despite being a pretty big vn fan, ace attorney was a series i hadn't planned on getting into initially because i never found the premise of the games all too interesting and my only knowledge of it came from occasionally playing attorney online with a few friends. however given that two people who mean a lot to me in my life had previously recommended it to me, i figured it was high time to give the series a shot and despite not expecting much, i'm very pleased to say i'm glad i did ! what i've found was not only a compelling legal drama but also just an overall well crafted and often rewarding vn experience that i think will stick with me for quite a while and has only made me all the more excited to check more of the series out !

from its first case, ace attorney had such a great energy to its presentation and case premise that just drew me in pretty quickly. i always love when games contextualize their tutorials to fit within the game they're presented in and the tutorial here is great example of characterization for our main character phoenix and helps to ease in the player as well. the first case is phoenix's first as a defense attorney so it only makes sense here that someone would have to be there to help him figure things out as well as YOU the player ! it's tiny little details like this here that are largely the strength of this vn as a whole, from the way it recontextualizes the presentation of evidence in court and outside of court as a meaningful way to more properly immerse the player in the world of ace attorney and place you directly at the forefront of crucial gameplay decisions during the trials just makes for a continuously engaging experience !

the gameplay here, all things considered, is pretty simple but its that accessibility that makes the game all the more carried by the strength of its writing. the gameplay might be a little too straightforward in its presentation but maybe that's okay ! the real meat of this experience are the cases themselves after all with each premise being pretty well written and engrossing as a whole as each mystery while obvious at times still remains captivating. often at times in a mystery when i find out who the killer was i often at times either feel less engaged given the main intrigue of most of these mysteries largely centering on the identity of the perpetrator but ace attorney does a great job of making not only the " whodunit " of the cases interesting as well but the " whydunit " and " howdunit " all the more enticing given the enjoyable writing behind most of it. finding out how they did it and what connects them to the crime committed form the puzzle element of this particular vn and i feel the game does a great job of gradually amplifying difficulty given the gameplay loop being entirely based on spotting contradictions and connecting the dots with evidence. the game also does a great job at rewarding the player for thinking outside the box and making you feel smart for finding contradictions as most puzzle solutions never really feel too obtuse. the cases here for the most part are really consistent quality wise in being really enjoyable and even if one case in particular overstays its welcome towards the end ( looking at YOU turnabout samurai ) the writing here is simply too charming to be completely miffed with what is overall still a really enjoyable case as well. sure the gameplay loop is repetitive due to its simplicity but ace attorney does such a satisfying job of making all these elements click that the overall experience is what i can only describe as a series of " aha ! " moments back to back.

with that in mind, i'd also like to add that the soundtrack in this game goes ABSOLUTELY HARD !!!!!! oh my god are there a ton of tracks in here that i could gush about for hours but for the sake of this review already being pretty long i'll save you the music analysis and just say that the soundtrack does a great job at amplifying the intensity of some moments really well. needless to say, it gets pretty hype at times and even though the same tracks are all used pretty often their impact isn't really lost with the repetition and often amplify the enjoyment of certain moments because of what they symbolize within the experience. i don't think there's a single time where i didn't smile hearing " objection " play and rightfully so ! each of the tracks presented within are equally catchy in their own right and their repetition only adds on to the charm !

i'd also like to take this time to address the localization which i can only sum up as some of the best i've seen for a series in a while if not one of the best i've ever seen. as someone involved with translation i'd like to think i'm pretty well versed in the nuances and difficulties that come with localizing media it's really great to see such a respectful treatment that still manages to keep all the charm and humor of the series intact. the name changes are pretty similar in vein with the original japanese script as i played this cross referencing both and the way the jokes are preserved are pretty neat with a lot of the puns and jokes being equally as witty and funny in both versions i like to think the integrity of the game's original script is pretty well maintained here. also as someone who appreciates a good dad joke once in a while, it's pretty easy for me to say i'm a big fan of the humor in this as a whole and i found myself laughing pretty often due to the absurdity of the situations the game presented alongside the numerous quote worthy quips from its eccentric ensemble of characters.

