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Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney WiiWare First Look

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  • Wii
By Ricardo Torres, GameSpot AU, Posted Nov 19, 2009 3:04 am GMT

We try out Capcom’s legal game in WiiWare form--now with more waving.

Capcom gave us a surprise look at the just announced WiiWare version of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney at a press event last night. The game is a conversion of the first DS game for the Wii, which modifies the game’s presentation to account for a single screen and motion controls. We tried out the game, and although still a work in progress, it looks like Phoenix Wright’s first adventure is making a comfortable jump to the Wii. For those who aren't in the know about Capcom’s pointy lawyer, the Phoenix Wright series follows the ace attorney as he starts out defending a childhood friend on a murder charge, but he soon finds himself in a complicated mess. You’ll play as the smartly attired and sensibly coiffed hero. You'll guide him as he investigates, interrogates and objects his way to the truth...or at least a court victory. The WiiWare game should be familiar to anyone who played the game on the DS with some key differences.

The game’s transition to the Wii has resulted in some tweaks to the control, namely removing the second screen that shows off evidence and info you’ll use during a trial. The inventory screen will be something you’ll have to call up and toggle between during the game. In addition, the game will support motion control so you’ll wiggle the Wii Remote to press witnesses during cross examination and point, in suitably dramatic fashion, to present evidence. The controls were a little finicky in the work-in-progress version of the game we saw, but they seemed to work OK once we got the motions right. The only downside to the Wii conversion is the omission of the bonus episode that appeared on the DS version of the game. The episode is slated to be downloadable from the game--for a price--in May of next year.

The visuals in the game stay true to the original DS game, right down to the aspect ratio, which results in an onscreen border around the action. Unfortunately, the visuals come across as chunkier on a proper television screen. The game’s art style, however, retains its charm, although it would have been nice to see some updated art.

Based on this early look at the game, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is looking like a solid conversion of the fan favorite game on WiiWare. The addition of motion control is an interesting touch but doesn’t really add much to the experience. Thankfully, the core game is as appealing as ever, although we’ll offer a gripe about the bonus chapter not being included. If you missed out on the original game, this and the other upcoming installments are a fine way to get up to speed on the fun, eccentric series. The game is currently slated to come to WiiWare in January of next year with the bonus episode becoming available for download in May.

35 Comments

  • maplevin

    Posted Jan 3, 2010 12:20 am GMT

    they should make new cases instead of the same ones. i dont really feel like replaying the game

  • Col-Neil

    Posted Dec 22, 2009 2:26 pm GMT

    You know instead of this they could have given us an actual Wii Phoenix Wright which could be very interesting to see

  • killerkazama

    Posted Nov 30, 2009 7:57 am GMT

    i'll buy it hopefully if the put voices
    (either way i'm gonna buy it)

  • pokey4him

    Posted Nov 30, 2009 5:36 am GMT

    looks compelling but not totally worth it

  • XxDaRkAnZeLxX

    Posted Nov 27, 2009 4:40 pm GMT

    Full voices on the game and I'll get it.
    I would want to hear Edgeworth's grunt when he got owned in court lol

  • GameHole

    Posted Nov 27, 2009 4:25 pm GMT

    OMG OMGOMG! I can't WAIT!

  • PsychoKristoph

    Posted Nov 26, 2009 2:44 pm GMT

    I assume that if things turn out great for WiiWare of the AA games, I'm sure CAPCOM will pull another thing for AA on Wii, and I'm not thinking of a Wii port of AJ nor AAIME.

  • geodukemon

    Posted Nov 25, 2009 2:29 pm GMT

    Not worth it if you played the DS version, IMO.

  • ASK_Story

    Posted Nov 25, 2009 2:14 pm GMT

    So this will come to America? Definitely getting it then! I wonder if Capcom will update the game with a new original case every few months or so. That'd really make the game have fresh legs.

  • StickRox

    Posted Nov 24, 2009 4:19 am GMT

    even though there is no mic nothing will stop me from shouting objection during a court case. XD

  • Antherian_being

    Posted Nov 23, 2009 2:23 am GMT

    Pheonix is better than apollo - played all the games, howeva Apollos plot was kool as well but i LOVED the 3rd game!!

  • Zabimaru1

    Posted Nov 22, 2009 6:38 am GMT

    Ugh, god damnit!
    I'm playing the DS version now :c

  • zerobeo

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 8:17 pm GMT

    its kinda sad that they decided to stop making new sequels for phoenix, i kinda dont really like the new guy - apollo. Phenix is way better than him

  • lsv4541

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 6:34 pm GMT

    DO WANT.
    I've been hoping for this series to come for the Wii for a while, on account of not owning a DS, and now I can play it!

  • MarcoSnow06

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 5:43 pm GMT

    It'll be a tough sell for me, having played all the original Phoenix Wright games and the Apollo Justice spin-off. Still, anyone who hasn't played these games yet needs to add them to their collection.

    On a bit of a side note, I can't wait for the Ace Attorney Investigations game. Miles Edgeworth is a pimp (just look at his ruffled shirt if you don't believe me).

  • nintendo-naut

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 2:13 pm GMT

    I'll definitely look into this. I loved Apollo Justice. I actually checked it out, and the $10 price tag on this is cheaper than buying the used copy from GameStop ($15).

  • Flipyap28

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 12:49 pm GMT

    OMG, the wii is getting something good! Got to get wii points or whatever you call them

  • Ryukai

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 11:34 am GMT

    The bonus chapter sucked anyway. Won't be getting this because I've played the first game to death anyway, but its nice to see any PW news.

  • Hungry_Homer111

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 8:34 am GMT

    Glad to see they've done a good job of translating it to the Wii, though I'm not sure about the extra motions for pressing the witnesses and objecting (though I did expect that last one to make up for the lack of microphone to yell "Objection!" into ). Looking forward to trying this game out, although I'm going to wait until the last case is up so that I can get it all at the same time.

  • sglasgow99

    Posted Nov 20, 2009 8:28 am GMT

    Well... the least I can hope for is that this becomes more of a promise of things to come. I've been a longtime fan of the series, as well as the whole Japaneese visual novel subgenre (when I can find them with an english trans), and it's nice to see it trying it's legs accross the ocean too.
    I hope Capcom uses this in though to create new content for great series. I have all PW games (even the unfortunately low qual Apollo Justice) and would love to see an episodic enstallment series come out of this. Like Sam and Max only whole lot better!

Review Scores

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Game Info

  • Wii Release Info

    • Release Date: Jan 11, 2010
    • ESRB: T
      Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older.

  • DS Release Info

    • Release Date: Oct 12, 2005
    • ESRB: T
      Titles rated T (Teen) have content that may be suitable for ages 13 and older.

  • IP Release Info

    • Release Date: May 24, 2010

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