Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney



Something strange is going in in Labyrinth City. The townspeople live in fear of witches and magic, and celebrate the "Story Teller." Whatever he writes in his book becomes true.

In a courtroom deep within the city, a young woman stands trial for witchcraft. The prosecutor, a dapper gentleman with a top hat, accuses her of being the witch that has brought havoc to the city.

Across the room, the defense attorney smirks and taps a sheet of paper, then stands.

"OBJECTION! Professor, there is a huge contradiction in your argument!"

So goes the story of Professor Layton VS. Ace Attorney, an upcoming Nintendo 3DS title in development by Capcom and Level 5. A Crossover between the jaw-droppingly popular Professor Layton puzzle games and the extremely well-written Ace Attorney courtroom adventure series, VS seeks to combine the two playstyles, warning that "this time, the puzzles are filled with contradictions".

In short: Your body isn't ready.

Check out the official site for more details -- but only if you can read Japanese. There's no English translation site available at present. An English release has also been essentially confirmed.

This game features examples of:

 * Always Murder: Averted. The trials are Witch Trials.
 * Big Bad: The storyteller.
 * Burn the Witch
 * Butt Monkey: According to released art...still Phoenix.
 * Crossover: Obviously.
 * Intercontinuity Crossover: Including the addition, it seems, of a third world for the characters of the first two to jump into.
 * Giving Someone the Pointer Finger: It's Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton, people. The very first batch of promo pictures included shots of each one dramatically pointing.
 * This is, of course, how the TGS 2011 trailer ends as well.
 * Let's You and Him Fight: From the title and the trailer it looks like Layton will be up against Phoenix.
 * Friendly Enemy: Despite this they are seen traveling together and seem to be on good, if somewhat uneasy terms.
 * One of Layton's lines suggests that the "versus" will only apply for so long.
 * Huddle Power: Formed by a mob of villagers who stand as witnesses in the trial.
 * Limited Wardrobe: Semi-averted by Luke, who curiously enough is seen in his prequel-Layton wear in the first trailer but is seen in his Curious Village~Unwound Future getup in the recent trailer and promo artwork. Whether or not this trope will be be used will have to wait.
 * Motionless Chin: Layton originating characters have this, despite original and Ace Attorney characters not.
 * Non-Standard Character Design: Noticeably, both sets of heroes look distinct from the rest of the people.
 * Original Generation: In addition to being set in an entirely new world, the game introduces a new braided, blonde girl (Mahoney) to be the focal point of the game. There is also a new prosecutor who dresses like a knight, named (something along the lines of) Jeeken Barnrod.
 * Reality Writing Book
 * Rewriting Reality: The villain in control of the town, "The Storyteller," seems to have this ability.
 * Scenery Porn: For a puzzle/adventure game!
 * Specifically, a puzzle game utilizing Level 5's artists. Scenery Porn is an inevitability.
 * Screw Destiny
 * Suddenly Voiced: Maya and Phoenix (beyond his courtroom catchphrases), although they have been voiced in Japanese trailers before, and always have been voiced in CD dramas, in Japan of course.
 * Sword Pointing: We've seen very little of a certain character, but what we have seen indicates that he is a prosecutor and likes doing this, in lieu of Giving Someone the Pointer Finger.
 * Trapped in Another World
 * Versus Title
 * Video Game 3D Leap: The game still is in Visual Novel style, in lieu with Professor Layton and Ace Attorney adventures, but this time around the character models are in 3D.
 * Witch Hunt
 * You Can't Fight Fate