why is ace attorney popular

by Waino Yundt 5 min read

The iconic detective TV show has been a huge source of inspiration for Ace Attorney. It makes sense, doesn't it? After all, the show is about exposing the criminal by finding the right evidence. "I've been a big fan of the show since I was in elementary school, and there's even a scene or two in the games that were inspired by it," Takumi says.

Over the last 20 years, the series' combination of unique gameplay (players go out on “investigations” in search of clues before returning to the courtroom to “battle” the other lawyer), witty charm, and memorable characters have turned it from one of Capcom's lesser-known series into a fan-favorite complete with ...Jul 26, 2021

Full Answer

Is Ace Attorney an accurate representation of the legal system?

Oct 24, 2013 · It's popular among just about everyone who knows about it and tried it, but there's a lack of people who actually know about it and have tried it. That's why I hope they will release PLvAA in the west, because that would lead to many Professor Layton fans to …

What can you do in Ace Attorney?

Jul 09, 2021 · Ace Attorney: Fan Translations. Ace Attorney’s localization team is clearly one of its biggest strengths, making the games as sharp and witty in English as they were in the original Japanese. Without them, the franchise likely wouldn’t be as popular as it is today.

Is there an English version of the Great Ace Attorney?

Jun 28, 2012 · Ace Attorney is the first true, bona fide success story, due to a variety of factors. To recap, you have an accomplished director, one that had the utmost comfort level with the subject matter ...

What video games are inspired by Ace Attorney?

May 22, 2019 · In order to increase stakes, the “Ace Attorney” protagonists often find themselves in a case personally relevant to them. Sometimes a close friend is the victim, other times a companion is framed —...

image

What is the point of Ace Attorney?

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is a visual novel adventure game where the player takes the role of Phoenix Wright, a rookie defense attorney, and attempts to defend their clients in five cases. These cases are played in a specific order. After finishing them, the player can re-play them in any order.

Are the Ace Attorney games worth playing?

The original trilogy is all interconnected enough you really need to play all of them to get the most out of it. Investigations is the only outlier that doesn't really matter much in the grand scheme, but it's still pretty good, so it's also worth playing.Nov 26, 2013

Did Great Ace Attorney sell well?

Titles which sold more than 1 million copies each are listed with videos and screen shots. So according to Official Franchise Capcom sales: Ace Attorney series is currently at 8.6M sold. Previously it was around 8.2M, in other words, it went up by 400K.Nov 2, 2021

Is Ace Attorney age appropriate?

The content of this game is suitable for persons aged 7 years and over only. It contains: Non realistic looking violence towards fantasy characters. The content of this game is suitable for persons aged 12 years and over only. It contains: Mild bad language.

Why did Phoenix Wright Stop being a lawyer?

Beginning his career under Mia Fey in 2016, he was disbarred in 2019 after unknowingly presenting forged evidence.

Is Ace Attorney realistic?

The Ace Attorney series is a nice example of a fairly realistic game, even though the legal accuracy of Ace Attorney can sometimes be troubling, and the series can occasionally get things wrong about the law.Jul 15, 2016

Will Ace Attorney have 7?

According to a leaked roadmap (translated here), Ace Attorney 7 entered pre-production back in 2019, with main production kicking off across 2020 and 2021.Mar 28, 2022

How old is the Mega Man franchise?

The original game was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987, and spawned a franchise that expanded to over 50 games on multiple systems. As of March 31, 2021, the series has sold 37 million units worldwide.

How many Phoenix Wright games are there?

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies. The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice. The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve.

Is Ace Attorney inappropriate?

It DOES have minor inappropriate things (swear words (hell, damn, etc) and revealing outfits), however, it is a Japanese game.

Is Phoenix Wright popular?

According to Capcom itself, the Ace Attorney series has sold well over six million copies across its 15 year lifespan – that's impressive for what is rather a niche title.Sep 7, 2016

How many hours is Ace Attorney Phoenix Wright?

When focusing on the main objectives, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is about 18 Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 23 Hours to obtain 100% completion.

Punny Names and Wordplay

Puns and wordplay are a staple of Ace Attorney’s humorous writing. For example, many character names are puns in both Japanese and English. Phoenix Wright’s Japanese surname, Naruhodo, translates to “I understand” or “I see”. His English surname, Wright, also sounds like “right”, as in “that’s right”.

