Man. Where do I even begin. I’m so late to trying this series, it’s not even funny. But I’m so glad I’ve finally tried it. I should note that the first video games that ever snagged my attention were point and click adventures, of which I would posit that Ace Attorney is simply an evolution. Exploring, picking up items, attempting to logically solve puzzles by using this item with another and picking proper dialog responses. But I admit it’s been an extremely long time since I’ve played a title of this genre that inspired any serious devotion.
So imagine my shock when I started playing Phoenix Wright and could not put the damn game down!
I think that it’s likely the most sophisticated and well-done logic-driven adventure game series that I’ve ever tried thus far. The Myst series approaches this, of course, but Myst worlds are largely about observing and understanding mechanical systems, whereas Phoenix Wright allows you to explore concepts of human motivation and emphasize the usage of small clues to put together a huge story.
There are really no words to describe the feeling of utter contentment when you finally figure out the flaw in a witness testimony and know exactly how to put it to the test. As well as the feeling when a witness gives testimony and you immediately blurt out “OBJECTION!” not because the game requires it (in my case, it didn’t… no mic support on Wii), but because you’re actually riled up!
Even better, the missions are full of colorful (ahaha) characters and narratives that were, at least for me, absurdly compelling. In the first game, especially, I was frequently surprised by the quality of the cases and the sheer quantity of pieces of evidence you were expected to make sense of… and impressed by how well everything fit together. I had thought I’d be satisfied just solving cases, but I have to admit that the writers’ decision to make cases more personal ended up being a really good one, for the sake of furthering character development and attachment.
So naturally, I quite adore both Phoenix and Edgeworth, now. Oh, and Pearls is adorable. And Oldbag, without fail, makes me laugh.
Of course, it’s not without its flaws. There were numerous times where I was stuck in a situation where I KNEW what the contradiction was, but couldn’t quite decide which evidence to stick to which statement to get my point across; i.e. I knew the answer, but I wasn’t totally sure how to tell the game that I knew. Some refinement in that area would be nice, but it’s a difficult problem to solve perfectly for all people, no doubt.
There’s also the unrelated fact that the game I played was a Wii port. For the most part, it wasn’t make or break, but there were some retarded points… like the fact that they would actually show a double screen when you were supposed to “point out what’s wrong with this photograph”, so the picture would show up really small. Arrggh.
There was … a LOT of reading, which I’m fine by… … unless it’s the fifth time I’m seeing it. After dying, you resume from your last save point, which while the game prompts you on occasion… it’s still probably like 50-60 dialog screens that you have to sit through before you get back to where you were. I know they do it so that you are forced to think about your answers before you give them, but mostly it just resulted in me learning to save often and frequently if I was low on health.
(I also would’ve favored an “auto-play” option that would just let the dialog pass and act as if the player was hitting the button immediately… since I’m a fast reader and I got tired of clicking next all the time. Obviously this is a poor choice to have on by default, but still… >__> )
I also abhorred the UI they used for getting from location to location. It was incredibly annoying to travel through five different screens when I knew exactly where I wanted to go and it’s not like I get walking animations anyway. While I don’t think the opposite would have been any better (throwing all locations onto one screen), there had to be a better way to handle this. Floor plans, at least… or only having separate screens for different locations, rather than a completely abstract series of menus.
Sound effects and music were great embellishments. I appreciated the “ding!”s that sounded when something important came up, so that I’d be sure to re-read the section more carefully and then not have to search through piles of screens and dialog when I’m stumped. I appropriately felt a crap ton of dread and inevitably became way more cautious whenever that resonating “suspense” theme sounded.
The graphics weren’t amazing, but the characters had … character, even when it was just text. The stills and expressions were helpful, but I was frequently astounded by how personalities were conveyed through text. Oldbag’s rampant ranting, for example, where they actually take control of the pace of the conversation out of your hands when she starts to ramble… very cute touch. :x
Anyway. Very much enjoyed these two games and will definitely be getting the third when it’s available. (qq, there go all my wii points…) Highly recommended if there are any slackers like me who have yet to try it. >_>;
And… definitely think we’ll put this up on the big screen if we have a party in the summer, as long as those who already know the cases promise to keep their mouths shut and let the others puzzle it out. ;x
