Case 1-5: Rise From the Ashes (Part 1)

Schedule change: Instead of doing 3-3 over two days I’m going to do 1-5 over three days.  I felt that since 1-5 is so long and is the closest that any Phoenix Wright case will get to Apollo Justice that I’d take the extra time to go over it.

Are you ready to switch gears a bit?  Before Gyakuten Saiban was ported to the DS in 2005, the original GBA version only had four cases.  In order to showcase the DS’ features and what not, Capcom added a fifth case that fit right into the original story, not only showing Edgeworth’s downfall but also introducing a character that, despite not seeing again in the Phoenix Wright story, plays a prominent role in the Apollo Justice story.

We don’t see every Apollo Justice feature thrown in here; Of course, you wouldn’t expect the Perceive system to be in here, but these are the features in this case that eventually made it to the fourth game:

• Examining evidence.  Every piece of evidence has a “Check” button now that will allow you to look at it from any angle and examine anything that sticks out.  This becomes impartial to finding clues and advancing through this case.
• New investigation techniques.  There are some cases where the environment is a bit more interactive.  In part 2, you start to use luminol solution to check for blood stains, and also use a magnetic powder that I can’t remember the name of to check for and compare fingerprints.

With Maya Fey back in Kurain Village, Phoenix is without a co-counsel that usually accompanies him during trials and his investigations.  Enter Ema Skye, a 15 year old high school student who wants to be a “Scientific Investigator” when she grows up.  Her older sister, chief prosecutor Lana Skye, is the defendant in this case, and given the circumstances she arrives at Wright & Co. looking for the now-fairly-long-deceased Mia Fey.  (In the end though, she ends up finding Phoenix instead, who reluctantly accepts her request to defend Lana.)  As I said, this is Ema’s first and last case between now and the end of Phoenix’s story, but she fills in for Gumshoe’s role come her return in Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney.  (Which at this point is expected to be on shelves in two and a half weeks.)  For now, I won’t reveal anything about what happens between this case and case 4-2, where she makes her return, as that works into the story.

The biggest challenge here is the fact that you have a stubborn defendant who says she committed the crime even when things don’t seem to match up, you have the stubborn defendant’s sister who knows she’s not guilty, and you have a stubborn defense attorney who won’t accept his client’s confession.  The case feels a lot like it was added on in the DS port, (as it was) using new characters (only two of the new characters involved in this case are seen in other cases, and they won’t be seen again until Apollo takes the defense side of the courtroom.) and higher quality background music at some parts.  (Such as the case 1-5 version of Ema’s theme and Jake Marshall’s as well.)

Case 1-5’s story is probably tied for the second most dramatic storyline out of all cases in Phoenix’s story; coming after case 3-5 and equal with 2-4.  At first, you seem to be taking on your usual murder trial, except with a stubborn client who wants Phoenix to believe that she did it.  Numerous times through this case you’ll find that she tries to push her teachings as a prosecutor onto him, where Phoenix pretty much replies with, “You’re a prosecutor, and I’m a defense attorney.”  Things start to get confusing near the end of the first day of the trial, where I finished for now, when police chief Damon Gant testifies to a second murder; One that happened at the different location, at the same time, and oddly enough the same victim as the original murder.

Part 2 will hopefully see this case through to the end of the second day of the trial, and I will finish up the rest of the case with part 3.  My goal is to be starting on Justice for All with case 2-1 on Wednesday.

Case 1-4: Turnabout Goodbyes

This is it!  The final case of the first game!

Well… it WAS the final case of the first game until its port to the DS at least.  Of course, as anyone in North America knows it, the first game has always had five cases since we never had the original GBA version back in 2001.

Case 1-4 builds on the relationship between Phoenix, Edgeworth, and Larry, going back to their childhood days and telling the story about how Phoenix became a defense attorney, how Edgey ended up a prosecutor, and how Larry brought around his trademark “If something smells, it’s usually the Butz.”  This is also the only time in the whole Phoenix Wright arc where you will get a “Guilty” as part of the case’s progression.  (Although you’d have to play it to learn what really happens.)

