Note: The version I've played is the Assassin's creed 2 game of the year edition + Assassin's creed. I do not know in great detail how this version differs from the previously released ones.
Additionally, please play Assassin's creed before reading this review as this review might contain spoilers.
In the world of video games, sequels are usually a good thing. The developers oftenly listen to the critism of the previous installments, work how they can make the next game even better, while sticking true to the same formula and at the same time tweak it enough it becomes a whole new experience. Unlike movies, video game sequels are usually better, or at least more critically acclaimed, that their predecessors. Your favorite video games are most likely a sequel of some sort, or at least part of a series in some way or form. For example, I prefer Streets of rage 2, Street fighter 2 or Kingdom hearts 2 over their originals. Of course there are sequels so far into the series that it's almost unfair to compare them, mostly because the predecessors were most likely great for their times and the sequels are and always will be closer to the ideal video game today since they always will be newer. Super Mario bros. were great for its time, but Super Mario world outpreforms it in all aspects. Ocarina of time and Final fantasy VII are said to be two of the greatest games of all time, although no one seems to mention the original Zelda or Final fantasy game in the same sentence. While there are sequels that does not get the same approval of the installments before them, such as Devil may cry 2, this rule mostly holds true in video games. I personally believe a series needs at least a trilogy, one to start the series, one more to test new things and experiment a bit, and a third to perfect it. I believe Spyro: year of the dragon is far better than Spyro or Spyro 2, just to give an example. This, too, isn't all true, since I still prefer Streets of rage 2 over 3, or Chrono trigger over Chrono cross (though this doesn't usually count as a trilogy).. Video games needs sequels in order to improve, and in turn, risks needs to be taken,
Assassin's creed 2 (AC2) is a perfect example of this done right.
Everything Assassin's creed created, AC2 expands. Assassin's creed was a linear and somwhat boring game with not much variety to it. AC2, on the other hand, is a LOT more open and is more of a sandbox game á la GTA at times. There are much more sidequests to do, you now have money, enabling you to buy new weapons and amror among other stuff, and even throw away to the people on the streets. The annoying beggars and drunkards are now gone (although street musicians, or bards, act in a similar fashion to beggars, but they're not quite as annoying as beggars since they're quiet when you're not around unlike beggars who continiously beg even when they don't see you), so there's no one to push you around anymore, literally. The carriers are still around and still annoys me, but they seem slightly less frequent in various locations. The climbing is also improved, since you now can climb faster by holding R1 and you learn new climbing techniques as well. This game feels like how Assassin's creed was ,meant to be, but never was for some reason.
Another major improvement is the storytelling. Let's be honest, by the end of Assassin's creed, we don't know too much about Altaïr. There's not mention in the game of his family, his hometown, how he came to join the assassins, etc. While I think Altaïr is a decent character, although bland, I wish the game that introduced him could tell us a little more about him, since this was his first ever appearance. Some might say it adds to his mystery, but I see no reason to keep the player in the dark about the main character in such a story driven game as Assassin's creed. The new protagonist, Ezio (pronounced Ett-zih-o) is more fleshed out, and perhaps that's why he has become more popular. I won't give away much about the story, but let's just say that most of Ezio and his past is shown in the game (though I still can't believe he has the same voice actor as Sonic). The game even explains the shift to Ezio and do try to cover up some questions one might have by simply being introduced to the new premise and characters. This is something I actually like, even if the explainations are brief and usually only lasts a line, but I don't recall having too many questions unanswered during the course of the game (until the ending at least).
The controls are largely the same as before. You learn some new moves, most of which are helpful, such as climbing faster. Finding out exactly what the new tricks are is pretty fun, and I won't spoil anymore. I do think parts of the climbing could still be better, such as jumping from walls, but at least they are improved.
Not so suprisingly, the graphics are much better, even though the first game had pretty good graphics, too. It feels more colorful and at the same time more "real" to me. If you liked the viewpoints from the other game, you're going to love this one. I still don't quite get why there have to be so many viewpoints and why you pretty much have to use them in order to navigate correctly. Something I wish they could have cut down on. Additionally, the music is pretty decent, but not anything I wish to rehear soon. It doesn't have to be all time high in order to be good, though.
In spite how varying the missions feel, the game can be sort of long sometimes. It drags its feel in the later part, but by the time I started to notice this, I was pretty close to the ending I was motivated enough to keep going. Of course the story was a major factor, too. It's nothing "game breaking" or something unbearable even. Just something I hope Ubisoft will think about until Assassin's creed 3. Some of the sidequests , like the feather gathering, weren't all that interesting to me, although I liked the Villa one since it made me feel like I had my own mansion and even made money off of it. Still better than no sidequests, though.
