Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (2007)

A very strong Ace Attorney entry!

• Great cases, great characters. I like the whole cast.
• Apollo's ability to look for "tells" is fun.
• The way Apollo's ability is woven into the narrative is clumsy... it would make more sense in investigations than in court.
• Writers please stop making panty jokes.
• Final case is really fun.
• Overall not quite Trials and Tribulations level, but a very strong and (IMO) underappreciated entry.

I have conflicting feelings about this game and a lot of that has to do with the games that came afterwards. Storywise and thematically, it felt like a good passing of the torch from the old generation to the new one Kristoph > Klavier, Phoenix > Apollo, Zak > Trucy, but knowing where the series goes, this game feels more like a detour rather than establishing where the series is headed. The series doesn’t really address Trucy answer Apollo’s familial ties (as far as I know), Phoenix comes back as the main protagonist, and the Jurist system at the end of the game doesn’t continue in the series. Phoenix returning as the protagonist feels weird because the Phoenix we see in Apollo behaves differently, but in future games he returns to his old personality from the Trilogy. Ignoring the context of future games, this is a fun game on its own. It’s cool to see Phoenix from a different perspective. He isn’t the rookie lawyer, he kinda seems like he’s always in control and collected, yet at times he comes across as jaded and detached. Story wise, they seemed to want to step away from ass pull supernatural stuff so no more spirit mediums and they limit Magatamas, in their stead is Apollo’s ability to perceive, which is pretty neat since you have to focus on the body language of each witness. Examining clues in 3D is pretty neat, let’s you really inspect each piece of evidence. The side characters aren’t as memorable in my opinion. Ema Skye is cool, but she’s no Dick Gumshoe. Klavier Gavin is pretty interesting since in the present he is already at the point where we see everyone else take a journey to get to in regards to prioritizing the truth above all else. I wish Apollo got more time as the MC of the series, but he had a solid introduction with this game.

Edit: Forgot to mention I love Trucy. So wholesome.

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney is the one game that I've been meaning to check out for the longest time. I've played the original Phoenix Wright trilogy, I've played the Miles Edgeworth: Investigations games, and I even played The Great Ace Attorney duology. But the Apollo Justice trilogy, as I call it was the one I've been working towards. Really impressed with the first game in this trilogy

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney reminds me a lot of the first game in the franchise, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney in the sense that it feels like the start of something grand. It has the classic 2D style that I know will be missed by me as this is the last game to adapt the 2D art style, and the gameplay is almost the same. You still investigate as you would, and the courtroom trials are more or less the same. Except that there is something new...

Firstly, the plot. Taking place 7 years after the events of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations, you follow upcoming, rookie lawyer, Apollo Justice as he grows as a defense attorney with the help of his assistant, Trucy Wright, and his mentor, Phoenix Wright. The plot is as basic as basic gets for Ace Attorney, but it works. Usually, the first game in a new series follows this formula so I'm all for it. The characters are really fun and well-written. It's charming seeing the older characters interact with the new ones. And the new rival, Klavier Gavin is a absolute charm to interact with

As for gameplay, there are 2 new systems. Firstly, there is a new investigation system. With the help of Detective Ema Skye, you can basically do a bunch of forensic science on crime scenes. Spraying for fingerprints, finding shoe prints, looking for poison, it's all really fun and interesting. We saw something like this in the last chapter of the first game, but it is WAY more expanded here. I love it. And as for court cases, Apollo has the ability to Percieve. Basically, he can view body language and bad habits to root out lies in testimonies. It is again, really fun and is well developed.

My only real complaint (like most of these games) is the pacing. It's inconsistent at best. It's not horrible. But it could've been better.

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney is a game I'm really excited about. I've been wanting to start this trilogy for so long and I can't wait to play the next one.

4/5

Would Recommend