A Link to the Past
Banned
(full title is Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth - Prosecutor's Path, AKA Gyakuten Kenji 2 in Japan)
For reference, the acceptable games to be discussed with unmarked spoilers:
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies
Professor Layton VS. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Spoilers for the following MUST be marked:
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth - Prosecutor's Path
Dai Gyakuten Saiban: Naruhodō Ryūnosuke no Bōken
Ace Attorney 6/Gyakuten Saiban 6
With that said...
What a great game! It's a huge improvement over the first Edgeworth game, which is saying a lot since I thought that the first Edgeworth game was awesome. The overarching story and cast of characters (new and returning) are among the best in the series, and each individual episode is very solid. From this point on, I'm just going to be discussing each episode individually, and then discuss the overall quality of the story. If you're able to play Investigations 2 (thanks to a very, very good fan translation), you absolutely should as opposed to reading any of the spoilers I'll be writing for it! For people who are playing through the game, I'll refrain from discussing, for instance, episode 2 in the episode 1 discussion.
Episode 1:
Episode 2:
Episode 3:
Episode 4:
Episode 5:
Sorry if I'm a bit vague or if I leave anything out, but I'm writing the spoilers for people who already have played it - not my fault if you've never played it and were confused.
Ultimately, I had two problems (both spoilers for Investigations 2):
1.
2.
I really hope that they make a third game on the 3DS or NX (preferably NX since I'm sure they will say "nope too late in the life to localize lol). Honestly, I almost find Edgeworth a more entertaining protagonist to control than Phoenix. I think it's the juxtaposition of a more serious character than Phoenix to all these goofy fucks that does it.
For reference, the acceptable games to be discussed with unmarked spoilers:
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice for All
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies
Professor Layton VS. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Spoilers for the following MUST be marked:
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth - Prosecutor's Path
Dai Gyakuten Saiban: Naruhodō Ryūnosuke no Bōken
Ace Attorney 6/Gyakuten Saiban 6
With that said...
What a great game! It's a huge improvement over the first Edgeworth game, which is saying a lot since I thought that the first Edgeworth game was awesome. The overarching story and cast of characters (new and returning) are among the best in the series, and each individual episode is very solid. From this point on, I'm just going to be discussing each episode individually, and then discuss the overall quality of the story. If you're able to play Investigations 2 (thanks to a very, very good fan translation), you absolutely should as opposed to reading any of the spoilers I'll be writing for it! For people who are playing through the game, I'll refrain from discussing, for instance, episode 2 in the episode 1 discussion.
Episode 1:
This episode is a very good one, though not quite as good as the third game's first case. It has you dealing with the death of one of the President of Zheng Fa's bodyguards and the attempted assassination of said President by Shelly de Killer, our favourite assassin. It also has a fun new character in the form of Nicole Swift, who is strongly suggested to be the apprentice of Lotta Hart.
Episode 2:
Yet again this game has a very strong episode relative to the others in the series. In this one, the killer from the previous episode - Horace Knightley - is himself killed. What's more, you're accompanied by Raymond Shields, a defense attorney who works for the Edgeworth Law Offices, the business once run by Edgeworth's father, Gregory Edgeworth. He is initially sarcastic, aloof, and mildly antagonistic towards Edgeworth due to his ties to Von Karma, but through the case, he warms up to him after he saves the suspect Simon Keyes. It was a fun case - Patricia Roland had a lot of really fun animations and was a fun character in general, and while we don't get much from Sebastian Debeste or Justine Courtney from just this episode, they were enjoyable in their own rights. Sirhan Dogen, the blind assassin, was similarly an interesting villain, and I can't express how shocked I was to see Frank Sahwit. Only disappointment was that Simon Keyes was a little bit milquetoast, but not so much that it makes him a bad character.
Episode 3:
This is about when the game really started to resonate with me, as it was easily the best "Episode 3" in the series. A LOT of great new characters, and being able to play as Gregory Edgeworth was very fun. It was also a great perspective on Miles and Gregory, as like Miles Gregory was very serious and no-nonsense, but unlike Miles, he tolerated silliness. It kind of paints a picture of the kind of person Edgeworth may become as he ages. The case also is the one that ultimately lead to Von Karma killing Edgeworth, giving it further significance. Seeing a young Raymond Shields was fun too, and the new characters were a blast. Katherine Hall was really fun, in a normal way, and her father John Masters was awesome - I like nice characters as much as awful ones. The standout for the case however was Dane Gustavia, a pastry chef who hails from Zheng Fa. He's a great personality, both before and after you realize that he's the killer. He also has one of the best character themes in the franchise! Oh, and Larry Butz is in the game, and that's always a good thing.
The standout for the case however was Dane Gustavia, a pastry chef who hails from Zheng Fa. He's a great personality, both before and after you realize that he's the killer. He also has one of the best character themes in the franchise! Oh, and Larry Butz is in the game, and that's always a good thing.Episode 4:
Gosh, what a case this was. It threw me for a loop seeing Kay in bandages and with amnesia, and alas, what we got out of it was yet another "assistant accused!" storyline, but I've no problem with it, haha. It's about this time that the overarching plot starts to seriously reveal itself. In this episode, we see a lot of great shit - Sebastian's father Blaise Debeste, a real shithead, we get to see Franziska von Karma, and both Sebastian Debeste and Justine Courtney get some solid pushes forward in terms of character development. Particularly, Simon gets a great start towards development after his father casts him aside and reveals that he had not actually earned any of his achievements in becoming a prosecutor. What was really funny to me is that while I was playing, I was expecting the case to end at any moment, just as the cases in Investigations, Dual Destinies, and Trials and Tribulations did... and contrary to my expectations, the case was just straight up a full episode, which was awesome.
Episode 5:
Where Investigations 1 tied everything together in a neat little bow in its final episode, Investigations 2... well, also does, though it feels a lot more awesome an overall plot. One particular highlight was Sebastian's arc in this episode, watching him deal with his rejection and his whole worldview crumbling, and actually having Edgeworth guide him to bettering himself was actually super cool and made me like Edgeworth a lot more, and I like Edgeworth! It was also nice seeing Justine get more depth after we learn that she is a mother. Ultimately, it was a rather excellent case. It ties together the previous four episodes in awesome ways - its victim is the president of Zheng Fa from the first episode; it's tied into the case of Patricia Roland from episode 2; it leads directly from the events of episode 4; and eventually, we learn that Simon Keyes, a character we once considered milquetoast, was a manipulative bastard, and the son of Dane Gustavia from episode 3. He's not my favourite villain, but better than a boring character like he was in episode 2. Plus, he's dressed as a clown in this episode, and all clowns in the game are evil. The final encounter with Dogen and de Killer was also pretty great and kind of touching.
Sorry if I'm a bit vague or if I leave anything out, but I'm writing the spoilers for people who already have played it - not my fault if you've never played it and were confused.
Ultimately, I had two problems (both spoilers for Investigations 2):
1.
While this isn't a problem with the game itself, it's a problem with the lack of localization. Edgeworth's major arc in this game is that throughout, his father's former assistant Raymond Shields is encouraging him to consider quitting being a prosecutor and joining the Edgeworth Law Offices, and by Episode 4, Edgeworth decides to resign as a Prosecutor - not to become a Defense Attorney, but because his role was being utilized against him. By the end of the game, he gets his badge back, and we see Edgeworth get some great development, where instead of becoming a Defense Attorney to protect people, he remains a Prosecutor to protect people. Unfortunately, because he appears in Dual Destinies, it means that we already know what path he will take in the end. It's still a great arc for him, but if Capcom wasn't so stingy...!
2.
No Oldbag!? How dare they!
I really hope that they make a third game on the 3DS or NX (preferably NX since I'm sure they will say "nope too late in the life to localize lol). Honestly, I almost find Edgeworth a more entertaining protagonist to control than Phoenix. I think it's the juxtaposition of a more serious character than Phoenix to all these goofy fucks that does it.