All in all, this game is a huge improvement, and is a lot more fun to play than its predecessor. If you somehow haven't tried this game out yet, do so. I recommend the Assassin's creed 2 game of the year edition + Assassin's creed version.
Also, I assumed people wanted me to make some sort of this line, but I will only say it instead: Requiestat in pace.
Summary: A huge improvement over Assassin's creed, this game is more open, has better storytelling and gets rid of a lot that held its predecessor back.
Grade: 8/10
All images found via google and are copyrighted by their respective owners.
Please note that I got the Assassin's creed 2 game of the year edition + Assassin's creed version of this game. In this case, you downloaded Assassin's creed (hereby abbreviated to AC) to your PS3 or PSP (I haven't tried if the latter works, though) and Assassin's creed 2 (AC2) needs the disc to be played. Thus, it is possible that this version of AC has shorter or maybe even longer loading times and other slight differences. For once thing, some of the speech was sort of disorted, but not by much, possibly to compress the game for minimum size and whatnot. In other words, I cannot speak for the stand-alone version of this game, i.e. the one on a seperate disc, only this one version I happen to own.
As for the game itself, which is probably why you're reading this in the first place; all I need to say that it took me 5 years for me to play this. I remember the trailers and that it was pretty hyped during its release. It was supposedly a good rival of Prince of persia. In the end, it recieved pretty decent reviews, ofthenly with final ratings in the likes of 7 or 70% and the likes. Which isn't bad, but not enough to pipe my curiousity enough to actually buy it. That, and because I had no PS3 or 360 back then. Still, I liked the look of the game and the character designs. I even got the mobile version, which was ok in my opinion.
So where does this all lead to? Not much, actually. To be perfectly honest; I have very little to say about this game. Since it's so story driven, saying too much will end up spoiling the story and give away major plot points. I can still talk about some of the gameplay, though. During AC's initial release, it recieved complaints about the climbing, many claiming that pressing and holding one single button will get tedious after a while. Honestly, I didn't feel much of that, since Uncharted uses mainly a single button for climing, but not entirely., and Uncharted has some of the best climbing control I have experienced so far in a video game. This game's climbing is ok, though. It feels a little akward to get the control scheme down at first if you have played Uncharted as much as I have, but it will stick eventually. For example, in AC you hold circle to catch onto ledges when falling or dropping. In Uncharted, you hold circle to NOT grab into ledges. However, once I learned it, which didn't take long, it felt pretty good. You do climb kind of slow, though. I also don't get why you have to climb towers and churches and look over the area (aka viewpoints) in order to see your surroundings on the map. Why is this so necessary? I find it next to no fun, although I do understand that it was put in the game in order to add to its "variety-factor". I will talk more about this later.
The fighting mechanics are pretty decent as well. Attack with your weapon with square, grab with circle, block with R1 and lock into enemies with L1. Naturally, you will learn more moves along the course of the game. I do like that you recover health pretty quickly in this game, especially useful after accidentally dropping down from a building and hurting yourself pretty badly. However, enemies hurt you suprisingly hard, and it can be easy to die quickly if you are careless. Playing it safe, like standing in a corner and counterattacking all attacks, can too be a little annoying at times, especially since there are some times you HAVE to fight and not flee like a coward. There is one thing I still don't get. How does the enemies sometimes counterattack everything you do without fail and sometimes they don't? Some enemies counterattack all your attacks and grabs leaving you with little to nothing to defend yourself with. It depends on how strong the enemy is and how far you have gotten into the story, as your sword skills improve over the game. Sometimes, though, especially in the final parts of the game, enemies counterattacks everything you do. At times, it's easier to simply throw them to the ground and finish them off with a single stab, instead of having to fight them for a minute or so. This is especially annoying in the early parts of the game when you can randomly stumble across the more powerful enemies that roam the entire map who and you can't do anything other than run and hide. I know this game encourages feeing and hiding ,like Metal gear solid, but when the game forces you to fight, it shouldn't have to be so random just to land a hit.
Also, if you want information on the game's plot, go buy the game, even if you have never heard of it. I won't go into much detail, all you need to know that you play as the assassin Altaïr and your job is to assassinate people and get away from the guards. It's about as varying as it sounds.
