Geek Review – Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy

The Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy has finally brought its brand of madcap investigation and lawyerly debates onto other platforms. While it has given rise to a bevvy of sequels and spin-offs, the original three games remain the best way to experience the unique nature of Phoenix Wright in the best of ways.

From pun-filled and dramatic courtroom confrontations, to hilarious investigations, this is an unapologetic series that wears its heart on its sleeve, and PlayStation 4 owners can now be their own judge of the franchise. However, with no added content or bonuses, returning fans may have little reason to jump onboard.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Justice For All, and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trials and Tribulations have about 60 hours of gameplay, broken up into individual trials that require your astute observation, investigation, and cross-examinations.

To say that the cases and the stories surrounding them all make sense can be a shock, considering the bombastic nature of the series, but they hold up well. The writers have managed to weave together the absurd and the logical in ways that can be pleasantly surprising, and the overarching throughline that begins in the first game and ends off in the third is a satisfying end to the trilogy.

While you can hardly fail at the game, Phoenix Wright does reward you for being observant and paying attention to details, both verbal and physical ones. Be it certain dialogue or items, they can be essential to the cases in ways that can be overlooked at first, but always pan out in the end.

Presenting evidence, pressing on suspicious statements, and catching witnesses in their lies are all integral parts of Phoenix Wright’s gameplay, and the lengths the games go to are often crazy enough to be believable in this world.

However, Capcom’s adherence to a linear design would mean that there is really only one part to success, even if the evidence tells you otherwise. Perhaps it is to ensure players get through all the cross-examinations and investigations to fully appreciate the story, but the lack of multiple paths could be upsetting to some.

The characters remain a delight, with Phoenix himself a likeable character who swings from the slapstick to determined steeliness. Miles Edgeworth is also worth a mention, developing along a character arc that is captivating, to say the least. The victims, villains, and supporting casts all make their mark in their time in the spotlight, and that is hard to say for most games.

As a remaster of sorts, the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy definitely looks much better than its handheld iterations. The characters and environments all look sharp and clean, perfect for your high-resolution televisions, but it has also lost some of its spritely charm that was present in the originals.

If you can appreciate the narrative-heavy nature of the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy, then chances are you will be having fun throughout the entire experience.

Unless you are a returning player, this compelling trilogy of courtroom drama, great writing, and charming characters mark this as one of the most attractive visual novel collection ever, and it would be a crime to miss out on them.