anyways, did i like phoenix wright ace attorney ? nope, not at all. i couldn't do that much of a disservice to this game to simply quantify my feelings as just a simple emotion such as " liking it " because i LOVED it ! it's simple yet enticing and that's one of my favorite aspects of it. to think i put it off initially because of its outward appearance is something i deeply regret given how much fun i had with this title and how it's probably one of my favorite experiences i had so far this year and it's safe to to say i hope to make up for it with binging the rest of the series. despite having only played one game so far i think i'll be looking forward to seeing phoenix again time and time again. if i had to describe how the series has affected me since in " eight words or less " i'd simply say " ace attorney has saddled me with ... unnecessary feelings." i reckon that edgeworth guy would know a thing or two about them as well ;) stepladder / 10

Way too toothless an experience in my opinion, and for all it feigns interest in it's characters I was surprised how little actual effect your decisions have on them. While the game tries to argue against the harsh tribalism that defines wartime, it's mechanics betray the opposite: if somebody is on your team they will stay there no matter what you do, even if it makes no sense for their particular character. While I suppose this is meant to provide the player with the feeling of freedom , for me it had a more constrictive effect. I knew I could never make characters hate me or leave my class unless the story dictated it must occur (as it does in the Edelgard route when a very small handful of possible recruits will leave). Maybe this seems unfair but honestly, this is stuff that even a morally unimaginative company like Bioware had figured out in the late 2000's...characters should fight, even if they're on the same team, and the protagonist should actually have to make a stand and not just say whatever they know will make the support ranking go up while knowing that later they'll say the complete opposite. If you're going to make a story about the tragedy of decaying friendships, the characters actually have to have friendships that can decay in the first place.

I can't help but compare this to Genealogy of the Holy War, which of course I'm crazy for. I had characterized the writing in that game as broad but I realize now that it's actually highly efficient. The way the game presents these characters is mostly only seen through the opening cutscenes of a chapter, with the occasional vignette between units sprinkled in (if you spend a turn using the talk command on the battlefield). There is so much less dialogue compared to the hours and hours that can be found in Three Houses, and yet the characters in Genealogy were so much more vibrant to me after only a single playthrough. They felt as if they lived outside of me, that they had moments in their lives that I was not privy to. I could imagine the relationships between them in my head, imagine their downtime between battles as well as their maneuvers during combat. When characters in Genealogy of the Holy War get married, there isn't a cutscene, or even any dialogue. In fact the only thing that clues you in is that now the married units can exchange gold with each other. I felt the connection between these people even if it wasn't actively shown, and because of that the tragedy of their eventual fates hit all the harder. It's a narrative that felt spacious in a way that made me realize how constrictive so many games that present you with "moral dilemmas" actually are.

I'm rambling now so apologies, I'm not a writer. I guess the best way to sum up my feelings is that in Three Houses I felt that I was playing for the story, but in Genealogy I was just...playing the story.

Splatoon 2 is such a damn good game that literally no one talks about and I won't stand for it any longer. It's totally a kids game but it's so inventive and creative and fun and everything works so well. The replayability isn't there for me because of no achievements/trophies but I had an absolute blast running through this game once and dabbling with the multi player. There's fun weapons, great level design, it's colorful and vibrant, the platforming elements work well, it's inventive and has unique controls. This game is a complete package and a total surprise for a gamer north of 30. Check it out. My only complaint is the final boss was a bit insufferable.

The most fun I've ever had with a JRPG, something I previously attributed to the original Xenoblade Chronicles. The sequel absolutely blows it out of the water gameplay and content wise. This game is packed with content (and it's all GOOD content) and the combat is the best in the franchise. I spent nearly 100 hours playing through the main story doing tons of sidequests and progressing my blade affinity charts. It's fun and rewarding to do sidequests while experimenting with different blade and character setups.

As far as writing goes I don't feel that it's the main selling point of the game, but it's something fans of the overall Xeno lore must experience. The pacing can get a bit awkward, some of the characters don't hit like they should but for any missteps there are a ton of positives to make up for them. The story is very ambitious and has a lot of great moments, the ending stretch is phenomenal. A lot of the stuff here feels out of the realm of possibility that the series established and a little more in tune with something like Xenosaga. Zeke and Jin are my favorite xenoblade character and antagonist, respectively. The party in general has a really cool dynamic in this game and they all have important roles to some degree.

Overall while your mileage may vary with the story and characters it's far from the worst ever in that regard. The gameplay is so good that I'm taken aback by how many people played a game this long, with combat that is apparently daunting for a lot of people, and still claim it's terrible with a straight face.