GAME: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies
CASE: Turnabout Countdown
CONSOLES: 3DS
Like a phoenix from the ashes, our hero . . . never mind, too easy. But it's not just Phoenix Wright, your boy Luke is back from a short break and I'm starting on Ace Attorney's 3DS game.
The change is immediately obvious. The game kicks off with lovingly animated and voice acted cutscenes, the visuals in the cases are three dimensional models and everything opens with a highly dramatic explosion in the courtroom.
We're also introduced to a new attorney, young Athena Cykes. As well as joining Phoenix and Apollo in the weird classical literature names, she brings a new technique to the table. She reads characters' emotions, letting the player find a new type of contradiction. It didn't come up a lot in this case, but it feels considerably more interactive than Apollo's eyesight.
Beyond all of that, the case itself is fairly standard first case stuff. Winston Payne's brother, only one witness and they were of course guilty. The contradictions were logical, the characters all shone, and seeing Phoenix return to the courtroom was appropriately exciting and heroic.
I've often made the comparison that Ace Attorney games are more akin to an ongoing television series than a videogame, and this is a prime example. A big exciting visual show but business as usual. Will it build into an excellent season? I'm certainly intrigued.
Pun of the Week: The detective who figured out the bombing was Candice Arme.
4/5
A promising start filled with over-the-top drama. Does good work to make this game feel like a generational leap.