VisualNovel A breath of fresh air for Ace Attorney
The Ace Attorney franchise has been past its prime for a while, but The Great Ace Attorney spinoff breathes new life into the series with a change of setting and several other innovations.
Unlike other AA games, which take place in the 21st century, TGAA takes place in Great Britain at the start of the 20th century, and stars Ryunosuke Naruhodo, Phoenix Wright(aka Ryuichi Naruhodo)'s ancestor, a visiting Japanese law student. The overarching plot is well-written and engaging, with most of the cases tying in to the plot in some form or another, although the significance of each case is not always apparent until the latter half of the second game (which is why it's good the games were bundled together).
The setting is a strong point of the duology. The less advanced technology rules out modern crime solving techniques such as fingerprinting and forensic science, thus making cases harder, while the Deliberate Values Dissonance is on full display, with many Londoners' open xenophobia, classism and sexism being considered socially acceptable.
The characters are generally well-done. Ryunosuke has a good character arc as he grows as an attorney and a person, although it can be frustrating to see him take a while to notice obvious things and easily lose spirit in the face of the prosecution's rebuttal, at least at first. Susato is remarkably competent and serious for an assistant, which is a nice change of pace. Prosecutor van Zieks is a surprisingly complicated and interesting character, but due to the slow burn nature of the duology, it takes longer than average for him to start being likeable compared to other prosecutors. The final villain is a bit underwhelming due to being a bit too Obviously Evil and reminiscent of a past antagonist(I won't say who to avoid spoilers), but most of the culprits are rather memorable and engaging.
Like most other AA titles, the cases vary in quality, from great to terrible, although Case 4 of the first game is the only truly weak case in my opinion, and the rest are quite good.
The investigation segments help keep the player from getting lost without hand-holding, by showing what the player has examined before and having the assistant give subtle clues as to whether the player has gathered all evidence in an area.
There are two new trial mechanics. The Dance of Deduction, like the Magatama, adds an element of puzzle-solving to investigations, as you find the evidence(some at the scene, some in the Court Record) to solve the mysteries. The jury forces you to question jurors and find contradictions between their statements, an interesting twist on the standard trial that makes good use of the British court setting. Somewhat annoyingly, though, there are times when you have to investigate evidence in 3D to find new clues before you can present it, even if said clues are rather obvious.
In short, TGAA is a breath of fresh air for AA, and I hope future AA spinoffs take cues from it.
VisualNovel Strong Gameplay Fundamentals Propping Up Flawed Individual Narratives: A Review of the First Game/First Half of the Game
Is it unfair of me to only review the first half of this title? Maybe, but I don't think so. It may have been intended as a two-part experience, and from that angle, I think judging it as a standalone is valid, even if it was sold to me as a combination-pack.
So, to start with, what even is this spin-off? Well, it's a classic idea: a Victorian-era prequel guest starring the original Captain Ersatz, Herlock Sholmes! Which is an inspired idea, really, for a franchise that's always been as much about detective work as legal drama. Young Ryunosuke Naruhodo, completing a running gag that's only gotten funnier as the games roll on and new young prodigy cast members keep showing up, a mere student in Meiji Japan, is about to go on trial for a crime he didn't commit, and feels obligated to defend himself rather than yet his equally-too-young friend risk his reputation in court. Fortunately for Naruhodo, much like his descendant, he turns out to be a genius, and through a series of events too truly weird to describe, he ends up having to work as a defense attorney in London, with a side cast of colorful, if not classic at least Holmes-inspired characters. The aesthetics look great, masterfully blending the series' trademark over-the-top characters and designs with Victorian style and music.
And for what it's worth, the gameplay is pretty solid. There are a few missteps, a few points where the correct evidence to make a point (or the correct time to make it) is unclear, but nothing so adventurously mistaken as, say, Apollo Justice' infamous third case. The worst design problem with the game (which I assume was originally hardware flexing meant to show off the 3DS) has an option to mercifully disable it, and while the text is way too slow (and skipping to the end of the line, a standard visual novel genre feature for decades, totally absent), technical issues are few. A cursory investigation reveals that it even lets multiple pieces of evidence progress the case sometimes during presentations and cross-examinations.
Also, all the new gameplay features are a lot of fun. Pursuit is a great way to play with how witnesses often seemed to shove each other out of the way by letting them testify in groups and forcing the player to pay attention to their reactions to others' testimony (though I could do with fewer times the game just points out reactions to you). The jury system is a great way to "use up" fun character concepts and designs that for whatever reason didn't quite have enough meat on them for full witnesses or cases, the jury call (while mildly ruined by literally being initially explained in a book your assistant has, and begging the question of why no one else does it when it's always so effective) is a neat extension on normal trial mechanics, and re-railing Sholmes's wacky mis-deductions is an inspired means to spice up the investigation segments without just reusing any of the other Defense Attorney mechanics.
...Unfortunately, though, this kind of game will live and die not just on its characters and gameplay, but based on its story, mystery, and construction, and on this level the execution falls far, far short. After a neat, classic trial that, while leaning a bit too far into a narrative of cultural grievance that lacks nuance and has Naruhodo be a bit too much of a loser to start with (if for understandable reasons), could be considered one of the best first cases in the series (and with the best starter villain since Dahlia Hawthorne if not for a weak ending...
Well, first, we get an investigation with no trial of any kind, a first for the series, with an overcooked accident at its heart. The conclusion is somewhat emotionally-satisfying to the character, but leaves a big impact crater in the narrative that has the cast reeling as they stumble into London, and into a trial with no investigation section of any kind, and an ambitious story it completely fails to pull off, complete with a deliberately emotionally-unsatisfying anti-climax. The fourth case could've righted the ship, and has very strong gameplay with the very first full, investigation-into-trial case in the entire game, but is utterly hamstrung by a weak story, a dearth of likable characters, and yet another emotionally unsatisfying anticlimax at the conclusion of the case! Only the finale feels truly complete and satisfying, with a fantastic mastermind villain (and I liked Alba and Acro, so of course I like that the villain is a Marathon Boss that takes forever to pin down for keeps, while also being just humanized enough not to be a hateful nothing like much of Dual Destiny's villain lineup) and some much-needed closure to the third chapter. Even then, it leaves behind many questions and much sequel bait.
That's not a great lineup right there! If I'd paid for this as a standalone game, after waiting a long, long time for new Ace Attorney material no less, then if I wasn't dazzled by the great production values and flashy new mechanics I'd probably also be unsatisfied. After all, I was sold a game whose cases are all deliberately unsatisfying. Realistic to real lawyer work? Maybe. But I don't play these games for "real lawyer work;" I play them for the fun fantasy of being a brilliant lawyer/detective helping people in need. And it's gruesomely at odds with the utter unrealism of so much of the legal framework in the series. (It also falls just shy of repeating the worst legal ethics mistakes of Farewell, My Turnabout, but let's not go there.)
The result is a title whose moment-to-moment gameplay is some of the strongest in the series, but whose ultimate impact falls far short of the sum of its parts.
I've been told that the sequel ties it all together and really sticks the landing. And I wouldn't quite not recommend it if you're a series fan, especially since, well, if you want it in English they're bundled together anyway. But temper expectations when you hear "Ace Attorney meets Sherlock Holmes," I guess.