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[Skelter]

So I'll start off by saying that 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors and Virtue's Last Reward were the first two visual novels I've ever played. I was amazed by them and made a LTTP back in September. After finishing Bravely Default I decided to try a new Visual Novel and I actually had Ace Attorney and Justice for All in unopened cases for a long time! I finally finished the first game and holy hell it was awesome!

Episode 1 was short. I guess it was more of a tutorial but introduced the main characters.

Episode 2 starts off with a bang with

Spoiler

Mia Fey dead!

I was shocked and wanted to really find the culprit.

Episode 3 was fun but the one I enjoyed least at least it introduced the adorable Penny Nichols!

Episode 4 was awesome. It took a good amount of time and started off on a dark note with some humor. I really like the whole Gourdy thing and learning about Wright and Edgeworth's history both as children and more importantly what changed Miles into the person he is now. Cross examinations were pretty tough from the get go since

Spoiler

von Karma plays dirty and prepared his witnesses.

Really fun stuff.

Episode 5 was batshit insane and made used the touch screen features a bit in gimmicky ways but not too often that I didn't mind. All about corruption in the system, manipulation and fabricated evidence. Its definitely my favorite case and best of all it took a long time to actually finish it. Edgeworth's history is once again important and finally we get to hear more about these rumors. It almost felt like I was watching L.A Confidential for a bit.

I plan to start Justice for All sometime next week and buying Trials and Tribulations and Apollo Justice. Should take me awhile since I play slowly but man if the other games have cases that can match Episodes 4&5 then they're gold. I also really like the spritework and its one of the reason I started playing. One of my friends bought the HD version on iOS and I didn't care much for the smoothing so its great to see the games with the original look.

And I'll end with my favorite witness in the game.

 

[Jaded Alyx]

Congrats. You're in for an amazing journey.

 

[lewisgone]

Just wait until the last case of JFA. THEN wait until the last case of T+T! They get better and better, you are in for a fun ride.

 

[Zolbrod]

I started playing this series fairly recently and I'm at the last case of the third game.
Very enjoyable overall, although the first game is probably still my favorite.
The last case was just so amazing, and Edgeworth is hands-down the most interesting character in the entire AA universe.

 

[vocab]

I'd advise taking a break between the games or you'll suffer burn out. Its probably why I hated jfa and didn't care for 3 all that much. Apollo just sits on my shelf never to be played. I really like the first game a lot. Maybe the novelty wore off or maybe I just hated the psyche lock and the bullshit ass cases of the second game.

I might get Layton vs PW. At least its different.

 

[MrBadger]

I envy you, I wish I could play the Ace Attorney series for the first time again. My favourite case is Turnabout Goodbyes, but there are some fantastic cases later on too.

Also, be sure to try out Ghost Trick after finishing the AA trilogy. It's another Shu Takumi game in the same style and just as strong as the AA games. I actually think I like it more.

 

[GamerJM]

Fantastic game, probably my favorite of all of the gameplay-driven VNs I've played (I'm torn between it, T&T, and 999, but I normally lean towards the original AA). I wish it could be 2007 again so I could relive the original trilogy for the first time.

 

[GSR]

Cases 4 and 5 of the first game are truly special. That said, the rest of the games are solid as well, and I hope you enjoy them!

 

[Gentle Rodriguez]

I envy you, wish I could forget the games so I could experience them all over again. Also I keep forgetting what case 1.3 is, so forgettable even though several characters in that case

Spoiler

come back later.

I won't spoil too much but while all the games are good, T&T and 5 are the best IMO.

 

[Mauricio_Magus]

If you thought the 1st game was awesome(it is) then you're not ready for the AMAZINGNESS of the 3rd game.

I still remember when I played case 1-4, I love the AA so much.

 

[Skelter]

I envy you, I wish I could play the Ace Attorney series for the first time again. My favourite case is Turnabout Goodbyes, but there are some fantastic cases later on too.

