Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice Reviews
Another exciting visual novel - but only if you can get over the series' longstanding irritations.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice is sure to please fans with its engaging story and sharp humor, but the gameplay formula is starting to show its age.
There’s enough snappy dialogue and silliness in Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice to satisfy long-term series fans, and the conventional courtroom sequences still feel rewarding when you get on a roll and a witness starts to unravel. But the heavy-handed mysticism of its bloated middle act and the general lack of innovation makes for a less than essential entry in the Phoenix Wright saga on the whole.
Spirit of Justice strikes right to the core of what makes Ace Attorney games great: bold, dramatic narrative, a ridiculous sense of humour, and outstanding writing. The first truly superb AA game in years.
With a captivating overarching storyline that has both new and familiar characters, Spirit of Justice keeps you on the edge of your seat
Spirit of Justice's confident story outweighs its clumsy moments
The latest courtroom adventure for the Wright Anything Agency may be its best yet, with a wide range of crime-solving tools and characters that create room for elaborate drama and meaningful moments.
Spirit of Justice also excels at everything Phoenix Wright has done so well over the years. The music is great, the character animations are superb, and the localization is very good, handled deftly as always by longtime Phoenix Wright editor Janet Hsu and her team of pun lovers.
The atmosphere, music and overall writing of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice are spot on.
You saw this verdict coming; Phoenix Wright's latest adventure is every bit as brilliant as his earlier escapades, with phenomenal writing, satisfying gameplay, and tons of irresistibly clever courtroom drama. The high-altitude Himalayan setting is fresh and fun, and much more than just window dressing; the thrilling Divination Séances are a wonderful on-theme addition, the new characters are as memorable as any in the series, and Khura'in's customs makes for both enjoyable virtual tourism and a constant source of plot-twisting courtroom culture-shock. Whether you're a longtime fan or a first-time offender, no further deliberation is required — this is a court date you won't want to miss.
While I would never object to more Ace Attorney, there’s evidence enough to suggest that changes to the mechanics are in order.
In short, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice is as amazing as any other title in the series. Great for newcomers (who should still highly consider picking up the Ace Attorney Trilogy beforehand) and fans of the series alike, Spirit is consistently a pleasure and deserves a spot in your 3DS library.
Mechanically the game is more than sound, it's awesome. Character-wise, however, you might want to make sure this isn't the Ace Attorney game you pick up first if you're looking to build relationships.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice is the first game in a long time that I just could not put down. No matter how tired I was, I was determined to get through just the next witness testimony before bed. And then that turned into the next one. And then I refused to sleep before this particular trial was over. Suffice to say, SoJ does the Phoenix Wright series justice (see what I did there?), and it's sure to be one of the most popular puzzle games this year. Just please don't think this is how a day in court goes. SoJ does many things well, but accurately depicting the legal system is by far not one of them, not that it means to.
The latest episode in gaming’s most endearing soap opera has some minor script problems, but it’s still a joy to catch up with old friends and new enemies.
Capcom could just keep making these with different time periods in new regions and I'd keep playing them. As long as it employs a good writing crew and delivers satisfying scenarios, I'm in. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice, you made this aspiring lawyer's day.
Spirit of Justice has every quality and every flaw of the Ace Attorney series. On the western edge of far East you'll find a great story, amazing characters and that sense of humor we all learned to love. But you'll also find a linear game with very few changes. A solid visual novel overall.
Review in Italian | Read full review
In many ways Spirit of Justice can be likened to one of Capcom’s other recent flagships, Monster Hunter: Generations. Both hail from fantastic game series though neither are particularly ground-breaking. Instead, they’ve simply uprooted their tried and tested formulas, plonking them in a slightly different setting with new bells and whistles attached. Where other franchises are demonised for failing to constantly evolve, Ace Attorney is one that benefits from remaining untouched, propped up by lovable characters and some superb writing.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice expands further the Ace Attorney world, with new mechanics, a better investigation system and a lot of old acquaintances that most of the fans missed in the last games.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Like with the rest of this continually growing franchise, this game likely isn’t going to change anybody’s mind that didn’t like past entries, but there is no question that fans of the series will absolutely adore Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice.