement. If Ace Attorney has always been known for its exceptional sprite work and impeccable staging – thanks to a remarkable sound effects job – The Great Ace Attorney raises the discipline to the best of the franchise. The animations are exceptionally beautiful and the sense of timing is always perfect. While the first five cases use some animated scenes in its cinematics, the last five are content to use the game's engine, but there is no room for reproach, as the composition is so well mastered.

In this respect, the musical work is undoubtedly the best in the series, with a subtle play in the instrumentation, which marries Western orchestras with Japanese influences and instruments – in a way that also recalls the work of Yu-Peng Chen on Genshin Impact. On a personal note, The Great Ace Attorney has my favourite soundtrack of the entire franchise, for the enveloping nature of the tracks and its solemnity, which I particularly enjoy. The dubbing is not to be outdone, as it suits the characters perfectly; in particular, the fact that the actors for the Japanese students are British dubbers of Japanese descent – thus Mark Ota, Rina Takasaki and Ben Deery – contributes to the overall atmosphere.

I could go on and on about the characters being some of the funniest in the franchise and the sincerity that emanates from the game, but what can I say except that they contribute to one of my most cherished video game experiences? I've always had a foreign fascination with the late 19th century and pre-war era. To see characters evolve in this setting, in their fortunes and misfortunes, has been a source of exceptional joy.

No doubt the fact that I shared this experience with my parents – in that respect, how perfect is the Ace Attorney franchise for introducing newcomers to video games! – makes it special. But few games, in any case, are able to take me from tears to laughter in a matter of moments. It's a title that makes no concessions on its themes, on its political discourse, and that remains exceptionally sweet, with a high level of humanity. John Watson, in the Holmesian canon, observed of Mary Marson: "A wondrous subtle thing is love, for here were we two, who had never seen each other before that day, between whom no word or even look of affection had ever passed, and yet now in an hour of trouble our hands instinctively sought for each other... So we stood hand in hand like two children, and there was peace in our hearts for all the dark things that surrounded us." The atmosphere in this quote is the feeling that The Great Ace Attorney evokes in my heart, when I think of it again. A masterwork, without any doubt.

Having been a fan of this series for nearly six years by now, The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles was something I had been highly anticipating. They are the only games in the series to have no plot connection to the main continuity, essentially being a spinoff. This means that Shu Takumi's team could start from scratch and develop an entirely new story and cast without having to be held back by the worries of having to make the plot align with the main series. This is something that has noticably become a struggle for Yamazaki’s team (responsible for the Investigations games, Dual Destinies and Spirit of Justice) in recent years, who have been granted the freedom to write the stories as they like but having to retcon a lot of the timeline due to the messy planning of Apollo Justice and making the series become incredibly convoluted and unfocused. Because of these decisions, I had become worried about the future of this franchise and whether or not it could continue on.

And this is why I found The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles to be a great idea. There was a chance to start over and rebuild itself. And the games excelled at that. Despite maintaining the typical base Ace Attorney gameplay mechanics and tropes that we have grown accustomed to, these games are innovative and consistently defy the structure we have learnt to expect from the series. For a multitude of reasons, I can call these games the most ambitious the series has ever gotten, being truly refreshing in every way.

The quality of TGAAC’s production is an unbelievable high for the series. This is the best the series has ever looked. The transitions from sprite to sprite have become a lot less choppy and feel more fluid, likely due in part to the games no longer being limited by 3DS hardware. The sprites play such a big role in characterization but unlike previous installments in the series, they have become essential to conveying character progression as well. Seeing the protagonist Ryunosuke go from darting his eyes all over the place and weakly slamming the table to keeping a focused gaze and slamming down with full confidence is such excellent usage of animation and sound design that helps portray his character arc so well. Besides the lack of anime cutscenes, you would have never guessed that TGAA2 had a lower budget especially with its occasional gorgeous fully animated sequences. The animation is implemented perfectly into the game’s brand new Dance of Deduction segments, which makes full use of dynamic camera movements and lighting to make the experience all the more exciting.

The Dance of Deduction is one of the newly added gameplay elements into The Great Ace Attorney and a highly memorable one at that. The mechanic revolves around the character Herlock Sholmes analyzing the scene at hand and making numerous observations. These observations are slightly off and end up leading to incorrect conclusions. It becomes your job to correct these observations in order to get the right conclusions from the scene at hand. This gimmick is wonderful and makes investigation sequences so much more fun, seeing two grown men prance around the room while trying to understand their situation at hand. While it is highly enjoyable, I find that it can be tedious having Sholmes run through his full deductions only to go through them again but this time with you having to correct his mistakes. While this approach works for the first time you do the Dance of Deduction due to showing just how crazy Sholmes is, it does end up being needlessly long for every DoD after that. I would have preferred if Sholmes only ran through his deduction once with you having to step in whenever he makes a mistake (which does end up being done at some point) or an option to skip through dialogue when you are running through the deduction a second time to prevent these sequences from being overly long. The pacing is my only issue though, otherwise I love these sequences.

There are two newly added trial elements. For one, you can now cross-examine multiple witnesses instead of just one, an element previously experimented with in the Phoenix Wright vs Professor Layton crossover. Along with just getting multiple accounts on the matter, you are able to switch gears and pursue a witness reacting to another witness’ statement. I would have liked this mechanic better if the witness’ reactions to each other were not blatant and instead you had to pay attention to how other witnesses are behaving in reaction to somebody’s statement. While this certainly would have taken a whole lot of development time, I think this way you could make it a more compelling mechanic that makes you have to pay attention rather than just have the witness’ reactions spelt out to you.

These games also include the addition of the jury, a surprisingly absent element in most of the series besides Apollo Justice. You get the chance to engage with the jury once or twice a trial in a summation examination. Essentially, they have all agreed on a guilty verdict at some point in the trial for one reason or another and you have to hear their arguments out and get at least three jurors to change their mind on the verdict. This is done by pitting jurors’ arguments against each other. I really, really like this new mechanic. Not only is it incredibly funny to observe some of the jurors’ ridiculous arguments for deciding on the guilty verdict, but I found that I had to think harder than with the average witness testimonies. Instead of finding a piece of evidence that contradicts a statement like with the witness testimonies, you have to find two statements that contradict one another. This makes you view the jurors’ arguments as a whole, cohesive package rather than each statement being separate from each other. While the actual contradictions ended up being simple to point out once you pressed all statements, I still found this mechanic a very compelling shift from the average witness testimony I had grown so used to in these games. Also, Ryunosuke pacing around the courtroom is beautiful.

What people praise most about these games, though, are its story and characters. I won’t spoil anything but I will say that the payoff at the end of the duology is incredibly satisfying and that the second game especially takes a lot of risks in character writing, a lot of which I ended up liking. These games are quite cohesive with nearly every case connecting to a bigger overarching plot, which had only been done before with the Investigations games respectively (where only one of which succeeded). Despite this duology succeeding at this structure overall, I do think that there are a considerable amount of continuity errors between the first and second game that do damage my investment in some of the characters a bit. Each Ace Attorney game usually has a rule of not spoiling any of the other games in the series for the sake of newcomers and I thought it was a bit ridiculous to implement some of this rule into TGAA2, especially considering that it is a direct sequel. I find this decision even more strange when one of TGAA1’s biggest plot points had been revealed in the sequel but they just choose to remain silent about everything else. Two extremely important characters in the first game are never mentioned again in the second game despite both of them contributing to a big reveal. In some cases, there are aspects of main characters whether it be a big detail in their backstory or setup for a new character arc which never end up being followed through with properly in the sequel. While I do really enjoy a lot of this story and think it really delivered on some fronts, it feels rather incomplete to me in these aspects. I heard that these games were meant to be a full trilogy rather than a duology which may be why some elements were forgotten about but I understand that the team were on a tighter budget with the second game.

I personally don’t want Ace Attorney to end just yet due to it being such an addictive formula that could still have so much great being done with it. However, if the series were to end for good then I think this was a great stopping point. Despite my complaints, it really feels like a culmination of everything great about the series, a celebration of all its silly gags and tropes while also holding true to its ethos of fighting for the truth no matter what. It is absolutely brilliant production-wise while also defying a lot of what we have come to expect of this series story and character-wise. I could not recommend this duology enough due to how well-rounded it is, I really think that anybody who enjoys video games could derive some enjoyment out of this.

"Son, we live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lieutenant Weinberg? I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Santiago, and you curse the Marines. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know -- that Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives; and my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives.

You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall -- you need me on that wall."

- Colonel Nathan R. Jessup, A Few Good Men (1992)

The allure of any good mystery is the twist and turns of the deductive process. Many people like an easy answer, but what good piece of mystery fiction would trade the bombast and spectacle for a quick solution? This is something The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles understands. Shu Takumi has fully embraced the theatrics of Arthur Conan Doyle's Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. In doing so, he has taken the Ace Attorney franchise to heights that could previously only be dreamed of. Through its period piece setting, wonderfully developed characters and elegant treatment of its criminal drama, The Great Ace Attorney duology firmly sits above its predecessors and sets a new standard for the series.

Taking place primarily in Victorian-era London, the devil is truly in the details for Great Ace Attorney. Beautiful background set pieces strongly accentuate Kazuya Nuri's character designs, which are in top form in this game. They incorporate the sleek design of the game's previous protagonists with tasteful period-appropriate attire, which allows for that crucial sense of normalcy when juxtaposed against the wilder character designs we have come to associate with Ace Attorney. Notably, you can see the incorporation of steampunk elements to highlight the fantastical nature of science at the turn of the 20th century. The curiosity of the time period underlines many of the characters' chief motivations. This embrace of the "weird" and the "strange" makes Great Ace Attorney a absolute joy to play.

Thematically, the game plays on the very same concepts that were central to the Sherlock Holmes canon- the political intrigue of the time period and the onset of scientific development that promised to shake the very foundations of our understanding of the world. The game tackles changing social and economic mores in a manner that the previous Ace Attorneys could not, owing to the central focus on corruption within the British judiciary. Throughout the duology, the game places a retributive concept of justice under the microscope, allowing the player to examine the ways in which we think about crime, its sources and how we must combat it. Its criticism of the legal system's tendency towards bias and personal convictions (shown through the summation examination sequences) is especially welcome- as it does not dismiss the need for jury trials out of hand, but offers a measured criticism that highlights boths its strength and weaknesses. It similarly refuses to avert its eyes from the structural implications that class, gender and race have within society.

The Herlock Sholmes of Ace Attorney is an eccentric loose cannon, a gamesman who reflects Shu Takumi's understanding of Doyle and detective fiction in general. Sholmes "Dances of Deduction" serve to highlight the theatrical nature in which Doyle approached solving mysteries. In understanding the importance of spectacle, the game adroitly turns mundane observations into thrilling endeavours. As spotlights shine on the characters, as if they are in a stage play, we understand that Sholmes relishes just logic and deduction, but the art of showmanship as well. Perfectly scored by Yasumasa Kitagawa and Hiromitsu Maeba, the games understanding of what makes detective stories "tick" serves to elevate the game itself in the very same way. Thanks to this emphasis on the detective throughline, the cases themselves are fantastic in much the same way, with some of the greatest red herrings I have ever seen in the series, and some ridiculously clever uses of evidence that go much further than simply being obscure stretches of logic.

Chronicles defies precedent in many ways, but what most strongly comes to mind is in how Takumi treats continuity between the two games. As a long time fan of the series, I have always cherished the Ace Attorney games as individual experiences. Every game has offered tightly constructed crime dramas with satisfying payoffs. The games' episodic format draws liberally from the "mystery of the week" of detective fiction. While this lends to well-paced and impactful storytelling, it has overall hurt the series' capacity for developing its characters in a way that shows meaningful growth. Phoenix Wright is clearly developed as a lawyer throughout the original trilogy of games, but by Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Trials and Tribulations (2004) it was apparent that Phoenix's personal genesis was concerned with his confidence and resolve as a lawyer and little else. In allowing for the mystery of the week, the games repeatedly ignore things that would entail more long-term character development: his relationships, the impact of specific trials, and most notably the passage of time.

The latter trilogy of Ace Attorney games- running from Apollo Justice through Spirit of Justice multiplies this problem exponentially. By this point in the series lifespan, the target audience wanted Phoenix Wright as the protagonist; so promising series newcomers Apollo Justice and Athena Cykes were given much less development as a result. Apollo's backstory was retconned multiple times to suit the current game's plotline, and Athena was all but completely sidelined with absolutely zero character growth after her most important story arc. This makes the games feel much stronger as individual entries than part of an overall continuity. By contrast; The Great Ace Attorney instead takes the opposite approach. Each case introduces important elements that pay off in the duology's climax; and Ryunosuke, Susato, Sholmes and Iris' development as characters during each case isn't only maintained through each case, but each game as well. Fans of the series will note this was something sorely lacking for Apollo Justice, for whom the most formative moments of his backstory were summarily ignored with each new sequel.

Naruhodo progressively unravels the web of conspiracy underpinning the British judicial system, each revelation shocking but also deeply personal to both himself and the people surrounding him. These revelations, however, are not kept in a vacuum to only inform the current case. They continually affect the characters and their perceptions through each subsequent case, building upon one another in a rich tapestry of interpersonal dynamics between the cast. Outside of the defense and prosecution, reccuring characters in the Ace Attorney series are normally minimally developed- serving singular purposes with perhaps the chance of a central focus in one or two cases. Great Ace Attorney bucks this trend by giving these characters skin in the game with regards to the overarching plot. Where they would traditionally return to simply give a clue or testimony for another case, they instead have significant ties with the long-term narrative and are given satisfying character arcs and resolutions. Every major character in this game proves to be consistently amazing.

This also creates a dynamic to the two Great Ace Attorney games that was never present for the first six titles. Whereas one can play any of the original Ace Attorney games in any order, Adventures and Resolve are meant to be played in order. They present as a "ten-case game" or a "70-hour Ace Attorney" where a understanding of the first game's events is crucial to the second's. This approach offers the coherency the series really needed after Apollo Justice While you technically do not need knowledge of the first game to play through the second, it is impossible to fully appreciate it. While this may be imposing to many, it is worth the heavy time investment. The payoffs are huge, worthy of the various pedigrees upon which this game built its foundation.

What did I just play? What the HELL did I just play? There's no way this game is real. How can a game even be this good? Was it all a dream? Surely, it must've been, but I've unfortunately awoken from that exciting slumber. I'm at a genuine loss for words at the time I'm typing this, where do I begin?

I guess I could start by thanking the man behind it all. Shu Takumi, you absolute blessing of a human, you've done it again. You have thoroughly made me lose my mind three times now. As if the original trilogy and AAI2 weren't enough, you even had to go above and beyond and make something truly special. This package of The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures and The Great Ace Attorney: Resolve is the single best piece of Ace Attorney content money can buy.

