Beginning a new story when the previous games formed an iconic and beloved narrative is a tough order, and unfortunately Apollo Justice doesn't quite do, well, justice to its namesake. Our central character here is Apollo, a new defense lawyer; he's not as lovably bumbling as Phoenix, so he cuts a dull character, and the other key members of the case fail to live up to the bar set by Miles or Maya Fey. A key mechanic here is that Apollo can sense "tells" in people giving testimony, so you have to watch out for random movements and press when you see them, but it's a lot more annoying than it sounds. While the overall quality of the game is still high, it's impossible to avoid the fact that the cases are overlong and overwrought.

We return once again to the role of Phoenix Wright for the conclusion of this trilogy. Where Justice For All floundered due to poor writing and some tedious cases, Trials and Tribulations is a masterful return to form. Trials and Tribulations features a wonderful through-line that uses flashbacks to Phoenix and Miles' earliest days as lawyers, and is heavily connected to characters like the now long-dead Mia Fey; the end result is a lengthy and twisting plotline that ties together across both past and present. Our main opponent across the stand is Godot, an effortlessly cool antagonist, but the real star here is the writing, which stands head and shoulders above either of the other 2 entries.

We step back into the shoes of Phoenix Wright, a bumbling defense lawyer who must prove his client's innocence in a grim 3-day system. His counterpart this time is the mean Franziska von Karma, who provides a less enjoyable opposition than the missing Miles Edgeworth. Fundamentally more of the same as the first Ace Attorney, with the same point-and-click Investigation and Trial phases, but this time during Investigation Phoenix can call upon spiritual powers to view people's Psycho-Locks, which he must then break using evidence to force them to give up their full testimonies to him. While it retains the same general high quality as the first game, the main mark against this sequel is the fact that the writing is less clean than the first game, and cases begin to drag on terribly long; it's no exaggeration to say that some of the cases in this game are amongst the worst in the trilogy.

A fantastic visual novel / adventure hybrid. We play as Phoenix, a hapless defense lawyer in a brutal system that gives him 3 days to prove his client's innocence. Gameplay is split between point-and-click Investigation phases where Phoenix visits a crime scene to find evidence, and the hectic trial sequences where players cross-examine witnesses and prise apart the faults in their testimony. Features excellent writing, particularly between Phoenix and his prosecutor rival, the aloof (but secretly good) Miles Edgeworth.