Also, be sure to try out Ghost Trick after finishing the AA trilogy. It's another Shu Takumi game in the same style and just as strong as the AA games. I actually think I like it more.

Ghost Trick is on my "to buy" list as are the other two mainline Wright games. Glad I waited this long to play them since there isn't really nothing coming out on the 3DS that I am looking forward too until Smash Bros. I don't know of many VN's so I'll take some more suggestions.

 

[bobawesome]

Good to hear you're enjoying the series. I felt like I had to force myself to finish the 5th case. It just felt like it went on way too long.

 

[Romars202129]

Love this series.
I need to replay it sometime, some of the plot I've forgotten.
I'd say the third entry is probably the strongest, next to the first. But there's plenty of good stuff in the first sequel too.
I need to play Apollo. The new protagonist kinda turned me off of it, back in the day.

 

[WhereAreMahDragonz]

Trials and Tribulations is amazing. Case 5 is easily my favorite in the entire series.

You're in for one awesome ride, though. Once you finish with them, you should obviously play Apollo Justice (even though I didn't love it as much as the original trilogy) and Ace Attorney 5.

Also don't forget Ghost Trick.

 

[Matt Attack]

You're so lucky to get to experience the series for the first time. 2-4 and 3-5 are especially amazing cases, so make sure to enjoy them!

 

[Sgt. Kabukiman]

What an amazing game, every character is funny and memorable.

The sequels are excellent but I would recommend that you take your time before playing them. I ended up getting a bit tired of the formula by the third one and I gave up on it.

I finally played it again last year and it was simply incredible. The ending of Trials and Tribulations is one of the most epic (overused word but it's fitting here) moment I ever experienced while playing a game. It felt like an intense boss battle in something like Dark Souls ! The way it tied pretty much every case together was a feat and it was actually quite emotional...

And now I've just been reminded that I need to go back and finish Dual Destinies !

 

[Josh7289]

Absolutely love the first four games. Fantastic part of my gaming history and I'm happy for you that you're getting a chance to play them now too.

I recommend them to everyone.

 

[Isotope]

Justice for All is kinda lackluster, but there's one case that is absolutely phenomenal. Trials and Tribulations is even better!

I truly wish I could erase the memory of these games from my mind so I could experience them new again.

 

[Skelter]

Sounds like Trials and Tribulations is the best in series!

 

[GamerJM]

In addition to everything mentioned ITT you should also play the Investigations games and DanganRonpa if you have a Vita, though they're not as good IMO (some people really like DanganRonpa and Investigations 2 seems to be fairly well-liked though) they're still worth playing even though I think all three of them have their own issues. Investigations 2 isn't out in the US and isn't getting a localization so you're either gonna have to play it in Japanese or wait for the fan translation which seems pretty far along.

I actually like Ghost Trick the least out of all of these games, I thought the gameplay was too trial-and-errorish. Still good though.

 

[Kazerei]

Glad to hear you're getting into the series! Some cases aren't as good as others, but the last cases of each game are like this huge awesome buildup that's totally worth it.

 

[TheWorthyEdge]

My good friend showed me these games.

Apollo didn't quite grab me but the others.....WOOOOH!

 

[Byronic Hero]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Ace Attorney. If you liked both AA and 999/VLR, your next franchise should definitely be Danganronpa.

 

[Skelter]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Ace Attorney. If you liked both AA and 999/VLR, your next franchise should definitely be Danganronpa.

Don't have a Vita unfortunately. I keep hearing about it too.

 

[ss-hikaru]

I'd advise taking a break between the games or you'll suffer burn out. Its probably why I hated jfa and didn't care for 3 all that much. Apollo just sits on my shelf never to be played. I really like the first game a lot. Maybe the novelty wore off or maybe I just hated the psyche lock and the bullshit ass cases of the second game.

I might get Layton vs PW. At least its different.