Turnabout Japanifornia

Ace Attorney’s plot, characters, and dialogue heavily rely on its Japanese setting. There are several characters who are spirit mediums, while others talk about soba, yokai, and rakugo. The series itself is both a parody and a criticism of Japan’s legal system.

Ace Attorney: Fan Translations

Ace Attorney’s localization team is clearly one of its biggest strengths, making the games as sharp and witty in English as they were in the original Japanese. Without them, the franchise likely wouldn’t be as popular as it is today.

How long is the statute of limitations for murder?

Surprisingly, here in the United States, the most common statute of limitations is even shorter: five years. But before you get your pickaxes and your arsenic ready, dear reader, statutes of limitations can vary, and for murder there is no time limit. But, as “Ace Attorney” is a Japanese game series, I decided to look into Japanese law, potentially putting myself on some FBI watchlist in the process. (In hindsight, googling “what is the statute of limitations for murder” several times throughout the last week is not a good look for me.)

What is the statute of limitations for gum ball theft?

A “statute of limitations,” while seeming like a random mesh of formal-sounding words, refers to the timespan after which a committed crime cannot be prosecuted. Say, you stole a gum ball from a candy store when you were 10, but the statute of limitations for gum ball-stealing is five years. That would mean, as a college student, you cannot be tried and charged for the crime of stealing that specific gum ball — you are off the hook, you felon.

How long does it take to be charged for murder in Ace Attorney?

In the world of “Ace Attorney,” the statute of limitations for murder is seven years, which is shockingly low when you stop to think about it. That means that, if you murdered someone at the first screening of “Despicable Me,” you could not be charged in the present day. Only the minions would know what you’ve done.

What does the bailiff shout in court?

This is a fun one. Imagine you, a typical defense lawyer, are going to court, dressing in your finest suit and eating a bagel. All things considered, it is a typical day. But suddenly, the bailiff comes barging in: “Hey!” the bailiff shouts. “Where is the defendant!?”

Why are the protagonists in Ace Attorney framed?

In order to increase stakes, the “Ace Attorney” protagonists often find themselves in a case personally relevant to them. Sometimes a close friend is the victim, other times a companion is framed — if you’re lucky, you could be settling a traumatic childhood event, too. Regardless, this is the extra incentive to get these underdog lawyers in the game.

What is conflict of interest in court?

To clarify, a conflict of interest refers to any occasion in which a party gains personal benefit from the outcomes and proceedings of the courtroom; in a sense, the interior processes of the trial and the exterior interests of the attorney become incompatible. If that is the definition of the dreaded conflict of interest, getting your assistant/love interest/mentor/childhood friend/pet whale off the electric chair is the dictionary example!

Do defense attorneys speak from the heart?

Whether our feisty lawyer is motivated by justice or if they are simply in pursuit of the truth, a defense attorney speaking from the heart and outing their guilty client is not heroic in the eyes of the legal system. Very rarely do defense attorneys, for starters, even inquire if their clients did the crime; it is not their main concern. The attorney must simply make the best case for their client’s innocence (or, if the defendant pleads guilty, make a good case for their lightened sentence) regardless of their personal opinion.

Why did Ace Attorney cool down?

This has partially been due to several entries skipping a Western release, the result of series sales receiving diminishing returns stateside.

Is Sherlock Holmes public domain?

Though the Sherlock Holmes character is mostly in the public domain, there are still quite a few adventures of his that are not. This is a lesser issue in countries where copyright and trademark laws are more lenient, but Western countries are usually a lot more stringent in that department. Thus, the upcoming compilation renames the character with the goofy moniker of Herlock Sholmes. Likewise, Iris's last name is changed from Watson to Wilson, severing the character's official ties to Doyle's work.

Is the Great Ace Attorney duology coming to the West?

Two overlooked games, the Great Ace Attorney duology, is finally coming to the West in the form of The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles. These games feature an ancestor of series star Phoenix Wright and a world-renowned (and potentially copyright infringing) detective of literary proportions. For the Western release, the games are getting around it with a slight name change.

How many Ace Attorney games are there?

With the Ace Attorney series nearing its 20th anniversary, it seems fitting to look back on the series so far. Each of its 11 games has tried something new, always experimenting and testing the best ways to tell a court-based visual novel.

What is the ace attorney trial?

