Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy Review: Court is back in session

It would not be a stretch to say that fans have been eagerly anticipating the launch of Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy. This compilation of three of the latest series mainline entries from developer Capcom finally migrates the titles from their previously Nintendo-exclusive homes to other platforms. Given the positive reception of the Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy, this was to be expected.

Whether or not this new collection is worth a pickup is an easy answer as these are old games that were well-received in the past. Fans who are die-hard series veterans and have enjoyed these titles across the Nintendo DS and 3DS, respectively, may not have much worth double-dipping for. But otherwise, this murder-mystery graphic adventure is one to surely satiate new fans.

Strive for justice at all costs in Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy

Welcome back to the courthouse (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

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This remastered collection consists of the following games, which are officially the fourth, fifth, and sixth (and latest) mainline franchise installments, respectively:

Apollo Justice Ace Attorney (Nintendo DS, 2007)
Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies (Nintendo 3DS, 2013)
Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice (Nintendo 3DS, 2016)

Since this collection spans three games across a generation of gaming, newcomers may wonder what ties them together. The package features the titular character Apollo Justice as well as the series mascot Phoenix Wright, as both attorneys solve crimes by defending their clients and uncovering the culprit's identity.

Fans who have played the previous Ace Attorney games (namely AA1-3) will know what to expect. For newcomers, a brief exposition is in order; each title takes place across a series of Episodes. Each Episode consists of a case that the protagonist follows, meeting new and familiar characters, finding mysteries to solve, and gathering new clues to aid a "not guilty" verdict.

Players will engage in court trials to find the culprit (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

Players will spend much of their time talking to NPCs, or in other words, reading - since these games are fundamentally visual novels at heart. The crux of the gameplay takes place in a courtroom and involves pressing witnesses for information and picking out inconsistencies to slowly inch toward a conclusion. Of course, gathered evidence goes a long way in handling these trials as well.

Each protagonist has unique abilities that allow them to tackle cases in their own way. What the Ace Attorney franchise is known for is its zany humor and outlandish characters; for a matter as serious as facing the law, most if not all characters in the series are outlandish - whether through design, personality, or both. All of it is accounted for here.

3 games, 3 different experiences

Apollo Justice is the least serious entry of the bunch (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

Apollo Justice Ace Attorney marks the introduction of a new hero - the red-clad, "horn"-haired Apollo. The 2007 entry is all about the young defense lawyer and his adventures with new characters such as Trucy Wright in tow. This one is the most similar to the previous entries with a relatively traditional approach to design.

Players will explore screen-scrolling outdoors, investigate crime scenes, and talk to bizarre NPCs for clues. Armed with a golden bracelet, Apollo can use the Perceive mechanic to discern any body language oddities on a character to catch their lie or inconsistency. This wonderfully spices up the fairly conventional cases.

This fifth entry also introduced anime and fully voiced cutscenes to the franchise - which have been enhanced for this remaster (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

2013's Dual Destinies is where things start to shake up. In addition to making a jump to (mostly) 3D graphics, it introduces yet another new main character - Detective Athena Cykes. She in turn brings her tools of the trade to the table, such as the Mood Matrix. This mechanic allows players to detect the target's emotions, which may be at odds with their verbal language.

However, other changes were not well-received back then, like the exclusion of investigative locations outside of crime scenes. 2016's Spirit of Justice feels like the ultimate culmination of everything the series is about, while also being unorthodox in its own manner. For one, it takes place in a brand new country called Khura'in, which has a harsh legal system that is reliant on spirit mediums.

The Seance mechanic is perhaps the most interesting element among all three games (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

With Phoenix roped into a law system of a foreign culture, Apollo and Athena have to contend with cases back in their home country as well. This game also introduces new characters like "Her Benevolence" Rayfa, and yet another gimmick in the form of the Divination Seance and Insights. These add a further layer of depth by allowing players to visually relive the victim's final moments of death and piece together details from the provided information.

Now there are issues that mostly only fans of the series will notice - and most of these are qualms that have been touched upon since these titles launched individually. As an example, while Apollo has his morals, views, and personality, he does not see as straightforward of a character arc as Phoenix since the latter two games juggle between three characters.

Each NPC brings something quirky to the table (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

It may feel overwhelming at first, and it did for me as a fan of the older titles. But rest assured these are still solid games despite individual issues - ranging from moments of needless trial and error or poor pacing at times to outright showcasing the culprit from the get-go.

What's new in store?

Each game has its own title screen, save slots, and more (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy packs in all content released thus far for these games. While the original Apollo Justice title has no content add-ons, Dual Destinies and Spirit of Justice see the addition of DLC Special Episodes and protagonist costumes to wear during gameplay.

Capcom has also included bonus artwork, scenery, and music galleries for die-hard fans to dive into. Located under the Museum tab of the game selection screen, players can visit the Orchestra Hall to listen to their favorite tunes - and the series does not disappoint when it comes to the OST.

Series fans will undoubtedly be nostalgic over some of these cosmetics (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

The Animation Studio in Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy allows fans to mess around with character models, backgrounds, voice lines, and more to create unique scenes. These can be photographed as well, showcasing the updated texture work and quality across the board.

The Art Library option features varied artwork and cutscenes across all three games. Of course, it should go without saying that the latter two tabs contain major story spoilers, so players should avoid this section until they have beaten the collection. Which brings us to a key question: can newcomers dive into any entry headfirst?

With subsequent entries referencing previously revealed characters and plot beats, it is highly recommended to play the games in order. So, the answer is no. Players should first beat Apollo Justice, then Dual Destinies, and save Spirit of Justice for the last. Finally, the Accolades tab allows them to keep track of in-game achievements.

Graphics, performance, and sound

Spirit of Justice is the best-looking game in the saga (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy is a remaster, meaning it is virtually the same game as the originals but at higher resolution. This is most obvious with Dual Destinies and Spirit of Justice as they feature 3D graphics elements. These see a big boost in visual sharpness and clarity of the original 240p renders. Despite that, however, character models and other assets remain fundamentally the same.

What is shocking is that these games are still 30 FPS. For simplistic visual novels, I expected at least an uplift to 60 FPS. This would have enhanced the charming animation work further. Coming to the soundtrack, this is solid across the board - none of the music tracks are bad, and they carry set pieces along reasonably well.

In conclusion

Each entry has its strengths and weaknesses (Screenshot from Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy)

Despite inevitable story and character flaws that fans have been complaining about for over a decade, Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy is a solid re-release to occupy players until Ace Attorney 7. The updated visuals do a respectable job of bringing these handheld games to modern systems, though the lack of enhanced performance is a bummer.

Still, those craving for a tried-and-true, laid-back, narrative-heavy adventure, should give Apollo Justice Ace Attorney Trilogy a try if they have not yet.