Ridiculously awesome.
The game is, simply put, brilliant. It is brilliant in every way possible. It's just such a unique concept that I'd never before seen in a game. I mean, who could have thought that a lawyer simulator would turn out to be one of the best games I've played in the last year? The game is flawless in just about every way possible.
I think the major attraction to the game is just how rich the dialogue is. Clearly the localization team has outdone themselves with this one. The game is serious when it needs to be and downright hilarious at all other times. Whether it's the Fresh Prince of Bel Air references or the wacky and perverted hospital patient who kept me laughing the entire time he was on the screen, the game is just booming full of insanity.
The core gameplay involves alot of reading and investigating. You could almost say that the game is only 50% lawyer simulator and 50% detective work, because you'll do alot of investigating and searching for clues at the scene of the crime. You'll later use these clues to search try to prove your client innocent, trying to decide which pieces of evidence to present. It's really, REALLY well done.
Now, the game boasts 4 cases, but don't let this number discourage you. When I first read that, I thought "well how long could each case be, maybe an hour or two? That doesn't seem like a very long game..." but oh was I wrong. While the first case serves as a tutorial and only lasts a while, the 2nd and 3rd case each last a good solid 5-7 hours each. The final case, which is also by far the best case and represents some of the greatest gaming I've experienced in my lifetime, took me a wopping 10 hours to complete. Add that all up, and you're looking at a game that will easily take you 20-30 hours to complete. While there's not a whole lot of replay value, the fact that it's a long and beefy adventure more than makes up for it.
Another thing that really deserves mentioning is the storyline. Now, this game continues directly off of the first game. While I had never played the first game (and recommend you do play them in order), the story was still able to move me deeply. Each case has its own storyline, which each have some crazy twists and turns (especially the final case), there's also an overall storyline relating to the lawyers in general, and it really is fascinating just how deep it gets. For the last case (and yes, I talk about the last case alot, because it was just so ridiculously amazing) I actually shed tears of happiness and shock at some parts, it's really awesome.
So whether you buy it for the storyline, or buy it for gameplay, or buy it for both, one thing is for certain - you MUST buy this game. In fact, I recommend the entire Phoenix Wright series (I will be picking up the 1st and 3rd shortly). It is not only one of the most innovative new concepts that I've experienced in recent years, but quite frankly, it's one of the best games available for the DS or handhelds in general. You simply owe it to yourself to give Phoenix Wright a shot. This is one game that you cannot miss out on. By far one of the best games I've ever played.