The Ace Attorney series is full of legal workers and witnesses who are either unreliable, antagonistic, or heavily flawed. But among them are characters who the fans utterly adore.
Main Series
- Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney:
- Will Powers is loved due to being a Gentle Giant who is one of the kindest characters in the series, despite his Face of a Thug. Because of this, he returned in the sequel as a witness, being one of the few friendly ones in the series, with his contradictions stemming from misunderstandings rather than lies; what's especially notable is that his honest, scrupulous testimony is the absolute last thing Phoenix needs in said case since he's stalling for time.
- Penny Nichols is one of the most popular one-shots in the series due to her Adorkable nature. She was brought back for Investigations 2 because of this.
- Justice For All:
- Ini Miney, or, in actuality, Mimi Miney, despite being a single case character, is quite the fan-favourite for being rather lovable and a very complex and tragic killer.
- Adrian Andrews has a lot of love due to her sympathetic and relatable backstory, her determination to find justice for her deceased mentor while protecting her secret from being exposed by the media for her sake, all while formulating a plan to bring down Juan Corrida and Matt Engarde for their crimes, and how the game sets up a successful Player Punch in testing to see how far they're willing to go to save Maya, even if it means an innocent party takes the fall for a crime the player knows they're not guilty of. It's probably because she was so beloved that led to her (semi-)triumphant return in Trials and Tribulations.
- Trials and Tribulations:
- Ron and Desirée DeLite are very adored characters in the fandom due to their dynamic of being a Happily Married couple, resulting in the two of them constantly looking out for each other, as well as their extremely ravishing designs. Individually, Ron is seen as adorkable for how timid, yet determined he is, while Desirée is loved for being a Nice Girl who is one of the most reliable witnesses, coming through at some of the tensest moments in Case 3-2. And none of this is even mentioning Ron's alter-ego of Mask☆DeMasque. Their popularity resulted in Ron having a successor in DeMasque II from Investigations, and even netted both of them a cameo appearance in Investigations 2.
- Luke Atmey is an extremely popular character despite being a single case comic relief and ultimately culprit. Many fans love him for his extremely hammy, theatrical antics, his moments of genuine Hidden Depths, and being a surprisingly dangerous and brilliant villain, concocting an impressively elaborate and logical plan involving purposely framing himself for a lesser crime just to grant himself an alibi, and only losing by a very minor and understandable slip-up. Many consider him the best minor antagonist in the franchise.
- Viola Cadaverini is also a surprisingly popular character despite only appearing in a single investigation, ranking 16th on the official popularity poll ahead of several more prominent characters, owing to her Creepy Cute design and personality, and her genuinely interesting relationship with Tigre.
- Sister Bikini not only has an adorable design, but is regarded as a friendly and helpful character who helps keep the final chapter from being too bleak while not taking away from the Darker and Edgier tone. It also helps that her testimony is a Breather Level compared to the far more solid and contradictory testimonies of Dahlia/Iris and Maya Fey.
- Apollo Justice:
- Vera Misham is rather popular character despite appearing only sporadically in a single case and spending half of it comatose, owing to her heartbreaking personal story, being a surprisingly positive portrayal of a girl with a mental disorder, and just being plain cute. She is also unique in the game in being the only defendant who is genuinely sympathetic (even after she's revealed to be a forger) and not some type of Jerkass or another, earning her additional love from fans. Even the game's detractors often admit to liking her.
- Winfred "Big Wins" Kitaki and Plum Kitaki are far more well liked than their son, with both of them being likable and surprisingly complex characters. Their character design and sprites are memorable and they go through some realistic Character Development giving up their criminal lifestyle to try and rehabilitate their son.
- From the same case, Guy Eldoon is generally seen to be a highlight despite not appearing in court. He's grounded without being boring and his motivations and personality are interesting and well developed, with his Hidden Depths not detracting from his original motif.
- Daryan Crescend is the Arc Villain of the third chapter and a memorably despicable person. He's a Large Ham who steals the scene whenever he appears. He also has an incredibly memorable design as well as being a formidable opponent who puts up a much tougher fight than Kristoph Gavin, the main villain.
- Valant Gramarye is usually considered one of the best characters in the game, despite his limited appearance. He's able to be both comedic and dramatic and adds an emotional payoff to the forgery sub-plot, which is considered a massive Broken Base. His personality is captivating and he's a complicated and sympathetic Anti-Villain who is one of the series' rare examples of a criminal who owns up to his crimes and turns himself in out of remorse.