Amazingly, this game's civilians are more unhelpful than any civilians in all Marvel comics combined. The beggars run up to you and blocks your path, begging for coins which you can't give them even if you wanted to. The carriers (women holding pots on their heads or men carrying boxes) will drop whatever they're carrying and give away your position to the guards or assassination targets if you bump into them, although this can be avoided by using the Gentle push command by holding circle while walking. The drukards and madmen will push you, which will poltentially break your cover. They can also push you into water, causing instant death (another thing I hate, Altaïr can't swim, and this game WILL exploit this). You can punch or grab them to make them flee and will not cause the guards to notice you, most of the time. Lastly, there are the thugs who will engage in fistfights with you, which can be annoying since you have to engage in fistfights in order to get information. If a few thugs happen to be around, they can hurt can possibly kill you. The only helpful civilians are the scholars, which act as moving hiding spots, hiding among them will not cause the guards to be suspicious of you. Also, the game clearly state that you must not kill civilians, doing so will cause you to loose HP (I know it's not actually called that in-game, but people get my point) and killing three will kill you. Their bodies will also cause guards to be caucious, once again potentially causing you to have your cover blown. Honestly, whenever I see a drunkard or madman, I wish I could simply assassinate them to save me the trouble. Honestly, in the end, it might not be worth the trouble.
The graphics are actually pretty nice for its time, and they hold up pretty decent by today's standards. The scenery is pretty beautiful and the lightning effects are good. The music is pretty good as well, but nothing that will go down in history. Overall, I guess I'm fairly neutral in these particular aspects, but at least someone out there might enjoy them more than I did.
The voice acting is ok. The character's accents are believable at best, although it's weird that Altaïr seems to have none when all others do. Nolan North does a pretty good job as one of the characters, not going to say whom, though (Nolan North is also the voice of Nathan Drake, yet another funny similarity to Uncharted) and Philip Shahbaz is ok as Altaïr. The lines themselves are usually good as well, can't recall any extremely silly moment or laughing out loud at a single line or something. Could have been a lot worse.
One thing I really did like was the story. The game shows some interesting and somewhat fresh ideas and they make the story as a whole a lot more whole and enaging. This part I wil not talk to much about, as I recommend the story and playing the game through just to get the story.
However, there is one final and major complaint I have: Sometimes, it can be pretty boring. You go to a town, climb viewpoints just to know what's going on in the district you're in, gather information about your assassination target by talking to pickpocketing maps, making small quests for informatives, eavesdrop etc, rest up and finally kill the target. Repeat eight times. They only give interesting tweaks in this formula late in the game, and by then I was pretty tired of formula anyway. Fortunately, the story does keep the game interesting most of the time as it's the only reason I kept playing it. The motivation Altaïr seems to have for most of the game is to restore something, until he realizes there are bigger things to worry about, and before those bigger things unravel, there was little to no motivation for me to keep going. The tiresome foruma and unhelpful civilians sure didn't help either. Plus the fact that you seem to drop like you've just been shot when you're near a ledge if pushed or attacked, mostly causing you to fall to your death even with circle held down. Sadly, for me, the very good parts of this game, its story and ideas, are almost lost. If the parts I have talked about, its variety-factor in particular, this game could have been really good. Sadly, it's merely decent to me. It was the start of a pretty good series, though. I do recommend that fans of this series replay this game and see if it still holds up as well as they think, which it doesn't in my opinion.
How do those guards summon stones to throw at you no matter where they're standing?
Summary: This game's strong points, its story and ideas, are almost lost in the of lack of variety and tedious NPCs, although this is marked the beginning of a good video game series. However, it will not stand the test of time.
Grade: 6.5/10
All images found via google and are copyrighted by their respective owners.
WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR ALL ACE ATTORNEY GAMES, INCLUDING GYAKUTEN KENJI 2!!! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
The Ace attorney series is famed for its weird and quirky characters. Everything from their design to name can be described as over the top. Fortunately, they're usuallt not 100% played for laughs. Some of these people are genuine assholes and even murderers. Which is why I love do expose their lies in their testimonies as much as I do. Most of the people you cross examine or have rebuttals with deserve to be exposed for what they are: criminal scums. That's why it's also fun to see their reactions when you expose them. Their over the top reactions, oftenly called breakdowns, are oftenly very satisfying and rewarding, as well as entertaining to watch. But which breakdowns are the "best"?
