I trust there are no objections to another Phoenix Wright game?
Spirit of Justice is the 6th main game in the Ace Attorney series, not withstanding the Investigations and vs Professor Layton spin-offs. Phoenix heads to a country called Khura”in where defence lawyers are hated so much that no-one has dared be one there for over 20 years as they meet the same fate as their clients, including the death penalty…and I thought our legal system was a joke sometimes…
Phoenix is there to visit Maya who is completing her training to master her skills, but he has arrived early so is shown around by a kid who is soon framed for murder and Phoenix decides to defend him, not knowing the consequences for him if the boy is found guilty. The trial system works as it did in past games with pressing witnesses, presenting evidence and raising objections…however, a new element has been added.
Thanks to a Divination Seance, we can see the last moments of the victim’s life as well as words that describe how the victim is feeling or what they are seeing,hearing or smelling. This usually paints a damning picture for the defendant, but it’s easy for the prosecution to misinterpret the vision while it’s harder to pull it back to reality for Phoenix. The game isn’t all about Mr Wright however…
Apollo Justice is back! He is holding down the fort at the Wright Anything Agency while Phoenix is out of the country, only to end up fighting for the very survival of the law firm. The story serves a good purpose of back and forth as everyone crosses paths in some degree. Apollo is accompanied by Trucy Wright and Athena Cykes who can use her gizmo to determine when someone has mixed emotions about a certain statement, which is a handy tool to have…when it’s available that is.
If you have played past Phoenix Wright games such as Dual Destinies, then the visuals will look quite familiar. There are anime cutscenes that have voice-acting, it’s always weird putting a voice to a character you’ve never heard speak for 4 games or so, but they pull it off as they did in the past few games. The music is also pretty catchy and dramatic, the humour of the series is still intact and it poses for some priceless moments. It’s typical Ace Attorney!
The Verdict
Spirit of Justice is a fantastic follow-up to past Ace Attorney games. The story is interesting, the characters are as memorable as ever and the gameplay is still as solid as it has been. It may not break convention, but why when it’s pretty close to perfect the way it is. I for one, wouldn’t have the series any other way. No objections from me!