- Dual Destinies:
- Clay Terran is very well-liked among fans despite spending none of the story alive and onscreen, due to his role as Apollo's childhood friend giving Apollo a bit more defined background than he received in his debut.
- Jinxie Tenma is another beloved character, partly because she's quite funny, partly because she's Trucy's friend, but mostly because she's just plain adorable. There was much rejoicing when she made a surprise re-appearance in Spirit of Justice, in the form of a note addressed to Trucy and Apollo.
- Jinxie's father Damian Tenma is also well liked due to being an endearing Large Ham and one of the few Good Parents in the series. His mannerisms and gimmicks fit well into the Denser and Wackier tone of the chapter and his desire to help his daughter as much as possible make him effortlessly likable, with his wrestling persona being the icing on the cake of an already popular defendant.
- Robin Newman is another popular character due to her energetic yet complex personality as well as the substantial Character Development that she goes through. The reveal that she was forced to pretend to be a man due to her worrying about the stigma surrounding female lawyers is also a topical and nuanced portrayal, fitting with the chapter's theme of self acceptance.
- Plonco and Clonco are beloved due to being adorable robots who help lighten the mood of a case that would otherwise be overwhelmingly bleak. They also end up being quite helpful witnesses who even help to provide evidence to defeat the Big Bad.
- Marlon Rimes is another fan favorite character due to his very likable, laidback personality with a good of depth and being possibly the most tragic and understandable culprit in the entire franchise, trying to put down what he thought was a dangerous animal who killed his girlfriend and even risking his life attempting to save the victim when he fell to his death. Many considered Turnabout Reclaimed one of the best cases in the series in large part to him alone.
- Spirit of Justice:
- The Khura'inese Judge is beloved for being the one Reasonable Authority Figure in Khura'in and someone who has shown to genuinely seek justice, unlike the other Khura'inese people at trials who chanted death every chance they got at both Phoenix and the defendants. What truly cemented him as an Ensemble Dark Horse, though, was him standing up to Rayfa and having her removed from the courtroom in the first case.
- Pees'lubn Andistan'dhin is regarded as a great Starter Villain due to having a unique and charming gimmick and being a challenging enemy, despite his hammy persona. The fact that he incorporates music into his testimonies makes them memorable on a gameplay level, and leads to some hilarious moments when the courtroom temporarily becomes a musical.
- Bonny and Betty for their eclectic, likeable personality and having one of the most creative courtroom schticks in the game — though Bonny is liked far more than Betty for being much nicer.
- Roger Retinz has managed to become popular for being an extreme Hate Sink TV producer who repeatedly makes things get worse during the investigation. He's also an old member of Troupe Gramarye and switches from sleazy producer to over-the-top vengeful magician once exposed, and the insane complexity of his plan to get revenge on the Troupe via Trucy, which involves manipulating Trucy's fangirl apprentice and her sister, sacrificing his one true fan, and ultimately shutting down the Wright Anything Agency while getting Trucy locked up for murder, makes him simultaneously despised and loved as one of the greatest minor villains in the series.
- Uendo Toneido is a fairly positive portrayal (though basic) of mental illnesses such as Dissociative Identity Disorder — but out of Uendo's alters, Owen has the most fans thanks to being such a sweet boy with the most adorable scared face when hiding in Uendo's cloak. There's also his cooperative disposition (at least compared to past witnesses) and his weird factor.
- Geiru Toneido got a lot of attention since the advent of this animation
by Speedoru, which characterizes her as a Ms. Fanservice character. - "Sarge"/Armie Buff, for being a Gadgeteer Genius lad-ette with both a downright awesome toy helicopter and an absolutely Moe character design. Even more so when she provides the final evidence against her father's killer, thus avenging her father.
- Archie Buff is well liked despite being a victim with no screentime due to his selflessness and love for his daughter. Not to mention being badass enough to stand up to Paul Atishon and Inga Karkhuul Khura'in by hiding the orb they have desperately been trying to obtain.
- Despite being a smug blowhard, Paul Atishon is one of the most beloved witnesses in the series thanks to his hilarious lines and mannerisms that milk his "crooked politician" shtick for all its worth. Empathizing with Apollo kvetching about his question-dodging and then getting to tear apart all those lies is downright cathartic.
