Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Difference between revisions

They were originally developed for the [[Game Boy Advance]], with the exception of the fifth case of the first game, "Rise rom the Ashes", which was exclusive to the [[Nintendo DS|DS]] remake, known as ''Gyakuten Saiban: Yomigaeru Gyakuten'' (''Turnabout Trials: The Revived Turnabout'') in Japan. The game plays out in a [[Visual Novel]] style through the perspective of Phoenix Wright during investigation sessions, where you can talk to other characters, present evidence and find clues to build up your case. Usually the next day, court begins, where you cross-examine witnesses to find contradictions, [[The Perry Mason Method|eventually forcing the real culprit to confess]]. Starting early on in ''Justice For All'', you can try breaking characters "Psyche-Locks" by using evidence to tear their secrets apart and reveal vital information. The bonus 5th case of the first game took advantage of the touch-screen and mic on the DS allowing for more in-depth investigations on evidence.

== General Tropes ==

** Maggie Byrde has an extreme run of bad luck her entire life, most of it told through backstory. When Maggie and Phoenix's first cross paths, their bad luck combines and Phoenix gets hit on the head, ending up [[Laser -Guided Amnesia|forgetting all the rules of the court]] right before defending her. [[Determinator|He still wins]].

* [[Always Murder]]: Double subverted with caseCase 3-2, which starts off with a grand larceny trial only for your client to get charged with murder after acquittal for the theft.

* [[Ambidextrous Sprite]]: In caseCase 3-5, {{spoiler|Edgeworth plays defense attorney, and instead of using his left hand for pointing, he uses his right.}}.

* [[And Now for Someone Completely Different]]: Case 3-5 has two trial days. There isn't a single prosecutor, lawyer, judge, witness, {{spoiler|or even ''defendant''}} who is present on both days until the final cross-examination.

** On a smaller scale, you play as Mia in casesCases 1 and 4 rather than Phoenix.

* [[Back for the Dead]]: {{spoiler|Misty Fey, who has a strong role in the back story of the series and is killed fifteen minutes into the only case she appears in person in.}}.

* [[Big Damn Heroes]]: In 3-Case 3, in two ocasions: {{spoiler|first, Gumshoe enters in a fight agains Don Tigre and Armstrong so Phoenix would keep an evidence; second, Gumshoe bursts into the court with "Decisive Evidence" at the last minute! ...Which turns out to be fingerprints that became irrelevant no more than 2 minutes ago. Though it still serves to be the evidence that breaks the case.}}.

* [[Big No]]: Edgeworth in 3-Case 5 involving Larry and the "psycho-locks". It easily qualifies as a [[Crowning Moment of Funny]].

* [[Bitch in Sheep's Clothing]]: {{spoiler|Dahlia Hawthorne}}.

* [[Bluffing the Murderer]]: In {{spoiler|3-Case 3}}, this is how Phoenix finally catches the killer.

* [[Brain Bleach]]: Referenced in Case 3. At one point, Phoenix comments that a witness only saw the waitress from the back and "Even I could have been in that uniform!"; the judgeJudge asks that he refrain from putting those images in their heads. Later, Phoenix's response to seeing Jean Armstrong rub oil on himself (the player just sees a generic animation, thank God): "M-My eyes! My EYES!"

** And in caseCase 5 of the same game, Sister Bikini. There's a good chance she actually does it ''on purpose''.

* [[Brick Joke]]: In the final case of ''Trials and Tribulations'', Phoenix has a conversation with {{spoiler|Edgeworth where he feels much stronger, as if he had literally passed on his cold to someone else}}. In the next scene, we find that {{spoiler|the judge who looked over the first half of the trial suddenly developed a cold}} and couldn't make it.

* [[Butt Monkey]]: Mia uses Grossberg as a random punching bag during 3-Case 1. {{spoiler|3-Case 4 shows ''exactly'' why Mia is acting the way she does.}}.

* {{spoiler|[[Call Back]]: A remix of the first game's "Cornered" theme plays when you're presenting evidence against Godot, and a remix of said theme's "Variation" plays after the epic finger point.}}.

* [[Chekhov's Gun]]: The 'Double Jeopardy' rule in '"The Stolen Turnabout'" (the Mask DeMasqueMask☆DeMasque case) {{spoiler|1=when it gets Ron DeLite off the hook for the many thefts he committed}}.

* [[Chekhov's Gunman]]: Going back two games, even! If you were paying very close attention in Case 1-2, you might remember {{spoiler|Misty Fey's face, which makes the real identity of Elise Deauxnim clear immediately.}}.

* [[Crazy Prepared]]: {{spoiler|Luke Atmey}} is only one of about two people in the world crazy enough to use {{spoiler|1=''a guilty verdict'' as an alibi. It just so happened that the other person that would do that was Ron DeLite. Morgan Fey}} also counts. {{spoiler|In the second game, she tried to pin a murder on Maya. After that failed, she's almost immediately made a backup plan that would come in action a whole year later.}}.

* [[Crime After Crime]]: {{spoiler|Dahlia Hawthorne}}'s looooooooong list of murders to cover up the previous ones.

* [[Deadly Euphemism]]: {{spoiler|Viola's "coffee" is strongly implied to be poisoned.}}.

* [[Dead Man's Chest]]: In Case 3-2, {{spoiler|1=Ron DeLite stumbles into the same situation when he goes to meet the CEO, gets knocked out by the real murderer, and wakes up to find the CEO's body. To try and prevent himself from being accused, he hides the body in a safe in the office, where it isn't found for several days}}.

