This review contains spoilers
The first Ace Attorney title is really as iconic as it gets for me, right off the bat from the first case, the formula is just captivating, there's not much in gaming like the feeling of finding a contradiction in Ace Attorney, and this title has a lot of really clever ones. It’s supported by some great spritework and a banger soundtrack, though I do think compared to most of the series’ later titles, the OST here is a tad overrated, it’s still nevertheless really great
The First Turnabout's story is really not much to write home about storywise, but IMO it does a fantastic job at introducing you to the game’s world, the character relationships, and its rules.
Turnabout Sisters continues on this trajectory, expanding with new characters and mechanics. I do feel like the case itself though is the game’s weakest one though, it’s not “bad” but some moments like the finale feel a tad rashed, though I do enjoy just how pathetic Red White ends up being on the stand, and that he’s taken down via blackmailing him, seeing as how he basically built his whole empire off of blackmail. Of course Mia comes back here via Maya channeling her, and in general I’m not really a fan of supernatural elements like spirit channeling in this series, I tend to prefer Ace Attorney when its rules are more grounded in reality.
Turnabout Samurai is a really underrated one I feel, it lets us see a lot more sides of Wright, Maya, Edgeworth, and Gumshoe, while also having a really cool setting with Global studios, and a surprisingly dark bittersweet conclusion, I like how it’s kept kinda vague whether Jack Hammer actually killed his co-star Manuel, it’s never outright stated, but we do know that he would have it in him seeing as he planned on killing, Vasquez, who is also a really unique villain for this series. The fact that the crime was done in self defense means that, realistically, she could’ve gone out of it with not much reciprocation, but seeing as she had dark ties and secrets, it makes sense she’d rather not get her hands dirty, even if by trying to pin the crime on Powers, she ended up burying her own grave landing her presumably a far worse sentence. Powers is also a pretty standout defendant I feel, this is the first case in the game where it doesn’t spoil who the culprit is in the intro, so I feel a lot of first time players might’ve actually suspected Powers guilty, but throughout the case you slowly form a bit of a bond with the guy and realize he’s kinda just a really nice chill dude, which really highlights the idea of the trust between defense attorney and defendant. Really if it wasn’t for the annoying side characters and long-winded investigation segments, I think this could’ve gone out as an all time classic, albeit a simple one.
Turnabout Goodbyes then IS very much an all time classic though, it starts off with a great fake out depicting the events of the crime in a way that makes it seem as if Edgeworth was the culprit, seeing as the game revealed its killers ahead of time in the first 2 cases, it’s fair to assume most thought at this moments that Edgeworth WOULD be the final culprit, but it’s then subverted when you learn that he’s actually the defendant, allowing him and wright to bond more as the game delves into their past. Edgeworth is easily my favorite character in the series, and one of my favorites ever actually, and he gets a ton of great development here, and the game portrayed his clear emotional turmoil very well, also love how Gumshoe goes from being really rude towards wright at the beginning, to them working together a lot here, their bond is really nice and Gumshoe is also just inherently very likable. I really enjoy a lot of the smaller flourishes here like the mystery of Gourdy that gets thrown into the mix, I know some people don’t really like that weird side stuff, but idk I think needing to solve smaller riddles on the road to eventually solve the whole case is really satisfying, and it also lead to a lot of funny moments. Ace Attorney’s sense of humor has always been one I really enjoyed, and the jokes here like Gumshoe’s secret weapons and cross examining the parrot are great. Edgeworth’s story ties in with the culprit’s tragic past really well, and the game having an asshole defense attorney as the victim here does a good job with making it clear that both sides of the law can be corrupt. The series definitely throw all its eggs in one basket with Von Karma here, having wright take down this legendary prosecutor who never lost a case THIS early on in the series feels kinda odd, even if to be fair Phoenix got INSANELY lucky here. Von Karma being tied to the crime feels a tad contrived, but I don’t really mind seeing as he’s a really fun villain, the main thing that kinda bothers me though is that Von Karma didn’t really have a clear motive to set this whole thing up, feel like that should've been fleshed out a bit more, but other then that this is a really fun one
Finally there’s Rise From the Ashes, which feels a bit weird to talk about alongside the rest of the game seeing as it was a later inclusion. This case is pretty notorious for its slow pacing, and yeah the beginning segments can kinda drag, but honestly as someone who’s been able to bear with some REAL long Visual Novels, it never bothered me all too much, seeing as what it sets up later pays off with some REAL fantastic stuff, Damon Gant is iconic for a reason, he’s not particularly deep in any way, but as a villain he’s really intimidating, and fun to eventually take down. I know a lot of people don’t really fuck with the DS gimmick segments, but idk I still kinda find them novel, and the security tape during the second trial leads to a lot of really fun contradictions. The case adds a lot of fun new characters (and also Meekins), the new music is some of the best in the game, the story is really interesting and well thought out. Really if you overlook the pacing, I do think there’s a ton to love here.
