Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice, known as Gyakuten Saiban 6 (逆転裁判 6; lit. "Turnabout Trial 6") in Japan, is the upcoming sixth main installment and the tenth installment overall in the Ace Attorney series of text-based point-and-click adventure mystery games. It was announced in Famitsu on September 1, 2015 as a title for the Nintendo 3DS, with Motohide Eshiro as producer and Takeshi Yamazaki as director. It was confirmed shortly after the Japanese announcement that the game was in development for a Western release.

The game was released in Japan in June 9th, 2016 and later released in September 8th overseas the same year. Like with the previous installment, Dual Destinies, the Western release is only avalaible as a online download through the Nintendo eShop.

Story

Phoenix Wright rushes to a foreign country called the Kingdom of Kurain to meet up with his friend and old assistant Maya Fey, who is in the middle of her spirit medium training, after hearing her scream when she drops her phone in the middle of the conversation with him. After discovering that she is safe, he decides to go sightseeing with Bokuto Tsuani, a monk-in training who works as a tour guide. During that time, the "Jewel of the Founder" is stolen from Kurain's Jiin Temple. Tsuani is arrested for this crime, so Wright goes to watch the trial. Upon learning that the country's courtroom has no defense attorneys, and instead relies on oracles to render its verdicts, he raises an objection and springs into action.

Meanwhile, Apollo Justice and Athena Cykes remains in the usual setting, handling cases for the Wright Anything Agency. At some point, the agency undergoes some kind of crisis.

Episodes

• Turnabout Foreigner (逆転の異邦人) - Bokuto Tsuani is arrested for the theft of the "Jewel of the Founder" and the murder of a treasure guard. In a land with no defense attorneys, Wright takes on Tsuani's case and works to clear him of all charges.

Characters

Protagonists

• Phoenix Wright - The protagonist of the first three games and the fifth game. Noteworthy veteran defense attorney and the senior practicing attorney of the Wright Anything Agency, who is well-known for pulling off impossible comebacks in court. He is traveling abroad to meet up with Maya Fey.

• Apollo Justice - The protagonist of the fourth game and a playable main character in the fifth. A defense attorney practicing at the Wright Anything Agency under Wright. With his boss aboard, it is up to him to take care of incoming cases at home. He possesses a genetic ability (augmented with a special bracelet) to sense nervous tics in others, which he uses to tell if someone is lying.

• Athena Cykes - A main character who debuted in the fifth game. A young energetic rookie attorney who joined the Wright Anything Agency the previous year. She has a specialization in both law and analytical psychology, which she combines in order to better understand witness testimony and identify abnormalities in emotional states, relying on her advanced hearing and a special program called the Mood Matrix on her personal AI companion, Widget.

New characters

• Leifa Padma Kurain (レイファ・パドマ・クライン) - The mystic princess of Kurain. She is a spirit medium who can use a water mirror to reveal what a murder victim saw and felt before their demise.

• Nayuta Sadmadhi (ナユタ・サードマディ) - The rival prosecutor in the game. An international prosecutor and respected monk from Kurain who believes that convicting criminals in court will provide salvation for their victims. He has a soft demeanor but hides a sharp tongue. Nayuta was first shown briefly at the end of the extended 2015 Tokyo Game Show trailer as a silhouetted individual holding a purple butterfly. Said trailer showed Apollo Justice facing the mysterious character in a Kurain courtroom, with Justice appearing to recognize said individual.

Other new characters

• Tsuani Bokuto (ボクト・ツアーニ) - A monk-in-training who works as a tour guide. Once he starts one of his tour monologues, there is no stopping him. Wright defends him in court on charges of murder.

• Kurain judge - A man similar in appearance to the judge who normally presides over Wright's and Justice's cases, albeit with more East Asian attire and a beard that ends in two braids.

Returning characters

• Maya Fey - Phoenix's assistant and the younger sister of his late mentor Mia Fey. She is an energetic spirit medium who can summon souls of the dead using her magatama. Wright meets Maya during his visit in the Kingdom of Kurain.

• Trucy Wright - Phoenix's adopted daughter and current heir to the performance rights of Troupe Gramarye. A stage magician and high school student working out of the Wright Anything Agency, she sometimes accompanies the Agency's attorneys on investigations in addition to her stage career. In the second episode, an incident occurs during one of her shows, placing her under suspicion. Prior to the Famitsu article revealing details of the second episode, posters of her could be seen in in-game screenshots.

• Ema Skye - A forensics and snackoo-obsessed detective who has previously appeared in several games in the series. Despite her strong interest in forensic science, which she has used to assist various Ace Attorney protagonists in solving crimes, she failed to qualify for her dream job of being an actual forensic scientist. She was instead hired by the Criminal Affairs Department as a homicide detective, much to her irritation. In the intervening time between Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney and Ace Attorney 6, she has managed to obtain a position as in forensics as she had originally envisioned. She appears in the second episode. Prior to the Famitsu article revealing details of the second episode, Skye's appearance in the game was hinted at when a tiny sprite of her was shown to appear on the postcards that come with the "limited goods set" of the game's limited edition.

