Just a mere few months ago, fans were able to jump into theApollo Justice Trilogyand join Apollo, Athena, Phoenix and many others in three titles that had previously been unavailable outside of 3DS and mobile platforms. With the surprise announcement of theInvestigationsduology, this means that all mainline Ace Attorney titles are now fully playable on one platform of choice. Prior to this release, this was only possible in Japan, and as such, marks a huge landslide victory for theAce Attorneyseries and fans alike.Investigationsmarked the furthest missing link, with the first title having been localized, but the second having been stuck in limbo until this year. Now, for the first time ever, players will be experiencing the continued story of Miles Edgeworth or perhaps experiencing both these mysteries for the first time ever, so just how well do they hold up?
Investigationsis a follow-up to the firstAce Attorney Trilogy, but follows the tribulations of prosecutor Miles Edgeworth in a varied but not too distant style of gameplay. His adventure has him stumbling into a variety of new characters and friends in addition to many familiar faces. The story is split between two connected titles, wherein one focuses much on one of Edgeworth’s new allies, Kay, while the second asks Edgeworth what being a prosecutor means to him. Both titles cover a slew of familiar but charming crazy casesAce Attorneyis known for, but spends barely any time in the court, as Edgeworth brings enough logic to put an end to the surrounding madness before standing in to face the judge.
Miles Edgeworth shows us how to really investigate a crime scene
The biggest difference betweenInvestigationsand the otherAce Attorneytitles is the very investigating element itself. While Phoenix has always taken this on from a first-person perspective, Edgeworth takes it on from an overhead third-person angle. When investigating a crime scene, Edgeworth now approaches things on foot along with any companion he’s tagging along with. Multiple characters in the same area can be spoken to in addition to the companion offering advice on where to progress next. This helps set the stage and make areas feel larger and more fleshed out, as well as helping Edgeworth’s own adventure feel a little more unique along the way.
Talking with characters also puts Edgeworth’s sprite into the mix so he always feels like an active part of whatever is currently going on. As he continues on he gains clues that he can piece together in order to come to important facts about characters or situations, in order to figure out how everything went down. Edgeworth can also take advantage of his allies' unique skills in order to better examine scenes of the crime, specifically Kay and Ema, who offer new ways to examine every last nook and cranny.
Review: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (Console)
The Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy is a title that everyone who loves a great well-written story should have.
Although investigating the scene of the crime is always important, so is pulling information from those involved. This includes a familiar mechanic forAce Attorneyfans in the form of cross examinations, but outside of court. This simply has Edgeworth doing his best to tear apart statements to where either the facts don’t line up or someone isn’t being as honest about the situation as they should be. UnlikeAce Attorneyproper, these are usually much shorter but still allow the usual pressing statements and presenting evidence. These also make up the majority of back and forth disputes in the firstInvestigationstitle, while the sequel manages to add an entirely new way to crack into someone’s psyche.
The beauty ofInvestigationsis the smarts Edgeworth carries along with him
Much like how Phoenix Wright gained the ability to see so-called psyche locks in the second entry, so does Edgeworth have his own ability to break down an opponent although much less spiritually charged. Edgeworth can use Mind Chess to break his speaking partner down and pull the facts they’re trying to hide out of this. This mechanic has whoever Edgeworth is speaking with hidden behind a number of chess pieces and Edgeworth must discuss with them in order to figure out rebuttles to their statements. The main catch is that this is all on a timer, so Edgeworth has to work fast.
Pushing too hard or picking a wrong choice will decrease the time and if he fails entirely, Edgeworth will have to start over from the beginning. Generally speaking, these aren’t terribly long or challenging, but make for a great way to mix up the pacing, especially when it comes to deciding when to attack the opponent with statements and when to let them come out of their shell and reveal information Edgeworth can use to break through their defenses.
Review: The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles
Now that we’ve finally gotten to experience the stories they set out to tell, it’s clear that The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles is worth the wait.
While every otherAce Attorneytitle released to modern systems before this did see a good number of improvements,Investigationsby far surpasses them and even gives fans a welcome inclusion as well. The original titles used wonderfully adorable sprite-based models, which in this remaster have been redone to become 2D artwork the series was known for before the leap to 3D. Fortunately not all is lost and players can freely swap between the original sprites and brand-new artwork at any time from the main home menu. The soundtrack is also worthwhile in not only how fantastic it is, but also for including a handful of fully-orchestrated renditions of some of the tracks which are an utter delight for the ears. The general user interface also saw a much-needed refresh going from two screens to one, with nothing feeling too cluttered or in the way.
Closing Comments:
At the time the first title was released,Investigationswas a wonderful breath of fresh air to the gameplay people had come to know and love. It gave a different approach to a similar idea with familiar characters, while still feeling true and faithful to everything up to this point. Not only do they have outstanding stories, but memorable moments that we’re thrilled can be experienced with the second title finally localized for the first time. Now that fans finally have access to every mainline Ace Attorney title on modern platforms, we can’t wait to see what comes next for the franchise. Until then, however, it’s well worth checking outAce Attorney Investigations Collectionfor anyone who has or hasn’t checked out these wonderful titles before.
Ace Attorney Investigations Collection
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch
Miles Edgeworth takes on the protagonist role in Ace Attorney Investigations as he strives to uncover the true villains of every crime, while also trying to rediscover what it truly means to be a prosecutor.
