Played the Tomato fan-translated version with an easy hack and a walkthrough and it still sucked to play. The encounter rate is insanely high. There were legitimately times when I would beat an enemy and not even make it THREE STEPS before running into another encounter. Plus, each character's inventory can only hold eight things, and this game is packed to the brim with items, so you will be out of space nearly all the time. I can appreciate this game as the start of the MOTHER series, and it certainly has a lot of innovative-for-the-time ideas, but it's just not fun to play in 2024. EarthBound is essentially the same game but much better, so you can and should skip this one.

At heart, this is still the Ace Attorney you know and love: examining testimony and getting criminals to break. Honestly, I wish the game would've put more of an emphasis on exploring the environments. As soon as you enter the room you're supposed to be in, the game will typically lock you into that room. I did enjoy the "Logic" system, which was really intuitive, and I thought the "Little Thief" was an interesting idea. The story can get a bit convoluted at times, but I was rarely stuck to the point of looking up a walkthrough.

TBH, you probably don't have to play this game before moving on in the main series, but I'd recommend it if you want a quick change of pace before moving on to 'Apollo Justice,' as 'Investigations' seems to take place before 'Apollo Justice.'

Many Ace Attorney fans tend to hate on this game for its inclusion of Phoenix Wright, but honestly, the case that got me most excited and invested was the last case that heavily focused on Phoenix. While I like Apollo Justice as a character (and honestly like his character design a bit more than Phoenix), he was pretty darn bland, even once the game decided to give him some backstory (which I've heard barely gets followed up on in future games, but idk). The ending was also kinda "meh," but it leaves some intrigue for what's to come next.

For most of the game, gameplay both in court and in investigations felt very straightforward. I was rarely confused or unsure of what to do until the final case. Maybe a bit too straightforward, actually. The lack of challenge might've been what kept me from getting immersed in the game. I enjoyed the little forensics minigames that popped up every so often. Apollo's "Perceive" bracelet is one of the game's best additions to gameplay--basically Apollo's version of the Magatama, where he can see people's nervous fidgets when they lie. It was easy to figure out but still satisfying to use.

As always, the soundtrack slaps. In fact, this game's "Cornered" theme might be my favorite in the series so far. I played the remastered version for the 3DS, and I'm so thankful the HD artwork in this one isn't as ugly as the remastered trilogy's upscaled art. You can also find the remastered version on mobile, but I've heard it's got always-online DRM (great work, Capcom).

If you're going to play this one, I'd recommend picking it up for the DS or from the 3DS eShop while you still can!