Below is a list of my favorite breakdowns in the entire series. The only criteria to make this list is that it must be a breakdown, i.e. the reacton the character makes when you have fully exposed their lies and they have admitted defeat and guilt. It must also be entertaining in some way or for, at least to me. You may have your own picks, but these are MINE.
Finally, this is not a particularly serious list. This is mostly for good fun, so if I happen to miss your favorite(s), please don't be rude about it.
All that said, here are my picks!
20
Frank Sahwit was the first witness you ever examined, so naturally he was the first one to have a breakdown. Unfortunately, he's not an interesting character, just a simple cowardly thief. He did suffice as the first witness ever, though.
The breakdown: Easily one of the most famous in the series. It's technically two, but I count them as one. First, he rages and throws his tupé at Phoenix (Edgeworth in GK2) and simply goes insane. Later, when all reasonable doubt has been removed, he starts to froth at the mouth and faint. How? Who knows, but it's pretty rewarding for being the first breakdown in the series, so extra points for that.
19
This one is from the so far Japan-only Gyakuten kenji 2 (Ace attorney investigations 2). I will be fair with spoilers from this game, since it hasn't even gotten an english release. However, some of the breakdowns in this are far too good to ignore. I won't give all the details, but needless to say, Yukata Kazami is guilty.of murder. After a long struggle, Edgeworth finally finds out. What followed was...
The breakdown: Being a pastry chef,Yukata oftenly shapes "sculptures" during his dialogues. This one is his masterpiece. In pure rage, he blows up pastry and violently sculptures it to a replica of himself. He then pauses for a moment and slices it in half. The symbolism in this game is astonishing to say the least. This one gets an extra point for its "artism". Art can be funny sometimes.
18
A lot of fans will probably be angry with me for placing Godot so fairly low on this list. While he is easily one of the best villains in the entire series, far superior to those we have seen on this list so far, his breakdown wasn't exactly dramatic or funny, just pretty standard. However, his reveal had a great build up, as he was the prosecutor of all cases Wright faced in the game, only to be framed for "murdering" the woman who ruined his life. We can sympathize with him because his life really did suck in the end, he had pretty much everything he loved stolen from him in one way or another. One can't help but to feel sad for this truely tragic character as he finally is sent to jail for his crime. His coffe metaphors is pure nonsense, though.
The breakdown: His vizor explodes and he flinches backwards. Later, he is seen bleeding through his vizor. He says that since he can't see red, they must be his tears. The whole scene is truely dramatic, but the breakdown itself isn't all that great. It's a decent end for a great character.
17
Enough of drama and character development for a while, you came here to see silly over the top reactions, right? Well, I've got a pretty good one for you right here. Cammy Meele interest include sleeping, murdering, and blowing bubbles. Once she stops sleeping during her rebuttal with Edgeworth, she starts blowing some bubbles (perhaps joking about the common cliché in media where sleeping persons are shown blowing bubbles through the nose or mouth) and gets a more serious attitude. Eventually, like all criminals, she breaks down in a pretty funny scene.
The breakdown: Cammy starts blowing bubbles more intenstly than before. The bubbles starts popping and damages Cammy in the process, causing her to endlessly being barraged by her own bubbles. I'm not going to make a Bubblebeam joke, pokémon fans that saw this breakdown already made it in their heads already.
16
From the same case as Cammy comes Zinc Lablanc. Sure, he's not the ultimate criminal in the case, he's just some witness douche. I was originally only going to put the true culprits of the cases they star in on the list, but this one is too funny to overlook.
The breakdown: Somehow, Zinc is struck by a huge wind,eventually causing him to fall backwards. The way his skin moves is what makes this breakdown as funny as it is.
15
There are a few lame villains in the series, and Richard Wellington is one of them. He mostly spends time bragging about his education and looking down on people for not having the same class as him. What's worse is that he actually caused Wright to loose his memory for a short while, making it hard to defend his client. Richard most likely meant to kill him, making him even more of a douche he already is. However, he also has one of the funniest reactions in the game he's in, not just his breakdown.
The breakdown: In sheer panic, he shouts at the top of his lungs and pulls both ends of his scarf so hard that he strangles himself and faints. Frankly, it would have been more funny if he accidentally killed himself, but I digress.
14
Another one from GK2. Once again, not gonna say much about guy, other that than his name is Manosuke Naitou and he is the culprit in the first case. He also likes to spin his guns and style with them. His greatest gun trick is saved for last, though.