I agree with this. I finished Apollo Justice in Feb this year after putting it off for ages, it was a lot of fun (if you didn't like psyche locks, they don't play a big part in AJ) but I've now stopped halfway through Case 2 of AA5, probably because of burnout. While I did play Ghost Trick in between AA4 and AA5, I think the style of the game is different enough to not add to the feeling of burnout.

I actually like Ghost Trick the least out of all of these games, I thought the gameplay was too trial-and-errorish. Still good though.

There were times when what you're meant to do was quite obscure (the one that annoyed me the most was

Spoiler

"find missile in his leaf form" where you actually don't have to do any puzzle work, just move the screen view...

) but I liked the

Spoiler

rewind

mechanism. I understand how you'd define it as "trial and error" but I viewed it more as "information gathering and learning from mistakes/experience"

 

[Salsa]

favorite game series. wait till you get to the last case of T&T

gimme that PW vs Layton NA announcement

 

[Crimsonclaw111]

favorite game series

waiting on that PW vs Layton NA announcement

You and I both... waiting to play that before I dive into AA5 because of the artstyle.

 

[Byronic Hero]

Don't have a Vita unfortunately. I keep hearing about it too.

There's a PSP fan translation out that's just as good as the official version if you have a PSP.

 

[Swarna]

I envy you, I wish I could play the Ace Attorney series for the first time again.

The feels, brah. I remember getting the first game as a gift in the 8th grade and thinking that it was gonna be something really lame judging from its cover. I was blown away by how great it ended up being. It was the first time I played anything like it and I really loved the characters. Played every sequel as they came out on the DS and just loved it more and more. I never experienced series fatigue as it would take a while between releases.

 

[devildog820]

I really liked the game but I really hated the interface. Too much wasted time waiting for text, travel was clunky, and jeebus help you if you advanced past the last statement in cross. Only bad part about a fun game though.

 

[graywords]

Oh yeah, if you enjoyed the first game, you'll love the next two.

You said you had just finished Bravely Default before playing through the first Ace Attorney... did the cross-examination music happen to remind you at all of the Bravely Default battle theme?

 

[mrmickfran]

I'm marathoning the series myself. I started a month ago. I'm currently at the beginning of case 4 of T & T. Hooooly shit, the plot twists are insane.

 

[Crisium]

Just wait until the last case of JFA. THEN wait until the last case of T+T! They get better and better, you are in for a fun ride.

Yup, 1-5, 2-4, and 3-5 are all so good it's ridiculous. Trials and Tribulations is the best game in the series, imo, so just you wait OP.

 

[L Thammy]

I'll warn you right now. Most of Justice for All sucks, but the final case is probably the best in the series.

EDIT: Ah, lewisgn had it covered.

 

[Sora_N]

Third game was my favourite of the original trilogy, I haven't had a chance to play Apollo and still working on PW5.

Look forward to 3 though!

 

[graywords]

I'll warn you right now. Most of Justice for All sucks, but the final case is probably the best in the series.

EDIT: Ah, lewisgn had it covered.

Agreed on 2-4 being amazing. That said, I don't get most of the hate for JFA. I have very fond memories of playing it through for the first time while the power was out in Hawaii due to a huge earthquake.

I'm convinced there's a lot of people who dislike JFA based mainly on their hatred of clowns and/or circuses.

 

[not psycho]

Out of the AA series, 999, and Ghost Trick, this one is still the best

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

Man I had fun with that game back in the day. The 5th case especially blew me away. I'm kinda bummed that Emma Skye seems to be a fairly minor character after that, I really liked her.

Been playing through dual destinies and forgot how much I love the series...

DD has some really, really awesome freakout animations. I never would have believed it but this 3D is just as beautiful as the 2D animations on the DS.

I haven't quite finished it yet, but the last case seems to be ramping up to an epic, spectacular conclusion. There are great new characters and beloved characters that haven't been in the spotlight for a long time are back, getting me very excited.

Have a ton of great 3DS games in my pile but I'm so high on Justice right now that I'm jumping straight into Phoenix Wright vs Professor Layton after this.

