Operation Backlog Completion 2026

No AA7 Tease Yet, But Capcom Says the Ace Attorney Series Will Continue

 Video games  3 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Jan 262024
 

The Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy is now out, bringing the 4th, 5th, and 6th mainline games to modern platforms at last.

Sadly, my hope that the secret artwork unlocked for completing all three games would actually be an Ace Attorney 7 tease came to nothing… and I didn’t even have to play the games to find out, as Capcom just straight-up showed the art in a trailer.

They’re even selling the art prints, although the price is a bit steep for me.

Anyway, while that hope might have been dashed, we have a different reason to be optimistic for Ace Attorney’s future!

Not only are things looking better than ever, with high sales numbers and even a physical release of the Switch version in North America, but Capcom has officially confirmed that the series will continue.

In a recent interview with 4Gamer, translated here by Nintendo Everything, Apollo Justice Trilogy producer Kenichi Hashimoto wouldn’t give specifics, but said, “I can say that the Ace Attorney series will not be stopping, so in that sense I think you can look forward to what is coming.” That’s as good a sign as any – if they had no intention of making a new Ace Attorney game, they could have given a simple “nothing to announce at this time” response.

(You know, like how they did back in the day when I used to email Capcom asking about Ace Attorney Investigations 2.)

Some fans have still taken this to mean that we’ll just continue to get remasters and ports and nothing else, but it was just a few years ago that it seemed like we’d never get anything but the original trilogy, so Ace Attorney’s situation has already improved quite a bit.

I’m more optimistic than ever for the Ace Attorney series, and I believe we’ll get news sooner rather than later. Will it be in a Nintendo Direct, like when the Ghost Trick remaster was announced? Will it be at a Capcom showcase, like the Apollo Justice Trilogy? Or will Capcom simply drop the news randomly on Twitter one day, like they did with The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles? However they choose to reveal it, I think we’ll actually see a new Ace Attorney game announced soon… dare I hope it will be this year?

When do you think the next Ace Attorney game will be announced?

Capcom Actually Referenced Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright!

 Video games  4 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Dec 202023
 

Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright Ace AttorneyWhat’s this? An actual official Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright reference, you say?

With the Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy coming out in just over a month, Capcom has been releasing a short trailer for each case in the trilogy, narrated by the characters.

We’re now up to the second case in Spirit of Justice, The Magical Turnabout, and the promo video starts by presenting Trucy’s magic show. In it, they mention the spell “Granwyrm.”

Now unless I’ve forgotten an existing reference, Granwyrm is never actually mentioned in Spirit of Justice. No, that’s a reference to one of the much-overlooked Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, in which the spell Granwyrm plays an important role.

Of all the Ace Attorney games, the crossover is the one I least expect to get a remaster. It’s not up to Capcom alone but also Level-5, and even the mainline Professor Layton games haven’t been given the attention Ace Attorney has. Mobile ports of the original trilogy are the only remasters available. Back when the 3DS eShop was open, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright never even went on sale. So despite my growing hopes for an Investigations duology, I really don’t expect to see Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright again.

On the other hand, Capcom also acknowledged the crossover with the 20th anniversary artwork, where a handful of characters were included, so that together with this reference shows they at least aren’t trying to ignore it. And since the Professor Layton series is making a return, the crossover’s chances look marginally better now, at least.

I have such mixed feelings about Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright. Back when I played it, I said it was “almost perfect,” but my dislike for the ending left me remembering it more negatively.

However, I’ve softened toward it since then. My disappointment with Layton’s Mystery Journey made me realize I much prefer insane storytelling with a plot twist that introduces a thousand plot holes but feels like the writers put their whole heart into it, over the dull low-stakes storytelling that took up most of Layton’s Mystery Journey. I want the next Professor Layton plot to go crazy again, and that gave me new appreciation for Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright.

So if it was remastered, I’ve course I’d buy it. I’d love to see it make a return and be easier for new fans to play, since right now the only option is tracking down a physical copy, and prices had skyrocketed even before the 3DS eShop shut down.

Do I think Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney will be remastered? Not really. Would I like it to happen? Absolutely. Either way, it was still nice to see it be officially referenced!

Capcom is Aware of the Demand for AAI2 Localization

 Video games  5 Responses »  Tagged with: , , ,
Dec 132023
 

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been blogging about wanting an Ace Attorney Investigations 2 localization for over a decade now.

(Yeah, that was back when my blog posts were sometimes just walls of text.)

After all this time, there’s still no official way to play Ace Attorney Investigations 2, or Gyakuten Kenji 2, in English, although the fan translation is quite good.

Well, some of us are still asking for it despite the amount of time that’s passed. More importantly, Capcom is aware that we want it.

In a recent interview with Siliconera about the upcoming Apollo Justice Trilogy, producer Kenichi Hashimoto was asked about the possibility of an Investigations duology including an official translation of the second game, to which he responded:

The development team is aware that fans are hoping for this. Unfortunately, we have no announcements at this time.”

I know, that’s a complete non-answer. The good old “no announcements at this time” response would be given even if they intended to announce it next week, and probably if they never intended to release it at all. But the fact that he said they’re aware of demand for it feels like an encouraging sign.

I still think the Ace Attorney series is in one of the best positions it has been in a long time. The interview also revealed that development of the Apollo Justice Trilogy began in 2021, which threw me for a loop since most of my theories were based on the success of The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles leading to it being greenlit, but that means they already considered it worthwhile by then. And as I’ve said before, even localizing The Great Ace Attorney at all is a promising sign for the future.

(That interview just says 2021, but I saw another one that specified spring 2021, which would mean it was before Chronicles even came out.)

So, what about Investigations 2?

Investigations 2 has come up more lately than it has in years. It was included in the Capcom Museum’s special exhibit about the Investigations duology. An official Capcom survey had it as an option when asking what Ace Attorney games you’ve played, even listing it as Ace Attorney Investigations 2 instead of calling it Gyakuten Kenji 2. Now this interview acknowledged that fans in the west want it.

You know what? I think it’s going to happen.

Ace Attorney 7 should still be next. With this many years having passed since the last new game and the Apollo Justice Trilogy bridging the gap for new players, it would be a shame to have another collection come out before the next game. However, I have new hope that we might see Investigations after that.

For the first time in years, an official Ace Attorney Investigations 2 localization feels like something we can realistically hope for once again.

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