Phoenix Wright – Ace Attorney (Nintendo DS)
Previously, on Pheonix Wright…….. well, the last time I played this, I only did the first two trials (one being a kind of tutorial). I’ve just started the third trial and it’s a lot more involved. It really is an ACE game, because it’s very different from pretty much anything else. I think it was originally a GBA game – the graphics certainly bear this out – given a slight facelift and additional DS touchscreen functionality.
It’s a kinda two stage thing. Basically, at the start of the chapter, there’s a murder. The first phase of the trial involves examining the crime scene and various other locations, looking for evidence. All concerned parties can be spoken with to find out as much information as possible. Once the clues are gathered, the first day in court begins. Witnesses are called and give evidence. During this stage, you can interrupt and challenge their evidence, providing your own evidence to support your challenge. The aim here is to find contradictions in the witness’s testimony to either discredit them or, sometimes, point the finger of blame elsewhere. At the end of the trial day, it’s back to the evidence hunt, where further investigation can take place, to take into account new information gathered in the trial. Trials can be a maximum of three days. Presenting a wrong bit of evidence, however, will lose you a ‘life’ – you have a maximum of five mistakes you’re allowed to make before it’s game over.
This game has been out for ages in the US and Japan, but still hasn’t seen European release yet, which is a real shame because it’s perfect for the DS.
So, trial three – the Steel Samurai has been accused of murdering his on-screen nemesis! No! But he claims he was sleeping at the time. Gumshoe, the incompetant detective is on the case, and there’s a suspicious and dodgy looking Security wifie who seems hell bent on screwing everything up. We’ll see how it unfolds…..
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