"Anyone turning away from Apollo because of his first impression is going to make Phoenix cry"

By now, the Ace Attorney series has become widely known amongst the gaming community. Without even having played any of the games, many gamers can now match the word "OBJECTION!" with the series, all thanks to the finger-pointing of the titular character of the first game, Phoenix Wright.

Seven years later (in both real world time since the first game was released in Japan AND seven years in the game's own timeline) a new face in the series has reached North American shores under the Ace Attorney name: Apollo Justice. Yes, it's sad, but it looks like Capcom has decided to end Phoenix's story arc. Can Polly live up to his predecessor? Many people say no, saying that he's clearly not as well developed or interesting as Phoenix. If you're one of those people, just remember: Phoenix never judged his clients based on how bad things looked at first. Long time fans, (in particular) you're not going to disappoint Phoenix and make a quick judgment based on Apollo's first performance, are you?

STORY

Set seven years after the conclusion of Trials and Tribulations (the third game in the Ace Attorney series) rookie Apollo Justice has just passed the Bar exam and is about to begin his first trial. The good news: he's under the guidance of his mentor, Kristoph Gavin. The bad news: Apollo's first client isn't just any regular person...it's none other than Phoenix Wright himself. But wait...Phoenix isn't sporting his attorney's badge anymore! What could have happened to him? Why would he want Apollo to defend him in court rather than be defended by Kristoph, Phoenix's friend and the best defense attorney in town? And what connection does Apollo fit into everything? All these questions and more will be raised as Apollo starts his career.

Anyway, the story in AJ follows the same formula as it did when Phoenix was at the helm. An innocent person is accused of murder, and it's up to Apollo to take their case to court and find the true culprit. And, as in previous games, you'll find that some of the cases are connected to one another somehow, all leading up to a final case that ties all the loose ends together.

Speaking of the cases, allow me to elaborate on them a little bit. Before I played this game, I heard a few negative things about the cases, namely that they were boring and predictable. Well, allow me to put those rumors to rest. The cases in Apollo Justice are well told and very enjoyable. If you've liked the cases in the past games, then you should be perfectly satisfied with the new cases AJ has to offer. All of them are fairly long and are every bit as good as-if not better than-the ones Phoenix dealt with during his days in court.

However, that doesn't mean there aren't any problems. In previous games, the stories have been told though quirky and lovable characters who almost seemed like old friends by the time the game was over. AJ, however, pretty much scraps every single one of these characters in favor of an entirely new cast. This wouldn't be so bad had the replacement characters not been shallow carbon copies of their predecessors. For instance, Maya is gone and your new assistant is a little fifteen-year old magician named Trucy. Sure, Trucy has energy, but she doesn't have the same charm. Then there's Ema Skye, who takes over for the lovable, goofy and hopelessly inept Detective Gumshoe. Yes, if you played the DS port of the first Phoenix Wright game, you may remember Ema as the determined high school scientist in the bonus fifth case. Sadly, she has since become a bossy and mediocre investigator who won't stop eating snacks. Then there's Klavier, the new prosecutor and courtroom adversary, who started as a lawyer at age seventeen and becomes a rock star for his popular band at night. While it's great that he cares more about justice being served than beating the Defense (for a change!) he doesn't pack too much pressure in court. Phoenix himself has changed from being the dorky and sarcastic attorney we all know and love and becomes mysterious, quiet low-life. And I hope you're next expecting to see too many of those old faces, because only a handful of characters from Phoenix's trilogy return. Better yet, I hope you're not even expecting a reference to any of those characters.

Other people will argue that an issue with AJ's plot lies in the fact that this game's plot focuses more on Phoenix than Apollo. That's not really a problem for me, because anyone who's played the previous three games knows that AA and JFA were more of Edgeworth's story, and T&T was the Fey's story, even though Phoenix was the protagonist for all three of them. So the issue isn't exactly how the story focuses on Phoenix...it's how Phoenix completely overshadows Apollo. This isn't a big problem in cases two and three, but in the very first case Phoenix practically defends himself while all but telling Apollo what to do and present. It still feels like Phoenix is the one in control and the one making all the big decisions, not Apollo, which was a little disappointing.