Despite this package being two separate games, do not be deceived: this is one single Ace Attorney experience. This is two halves of one greater whole, and that whole is the best thing to come out of this series. I'm very appreciative at how tightly these two titles are connected unlike every single other title in the series. The second game will actively spoil events of the first game, something even the original trilogy is exempt from doing. This isn't even mentioning the overarching plot and how the first game ends on a cliffhanger. Again, this is ONE experience spanning across two games.

The fact that it's a duology allows it to break normal conventions in many other ways. Never before has a character been introduced in one game and killed in another. Never before has a villain been introduced in one game and exposed in another. Never before has a character had an arc that's spanned multiple games. We've seen many well done arcs before, but I think it's fair to say that those are closer to several mini-arcs rather than one big arc. Phoenix Wright, for example, goes through various stages of his development thanks to the differing themes of the games in the trilogy. Here, however, characters are able to be fleshed out in ways I could only ever dream of. Ryunosuke gets one big arc that spans across the two titles as opposed to several smaller arcs. This creates one grand, definitive experience, which is the greatest Ace Attorney story ever told.

One look at this game and you'll see just how lively everything is compared to other AA games. Characters will now turn to face each other to talk, no more constant fading in and out. I cannot stress how much I love this, it makes the conversations between characters feel much more engaging and realistic. A bunch of random characters now have their own voice clips for "Hold it!" which gives much more life to these characters. This goes for the jury, as well, who will state through voice clips if they find the defendant guilty or not guilty. These changes and more help create a much more interesting world, giving new life to something as simple as character interactions.

Spoilers for both games from here on out.

As the subtitle of the second game implies, these games, in the end, are about resolve, which Ryunosuke Naruhodo exemplifies astoundingly well. We first meet our protagonist as a nervous wreck in the defendant lobby, accused of murdering a teacher at his university. His best friend, Kazuma Asogi, stands beside him at the defense bench to help him defend himself. Through this first trying experience, Ryunosuke learns the foundation of what it means to be a lawyer, and that is the unwavering faith in your client.

Kazuma's influence on Ryunosuke is very prominent, which is quickly seen down the line once Kazuma is murdered in a steamship travelling to Great Britain. Ryunosuke just so happened to be a stowaway inside Kazuma's wardrobe and is the main suspect of the case. However, once the dust settles, it leaves him in a peculiar situation. Kazuma was on his way to complete a study tour as a lawyer, along with his judicial assistant Susato Mikotoba. Now that Kazuma is gone, the study tour couldn't possibly commence.

However, a very great detective, Herlock Sholmes, points out that the only requirements for the study tour were to have one lawyer and one judicial assistant present. Susato already filled the role of judicial assistant. This leaves Ryunosuke deciding to become a lawyer in Kazuma's stead, despite barely having any desire to do so beforehand. He does this for his country's own legal future, but mainly for Kazuma's sake. Kazuma so desperately wanted to travel to Great Britain on this study tour, so Ryunosyke aims to complete that study tour himself and fulfill Kazuma's wish.

This all gets flipped completely on its head once it's revealed that Kazuma is actually alive. On the steamship, Kazuma only was knocked unconscious and suffered from memory loss. A voice inside him to make his way to Great Britain, and so, he did. But, now that he's made it, where does that leave Ryunosuke, who only went through with the study tour because Kazuma was supposedly dead? When up against all odds, he has to ask himself what he wants, as a lawyer, and as a person, and that thing that he desires the most is the truth. He's become an amazing lawyer and decides for himself that the truth is what is most important. So, he is able to conquer the blaze ahead with all of his experience as an ace attorney.

Ryunosuke is a very simple yet effective character. He only does what he does at first because of the will of his dead friend, but once that's flipped on its head, he decides for himself what he wants. On the other hand, Kazuma Asogi has a bit more of a muddled history, but he still remains one of the series' best. Who at first seems like a kindhearted defense attorney who simply seeks the truth actually turns out to be a broken man who does all the wrong things to try and fix himself.

Kazuma's father, Genshin Asogi, was a well known serial killer in Great Britain, known as "The Professor." After he killed five well known members of the aristocracy, he was caught and sentenced to death. Kazuma learned of the news and knew his father couldn't possibly have been capable of such things, so when one Seishiro Jigoku offered him a trip to Britain, he took it. He saw this as an opportunity to learn the truth of his father's death first and a way to study British law second.

After the incident on the steamship, he was lost for about a year before eventually making his way to Britain with no memory of who he was or what he was doing. He was assigned to work as a prosecutor under Barok Van Zieks' command after being recognized by Mael Stronghart, the chief justice. Once that present trial concluded, he saw the face of his father on a wax figure and suddenly remembered everything. Although he left right away for unknown reasons, he soon returned after his prosecuting mentor himself was accused of murdering a well known Scotland Yard detective, Tobias Gregson.

Once a defense lawyer who seeked the truth, Kazuma has turned into a loathing prosecutor who is only after revenge. Barok Van Zieks was the prosecutor for the trial of Genshin Asogi, and likewise, the man who sentenced him to death. This is now the only thing driving Kazuma forward: his need to give Van Zieks a taste of his own medicine. At almost every turn during the trial, Kazuma finds a way to pin the blame on Van Zieks again, no matter how far Ryunosuke is able to get.

It isn't until much later during the trial that Kazuma realizes how important the truth is. He had become so corrupt with this feeling of revenge that it was his entire motivation for even being a prosecutor, even going as far as feeling true murderous intent towards someone. When all is said and done, he decides to stay a prosecutor to get rid of truly malicious people. That evil feeling of wanting to kill someone haunted Kazuma, and the only thing he wants now is for those inner demons to go away, and he believes that getting rid of other people's inner demons as a prosecutor in court will help with that.

Ryunosuke Naruhodo and Kazuma Asogi go hand and hand; one is not complete without the other. When we first meet the pair, Ryunosuke holds Kazuma on a very high pedestal. It's somewhat hard to believe that they're good friends when he constantly idolizes him at times. Once they confront each other in court, he realizes that his friend is just as human as everyone else is. Kazuma has his own problems he has to face, and it's with the realization that he's only human that Ryunosuke is able to find his resolve. He tells Kazuma blatantly in court that he's not doing what he's doing for his sake, but rather, for the sake of the truth being revealed. Kazuma himself also comes to the realization that he has these inner demons, which is what guides his path in the end. One man who learns the true value of pursuing the truth, and one man who was led astray from what it means to be a lawyer: the story of these two best friends is unlike anything we've seen before and it serves as a strong foundation for what else this story contains.

Similarly, Barok Van Zieks is unlike any main rival we've seen up to this point. His design is pure elegance, invoking a "god of death" persona. Very fitting, I must say, seeing how he's proclaimed as "The Reaper of the Bailey." This elegant reaper has, appropriately, very elegant animations. His slow, graceful point, with his back turned to the camera, the way he keeps his composure even when losing, and, of course, the way he strikes fear into the face of his opponent by slamming the desk with his foot. This isn't even mentioning his wine animations, his intimidating hand extension, and his unique "Objection!" and "Hold it!" bubbles. He's the best character in the series in terms of presentation by a long shot. So much care was put into simply how this character looks, sounds, and feels, it's astounding how effective his design is even at just a glance.