The breakdown: He spins his guns faster than usual. Eventually, he throws them into the air, probably hitting something on the way up. A bunch of objects falls down on his head, including a miniature statue of The thinker, and his head is knocked into his neck brace until he falls down. This makes him the only person in the series to be hit by The thinker and survive, although he is murdered in the following case. Suddenly, it doesn't feel as funny anymore, does it?
13
GK2 time again. This is Bansai Ichiyanagi, a prosecutor. Unfortunately, he's rather corrupt. Not going to give all the details. but that hair if his isn't real. The reveal of this fact is quite hilarious.
The breakdown: His lighter starts erupting while he screams in agony. Or something. His beard then catches fire his entire "headpiece"is burned up withing seconds. He then cough up some smoke. When I saw this the first time, I laughed at it, it's kind of bizarre even by Ace attorney standards. Even if you know his hair is fake.
12
Jacques Portsman is not interesting. At all. He's just a your basic douche prosecutor. He does, however, have some funny reactions. Here's the prime example:
The breakdown: He starts chewing on his medal faster and small pieces of the medal fills the air. The accidentally swallows it and faints. Never knew gold was so incredibly lethal
11
Remember when I said that Naitou would be murdered? His murderer's name is Marie Miwa, and this is her breakdown.
The breakdown: She starts panicing and puts her hands onto her head while she screams, She is then electrified or shocked or whatever. This causes the fox around her neck to jump away. Somehow, her fur coat turns out to be live foxes, or brings them back to life by some miracle of God, which also jump away, leaving her shuddering in a prison uniform. She also proved to have a pretty impressive rack as well.
10
Her true name is unknown even to this date, but this spy is somewhat of a more final boss than Alba. Calisto Yew, Shih-na, call her what you will. She for some reason had a fetish of laughing for no reason. While in the guise of Shih-na, she mostly manages to keep this under control. Until the truth of her involvment in the final case is revealed more and more. She first starts laughing like she did while she was called Yew, however...
The breakdown: Shih-na starts laughing hysterically. She continues to laugh. And laugh. And laugh. And laugh. She also grows fangs for some reason. Honestly, this one animation perfectly sums up her character, all it needs is her jazzy theme.
9
The only think you need to know about Teikun Ou is that he isn't as tough as he looks. He's not the true culprit, though. In a sense, anyway.
The breakdown: He screams out his muscles, revealing him to be a fat person. Or he screams out his muscles and replaces them with fat. Your guess is as good as mine.
8
There was no end to the excuses and lies Quercus Alba spouted in order to hide his guilt. Even after his "transformation" there seemed to be no way he would finally break. Once you finally got him, man did he deliver.
The breakdown: Alba stats shouting and gets surrounded by lights. He bends forward with his skin all dried. I truely hope the image below never becomes broken, so this absurd moment can be preserved forever. That and I have a hard time explaining what's going on, but hey, it's entertaining.
7
I can't believe that Souta Sarushiro was the "mastermind" in GK2. His reveal was actually quite suprising to me. Not going to give details, but he acted all shy and drawn back in the game until the final case when he revealed himself. Naturally, it was just a matter of time before he got owned like all the other culprits.
The breakdown: He is attacked by a barrage of animals, some of which has helped him such as changing make up or making a pillar he can rest on. This, my friends, is animal cruelty on a whole different level. [/lamejoke]
6
I love this guy. He is always full of himself and confident, but in all reality he just want people to like him. Fortunately, the great detective Luke Atmey is far from "unbreakable". He was pretty darn close to getting away with murder, efficiently using loopholes in the lawbook. The build up for this one was pretty good, especially since he uses it two times but it in a sense have a different meaning each time.
The breakdown: Luke starts shaking, as if gathering a massive amount of energy, causing the whole court room to shake. He finally burst out in laughter, and yells "Take a good look everyone! Unable to find a rival worthy of my genious, I was forced to create one by myself! Here I am! The tragic clown...". I was going to do a zvarri joke, but I'm too busy laughing at a tragic clown right now.
5
I was honestly shocked on so many levels when Matt Engarde's true intentions was made clear. Up until the case he's in, ALL of your clients had been innocent. All had been found Not guilty in court. Then this guy came along and ruined that whole thing. Sure, he didn't kill Juan himself, but he hired an assassin to do it. The whole kidnapping of Maya to ensure victory in court was also really well handled in the game, and made the case the most dramatic one in the series until that point. Fortunately, Wright manages to prove to Matt that no matter the verdict, a betrayed assassin would hunt him down. That's when this happens.