At the end of the day, yeah Ace Attorney 1’s a really fun time! It doesn’t reach the complex and/or emotional highs of most of its sequels and spin-offs, but it still does a fantastic job at introducing new players into this fantastic universe.
The First Turnabout's story is really not much to write home about storywise, but IMO it does a fantastic job at introducing you to the game’s world, the character relationships, and its rules.
Turnabout Sisters continues on this trajectory, expanding with new characters and mechanics. I do feel like the case itself though is the game’s weakest one though, it’s not “bad” but some moments like the finale feel a tad rashed, though I do enjoy just how pathetic Red White ends up being on the stand, and that he’s taken down via blackmailing him, seeing as how he basically built his whole empire off of blackmail. Of course Mia comes back here via Maya channeling her, and in general I’m not really a fan of supernatural elements like spirit channeling in this series, I tend to prefer Ace Attorney when its rules are more grounded in reality.
Turnabout Samurai is a really underrated one I feel, it lets us see a lot more sides of Wright, Maya, Edgeworth, and Gumshoe, while also having a really cool setting with Global studios, and a surprisingly dark bittersweet conclusion, I like how it’s kept kinda vague whether Jack Hammer actually killed his co-star Manuel, it’s never outright stated, but we do know that he would have it in him seeing as he planned on killing, Vasquez, who is also a really unique villain for this series. The fact that the crime was done in self defense means that, realistically, she could’ve gone out of it with not much reciprocation, but seeing as she had dark ties and secrets, it makes sense she’d rather not get her hands dirty, even if by trying to pin the crime on Powers, she ended up burying her own grave landing her presumably a far worse sentence. Powers is also a pretty standout defendant I feel, this is the first case in the game where it doesn’t spoil who the culprit is in the intro, so I feel a lot of first time players might’ve actually suspected Powers guilty, but throughout the case you slowly form a bit of a bond with the guy and realize he’s kinda just a really nice chill dude, which really highlights the idea of the trust between defense attorney and defendant. Really if it wasn’t for the annoying side characters and long-winded investigation segments, I think this could’ve gone out as an all time classic, albeit a simple one.
Turnabout Goodbyes then IS very much an all time classic though, it starts off with a great fake out depicting the events of the crime in a way that makes it seem as if Edgeworth was the culprit, seeing as the game revealed its killers ahead of time in the first 2 cases, it’s fair to assume most thought at this moments that Edgeworth WOULD be the final culprit, but it’s then subverted when you learn that he’s actually the defendant, allowing him and wright to bond more as the game delves into their past. Edgeworth is easily my favorite character in the series, and one of my favorites ever actually, and he gets a ton of great development here, and the game portrayed his clear emotional turmoil very well, also love how Gumshoe goes from being really rude towards wright at the beginning, to them working together a lot here, their bond is really nice and Gumshoe is also just inherently very likable. I really enjoy a lot of the smaller flourishes here like the mystery of Gourdy that gets thrown into the mix, I know some people don’t really like that weird side stuff, but idk I think needing to solve smaller riddles on the road to eventually solve the whole case is really satisfying, and it also lead to a lot of funny moments. Ace Attorney’s sense of humor has always been one I really enjoyed, and the jokes here like Gumshoe’s secret weapons and cross examining the parrot are great. Edgeworth’s story ties in with the culprit’s tragic past really well, and the game having an asshole defense attorney as the victim here does a good job with making it clear that both sides of the law can be corrupt. The series definitely throw all its eggs in one basket with Von Karma here, having wright take down this legendary prosecutor who never lost a case THIS early on in the series feels kinda odd, even if to be fair Phoenix got INSANELY lucky here. Von Karma being tied to the crime feels a tad contrived, but I don’t really mind seeing as he’s a really fun villain, the main thing that kinda bothers me though is that Von Karma didn’t really have a clear motive to set this whole thing up, feel like that should've been fleshed out a bit more, but other then that this is a really fun one
Finally there’s Rise From the Ashes, which feels a bit weird to talk about alongside the rest of the game seeing as it was a later inclusion. This case is pretty notorious for its slow pacing, and yeah the beginning segments can kinda drag, but honestly as someone who’s been able to bear with some REAL long Visual Novels, it never bothered me all too much, seeing as what it sets up later pays off with some REAL fantastic stuff, Damon Gant is iconic for a reason, he’s not particularly deep in any way, but as a villain he’s really intimidating, and fun to eventually take down. I know a lot of people don’t really fuck with the DS gimmick segments, but idk I still kinda find them novel, and the security tape during the second trial leads to a lot of really fun contradictions. The case adds a lot of fun new characters (and also Meekins), the new music is some of the best in the game, the story is really interesting and well thought out. Really if you overlook the pacing, I do think there’s a ton to love here.
At the end of the day, yeah Ace Attorney 1’s a really fun time! It doesn’t reach the complex and/or emotional highs of most of its sequels and spin-offs, but it still does a fantastic job at introducing new players into this fantastic universe.