Lotta Hart seems to add a bit of spunk to this case, bringing her southern accent and her not so credible mouth to the series.  This won’t be the last time you see her either.  We also see the first and last appearance of Edgeworth’s mentor, Manfred von Karma.  His intimidating nature and knack for hiding things in court unfortunately doesn’t match up to Phoenix’s sleuthing skills in this one, but although we won’t be seeing Manfred again it won’t be the last time we see a von Karma in this story.

This case is probably the first “thriller” case in the series, as with many of the final cases in each game. (Do remember that this case was originally the last case in this game)  This one in particular keeps you on edge as you have to work your way back up from the verge of a guilty verdict multiple times.  This playthrough though is the first time I’ve managed to finish this case without the help of a walkthrough; Quite an accomplishing feat for me.

Case 1-5 is next, which depicts the future of the Ace Attorney franchise.

Case 1-3: Turnabout Samurai

My favourite case from the first game, and one of the more laid back. It’s quite exciting in its own way, though.

Wendy Oldbag, a very talkative senior in the security business, makes her first appearance in this case and it definitely won’t be the last time we see her.  Phoenix unfortunately finds that he has to pick on her in order to buy time and push the case to another day.  I should also mention here that this is only one of three cases in the Phoenix Wright story that go to three trial days, which by law in the Ace Attorney world is the maximum amount of time that a trial can go.

Probably the biggest surprise in this case for people like me is Sal Manella, who constantly talks in leet speak and in Internet acronyms.  (“J00 are teh l4m3rz, LOL!”)  I admit though, I get a laugh when he says “sux0rz” and Maya replies with, “Nick, what are sucksores?”

Probably the biggest shock comes near the end of this case, where Edgeworth, having realized that Will Powers is innocent, decides to prove his innocent rather than push to find his guilt.  With that, both he and Phoenix are able to nab the real murderer and put an end to this case.  At the very end, though, we once again have it implied that Phoenix and Edgeworth are acquainted with each other, although Edgeworth expresses that he wish that they never met and that Phoenix should “never show his face in front of him again.”

Unfortunately, as you’ll find in the next case, their next meeting is inevitable.

Case 1-2: Turnabout Sisters

After scrambling to get as much of the case done between breaks at work I managed to finish it up this morning.

It’s not often a game kills off what seems to be a key character close to the beginning of the game here, and that’s what happens.  Mia’s murder provides a base for two things: First, to get the ball rolling on the game’s larger story (as opposed to each case’s separate story) and to introduce an invaluable partner to the Phoenix Wright arc, Maya Fey.  From this point on, Maya sticks with Phoenix in just about every case and acts as his co-counsel when she’s not being accused of murder herself or when she’s kidnapped or trapped somewhere.  She is also the reason why Mia isn’t completely gone from the storyline.

This case also introduces Miles Edgeworth, the forefront prosecutor of this game.  You won’t notice in this case just yet, but he comes into play big time with Phoenix’s story as well.

As I mentioned, this case starts to bring the DL-6 storyline that connects this case with 1-4, and to a sense a bit of 1-5 as well.  (Although case 1-5 would mainly be connected to another previous case and the Apollo Justice story.)  side of the DL-6 incident plays off of the perspective of the Feys, showing how Mia became a lawyer and also playing into her mother Misty’s disappearance, which will be heard more about later in the game.  It also shows a Redd White blackmailing scheme in the shadows, which affects Mia’s former boss Marvin Grossberg, and Phoenix unfortunately ends up in the middle of it.  (Although I still question that he might have decided to risk his life on purpose in order to put an end to Redd White’s ordeal once and for all.)

Case 1-2 is the first case out of many in Pheonix’s storry that is linked to one, larger story.  Although they are not all directly related to each other, the events of certain cases throughout the first three games all create one big story; One that eventually ends on a happy note at the end of Trials and Tribulations.

Case 1-3 will hopefully be done today, or at the very least tomorrow morning.

Case 1-1: The First Turnabout

“When something smells, it’s usually the Butz.” 

That line has stuck with a friend of mine and myself as one that will be seen over and over again with the return of Phoenix’s friend, Larry Butz.  Every time he’s involved with a case, it rings true.  There’s no escaping it.