The breakdown: Matt furiously rips his face while screaming "Guilty". This one ranks pretty high because of how suprisingly brutal it was. I even thought at first he had pieces of his skin on his fingers when he was done, but that is not the case. Still, a rather brutal and fitting end for an asshole of his caliber.
4
The build up for Manfred von Karma was pretty good. A prosecutor who has never lost a single case in his 40 year long career, as well as being Edgeworth's mentor. This man strives only for perfection, and all he cared about was getting Guilty verdicts, no matter the costs. Forging evidence, manipulating witnesses, murdering someone who has even given him a penalty in court; nothing was too much for this guy. During the trial with him, no matter what you say, he always objects and says that whatever you're trying to discuss with the witness has nothing to do with the case. Easily one of the worst enemies Wright has faced in the entire series. However, apply enough pressure, and all men break.
The breakdown: First he screams and howls Edgeworth's name. He is later seen hitting his head against a wall. His scream also helps Edgeworth recognize the scream from the day his father was murdered, futher proving von Karma's guilt. This breakdown is funny and rewarding, a fitting way to end a 40 year long career of being evil.
3
Damon Gant is the chief of the police. What more than that do you need to say about him? Even the police force is full of evil people in this series. Once again, great set up for his reveal, and his breakdown remains one of the series most recognizable. Mostly because of how crazy it is, but also perhaps because that Gant was a pretty good villain. For one thing, he used his position in the police force to his advantage, and often coming up with good points during the trial. He even wins if you present the piece of cloth too early. He is almost as persistent as Alba. Then again, most "real killers" in this series are.
The breakdown: Gant starts laughing uncontrollably, clapping his hands faster and faster as he continues to laugh away. What a perfect balance of laugh-out-lound and what-the-hell-am-I-watching.
2
Apollo Justice was a let down for me. However, some of the cases are still as clever as ever (no rhyme intended). Kristoph Gavin is one of the reasons this game was pretty enjoyable in the end. He reveals himself as evil in the first case, not even gonna try to convince the players that he's a good person. What follows is pure acts of sheer evil. It turns out he forged evidence in a trial Wright was supposed to be the defense attorney, causing Wright to loose his attorney badge. The he kills the defendant in that case possibly because he chose Wright over Kristoph to defend his case. Not only that, but he tricks the girls who made the forgery to wear nail polish whenever she would go outside, claiming it was a "good luck charm that would loose its power if she told anyone about this", causing the girl to poison herself when she bit her nails dosed in the poisonous nail polish out of nervousness. Oh, and he also kills her father when he used a stamp that Kristoph had poisoned, causing the girl to be framed for the murder of her own father atop of being poisoned as well. Kristoph is, without a doubt, a truely insane man. If it wasn't because of the new Jurist system Wright "tested" in the final case, Kristoph would have gotten away with everything since there was no decisive evidence. Fittingly enough, his breakdown is just as insane as his crimes and peronality.
The breakdown: Simply put: Kristoph goes "super saiyan". Less simplier put: He gathers energy like Luke did, causing various objects in the background to levitate when he does it in the first case, and finally slams his hand to the table. He then screams Wright's name as his hair fly up and he looks absolutely over the top insane. He is left with his hair in a mess and starts to ramble. At the end of the case, he is seen laughing insanely before he's taken away. The build up and fantastic delivery is what makes this breakdown so great as it is.
