(played on Nintendo Switch via The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles)
I'm a battle-hardened Ace Attorney fan. And by that I mean that I love this series... despite its many efforts otherwise.
Look, this series has problems. problems small and Problems with capital P. Problems as in issues and problems as in problems. It has as many dropped plot points as it has sexist writing and weird portrayals of mental illness. It has as many bad jokes as it has unbearable characters. It has as many typos as it has weird retcons and missed opportunities. And in a gaming environment where visual novels are significantly better than back in 2001 and more widespread, with hits like Va11 Hall-A, AI:TSF and so many more, I don't think any Ace Attorney game would have made my top 3 of favorite visual novels even if I wanted to. For as much as I love these stories, I won't deny its charm comes from how much it does with its deliberately limited presentation more than its writing.
And so, when the Dai Gyakuten Saiban games got officially localized I picked them up, ready for another comfort read.
And I'm as shocked as any to say that this.... this is finally it. Here it is, a good Ace Attorney game.
GAA is my favorite Ace Attorney game for the very very simple reason that it is the first Ace Attorney game with nothing for me to complain about. I can love it with no caveats, recommend it with no compromises. I don't have to excuse bad writing, tell you to endure bad cases because "I promise it gets better". It's finally an Ace Attorney I can genuinely recommend. And since it's not tied to the main series at all, it can actually be your first game in the series!
Furthermore, I can vouch for this being less biased because my wife, who is not invested in Ace Attorney, played thru it with me! We played the game together, as we enjoy reading thru visual novels together on weekends. Amber loved the characters, the setting, the way the game uses its own version of Herlock Sholmes. The trial system pulls from what made Layton vs Ace Attorney interesting and expands upon it while also using it as commentary on its own themes. There are themes and they get properly explored. The characters are motivated, they have their own pathos and the game never flinches or backs down on making them grow.
Presentation is immaculate. The soundtrack delivers the exactly right amount of gravitas and intensity. Animation, while still stylistically limited, conveys character in small yet satisfying ways. I love how Ryunosuke's eyes are used to showcase how nervous he is at any given time. Susato's posture and small gestures say so much.
I love Susato btw. my favorite Ace Attorney assistant by a long shot.
But yea, it's hard for me to say anything else. This is Ace Attorney at its absolute finest, from start to end. Intriguing, pointed, well crafted. If you are ever curious about the series, start here.