Part of this effective design is the curse that follows him. "The curse of The Reaper" is a well-known term among the London folk, and it stems from Barok himself. Following his courtroom debut were many cases where he failed to obtain a guilty verdict. Although not getting their justice behind bars, a supposed curse is then placed upon that innocent defendant. This curse is a guaranteed demise at some point within the next month. Nobody who is prosecuted by The Reaper is safe, even if they obtain a not guilty verdict.

Of course, he's not actually The Reaper, and takes no part in the demise of countless people. The Reaper is actually an organization conceived due to how Barok's second trial ever ended in a not guilty verdict after the defendant colluded with the jurors. This was unknown to the public, and everyone thought that Barok was guilty of these murders himself. This supposed "curse of The Reaper'' actually decreased crime in the capitol by a very significant amount. Barok realized this and decided to do nothing about it but take the guilt. For ten years he had to put up with being accused of countless murders for the sake of the city. This guilt acted as a giant weight upon his back, and only gets lifted when he finds out the truth about his first ever trial he prosecuted...

Straying away from the "bad prosecutor learns that the truth is good" trope, Barok Van Zieks may seem scary, but he comes from a rough history of misunderstandings and falsified truths. His older brother, Klint Van Zieks, was a victim of Genshin Asogi's murderous rampage. Having his brother slain by a foreigner, he developed a deep hatred for all Japanese. This is very apparent from the moment he meets Ryunosuke in court. While remaining elegant and refined, he doesn't stray away from throwing insults and not waving his wine glass around as a form of intimidation.

Barok has always believed in finding the truth, but that belief is then thrown upon Ryunosuke. Through the course of several cases, including one where Ryunosuke accidentally obscures the truth, he finds his resolve in the truth, which catches Barok's attention. In his eyes, he saw a man truly determined to get to the truth of the matter, which caused him to start developing some respect for Ryunosuke. He was still unwilling to engage in conversation outside of court and the like because of what happened to his brother, but like Kazuma, this is flipped on its head completely.

It's revealed by Ryunosuke that Klint Van Zieks was the man who was actually behind the murders of the four members of the aristocracy, and Genshin Asogi was only responsible for Klint's death after he deduced that he was the killer. As a result, Genshin Asogi was simply delivering justice, and Barok condemned the man to death during his courtroom debut. This shakes Barok to his core, and causes him to rethink all of his actions up to that point. A man so hateful of betrayal discovers that he was betrayed by his own brother, whom he idolized dearly.

Barok's story is all centered around trust. His hate for the Nipponese stemmed from his belief that his friend Genshin had betrayed him. In reality, it was his brother who ended up betraying him by allowing himself to become corrupted. After his courtroom battles with Ryunosuke, he's able to learn once again what it means to trust someone. This puts him to the test once he's sitting in the dock and has to put his trust into a Nipponese to take his case. Even in the end, Kazuma and Barok trust each other enough to form a working relationship. They're both able to put the past behind them and look towards the future. Barok is a breath of fresh air for a prosecutor, and has one of the more compelling stories of any character in the series.

Herlock Sholmes is my favorite character in the entire series. From the moment he was introduced, hanging off the side of a desk, to his very last asspull in the final trial, Sholmes is the absolute funniest character while also boasting aspects that make him an equally interesting and compelling character compared to even the likes of the three mentioned above. His design reflects his witty intellect, and his animations are the most expressive of anyone. At a moment's notice, he might suddenly explode and fall backwards, or get ready to engage in a fistfight. The entire Dance of Deduction mechanic is centered around his wits, (he often gets the answers incorrect, but for good reason) stating his reasoning as he swiftly slides across the floor, dims the light with his fist, and snaps his fingers to shed it once again. Every frame of animation put into this lovable dork of a detective is absolutely mesmerizing.

Sholmes works around the clock as the great detective of London, solving cases where his wit and intellect are the only hope of finding the truth. After hearing about a government conspiracy involving four key individuals, two of which were dead, he decided to take on the case in secret. He learned from a friend of his that Kazuma Asogi, one of the four people involved, would be coming to Great Britain aboard a steamship. Sholmes took it upon himself to ensure that he didn't arrive at his destination. This ended up being rather convenient for him, as Kazuma had been knocked unconscious. Sholmes took the opportunity to claim he was dead and put his body somewhere safe.

Kazuma's supposed target was Scotland Yard's Tobias Gregson, whom Sholmes then attempted to form a close relationship with. Although the feelings weren't mutual, Sholmes would show up to Gregson just to simply check up on him. Gregson's life was still in danger, so although they hadn't become friends, Sholmes did his best to make sure no attempt on the inspector's life was made. Unfortunately, Sholmes' efforts were fruitless, and Gregson's life was taken when he went on a secret assignment. While he takes responsibility for letting Gregson slip from his sight, this motivates him to further seek out the truth.

He soon runs into his old partner, Yujin Mikotoba, and the two have a short little reunion. While Ryunosuke continues the trial of Gregson's murder, Sholmes and Mikotoba set off to the port of Dunkirk in pursuit of Judge Seishiro Mikotoba. They make their way into his cabin and stumble upon a mess worthy of a Dance of Deduction. This time, however, it's different. Sholmes states that it's time for "no more games" and then proceeds to get every aspect of the deduction correct.

This is my favorite moment in all of Ace Attorney. Sholmes stating "no more games" means that every other Dance of Deduction up to this point was just dumb fun to him. He purposely got all of the answers wrong and put Ryunosuke up to the task of correcting him. This was all part of his plan to strengthen his intellect. After all, he had intel that Kazuma was an assassin, so when he supposedly died, Sholmes took it upon himself to get Ryunosuke to take his place. He trained him in the art of deduction by teaching him not how to look, but how to observe. This is why this moment is so fantastic, because now, Sholmes can go all out with his old friend. Instead of correcting Sholmes, Mikotoba simply adds on to his deductions. The two go back and forth, continuing where the other left off in a seamless fashion. They're both contributing to the same conversation, taking turns stepping aside for the other to make their points, while still working together to find the truth. We don't get a lot of time with these two, but this single, beautiful Dance of Deduction says a thousand words about their friendship.

The two big bads of this game share an interesting common theme. Ashley Graydon and Mael Stronghart both started at the bottom. As time went on, they found ways to share their influence, and eventually rose to greater heights (Graydon gained wealth, Stronghart became the Lord Chief Justice). This further allowed them to each push their own agenda, but it came at a price. Graydon was able to accumulate much wealth thanks to his sharing of government secrets with Magnus McGilded, a man who used his immense wealth to manipulate those around him. His plan started to fall apart when his father wanted to make the next transaction after being left in the dark about the situation. McGilded then murdered Graydon's father right then and there. Infuriated, Graydon used the wealth he had gathered to hire many individuals to murder McGilded in return.

Mael Stronghart had always aimed to be the Lord Chief Justice, but had no feasible way of getting to that position. He soon figured out that Klint Van Zieks had been working to fight justice through means of murder, and blackmailed him into killing the current Lord Chief Justice. He did this because he aimed to rid London of all crime, including the scoundrels who hid in the dark. He invented The Reaper, a secret organisation who killed those prosecuted by Barok Van Zieks, which caused crime rates to drop exponentially.

These two are both prime examples of "you have become the very thing you swore to destroy." It's interesting to see just how far these two are willing to go to get what they want, even descending to a level as low as those they despise. While Graydon realizes what he did was wrong and was ashamed he fell victim to such evil, Stronghart thoroughly believed that what he did was morally right. The accusations against him drive him more and more insane, but nothing can be done because of his position of power. That is, until the queen herself takes that power away and turns Stronghart into a normal man one again. This causes Stronghart to snap and basically explode, until he finally realizes that fighting crime with more crime isn't how a legal system should operate. Stronghart is a more extreme version of Graydon, which I can appreciate, because the first game is mostly just setup for the second game; Graydon gives you an early taste of what's to come in the finale. These parallels and how their ideals clash with the protagonists make them two of the series' best villains.

(Can we also just appreciate how Graydon disguised himself with the name "Eggert Benedict"? This name choice cemented this game as the best in the series.)

This kind of comparison also exists for Gina Lestrade. Like Barok Van Zieks, she has trust issues. She grew up in the slums and lived as a pickpocket. However, she was finally swayed when Ryunosuke relentlessly assured her that he would believe in her. Soon enough, Gregson takes her under his wing as a detective in training. Their relationship is really cute; it's great seeing how Gina is genuinely excited to learn how to be a detective. Soon after we meet the duo, her faith and trust is put to the test yet again when Gregson is murdered. It's revealed that Gregson was part of The Reaper organization and was the tactician for the killings. When he gets accused of the actual murder, however, Gina steps in and begs Ryunosuke to disprove it. She puts her badge at risk because of her trust in her mentor, something she never would've even come close to doing when we first met her. Despite Gregson being a questionable fellow, Gina still holds up in high regard as her mentor, and even continues his tradition of winding up his pocket watch every day. Gina is a much less important character than the main cast, yet she still gets an intriguing arc that makes you genuinely care for her and how she'll turn out in the future.

Even outside of these key individuals, the entire cast is great. Susato Mikotoba is a cute and competent assistant who even gets her own chance at playing attorney. I love it when Ryunosuke insists she's a great assistant while she keeps undermining her own skill, the two have great chemistry. Iris Wilson is Sholmes' adopted daughter who writes about his adventures. She's on a constant search for her real father, but in the end, learns that her REAL father was the one who was always there for her: Herlock Sholmes. A harmless, cute little arc. Yujin Mikotoba is a great father and an even greater detective. His relationship with Sholmes is quite possibly the best thing to come out of the series despite how little we get to see it. These characters are all AWESOME, and the ones I didn't mention are just as good as well.

All this talk of the characters and story, and I haven't even talked about the great gameplay additions this title has to offer. The first new mechanic is the Summation Examination. During trials with a jury, if all of the jurists claim the defendant is guilty, you're allowed to ask them on what grounds their claim is based. Each juror offers one statement, and you can cycle through each of the six. You can press for more info like a normal testimony, but you don't present evidence. Instead, you find two statements that contradict each other and pit those jurors against each other.

This is a very natural way to expand the gameplay mechanics of the AA series. While still similar to a normal cross examination, it retains elements that make it stand out as its own thing. Finding a contradiction in two statements can lead to an interesting turnabout, much like finding a contradiction between testimony and evidence. It gets really interesting when members of the jury are experts in certain fields which can influence their opinion in one way or another, and you can use their knowledge to your advantage and progress the case.

The Dance of Deduction, simply put, is the greatest mechanic ever put into an Ace Attorney game. I don't think it's a stretch to say that this series has struggled to make investigations interesting. The character abilities were made to do just that, but honestly, most of them are more or less a poor attempt at emulating a trial during an investigation. Psyche-Locks are alright, but they're pretty much just a cross examination during an investigation. Perceive is so inconsistent and quick that it leaves absolutely no impact. Mood Matrix and Divination Seances are neat, but are such huge leaps away from the fundamental gameplay mechanics this series was built upon. The only ones that stand out above the others, I would say, are Logic and Logic Chess, fittingly present in both AAI titles, with the more notable one being Logic Chess. It's done during investigation segments, and doesn't stray too far from the simple gameplay elements that this series started off with while still being interesting and visually appealing.

Take what I said about Logic Chess and amplify it by infinite. That is the Dance of Deduction. Taking place only during investigations, they all start with Sholmes claiming that something in the room is afoot. He quickly observes the area and draws two conclusions from it. He then explains his reasoning for both fronts. Ryunosuke and Susato realize that he's strayed away from the mark a bit, so they step in to help correct him on some points. Through this, they all collectively reach the truth of what happened.

The first obvious thing to note here is the presentation. It's called the Dance of Deduction for a good reason. Sholmes takes the scene through spinning, pointing, turning spotlights on and off, snapping his fingers, and so much more. The camera will move to new angles to emphasize his points. This is all accompanied by some of the greatest music your ears will ever hear. All Joint Reasoning themes are absolutely splendid pieces of music, immersing you in this logic and reasoning showcase, only building in intensity as you arrive closer to the truth. This is easily the most appealing thing to experience in an Ace Attorney game.

The gameplay itself is very simple. A witness will react to a statement made by Sholmes, and the great detective will then follow their furtive glance. You rotate the camera to get a different view of the scene, following the same glance, but observing the scene closer. You point out evidence that proves what actually happened and continue from there until the entire scene unfolds before you. It's not the hardest thing in the world, but it's easily the most engaging. Finding a new piece of evidence results in Ryunosuke joining the dance himself, only adding to the visual flair. You uncover a truth that you otherwise wouldn't be able to.

The main thing to take away from this is that it's a mechanic that can absolutely only work during investigations. It involves a thorough examination of a scene right then and there, allowing you to gather more useful evidence for your case. This is how you make investigations more interesting. Never before has Ace Attorney made a mechanic this engaging that makes investigation segments just as much fun as the trial segments.

The music during these sections aren't the only good pieces of music. This soundtrack as a whole is one of the most immaculate collections of orchestra I've ever heard. The devs explained in the extra features all the thought and care that went into this soundtrack. Reinventing old themes, constructing new themes in combination with others, etc. Tons of thought was put into how the music connects to the story and characters. The instrumentation alone should say enough. If you take a minute to listen to any track, no doubt it'll sound right in place with the time period.

There's so much to be interpreted from some of these music pieces. My personal favorite track is Partners - The game is afoot!, which plays during the final Dance of Deduction. Not only is this a beautiful rendition in it's own right, but there's a surprising amount of depth put into it. The first thing to notice is the tap dancing heard in the background. This can also be heard during the other Logic and Reasoning themes, and there's much more merit behind it once we see Mikotoba actually tap dance during the Dance of Deduction. This tells us how much of an impact Mikotoba has had on Sholmes, and how they both worked together to create the Dance of Deduction. Excerpts of both Sholmes' and Mikotoba's themes can be heard, further cementing this as their shining moment.

All the music in the game is like this. I would be here for the rest of my life if I picked apart every single music track, so I'll just summarize some of my favorites. Barok Van Zieks, Gregson, and Sholmes have stellar character themes that fit them perfectly. Kazuma interestingly has four themes: a normal character theme, a more somber character theme somewhat similar to a reminiscence theme, a revival theme, and a prosecutor theme. All of them are great, but his prosecutor's theme stands out the most, as it takes moments from all his previous songs and ties them together while still expressing new emotion.

Many new theme types have been added to trials. Most notably, Ryunosuke has a "prelude to objection" theme and a "prelude to pursuit." These both play as sort of a build up to the actual objection and pursuit themes, which is a delight to see. Ever since the first title, there haven't been any new themes that play during trial segments, (the only other example I can think of is SOJ's "A Cornered Heart") so the variety is appreciated. Prelude to Pursuit in particular is very calm, but still has tremendous weight behind it, as you know that when it plays, the pursuit theme isn't far behind.

