That’s right, another special post on a non-blogging day (aye and on one of our special holidays, at that, ye scallywags)!

Last night, Capcom held a special Ace Attorney 6 stage show for TGS 2015. I didn’t watch it because it was entirely in Japanese… and the last time I tried that, I understood so little it was better to wait for the translation.

Anyway, the stage show included an extended trailer that revealed Apollo Justice as a returning character. Many people already gave up on seeing Apollo and Athena for some reason, so it’s good to have an early reveal.

But it’s more interesting than just Apollo’s return. In the trailer, he says:

“I’m fine! Even if Mr. Wright’s not here, I can fight! I have to win… even if that person is my opponent…!”

At first, I thought the line about Phoenix being “not here” meant Apollo might be handling cases back home, but the image shows him in the Kurain court. His reference to “that person,” however, has caused a great deal of speculation. Let’s take a look.

Coupled with Apollo’s statement, the silhouette at the end is likely the new prosecutor, much like the silhouetted glimpse of Blackquill in Dual Destinies trailers. But why would Apollo refer to “that person” as though they’re someone to be feared?

It’s a line clearly written to invite theories, and the final image only increases it.

The pink butterfly made some fans immediately think of a Kurain-related character with a butterfly motif, but while she’d definitely qualify for the sinister that person descriptor, it seems a stretch even for Capcom.

So, who else could this mysterious prosecutor be?

A user over at Court-Records brightened the image and traced it to get a clearer image. The result shows someone who is either bald, wearing a hat, or wearing a hood (personally, I think it looks like a hat), with their hand raised near the butterfly. Some sort of material seems to attach their hat to their wrist.

Here are some possibilities that have been suggested:

• Iris – This is an easy jump to make if you connect the motif to Dahlia, but there’s no reason for Apollo to give her such a sinister build-up. It also seems odd to make her a prosecutor…
• Maya – Why would they bring Maya back as a prosecutor? It would be an interesting twist… but I don’t see enough evidence to suggest it.
• Winston or Gaspen Payne – With a pink butterfly motif?
• Kristoph Gavin – It’s a stretch, but I can Kristoph symbolized by a butterfly. I can see his braid in the silhouette if I try hard enough. And I have absolutely no idea why the coolest defense in the west would be prosecuting. Maybe another member of the family, out for revenge against Apollo?
• Juniper Woods – If that’s a hat, it could conceivably be Juniper, except she was studying to be a judge, not a prosecutor.
• Robin Newman – Robin could return as a prosecutor, but I really don’t see the pink butterfly as a match.
• Thalassa – Well, this would definitely return to a loose end from Apollo Justice, but is even Capcom crazy enough to do something like this?
• Edgeworth – If he dresses like his father, there’s a case for it… but butterflies?
• von Karma’s granddaughter – A minor detail never played with in the Ace Attorney series is that Franziska has an older sister, who has a child – the granddaughter Manfred references in the first game. Given Ace Attorney ages, she’d be old enough to prosecute by AA6 and could follow in her grandfather’s footsteps.
• A brand new character – This is honestly the theory I lean toward the most. The quote is there to draw attention, and the character’s significance will be built up in the game rather than from the series’ past. It might just indicate that this will be a big challenge for Apollo.

Check out the new gameplay footage from the stage show helpfully compiled by a fan, and share your thoughts on Ace Attorney 6 and the mysterious prosecutor in the comments below. Let the speculation commence!