• Simon Blackquill - The rival prosecutor in the previous game, Blackquill is a prosecutor with a dark and somewhat mischievous sense of humor who is known for his use of psychological manipulation in court via flattery, suggestive persuasion, and implicit death threats. He appears in the opening animated cutscene, where he faces Wright and Cykes in court. Its currently unknown if he will appear in game.

• Miles Edgeworth - Phoenix's old rival prosecutor and close childhood friend, now serving as Chief Prosecutor. In Ace Attorney 6, he shows up in Phoenix's pre-order episode.

• Klavier Gavin - The rival prosecutor from the fourth game. He is encountered in Apollo's pre-order episode.

• Larry Butz - The overemotional and lazy childhood friend of both Phoenix and Miles. He sometimes uses the pseudonym "Laurice Deauxnim" when working as an artist. He currently works as a children's book author. He appears in Phoenix's pre-order episode.

• Pearl Fey - Maya Fey's younger cousin, also a spirit medium, who first appeared in the second game. She appears in Phoenix's pre-order episode.

• Jinxie Tenma - A young maid living in Nine-Tails Vale who is friends with Trucy Wright and was a witness in the fifth game. Appears in Justice's pre-order episode.

• Gaspen Payne - A prosecutor and self-proclaimed "Rookie Humiliator" who appears in a Kurain courtroom wearing a yellow suit, gold crown, and a sash. Having been chased out of the prosecutor's office at the end of Dual Destinies, he has made a reputation as an "undefeated prosecutor" in Kurain, rising to the rank of head prosecutor there.

Gameplay

Spirit of Justice takes place in two different settings. In Kurain, Phoenix Wright tests his prowess as a lawyer in an unfamiliar court system. One of the new gameplay elements that he must deal with involves a "water mirror" on the floor of the courtroom. Mediums are able to use the mirror to show what a victim saw and felt during their final moments. Apollo Justice's cases, meanwhile, greatly resemble the investigations and trials of the past games, particularly Dual Destinies. Like the other 3DS Ace Attorney titles, Spirit of Justice will contain anime cutscenes as well as a new option to skip the cutscenes by pressing the "START" button. The 3D models of returning characters have all been remade.

Like Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney and Dai Gyakuten Saiban: Naruhodō Ryūnosuke no Bōken, Spirit of Justice uses the "five strike" penalty system from Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, making it the first main game since the original game to use this system, rather than the variable health bar-like "Confidence Gauge" system that has been in place since Justice For All.

Due to feedback that Dual Destinies gave too many hints to the player, the developers are aiming to have fewer direct clues in Spirit of Justice, as well as giving the player the option of disabling the appearance of hints in the dialogue. Additionally, while Dual Destinies only allowed the usage of the "Examine" feature in specific locations, investigation segments in Spirit of Justice will allow them to "examine" any environment, more akin to the previous games in the series. Nonetheless, the game has inherited several gameplay elements from Dual Destinies, such as investigation notes and the Mood Matrix.

Development

The developers have explained that they felt that no one could prove a match for Phoenix Wright anymore in his usual setting, so they moved him to a foreign country with a different court system, which would provide a sense of urgency not seen in his usual games. Communion with otherworldly spirits is a concept previously only used with the Fey clan.

Marketing and Release

Promotions

A playable demo of the game was available at the 2015 Tokyo Game Show (September 17-19), with promotional stickers for players, stage events, and a "Special Court" video. A web demo is also available on the Japanese website.

Bonus content

The game will ship in two configurations: a standard version that contains the standalone game and a Limited Edition bundle that includes the game, a bag designed after Bokuto's tote bag, a plush toy of Bokuto's dog, a drama CD, and a set of Spirit of Justice-themed postcards. All preorders are also guaranteed two additional preorder-exclusive episodes; one featuring Phoenix Wright versus Miles Edgeworth (in Kurain Kingdom) and the other featuring Apollo Justice versus Klavier Gavin (in the usual setting). All those who preorder will also receive pixel-art keychain charms of several Spirit of Justice cast members (Phoenix, Maya, Leifa, Apollo, Athena, and Nayuta). Purchasing the game in the first weeks of release also grants free alternate costumes for Phoenix, Athena, and Apollo, dressed as Furio Tigre (a culprit from the third game), a Trés Bien waitress, and a Japanese high school student respectively.

No confirmation has been given yet of whether the English markets will also receive any of these bonuses or if the preorder episodes will be translated along with the main game.

At the beginning of March, Capcom Japan ran a Twitter campaign to have "#逆転裁判 ６" posted as many times as possible, offering rewards as they passed certain thresholds (6000, 12,000, and 18,000): headshot icons of Wright, Justice, and Cykes; wallpapers; and a special video at the highest tier. Ultimately the campaign reached over 55,500 re-Tweets, meaning all rewards were posted to the official Japanese Ace Attorney 6 site, with the promised video being the opening cutscene for the game.

Gallery

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External Links

• Official website (Japanese)
• Wikipedia article
• Ace Attorney wikia article