The soundtrack is overall one of the best soundtracks of any video game. I could talk about how great each individual theme is for days, but unfortunately, I can't. The instrumentation fits the music right into the time period, every single track is packed with meaning and emotion, and most importantly, it all sounds really damn good.

Aside from the actual game itself, we mustn't forget the extra content. Capcom has always been good about game bundles, and it's no different here. Not only are there fun side stories to play through the Randst Magazine, but there's a generous amount of concept art and details about the soundtrack. Seeing what kind of considerations were made for each of the characters is much more interesting than, say, an extra case. I said it before, but it's astounding how much care went into the making of this game.

You know, I think that's the main reason why it turned out great. It's very apparent from a simple glance that everyone who helped create this game poured their heart and soul into it. The details of the music, the inspiration of the art, and even the fun doodles shown in previous pieces of art. There was a goal to make this the greatest Ace Attorney, and this team did just that, with Shu Takumi and his grand vision leading the way.

From the bottom of my heart, I would like to say thank you. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the making of this game. This duology gave me a truly incredible experience that I know for a fact I won't get from any other game. The story, the characters, the music: it all comes together to form not only the best Ace Attorney game, but one of the greatest games of all time, period. Truly, this title is worthy of the name "The Great Ace Attorney."

This is truly the best Ace Attorney has to offer

From the best soundtrack to the best storytelling, this duology is where Takumi shines at displaying how much he's improved. More concise trials, almost everything in both entries linking together to form a nigh perfectly cohesive story accompanied with equally strong character writing.

His grasp on his wackiness and mystery hasn't left him one bit with how colourful the side cast is while making them more human than ever by utilizing the new setting.

I don't have much more to add without spoiling but some of the themes and dialogue exchanges in this game are basically poetic, it's insane how contrasting it is to older entries at points all the while keeping its core charm.

La saga The Great Ace Attorney, después de ser varios años exclusiva de Japón, finalmente llega al resto del mundo con una remasterización para dispositivos modernos. Ambos juegos mantienen lo que sería lo más básico de las mecánicas de anteriores Ace Attorney, como recolectar evidencia en las investigaciones y usarlas en los momentos adecuados de los juicios para objetar los argumentos en contra de tu cliente, pero también agregan varias nuevas que se complementan bien con la idea de refutar contradicciones. Por ejemplo, ver si las razones del veredicto de los jurados (personas comunes de Inglaterra elegidas aleatoriamente que pueden decidir si el acusado es culpable o inocente) se contradicen entre sí, ya que la mayoría de las veces este estará basado más que nada en temas emocionales, así que es nuestra labor exponer las fallas en su lógica para que el juicio pueda continuar. Todo esto junto logra una coherencia narrativa excelente con la jugabilidad; de hecho, hay ocasiones en las que se juega con las expectativas del jugador al momento de tomar decisiones o presionar a los testigos, para después sorprenderlo con giros de trama interesantes.

Si bien la segunda entrega fue lanzada con dos años de diferencia de la primera, estos títulos resultan tan conectados entre sí que hasta me atrevería a decir que son un mismo juego partido en dos, por lo que lanzarlos en una colección donde estén ambos resulta perfecto para jugarlos de seguido, lo que recomiendo encarecidamente más que nada porque la secuela recontextualiza bastantes situaciones del primero, varias que posiblemente hayan pasado un poco desapercibidas para muchos, resultando en una historia crea un gran misterio fantásticamente ejecutado. Eso sí, es importante tener en cuenta el contexto histórico en el que se desarrollan las obras para entender varios puntos de estas (aunque de por sí ya hacen un excelente trabajo explicándotelo), debido a que estas se desarrollan en una época donde había muchísimo racismo de los ingleses hacia los japoneses, lo que se ve reflejado especialmente en el fiscal, Barok van Zieks, que parte de su enigma está en por qué los desprecia tanto. Por último, me gustaría mencionar que los personajes son magníficos que incluso parecen ser versiones mejoradas de varios vistos en la trilogía original, teniendo motivaciones claras y dinámicas geniales, especialmente Ryunosuke Naruhodo que resulta ser de los mejores protagonistas de Ace Attorney. Si eres fan de la franquicia o te gustan las historias de misterios (sobre todo Sherlock Holmes), seguramente amarás The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles.

Two fantastic titles and great additions to the Ace Attorney series. Both games manage to be gripping and endearing, star a fantastic new cast of characters, and introduce fresh gameplay mechanics that really invigorate the Ace Attorney formula.

I do think that the games have some pacing issues, as there are times when they will slow down to an absolute crawl, but when they kick things into high gear, they nearly reach the heights of peak Ace Attorney.

I don’t think they quite surpass the original trilogy of Ace Attorney games for me, but they at the very least manage to stand shoulder to shoulder with them. These games are a delightful time, and are an easy recommendation to fans of the original series.

The first game can feel like a third one a bigger story, so it ends up falling flat despite being quite good in its execution. But both games as a single package and story work wonderfully.

The fact that they created cases and an encompassing story this compelling with a completely new cast that doesn't rely on a preexisting attachment go to the series is nothing short of amazing. Takumi and his team just hit different.

Wonderful cast and excellent use of humor and drama. They really went and constructed a group of stories that are not only very exciting and fun, but are expertly tied together to build up a climax that connects everything nicely and answers all the mysteries previously set up, in the vein of AA3, except in only two games; its extremely impressive. I seriously need a third game now.

I think Shu Takumi and his teams should be given all the funding for any video game he would like to make for the rest of his life. I mean, game good as hell, right? I can kind of understand how splitting it up initially hurt things, because the first game is very definitely the first half of a duology. But man, I kind of love it, though? It goes some really interesting places tonally and I feel like it does a great job of playing with your expectations of the previous Ace Attorney games. While the game absolutely stands alone due to taking place in the Meiji era, I feel like it’s really fun to compare the narrative choices of the first game to similar beats in the original Ace Attorney trilogy to see how they differ! I think there’s a really good feeling of how unfamiliar and oppressive things are even compared to the difficult situations in Phoenix’s games.

The second game feels a little less experimental in that regard but it also has a really compelling overarching mystery which rules! It’s great to see all these excellent characters really go off, and even with me knowing a lot of the big plot beats I still had some wild surprises waiting for me. I also really liked how the writing felt a little closer to Ghost Trick. There’s a certain rhythm to some of the gags that have that vibe, you know? And like, Ghost Trick super fucks. I loved the new systems a lot, though I felt like it was kind of a bummer the jury system wasn’t actually used in the very final case. I absolutely understood why thematically, but I liked that the jurors generally brought something fun to the trials, whether it be actual useful information or some fun gags. The Logic and Reasoning Spectaculars are a lot of fun and generally a total riot, and I absolutely love the animation work in this game. Sholmes is great regardless, but damn, his animations! Shamspeare’s animations! It’s all so good!

Anyway, it’s kind of a shame that this is likely the end for the cast of these games, but it honestly makes me want the series to be more of an anthology of different, loosely connected Attorney Adventures rather than a continuous continuity about Phoenix Wright from now on. Unfortunately I don’t think that Capcom will allow that, but a girl can dream, I guess.

A masterful tour de force of a duology. They really are meant to be packaged together, adding and building up on the themes of each other and the franchise as a whole. The games really play on the expectations of the franchise for incredible twists and turns, great characters beats, and compelling narrative angles. Ryunosuke and Susato might be my favorite protagonists of the franchise, with the supporting cast demonstrating fascinating depth and character beneath first impressions.

There's a few flaws, of course. You can really tell that the second game was under stricter budget restrictions and the pacing is often a little odd as a result. There's simply no time to show how a character relationship has drastically changed between cases after a bad first impression. And sometimes its a little unclear if an anti-authority story beat is intentional or accidental.

But even then, I can't find myself docking points. The entire game soars into a delightful package. Capcom put forth a quiz asking people why they were buying GAA and one of the options was "Shu Takumi writing." And rightly so! There's a direction and intent with his games that the modern mainline games lack. You can feel the passion he has for justice and the characters and more. I would love for him to make more Ace Attorney, but I would also love for him to just... make anything! Everything he touches just works. Even when it starts to get silly or a little too soap opera, I accept it because it feels real coming from him somehow. Its a genuine triumph.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney fue un logro. Su presentación del pleito legal reformulado como duelo de épica teatral en clave animesca permanece como uno de los mayores hallazgos del año 2001 (su fecha de salida en Japón). Los juicios eran un campo de batalla donde los enfrentamientos entre abogados se nutrían de lo hiperbólico y lo fantástico, del humor y los constantes vuelcos argumentales. Era un fuego cruzado de contraargumentos que sonaban como puñetazos, precedidos de exclamaciones emblemáticas (Objection! Take that!) y acompañados de leitmotivs hiperclimáticos. Cada duelo en la corte suponía un intenso vaivén de jaques (sorpresas y deducciones) que vencíamos en un éxtasis climático. Se trata de un triunfo en el apartado de la presentación, el gran don de Shu Takumi: supercaracterísticos personajes, fisicalidad y exageración del lenguaje corporal, expresiva puesta en escena (esos planos y cortes) y, por supuesto, un excepcional apartado sonoro basado en el impacto. Uno casi podía sentir adrenalina en los puntos álgidos de cada uno de los casos. Por todo eso, a día de hoy, el juego es justamente recordado como un clásico.

Lo que no quita su interminable exposición, los largos trámites que conlleva cada investigación, el infantilismo general en tono y jugabilidad. El aporte de Phoenix Wright al género de novela visual es incalculable, aunque la experiencia final, a mi juicio, poco convincente. ¡Pero la saga continuó! Y no con pocas entregas. Había tanto margen de cambio y mejora que cualquiera creería, me ocurrió a mí, que tras más de quince años la cosa habría mejorado notoriamente.

Y aquí me hallo, terriblemente decepcionado con The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles en 2021. Tantos años y entregas después los cambios sustanciales son nulos y hasta los insustanciales escasos. La presentación sigue a rajatabla lo logrado por el primero pero con menos gancho, pese a un mayor presupuesto. La "interminable" (así la calificaba) exposición ha ido en aumento, el infantilismo en lógica y jugabilidad ha empeorado, la tediosa investigación y los diálogos en general se han alargado y, aunque me he reído con la carismática adaptación de Sherlock Holmes, ese giro final con uno de los personajes es de tal ridiculez que roza lo insultante. Y lo peor es que, saliendo de la nada, uno se lo huele desde muy al principio tan solo por el tono y la muy barata lógica interna que se gasta el guion.

Muchos videojuegos me decepcionan, no me convencen, apenas me gustan o en ocasiones incluso me disgustan, pero rara vez me ocurre lo que me ha ocurrido con The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles: siento que he perdido el tiempo.

In defense of the Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, the presentation is fabulous. The steampunk character designs are snazzy, the animations are full of personality and life, the soundtrack is exhilarating, and there is plenty of the signature Ace Attorney goofball charm on display. As a cherry on top, one of the main characters is a broody gay Castlevania villain who alludes with suggestive frequency to his “hallowed chalice” and probably does nothing but listen to Wagnerian opera and file his nails in his free time. (Also, Susato and her little book <3)

Unfortunately it’s also possible to build a strong case against GAAC. Because I’m a killjoy, and because these games seem to get a free pass from most people, let’s look at some evidence. In this massive and lovingly rendered cast, there are, by my count, roughly forty named male characters, of every shape and size and age, two-thirds of whom are canonically older than thirty. (Of those over thirty, six play prominent recurring roles.) If you are beginning to suspect there might be fewer women in the game, congrats, you would be right! There are, in contrast, fifteen named women, four of whom are over thirty; of those four, only one is a semi-important character (the bad one, naturally).

Luckily, with such delightful character designs, I’m sure there will be plenty of variety in how the women look, right? Heck yeah—as a matter of fact there are two (2) female characters who are not conventionally attractive! (Both characters are simply fat—hardly the kind of inventive caricature we find in the male designs.) For further diversity, we have a Cute Judicial Assistant, Sexy Victorian Assassin, Cute Prima Ballerina, Cute Cockney Ragamuffin, Cute Girl Genius/Newspaper Serial Author, Cute Newlywed, Cute Yuri Bait, Sexy Witch, Sexy Housewife, Sexy Coroner, Spooky-Cute Goth Daughter, and uh Feisty-Cute Firecracker Salesgirl.

I know this might seem like outrageous nitpicking, and yes I know video game characters are designed to be appealing, and yes some of the men are hot. I’m not anti-hot-people. But in a game with so much care put into the art style, the disparity is bleak. If you can come up with forty different faces for dudes, you can probably come up with more than three faces for women. Jesus.

One could raise the old familiar argument: “Something historical blah blah but it was like that back then!” To which I would say: Holograms. Also this is a game in which a top-secret case highly sensitive to British national security is handled by a visiting student and a mysterious amnesiac. Absolutely nothing in GAAC makes any goddamn historical sense whatsoever. If the creators cared about history, color photography would not exist, and the queen would be aghast at all the foreigners running rampant in her courtroom.

Which brings me in a roundabout way to the story itself, which inhabits an awkward limbo between wacky cartoon and social commentary. Takumi seems to want to say something about racism, imperialism, the justice system, and government corruption, but he is significantly hampered by not understanding any of these things. Racism in the Takumi-verse is the result of a Japanese guy murdering your family. Corruption is the result of bad apples. Crime is the result of “letting the darkness consume you,” rather than, say, not having food. And so on. Worst of all, his critique of empire is one-directional. There is no attempt to draw any parallel between the British Empire and Imperial Japan. In fact, the narrative goes to some length to exonerate Japanese characters (except a tiny few) of wrongdoing; none of them have the racist misconceptions that the European characters are shown to have.

Lastly, holy moly, this game is looong, and I don’t think the fact that it was originally two games is much of an excuse. Way too much of GAAC—a solid 40% in my estimate—is artificial and unnecessary padding. You would not BELIEVE the mind-boggling number of gavel thwacks and podium pounds you will endure before end credits. It is at least four billion. The jury system is a pointless contrivance that only serves to draw out trials to agonizing lengths, and there is so much mind-numbing repetition of witness testimony and Herlock hijinks. Considering there is really just one big story being told here, there was no reason (except ¥¥¥) to release it as two games in the first place.

There is, however, a neat tap-dancing bit near the end that is almost worth the slog.