1
What in the world could possibly top going super saiyan, laughing beyond all reason, getting barraged by bubbles or animals, or even screaming your muscles out? The answer is: Build up. Dahlia Hawthorne is one of the most overlooked video game villains of all time. She is my personal favorite in the whole Ace attorney series. She is a very unusual villain. She first tries to charm you by acting cute and innocent, binding all men to her will. If that doesn't work, she will most likely kill you. Sometimes both. She is was born in the Fey clan, although she posseses no spiritual powers, so her family was ignored and her mother's sister's family was chosen to be next in line. Her mother, Morgan, spends the rest of her life to get the revenge she "deserves". She remarries and her two daughters, Dahlia and Iris, are seperated, Iris is sent to Hazakura temple and Dahlia lives with her new father and his daughter from a previous marrige, Valerie. To try to keep things short, Valerie, Iris, Dahlia and her then boyfriend Terry was supposed to set up a bogus kidnapping to steal a 2 million dollar diamond from Valerie's father. Iris doesn't show up, and the then 14 year old Dahlia betrays them by stealing the diamond and jumping into a river. Terry is framed for the murder of Valerie 5 years later, although Dahlia was the one who killed her. In court, he kills himself because Dahlia told Terry to drink from a bottle of poison in a necklace if he could not trust Dahlia anymore. Dahlia later poisons Diego Armando using the same necklace, charms Phoenix Wright and gives him the necklace "as a symbol of their love". She later plots to kill him, but her sister Iris tries to take it back during the dates she has with Wright. Dahlia grows impatient and finally tries to kill Wright by poisoning his cold medicine. Her ex Doug Swallow tries to warn Wright that she is dangerous, but he refuses to listen. Since Doug was about to blow her cover, Dahlia killed him by electrocuting him on a snapped power cable. Wright is framed for the murder of Doug, but Wright's defence attorney Mia Fey exposes Dahlia for all her crimes, and Dahlia is sentenced to death by hanging. HOWEVER, still manages to pester Wright beyond the grave in the final case of Trials and tribulations. One of the members of the Fey clan is supposed to channel her spirit and kill someone, but the plan fails. Dahlia is even mixed up for her sister Iris, the defendant in the case, and is even in court for a while. The reveal of which member of the Fey clan that is currently channeling Dahlia's spirit is one of the highlights of the whole game, and I will remember it as long as I live.
The breakdown: Dahlia's spirit is forced away, or exorcised if you will, from Maya's body, and her angry spirit screams she is not ready to go back yet, and all her crimes flashes by in the background in a scene that I will remember until the day I die. As funny as the other breakdowns are, this one wins because it's sort of silly in a sense, but has an enourmous build up, and the whole "you can't punish someone who is already dead" scenario is what makes this breakdown so spectacular as it is. You might disagree with me, but this is my personal favorite breakdown in the entire series.
Honorary mentions:
Terry Fawles had a breakdown that did suprise me, although it was still sort of predicable. I wouldn't really call it a breakdown, but Ace attorney wiki lists it as one, so it gets an honorary mention.
Furio Tigre's shouts can make the lights go out. Or in his breakdown's case, make them rave. This one isn't too funny or dramatic, although I like how he completely freezes at the end. Tigre is not one of the best Ace attorney characters either, but his breakdown is nice at least.
This one was pretty funny, especially how Franziska von Karma has acted all tough and cold during the game. I decided not to put it in the top 20 becaus she's not a culprit, and most other breakdowns are actually funnier. It's still a good breakdown, though.
Winston Payne's "breakdown" in the first case of Trials and tribulations is not only funny, but shows how he lost his hair. He's not a main character OR a culprit, so he didn't make the list. It's still fun to watch his breakdown, though.
Don't get me wrong, Acro's breakdown was good and it had a nice build up, especially since he was the true culprit. However, it's not all that entertaining for me, and Acro is not THAT interesting as a character to me. That doesn't change the fact that he had a good backstory and reason to do what he did, and I do feel sorry for him in the end. A little.
Thank you for reading! I hope you've enjoyed these breakdown as much as I did.
Images found via Ace attorney wiki and court-records, videos found via youtube, and are copyrighted by their respective owners.
In order to fully understand this review, it's highly recommended that you play all Ace attorney games first.
2010 must have been a busy year in gaming for me. Evidence of this (no reference to this game intended) is that I never bought this spin-off of one of my favorite video game series of all time. Sadly, I still haven't bought this game yet. Luckily, I had a friend who bought it during a visit to America (this is why I use the NTSC-cover instead of the PAL version like I usually do), so I finally decided to give this game a shot.
Needless to say, I am going to find a brand-new copy of this game as soon as I get the money to afford it, because Capcom deserves their money for this game.
Like with all games in the Ace attorney series, it's very to talk about this game without spoiling the story. Ace attorney investigations (hereby abbreviated as AAI) is VERY rich in its story, and I wouldn't want to spoil it for any of you. I will say, though, that there are a lot of references to the previous installments as well as the usual pop culture references and internet references. Sometimes combined, like the stupid-yet-brilliant combination of a Devil may cry and a 300reference in a single line in Trials and tribulations. References are regarded as one of the lowest forms of humor, only leading to "It's funny because it exists, right?" or the likes. At least that's what I have been told. Honestly, if it's clever enough or is well-timed, I don't mind references. Especially if it's a game series that pays tribute to itself, so to say. That's exactly what AAI does. Is it fanservice? Sure, but it's fanservice I, for one, enjoy a lot, especially since it was a few years since I played a new Ace attorney game.