Setting those problems aside, the story to AJ is a reminder as to why Ace Attorney games are so awesome. Okay, so an entirely new cast of less interesting characters is thrown in to replace an older and more lovable one which doesn't appear or even have more than a subtle reference made here and there, and Phoenix steals the spotlight from Apollo on more than one occasion. Still, the plot to AJ is satisfying and enjoyable, much like the games before it. There are plot twists left and right, some of the new characters are fun to interact with, and it's still the same basic experience any fan of the series has come to know and love.

GAMEPLAY

The way AJ plays is almost identical to how the first three games in the series did, which is a good and bad thing. While it's the exact same formula that allowed the first game to give an unparalleled experience, the old problems still persist. Thankfully, AJ has thrown a few new gameplay features in to liven up the experience a little.

One of the most notable new features is Apollo's version of Phoenix's magatama. With the aid of his special bracelet, Apollo can look at whoever is on the witness stand and be able to detect when they're lying or hiding something based on their body language. To use this feature, wait for Apollo's bracelet to react to the testimony at hand and look for any peculiar gestures...is the witness gulping? Scratching the back of their neck? Quickly looking away? Fiddling with their fingers? This ability, being able to "perceive" witness's lies, sadly isn't seen too much, nor is it too challenging and involving for the most part, but it's a nice add-on.

But the additions don't stop in the courtroom. Anyone who played the first game in the series remembers the forensic aspects of the DS-exclusive fifth case that involved things like dusting for fingerprints or studying a video tape. Because AJ is the first game in the series to be made exclusively for the DS instead of being a port from a GBA game, these forensic aspects are back. In addition to fingerprints and reviewing a video, you can now analyze sheets of paper, shoeprints, and more. Sadly, these features are relatively simple and don't add a heck of a lot to the investigations, and each feature is only used once in the game.

The rest of the gameplay is exactly the same as older. One aspect involves traveling to the scene of the crime and other locations to gather evidence, interview witnesses, and talk to your client. This plays out in a typical point-and-click style where you check anything suspicious and present evidence to witnesses to try and jog their memory.

Once you've collected all the evidence and talked to everyone you need to, you move on to court. Here, witnesses will testify about why they think your client is the killer. From there, you can press them, which will make Apollo ask them a question that's related to the statement they just made. Or when the witness says something that directly contradicts a piece of evidence, (like the witness saying the victim was strangled when the autopsy report said the victim was smashed over the head with something) you present the corresponding piece of evidence at the appropriate statement to have Apollo yell out a hearty "Objection!". This process repeats itself until the truth is finally revealed or when there are too many questions to answer and more investigating is required.

In short, nothing has really changed as far as the gameplay goes, even with some of the new additions thrown in. But even though the gameplay is still almost identical to what's been seen since the very first game in the series, it still makes for a fun and enjoyable experience. (after all, this is one instance where the story is more important than the gameplay) Of course, with the classic gameplay comes the classic problems. For starters, the game won't let you advance to court unless you've done EVERYTHING you need to in order to win the case. While it may save you frustration in court, it could prove annoying when you have to go from one scene to another and present every piece of evidence or carefully examine every square inch of each area without any idea of what you're forgetting to do.

The problems continue in court. Any veterans of the series have probably experienced many moments when they know what they're trying to say, but they don't know how to say it with the evidence, which ultimately gets them stuck on a part that they shouldn't be. Also, expect to find yourself in a few spots when you know what you'll have to do or what the solution to one of the mysteries of the case is, but you'll be forced to move along at the game's slower pace as you find out the truth much more gradually. And let's not forget the times when there's more than one right piece of evidence to get your point across, but the game won't accept it because it doesn't match the linear path it has set out for you.