VERDICT: Guilty!! (of making me spend more than 60 hours on a game—using a guide no less, yikes)

tgaa is a wonderful game. the characters, setting and osts are magnificent. so what is it that makes me prolong this game so much and avoid finishing it? i will be frank, this definitively needed to be a trilogy. the second game has a much stronger plot than the first but it falls flat at the very end of the game. it's rushed, the characterisation makes no sense, everything is so ooc for the sake of just wrapping it all up. EDIT: i finished it minutes ago and asougi carried the game, together with homumiko. the escapades are tons of fun tho!!! really made up for that ''eeeh'' ending.

Very few games have put a smile on my face in quite the way the deductions -in the DGS duology have. Whilst maybe overly simple, they are emblematic of what makes DGS really, really work in my opinion. This Duology has some fantastic cases and a strong overall plotline, but throughout, it is also a game that frankly, would have been carried by it's characters and presentation anyways.

To elaborate, i'd just note the second game's second case. It's pretty fucking bad. A big speedbump in both the overarching plot, has some dumb logical leaps, and is effctively a footnote on the worst case from the first game to boot.

Even then, the game is good. It is the only case in the duology where the case quality dips enough where the appeal gets cut down to it's base. And what a base it has. DGS's core presentation and it's cast of characters are just utterly fantastic. From an adaptation of Sherlock holmes that i was fully prepared to hate but ended up absolutely loving, to the best Prosecutor in the series, to a protagonist that's engaging to see grow in confidence and resolve, all animated absolutely wonderfully and under the chorus of an impeccable soundtrack. The DGS games are games where the baseline of just sitting in a coutroom with Von Zieks opposed to Ryunosouke bouncing off each other is pretty damn high and carries it in it's worst moments. And when the cases rise up to meet that strength, and engage with those characters and the presentation, its an absolute joy. I have taken way too many screenshots on my switch of moments from the second game in particular where i was just so fucking hyped for the goings on. And maybe that, did somewhat come at the cost of DGS1 being so devoted to buildup and leaving the payoff to the second time around, but frankly, that game's still pretty great, and even if it was sacrificed wholesale - it would probably still have been worth it.

So yeah this is pretty great. I could probably go on for way longer about how it's a wonderful reflection on the original AA trilogy, how its more unique case setup keeps things more engaging, how it has a much more focused theme than the other AA games i've played, that Shu Takumi somehow wrangled one of the best adaptations of the sherlock holmes character in the middle of an ace attorney duology - but im honestly not versed enough in the series beyond the first three and these two to speak that authoritatively about them.

Regarldess, this is something really special. Compared to basically every other "law/trial/investigation" game, this absolutely blows everything out the water that i've tried. And I don't think i've had a smile on my face as big as in this one playing a game in a good long while.

I was already confident after the first part, but after beating part 2 I was reassured that so far THIS is the best Ace Attorney game (that is duology) in the whole series.
Not just the improvements in the gameplay and keeping and combining what worked best with the previous titles, but the overall style, presentation, music and dialogues are near perfection with well-written stories, interesting plot twists, great characters and the usual hilarious over-the-top animations make this a must-have for any AA and/or visual novel fans! My only minor gripe is some questionable logic leaps at some places (which TBH were present in all previous games).
I wouldn't necessarily recommend it as the entry for the series (cause going back to the OG trilogy after this will be a huge step-back), but definitely buy this if you like this series, you won't be disappointed!
I'm REALLY curious now how will they top this game in quality if they decide to ever continue the main AA story, though I would really like to see a continuation of this spin-off story as well!

I think the first game is just alright, it's a lot more consistent but at the same time also doesn't have any really stand out cases or moments.

The second game though... they turn it up to 11 and I was constantly on the edge of my seat. Fantastic reveals and plot progression culminate in one of the best final chapters offered by the entire franchise.

All in all, it's a pretty fun experience and I had little difficulty navigating the investigation sections, which is not something I can say about most of the Ace Attorney games. Not my favorite out of the franchise, but it's still got a great cast and I'd say it's very much worth your time.

The average course correction goes something like this:

"Oh you're here!"

Gregson greets the up and coming lawyer, Ryonosuke, his transgender Japanese assistant, a german ace detective, and said detective's adopted doctor-daughter-mother-roommate-child.

"This is the most horrifying murder I've ever seen in my entire life... The victim, poor guy... he was smashed over the head with a blunt object and then pummelled until he approached this sorry state..."

Gregson points toward a bloody mush at the corner of the room. Brains and guts are splattered all over the floor.

"I've never been more disgusted in my entire life."

Gregson follows up this statement by stuffing his face with 30 servings of fried fish.

The 12 year old is still at the crime scene for some reason.

A suspicious figure is seen being interrogated.

"Ah, that's Call Preete, feel free to question him" the officer says.

Herlock takes one glance at the man, and turns around to speak to naruhodo
"We got our guy"

"What? How?"

"Elementary, my dear naruhodo. You see, the man right before you VERY CLEARLY commited a dastardly crime!"

Call Preete jolts, and beads of sweat form on his forehead.

"The crime being... THAT OF POOR TASTE IN LITERATURE!!!"

Mr Preete's expression of fear is quickly replaced by confusion.

"As you can see... The evidence of this is CLEARLY SHOWN on THIS VERY TABLE!!"

Herlock points to a mahogany desk, covered in important documents that seem relevant to the case.

Call pulls his mustache, and it snaps back onto his face, the recoil of which throws him backwards, sending his body careening through multiple brick walls.

Herlock approaches the table, and knocks everything off it. Underneath the clearly useless resources, a magazine.

"As you can see, this table has a CRAPPY MAGAZINE on it. One that RIVALS the publication that my adventures are shown in!"

Herlock chuckles confidently, and Susato's eyes sparkle.

"You've done it again Mr Sholmes!" She exclaims.

Her head snaps toward the accused.
"That's a big fucking deal buster. Grounds for the DEATH penalty."

Naruhodo shakes his head, and prepares to correct the injudicious himbo.

"You see Herlock, you missed out on this key detail."

Naruhodo walks toward Call, and stares intently at his hands. They're completely covered in blood.

Ryonosyke spins around, and his gaze travels towards the unrecognisable fleshy mush of mincemeat in the room.

"Using my powers of observation.... I think this guy might have touched the victim..."

He then approaches the aforementioned wooden desk.

The young lawyer turns 15° to the left of what Herlock was originally looking at, revealing a giant 700 page book covered in blood that just prior was not visible at all from any other angle. The book is also covered in Call's fingerprints, with his name and signature on a receipt sticking out of it.

Ryonnosuke chortles.

"Looks like we caught this guy... read handed...."

Herlock starts violently flailing his arms everywhere.

"Ah yes. I actually thought this the WHOLE TIME. Thank you naruhodo."

Sholmes and Ryonnosuke then start dancing on the crime scene. A job well done.

Call Preete shivers and starts bawling.
"I-I DIDNT DO IT I PROMISE!!!"

"Ok I believe you" Naruhodo replies.

"Oh ok thanks"

Van zieks is also there, and is seen screaming
"I FUCKING HATE JAPANESE PEOPLE!!!!" At the top of his lungs in a drunken stupor.

He smashes a bottle of wine on a nearby Chinese man's head, instantly killing him.

--

Everything I liked about the original trilogy is here in spades. The iconic ost, insane breakdowns, and an interconnected story that seamlessly weaves together the overarching mystery of the two games. And though some of the characters are slightly less iconic than the original, it makes up for it with strong writing and thoroughly engaging mysteries that kept me engrossed in the story throughout it's 70 hour runtime.

I have been listening to "the great turnabout" for months after I completed this game. I have never had more fun playing a visual novel than in the final case of resolve.