The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures

I feel like Ace Attorney games all have the same positives in that it's just an addictive and very engaging formula. It's really just the perfect VN recipe, and that doesn't change here. But, with the new setting and new mechanics, it takes so long to actually ramp up to something and go places, and even when it does go places, it usually spends way too much time there anyways. This sets up good groundwork for the sequel though, which I've heard is miles better, so I'm fairly hopeful, but this is definitely the hardest I've tried to complete one of these before. Sherlock is perfect though, I need there to be more of him.

To those who might've noticed, I am a huge fan of the Ace Attorney franchise. Mostly thanks to my girlfriend, but that's beside the point. I've played the original Phoenix Wright trilogy, the two Miles Edgeworth: Investigation games, I've watched the anime adaptation of the original trilogy and I've now beaten this hidden gem. (I promise I'll play the Apollo games soon). This one is most interesting to me. The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures came out in 2015 for the 3DS. The only problem for people living in Europe and North America... Was that this game was a Japanese Exclusive. It was inaccessible through legit means. The only way could play it legitimately was if you bought a Japanese 3DS, Learned to read and speak Japanese, and buy the game. The majority of people (And something I planned on doing) used 3DS Emulators to run a fan translation of the game. Just like how most people (Myself included) played Investigations 2 which was also Japanese Exclusive for the DS. It wasn't until a few months ago where Capcom announced The Great Ace Attorney: Chronicles, a port and official localization of the two games in the series. So I can finally play this and without the use of an emulator.

The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures has a great setting and story that makes it unique. Rather than taking place in modern times like the other games, The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures takes place during the Meiji Era of Japan (More specifically the late 1800s) where you follow Phoenix Wright's ancestor, Ryunosuke Naruhodo as he travels from Japan to London, England on a quest to prove himself as a defense lawyer. I love the setting because not only is it different, it allows the cases to be more unpredictable. Fingerprints aren't a thing during this period, blood tests aren't a thing in this period. In fact, Judicial Practice hasn't been fully established at the time. It makes every case and event feel fresh and fun.

And the cases... My goodness, they are good. There are 5 total chapters in this game and like the previous games, have a murder, investigation, court case, and conclusion. One of the biggest issues with this franchise is the pacing. Some cases drag out for WAY TOO long. Some cases can be around 10 hours long and they eventually become a slog to go through. Though this game has that issue (And according to my girlfriend, cases in the 3D style of games tend to be way longer than the 2D Hand-Drawn Style) I never got bored or tired. I don't mind chapters being long as long as they keep my interest throughout and it doesn't become a case like Investigations where I find out who the murderer and the big twist is but I still got like 5 hours more of the chapter. I had fun throughout and though there were some dumb moments, I never got tired or impatient with it.

And my god... The Music is mindblowing. One of my favorite tracks in the series by far. It's great.

The gameplay this time around is a lot more interesting. Investigating is the same old stuff but with the addition of some side stuff. 2 very interesting characters in this game are Iris Wilson (A 10-year old genius based on the fictional character, John H. Watson) and her partner, Herlock Sholmes (Obviously based on Sherlock Holmes). I won't get into much detail about the characters (They are fantastic though). But the big gameplay system in the Investigations of the game is where the suspect/witness is hiding the truth, Iris or Herlock will start their "Logic and Reasoning Spectacular" and attempt to expose them. Then you must fill in the blanks to come up with a conclusion. It's fun and amazingly animated. The court cases also have a system called the Jury System. 6 Jurors will vote for either guilty or non-guilty. If they vote Guilty, you have a chance to do a Summation Examination to sway their decision by pitting their arguments against each other. It's really fun and paced well.

This game has a wonderful story because of its characters. The already mentioned Ryunosuke Naruhodo, Herlock Sholmes, Iris Wilson, and other characters like your assistant, Susato Mikotoba, and rival prosecutor, Lord Barok Van Zieks. All of these characters have some surprising depth and fun personalities that make the game's writing and acting so fun.

The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures is a great game filled with fun characters, good pacing, fantastic music, and a fantastic ending that makes me so utterly excited to play the sequel in this duology. I love it

I'll say it plainly and simply at the outset: The Great Ace Attorney Adventures is a game that leans heavily on two great cases, but bumbles around trying to set up its world and characters for far too long.

The first case is almost wholly unremarkable if not for a standout character in Jezail Brett. Jezail is a haughty Englishwoman, and nearly every line of dialogue she utters is memorable. Her unique speech bubble is absolutely perfect, and this otherwise mediocre case is bumped up just enough by her mere presence.

The second case is a first for the series, in that it does not have a court section. It's another mediocre case propped up slightly this time by Sherlock Holmes and his dance of deduction. Choosing the wrong answers in the deduction segments is legitimately hilarious. However, it doesn't really change the fact that none of the new characters in this case are likable in the slightest, other than Sherlock.
The character I hate most is our judicial assistant, Susato. Susato's gimmick is incredibly annoying. Every time she throws Naruhodo and I have to look at her through that upsidedown dutch angle, I just want to turn the game off. I haven't hated an assistant this much since Kay Faraday in Ace Attorney Investigations 2 [逆転検事2].

The third case, however, is where the game gets good. This case is absolutely brilliant, tasking you with defending a charismatic client in a case you have zero time to prepare for. The aftermath is filled with this air of uncertainty that the series has never done before, leaving behind an insanely memorable case that may even inspire you to immediately go back and replay it to check if your memory is correct.
I never thought an Ace Attorney game would ever go for "your client is actually guilty" after 2-4. I also never thought they'd be able to pull it off again, and in such a different fashion. This case legitimately ranks among the best in the entire series.

The fourth case brings us back down to earth by being completely and irredeemably nonsensically moronic. The truth behind the events is immediately obvious during the investigation. Holmes saying that "it may not be relevant to your case" is a complete farce if you understand how mystery stories work. The true culprit is perhaps the most unlikable in the series, and the method behind the crime is ridiculous and unacceptably terrible.
This case would go down among the worst of the worst in the series (2-3, 4-3) if it didn't have one thing those two cases are missing: likable characters. Unlike 2-3 and 4-3, this case features a fun defendant and two GREAT witnesses. Pat and Roly are the OTP. Pat and Roly save this case from the depths and make it bearable, but only barely.

The final case resolves the questions brought up by the third case, and features its own mystery. I love how the final case isn't some huge political conspiracy, or shadowy espionage, or whatever high stakes final cases usually are. It features a simple location, a simple victim, and still has some high stakes and political tension thrown in for good measure.
I was worried that when they answered the questions from the third case, it would be unsatisfying, but I'm glad I was wrong. This case is brilliant. The culprit is memorable and satisfying to bring down, and he puts up a good fight without it devolving into overly-long dumb bullshit like in Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth [逆転検事].
In addition, the three Skulkin Brothers are some of the most fun witnesses the series has ever had. Their animations, their dialogue, everything.

In the end, this game is propped up by two amazing cases, the third and fifth. The rest of the game is honestly nothing to write home about.
The game reminds me a bit of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All [逆転裁判2] in a way. It starts off mediocre, the penultimate case is absolute garbage, but the final case pulls it out of the gutter and makes sure your final impression makes you forgive some of its early faults.

This game's story lacks in many places and Susato is a bad character but Sherlock Holmes is genuinely my favorite non-edgeworth character in the entire Ace Attorney franchise. Case 2 and 3 are good, the rest aren't really. My main problem is that the game just doesn't go deep enough into the characters for me to care much about anything going on, which is probably why there's a second game. The soundtrack, however, is my favorite Ace Attorney soundtrack other than the first entry's.