To talk about the plot without giving too much away, I must say that most of the new characters are actually pretty interesting. They are still as cartoonish as ever; odd personalities with character design and even names to fit them, but usually with deep secrets and intriguingbackstories to make them more real and a whole lot of fun to interact with. I do admit that now that I am older and have a slightly higher IQ, I did see a lot of the twists and reveals before they were even announced, most notably in the final case. However, there were a lot of times where the game actually did suprise me, usually in the regards of the real culprits or details in the investigations. Unfortunately, the story is not perfect. There are a few lame lines that aren't funny or add to the story, they sometimes even explain the jokes. All of the longer Ace attorney cases so far take usually take place within a few days' period. All cases in AAI are solved during one in-game day. This makes the cases seem longer than they actually are, and that it's dragging its knees a few times. I suppose the implication is that Edgeworth is so vastly superior to Wright that he can solve the cases within a few hours while Wright needs a few days. Jokes aside, all of the cases are still pretty darn good, especially the final case.
There are a few changes to the gameplay this time around, as exampled above. You walk around a small map this time around and investigate various object by walking up next to them and press Examine, instead of being limited to "clicking" on the background imagine and press examine. There is also two new systems: Logic and Deduce. During the events in the game, Edgeworth will note various objects or events and add them to his Logic. For example, he may note that there is pain on the floor, and later note that there is a can of paint in a different room (I'm making this scenario up, I am not taking it from the game or anything). You can the press the Logic button to connect his thoughts to come to a conclution, often leading to further evidence or questions to ask witnesses. You Deduce by examining crime scenes and examine something in the scene that doesn't add up with a piece of evidence you possess. For example, you may examine a murder victim and clearly see he has been shot, although the supposed murder weapon is a knife. You then point to the bullet wound, press Deduce, and present the knife to further debate as to why this contradiction came to be. You then figure out that the dead body was tampered with after death, enabling you to ask the person who found the body why the knife was supposed to be the weapon. Once again, this is just an example. The new systems aren't groundbreaking, but it's nice to be able to walk around in the world of Ace attorney and interact with the environment better than ever, and the systems feels like a breath of fresh air in this otherwise not so gameplay-developed series. They seem odd at first with the experienced Ace attorney player (like you SHOULD be in order to even understand 50% of the events that transpire in this game), but they'll most likely get into it before the first case is over.
The controls are decent. There's not much to say in this category other than I've only had problems facing the correct thing I wish to examine sometimes, but have no complains otherwise. Why did I bring this up, then? Because the controls are somewhat different from before. You walk around, either by poking the mini-map with your stylus or use the d-pad. You can examine things when the game lets you as well as talk to people by pressing A or Examine/Talk. You can also push the Parter button, or Y, to speak with your current partner about the case at hand. You don't NEED to do so in order to finish the game or anything, but it sometimes gives you clues as to what to examine or do next, although it's mostly used for humor an some slight backstory. A funny thing that I noted is that the Court record is not the Organizer. This does makes sense since you're mostly just investigating stuff, the game even make fun of the name change, but it's something I found kind of funny at first.
The Ace attorney series has always been backed up with really good music to perfectly set the mood in its various scenes. Fortunately, the series have not lost its touch in this regard. I dare say that this soundtrack is the best in the series next to the first and third installment. It mostly consist of the usual orchestrated (as far as DS quality goes, anyway) and some rock and jazz elements thrown into the mix. As always, no recommendations in particular to avoid people judging the game by just a few song. Most songs are pretty solid, though nothing to add in video game music history. Although that doesn't mean that I won't add them to my PS3's playlist.
There is one major problem with this game: The sequel. So far, Gyakuten kenji 2 (Ace attorney investigations 2) have NOT been anounced for a release outside of Japan. This is most likely due to to the low sales this series have suffered. There are some polls and movements to bring the game overseas, but I have no hope for an international release. If you are interested in doing what little you can to actually bring the sequel to your nearby game store, feel free to check out the links at the bottom of this article. While my hopes are low, I do hope the next installment in this spin off series will be released outside Japan in the future, and I encourage you to try to make a difference at least.
As usual, this game is not spectacular in its graphics and gameplay, although it is an improvement over the other installments in these aspects, the story is still as sharp as ever, and music that is among the best in the series. So if you are an Ace attorney fan, why haven't you bought this game yet? Although I'm not the one to talk.
Summary: Lang Zi says: "All fans of Ace attorney will be thrilled by this game, its story and music is top notch, and wll leave them wanting more; So hurry and localize the sequel already!"