The agreed-upon crown jewel of the Ace Attorney series, Trials and Tribulations allowed players to act as three different attorneys throughout the game while also bringing back important characters that make sense in the plot, rather than “just because." If being able to play as Mia Fey wasn't enough to earn first place on this list, then Phoenix Wright's college backstory most certainly is.

How long was Rise from the Ashes made?

Made in only 10 months by a team of 7 people, the game stars classic characters with wonderful arcs and resolutions, unforgettable music, and poignant ideals and messages throughout its whole being. Released with its additional case, Rise From The Ashes, the game became a hit with Western audiences and has paved the way for all the games seen on this list.

What is Apollo Justice?

In this game, players act as a new character, Apollo Justice, representing a passing of the torch from Phoenix to his “apprentice” figure. This signalled that Phoenix’s saga had come to a close (or so it seemed to indicate), and players were able to see characters grow and evolve during the 7 years that had passed since the last game.

Can you play Dai Gyakuten Saiban in English?

Thanks to extremely dedicated Ace Attorney fans, English-speaking gamers can play through the entirety of Dai Gyakuten Saiban: Naruhodō Ryūnosuke no Bōken thanks to complete fan translation, Scarlet Study, which thankfully has no hilarious errors or typos that translated games can have.

Is Miles Edgeworth a character?

A welcome addition to the series, Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth is the first full game to feature Miles Edgeworth as a protagonist, a complex character (and fan-favourite). Having been playable for a short period in Ace Attorney: Trials & Tribulations, it was almost inevitable that Edgeworth would receive his own series of games. The prosecutor's inner thought process is a delight to watch.

Is Ace Attorney a crossover?

This ranks lower on the list due to its being a crossover, containing Professor Layton-style puzzles and therefore less actual Ace Attorney gameplay. The only main series characters that make an appearance Phoenix and Maya (and Edgeworth, briefly.) Nevertheless, this game is a worthy tribute to both series, with wonderfully-crafted 3D models and excellent music throughout.

image

Overview

Development

The series was created by Shu Takumi, who wrote and directed the first three games. The first game was conceived in 2000 when Takumi's boss at the time, Shinji Mikami, gave him six months to create any type of game he wanted to; Takumi had originally joined Capcom wanting to make mystery and adventure games, and felt that this was a big chance for him to make a mark as a creator…

Games

The Ace Attorney series launched in Japan with the Game Boy Advance game Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney in 2001, and has been published in the West since the release of a Nintendo DS port in 2005. The series currently consists of six main series games and five spin-offs. Additionally, two titles that collect the first three main series games have been released: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney TrilogyHD, which was released for iOS and Android in 2012 in Japan and for iOS in 201…

Common elements

The Ace Attorney games are visual novel adventure games in which the player controls defense attorneysand defends their clients in several different episodes. The gameplay is split into two types of sections: investigations and courtroom trials. During the investigations, the player searches the environments, gathering information and evidence, and talks to characters such as their client, witnesses, and the police. Once enough evidence has been collected, the game mov…

Localization

The localization of the first game was outsourced to Bowne Global, and was handled by the writer Alexander O. Smithand the editor Steve Anderson. While the Japanese version takes place in Japan, the localized version is set in the United States: because one of the episodes involves time zones, they had to specify where the game takes place, and chose the United States without thinking a lot about it. The Japanese justice system of the original still remained intact in the loc…

Reception

The Ace Attorney series has been well received by critics, and has performed well commercially: in December 2009, it was Capcom's 9th-best-selling series of all time, and in October 2010, they called it one of their "strongest intellectual properties", with more than 3.9 million units sold worldwide. By December 2013, the series had sold over 5 million units. In the United States, the first game became surprisingly successful, forcing Capcom to prepare at least three additional r…

Related media and other appearances

The Takarazuka Revue, an all-female theater troupe, has adapted the series into stage musicals: 2009's Ace Attorney: Truth Resurrected, which is based on the last episode of the first game; 2010's Ace Attorney 2: Truth Resurrected Again, whose first act is an original story, and whose second is based on the final episode of the second game; and 2013's Ace Attorney 3: Prosecutor Miles Edg…

Legacy

In 2015, GamesRadar+ named the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney as the 55th-best video game of all time. In 2016, Famitsu readers voted Gyakuten Saiban as the second-most memorable Game Boy Advance title (behind only Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire) and Gyakuten Saiban 123 as the tenth-best Nintendo 3DS game. In 2017, Famitsu readers voted Gyakuten Saiban the third-best adventure gameof …