"If you loved the first 3 Phoenix Wright games, you'll love this."

If you go into Apollo Justice expecting Phoenix Wright 4, you will be disappointed. However, if you go expecting a fun entry in the series, you'll love this game, as you could make a case for this being the best in the series. This time around, you play as Apollo, a rookie attorney, with an almost entirely new cast (although there are a few returning characters) and take on new cases.

Game play
If you are a veteran to the series, you won't find much different here. A few l little fun investigation things, such as identifying footprints and seeing under things with an X-ray. They are just diversions from the main game play, however. For people new to the series, you are trying to get your client found not guilty. You go around, investigate, examine, and talk to characters to try to find out information that leads you to the truth. Once you have found everything, you go to court, and cross-examine witness to find the truth.

Cases and Characters
These two things are the most important part of an Ace Attorney game. I figure they deserve their own sections. Unfortunately, there are only four this time around. The first case is by far the best first case in the series. The second and third cases are also great for “filler” cases, although they actually matter to the story. The fourth case is the cause of some controversy, as the cult following this series has is very split on it, as some of them love it and some of them. I personally like it. The characters are brilliant, you'll feel emotion towards every single one of them, even if it isn't always positive. This game really is almost like an interactive book.

Graphics and Sound
The Graphics are the best in the series. The markedly improve over the first three games, but at the same time manage to stay true to them. They look better, but no different. It looks great, nothing really to say about it though. The whole series has amazing music, and this game is no exception. It's incredibly brilliant, and it does a wonderful job of setting the mood. The Objections are a bit lacking this time, especially Apollo's, but I would not call them terrible. It's just too much fun to yell in the mike for it to be terrible.

Play time and replay ability
My only major grief with this game is that it's too short. I breezed threw all four cases in less then a week. I played it a lot during that week, but it does an amazing job of sucking you in. I'd say you could get anywhere from 25 to 60 hours of game play, depending on your experience level. However, I would consider all the cases worth a replay. At least once, probably a few times.

Pros, cons, and recommendations
Major Pros
++Same old Ace Attorney format
++Brilliant writing and characters
++New Cast is well implemented

Major Cons
-- Only four cases

Minor Pros
+Awesome Music
+Great Replay ability
+Old characters are not overused
+Starts with a bang

Minor Cons
-Apollo's Objection really does not fit him well
-It feels sometimes like one gigantic case instead of four regular sized ones

Recommendation:
Buy. Right now. You won't regret it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 03/07/08

Game Release: Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (US, 02/19/08)