GRAPHICS

After three games, the Ace Attorney series finally gets a bit of a face lift. This time, the environments and areas looks much more brightly colored and detailed than they did in the older games. The amount of jagged edges has been reduced (or at least doesn't look as obvious) and everything just looks cleaner. And to add on to that, the character animations are much more fluid in AJ. In older games, Phoenix could be standing at his bench in full-concentration mode, and, in the time it would take to blink, he'd suddenly have his jaw on the floor. In AJ, however, the transition is much more smooth. When Apollo gets stunned by something, you can see every little bit of the transition from looking calm to panicked instead of just seeing the start and end.

At its core, the graphics are really just updated for the DS. Even though the sharper details in the environments and the more fluid animations are a nice welcome, everything is still essentially the same.

SOUND

Like the graphics, the sounds in the game make a smooth transition. While all Ace Attorney games feature new music tracks for court and investigations, the music in AJ has a completely new feel to it instead of just adding new tracks. But the neat part is that, even though a lot of the songs are styled very differently from Phoenix's games, some tunes are obviously reminiscent of the older tunes in the series. (for instance, about seven seconds of AJ's Cornered theme is almost exactly like the Cornered theme from the first game, despite the fact the two tracks sound very different from each other) Just to bring it all home, AJ even recycles some of the old songs at certain parts, which will bring nostalgia to any long-time fan.

Also, anyone familiar with the series knows that there are plenty of songs in each game which effectively match whatever is happening on screen. Thankfully, AJ is no different. There will be upbeat themes for some characters and times, and there will be intense music that plays when something big is about to go down in court, and some of the tunes are just flat out depressing. (I promise you, 'Forgotten Legend' will be one of the saddest songs you'll ever hear in a video game)

The traditional sound effects that any fan has grown accustomed to are still here, from the beeping noise whenever text is scrolling on screen, to the sound of desks being slammed, to the *ding* whenever Apollo gets an idea, and all the other classic sound effects that have been seen before. And of course, every attorney still yells "OBJECTION!" from time to time, along with more recent versions of "Hold it!", "Take that!" and the newly "Gotcha!" for Apollo.

All in all, there is nothing really to complain about. I can't think of one tune off the top of my head that I didn't like in this game. AJ is definitely a candidate for having the best soundtrack in the series.

LENGTH

AJ has a very acceptable length as far as a handheld game goes. Despite the fact it felt shorter than some of the previous entries in the series, you'll still get your money's worth out of it. Be prepared to invest at least ten to fifteen hours if you intend to play AJ.

REPLAYABILITY

Ouch, ouch, ouch. No matter how awesome the plot, characters or music may be, no Ace Attorney title ever seems to make it passed this final hurdle unscathed. Just like its predecessors, AJ offers no real reason to go back and play through it again. There's almost always only one way to go from one point in the game to another with no alternate paths, no special cases to unlock, and you'll already know the whole story after playing through it once. (Need I remind you this whole series is story driven?) Unless you want to go back and play it again the same way you'd go back to read a good book, or if you want to pick up on some jokes or hints you missed the first time, there's nothing that would really compel anyone to play it again.

PROS

+ Great overall story
+ Series gets a fresh start
+ Good music
+ Graphics are updated
+ New gameplay features
+ Pretty good length
+ At its heart, it's still the same courtroom drama and comedy

CONS

- New characters are less interesting versions of older ones
- Still no replay value
- Can be easy to get stuck
- No reference to many older characters

CLOSING NOTES

I was nervous when I first heard some things about AJ, but after playing through it I'm happy to report that all my concerns were ill-founded. There's still plenty of witty dialogue to at least make you smirk, and the complex and intriguing stories are still the highlight. And even if some of the cases are predictable and the new characters do a mediocre job replacing the older ones, there is still plenty to enjoy about AJ.

Fans of the series will no doubt want to get this, but if you're a newcomer to the series there has never been a better time to hop on board. While it might have been confusing to start with the second or third installment in the Ace Attorney series, it's very easy to begin with AJ, the fourth one. It's the start of a brand new story arc and there isn't anything about the past games that you need to know in order to understand the story to this one. Yes, you might miss some little references here and there, but it's nothing major.

It may take some time, but it looks like Apollo has some great potential. Now all we have to do is wait for the next one.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/25/08, Updated 09/25/08

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