- Inga Karkhuul Khura'in is far more popular than his wife, being a chillingly despicable mass murderer who poses a substantial threat to Phoenix and Apollo due to his intelligence and ambition. He, out of all people, is a loving (if terrible) parent to Rayfa, adding an unexpected layer of depth to such a monstrous man. Many fans would have rather he been the Big Bad instead of his Flat Character of a wife.
- Pierce Nichody is also well liked due to being a highly intelligent culprit who actually uses his profession to pull off his crime instead of it merely being an Informed Attribute. He's also a handsome and charismatic opponent with a legitimately tragic motivation.
Spin-Offs
- Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth:
- Investigations:
- Cammy Meele is a surprisingly popular character for a character who only appears in a single, short case, owing to her very attractive design and being a surprisingly competent and intelligent killer, putting together a solid plan to cover a spur killing in minutes after committing it, and only failing because of something she couldn't have planned for. That she desperately pleads that she didn't mean to commit the murder also earns her a decent amount of sympathy from fans, especially in a game criticized for its killers lacking depth.
- Colias Palaeno is rather well-liked due to being genuinely helpful and cooperative to Edgeworth's investigation, as well just being a Nice Guy. It can be said his presence in Turnabout Ablaze helped the case from being too contentious.
- Investigations 2:
- Sebastian Debeste is one of the most well-liked characters by people who've played the game, who cite his development as being one of the best in the series. It's not uncommon to see people wanting him to be promoted to the main prosecutor of a future game.
- For someone who appears in only one case, Horace Knightley is popular with the fans. Mostly because of his relationship with the Big Bad.
- Gregory Edgeworth gets half a chapter dedicated to him and it instantly demonstrates why he was so beloved by everyone around him. He's a calm, friendly, and rational lawyer who has great interactions with Raymond Shields, the contestants at Masters' party and Manfred von Karma. He's a formidable protagonist without being too flawless, as he was sadly too naïve for his own good, making his death all the more tragic.
- Katherine Hall is also a popular character due to her graceful personality and design and having some cute Ship Tease moments with Raymond Shields in the flashback. She's also a positive example of a Tragic Villain, with her motivation for wanting to kill Dane Gustavia being nuanced and in character.
- Investigations:
- The Great Ace Attorney:
- Kazuma Asogi, a Miles Edgeworth Expy turned out to be a case of Advertised Extra, but is extremely popular with fans due to his samurai theme, incredibly awesome theme tune and friendship with Ryunosuke. The writers confessed in interviews that he ended up much more popular than they expected. He's a case of Not-So-Small Role in the sequel.
- Satoru Hosonaga won many fans for being very useful in the instances he appears in and also his nice personality. Especially in the second case of the first game, where he literally goes through being beaten up by sailors to get Ryunosuke evidence. In the official poll held by Capcom, he placed 5th, beating Iris and Susato by a pretty good margin.
- Gina Lestrade has won first place of a character elimination poll hosted on Reddit. Despite only showing up in half of the cases, she a Lovable Rogue for her Sticky Fingers tendencies, (not even fully quitting those when she ends up working for the police in the second game), and her backstory and motivations make her sympathetic and compelling to players.
- Juror No.3 from Case G1-3 is well remembered by fans thanks to his knife-happy tendencies and him hating the rich like McGilded. The fact that he ended up being correct in his initial statement does do him a good reputation.
- The Skulkin Brothers' hilarious and entertaining antics and interactions between each other and "Sulky", and their surprisingly deep relations with Graydon endear them to a lot of fans, despite the fact that they're only witnesses in one case.
- Rei Membami from the second game instantly became one of the series' more popular defendants when she physically stopped the culprit mid-breakdown by judo-throwing him with Susato's help. The fact that she's an Advertised Extra thanks to adored Ace Attorney artist Kazuya Nuri considering her one of his favorite characters, and has many perceived Les Yay moments with Susato by the fanbase, has also earned her many followers.
- William Shamspeare is incredibly well-liked, not only because he has many, many colorful animations and an over-the-top personality but also because he's one of the two culprits in the case and has a fun theatrical breakdown.
- Madame Tusspells is mostly limited to a side plot in the second game's third case, yet fan artists adore her thanks to her Hot Witch design and sultry French accent.
- Enoch Drebber only appears in one case, and the latter end of the case at that, but he's one of the second game's most popular characters due to his cool Steampunk design, Creepy Awesome robot-like movements, amazing theme music, the satisfying build-up to actually find him and having concocted an ingenious revenge plan on an Asshole Victim whom he had good reason to hate.