The first case of this game is undoubtedly the shortest in the whole series.  Over time, the first case of each game is longer than the last.  (You could probably complete this one in about 15 to 20 minutes, where as some cases you will be sitting on for a couple of hours.)  It introduces us to three of the series’ key characters; Larry Butz who I have already mentioned, Phoenix’s boss and mentor Mia Fey, and the protagonist himself, Phoenix Wright.  Over the course of the series, more characters will pop up; some will side with him, some will already oppose him, and in one case we are introduced to a character who makes more of an impact on Apollo Justice’s story than she does Phoenix’s.  For now though, we have just the three of them.

The first case is definitely the easiest of the bunch as well; Never is there any pressure put on the player and all the cross-examinations are very easy to pick out; There’s no need to press for information or anything.  Of course, when you’ve gone over the case a couple of times, you already know what it’s supposed to be like.

Case 1-2 will be done over the course of today as well; It’s significantly longer so chances are it won’t be done until late tonight.

The Countdown Begins. (For me at least)

I’ve got somewhat of a busy week to start off with, but I’m going to try to keep as close to my schedule as I can.  I actually have a speech that needs writing for both Saturday and Sunday morning, but I’m hoping to be able to get that done alongside stuff, as the aftereffects from this huge dump of snow out here might end up creating some free time for me.

The page with my proposed countdown schedule (which is a bit different from Court Records’ schedule above) can be accessed from the page to the right.  I’ll be starting off with the first two cases once morning comes.

Don’t forget that if you’re an Ace Attorney fan with all three games and anticipating the release of Apollo Justice in February, you can join in, too.  Hit up http://www.court-records.net for more information.

The Countdown to Apollo Justice Begins

An Ace Attorney fansite by the name of Court Records is starting on a fun little exercise known as the “Countdown to Apollo Justice.”  For those of you that don’t know, Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney is the fourth game in the Ace Attorney series (known as Gyakuten Saiban or “Comeback Court” in Japan) developed by Capcom, and comes seven years after the events of Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations.  The game was released under the name Gyakuten Saiban 4 in Japan last April and is currently scheduled for a US release on February 19th, 2008.

The countdown “celebration” sort of goes like this: For around three weeks before Apollo Justice’s current release date, those willing to participate will play through all three games, case by case, and if they wish reflect on each case they can do so via blog, on the Court Records forums, etc… The whole goal is to complete a case a day, or two days for the longer case, and end it on the eve of Apollo Justice’s release date in the US.

Here’s a snip from Court Records regarding the event:

Seeing as how we still have all this time until we get our hands on Apollo Justice, why not have an epic countdown to celebrate its release?
Join in on a case by case playthrough of Ace Attorney 1-3 – one case a day (two for the longer ones)! Blog your thoughts while playing, write about the case or PW/AJ in general, or just join in the gaming fun sans the reflections. If we gather a list of people who will be blogging, then everyone can read each others’ thoughts and be ultra pumped for the fourth game.
The start date is Saturday, February 2nd.
Timeline
Feb 2: 1-1
Feb 3: 1-2
Feb 4: 1-3
Feb 5: 1-4
Feb 6: 1-5 PART 1
Feb 7: 1-5 PART 2
Feb 8: 2-1
Feb 9: 2-2
Feb 10: 2-3
Feb 11: 2-4 PART 1
Feb 12: 2-4 PART 2
Feb 13: 3-1
Feb 14: 3-2
Feb 15: 3-3
Feb 16: 3-4
Feb 17: 3-5 PART 1
Feb 18: 3-5 PART 2

-SilverWind (of Court Records)

My timeline will be a bit different due to time constraints on current days; I will most likely be starting this a bit earlier, either on the 31st or on February 1st, and play through as much of the game as time allows.  (I do have a life and other games to play, too.)  In the hopefully unlikely case that the game gets delayed, I will adjust to it to complete it on the night before the new release date.

To finish it all off, once I get my hands on the game (which should happen 1-2 days after its release, as I do have it preordered) I will most likely go over my thoughts about the first case of that game as well.

Until then, there won’t be much activity on this blog until I start with the first case.