Will never recover from missing out on Ace Investigations 2! T_T

 

[Frolow]

OP I'm going to be very disappointed if you don't post your reactions for the final case of Dual Destinies.

 

[FluxWaveZ]

I'll warn you right now. Most of Justice for All sucks, but the final case is probably the best in the series.

EDIT: Ah, lewisgn had it covered.

The circus case might be one of the worst in the series, but I find it hard to ever say that most of an AA game sucks. They're all good in my eyes, to differing degrees.

 

[GamerJM]

I like JFA (I like every game in the series >_>), but it's my least favorite (assuming I like the last case of Investigations 2 on some level, I'm playing through that game right now). The only case in it I actually dislike is the first one. My biggest issue with it is that it feels the least like a full game out of all of them. None of the cases are very long and it doesn't really stand on its own well, it just sort of feels like a bridge between AA1 and 3.

I also think 2-4 is kinda overrated. The twist is incredible but otherwise it doesn't have the same oomph all of the other final cases have to me.

 

[Crisium]

2-1 is the worst case in the series. I know that it's an intro case. But none of the other intro cases wanted me to mash fastforward (or my head into the wall) so badly. 2-2 and 2-3 have some dark twists and aren't bad, they just didn't catch my interests as much as most other cases. But oh my god does 2-4 make up for it. That music that plays... oh baby it gives me chills thinking about that reveal.

 

[Verelios]

2-4 is crazy good but you've already experienced my personal favorite in 1-5. Can't tell you how much I loved the case progression, not to mention the spritework for witnesses was just too fluidly gorgeous. Could spend minutes admiring Gant.

You're in for the long haul though OP. Once you get some AA crack, you can never go back. Take a two week breather between games at least, if you're going to play them consecutively. Gives you time to contemplate the cases and see how amazing each individual game is.

God speed OP. Samurai out.

 

[PK Gaming]

The good news:

You've gotten yourself into an amazing series!

The bad news:

You'll have to play them all. EVERY. LAST. ACE ATTORNEY GAME.

 

[Refugio]

I remember going through these games for the first time.The last cases oftall the games were always so exciting and nerv-racking. My sister and I played the game on the same cart around the same time so we would take turns going through the cases. It was a fun experience.

Haven't played any since AA4 though. Need to get to AA5 soon...

And yeah Ghost Trick is pretty cool too

 

[TheRedSnifit]

I actually prefer Dual Destiny's artstyle. The characters seem a ton more vibrant and alive in 3D:

I'd be pretty happy if they re-released the old games in 3D instead of the iOS artwork.

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

OP I'm going to be very disappointed if you don't post your reactions for the final case of Dual Destinies.

Being very far through that case at the moment, I totalled baffled as to who the killer is. Usually with Ace Attorney it's

Spoiler

the patriarchal authority figure that's the murderer. Right now it feel like it has to be like, ...I don't know... a ninja or something? I don't see any suspect that really fits.

 

[Frolow]

Being very far through that case at the moment, I totalled baffled as to who the killer is. Usually with Ace Attorney it's

Spoiler

the patriarchal authority figure that's the murderer. Right now it feel like it has to be like, ...I don't know... a ninja or something? I don't see any suspect that really fits.

;^) Keep playing.

 

[Shun]

Now that you beat the first game, time to go watch the Live Action Movie!

I recommend you play through the second game before watching it though.

 

[Crisium]

Being very far through that case at the moment, I totalled baffled as to who the killer is. Usually with Ace Attorney it's

Spoiler

the patriarchal authority figure that's the murderer. Right now it feel like it has to be like, ...I don't know... a ninja or something? I don't see any suspect that really fits.

I had these exact same thoughts. I think they did this to make up for actually showing you the killers in the 5-1 and 5-2 intros. I still don't know why they did that. 5-2 still had plenty of other mysteries to solve about the case, but that still irks me.