* [[Defeating the Undefeatable]]: [[Lampshade Hanging|Lampshaded]] with Godot, who is described as undefeatable—untilundefeatable... until you actually meet him, and he brags that he's never lost because it's only his first case {{spoiler|as a prosecutor}}.

* [[Dramatic Irony]]: 3-Case 4 has this in spades, due to it taking place before any other case up to that point in the series (including 3-Case 1). Thanks to info about Edgeworth's perfect record in the first game, Dahlia's appearance in 3-Case 1, and Mia's trauma about the case, we know ''something'' bad is going to happen, no matter how [[Hope Spot|hopeful]] things might seem along the way.

* [[Evil Redhead]]: {{spoiler|Dahlia Hawthorne. This is the only physical difference between her and her 'good' twin sister Iris.}}.

* [[Evil Twin]]: ''Trials and Tribulations'': {{spoiler|Dahlia and Iris, twins who are evil and good, respectively, and both wind up impersonating the other at certain points in time.}}. Also spoofed in the third trial of ''Trials and Tribulations'' with the Phoenix look-a-like Furio Tigre, whom Maya refers to as Xin Eohp, and she wonders if she has [[The Psycho Rangers|her own evil twin]] whom she names Ayam.

* [[Flash Back]]: {{spoiler|3-Case 1}} and {{spoiler|3-Case 4}} are playable flashbacks.

* [[Foregone Conclusion]]: {{spoiler|3-Case 4 is also Edgeworth's first case; since he had a perfect win record in the first game, that means Mia cannot win.}}.

** {{spoiler|Additionally, in 3-Case 1, Mia mentioned she had worked a case six years earlier, and it traumatized her so much that she never set foot in a court room until that case, so you knew that the case wasn't going to end well.}}.

* [[Foreshadowing]]: In the ending of case 3-Case 1, Phoenix says that {{spoiler|he doesn't believe the Dahlia he saw during the trial is the one that he knew}}, Mia thinks that he's delusional. Then it's revealed in the ending of the final case of the game that {{spoiler|[[Twin Switch|she really wasn't the Dahlia he knew]]}}.

** Another case has Desiree DeLite talking about how Ron saved her life when they fell in love. Maya then asks Phoenix if he would ever risk his life for her. {{spoiler|In 3-Case 5, Phoenix believes Maya's life is in danger while a murderer is on the loose and chases after her across a burning bridge}}.

*** Don't forget how Pearl asks whether Phoenix would {{spoiler|run across hot coals for Maya}}.

** In 3-Case 2, Pearl cheerfully says that if Phoenix worked hard, he would have copycats of his own. Guess what happens [[Yakuza|on]] [[An Offer You Can't Refuse|the]] [[Doppelganger|very]] [[Paper-Thin Disguise|next]] [[Evil Counterpart|case]].

*** In 3-Case 2, Maya asks what Phoenix would think if she came in calling herself Ayam (which is both the backward spelling of her name and a homophone of "I am."). Early in caseCase 3-3, when it turns out that someone is {{spoiler|impersonating Phoenix, who Maya calls Xin Eoph}}, Maya asks, "I wonder if {{spoiler|Ayam}} will make an appearance?". Later, we see that {{spoiler|Phoenix's impostor also has an assistant from a messed up family who looks a teensy bit like Maya, although the person said assistant impersonated wasn't Maya.}}.

** In caseCase 3-3, upset with Viola's misguided affection, Phoenix mentions that poisoning and betrayal - the marks of a coward - are things he considers unforgivable. {{spoiler|Cue caseCase 3-4}}...}}

** Case 3-5, being heavily involved with spirit mediums and channeling, throws a pretty good bit of foreshadowing at you. {{spoiler|After Dahlia (being channeled by Maya) switches places with her sister Iris, the person who Phoenix ''believes'' to be Iris starts using a lot of Dahlia's reaction poses and animations, albeit without the parasol.}}.

* [[Friend to All Living Things]]: Dahlia has butterflies. {{spoiler|Subverted, since she turns out to be a killer -: when she sheds her facade, the butterflies ''burst into flame''.}}.

* [[Gambit Pileup]]: The final case. If it wasn't entirely resolved in the first two games, it's resolved here. Good grief. By the end of it, the player feels quite a bit like Phoenix, as he/she tries to comprehend the following: {{spoiler|the victim was actually Misty Fey, the result of her, Godot, and Iris' gambit to save Maya's life. Knowing that Morgan would try to take revenge, Godot listened in on her visits with Pearl, then tracked down Misty and set everything up. On top of Morgan's attempt (since JFA''Justice For All''!) to kill Maya, lovely Miss Dahlia is running her own separate campaign to destroy Mia (who is already dead, but she doesn't care)}}. And then, while all of this is being dropped on the player, {{spoiler|Godot enacts his own mini-gambit in order to steer the trial to get himself convicted}}.

* [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]]: 3-Case 1 gives us:

** Also from 3-Case 1:

** There's also one from 3-Case 5, a subversion mix of [[Curse Cut Short]] and [[Last-Second Word Swap]], as the last word is used in a different context:

{{spoiler|'''Judge'''('s brother)}}: "High! {{spoiler|[She's] really high up [there]!}}!" }}

** And when theythe judgeJudge misinterprets one of Godot's obtuse coffee metaphors: "Cafe o' Lay? Is that even legal?"

* [[Good Scars, Evil Scars]]. Terry Fawles from 3-Case 4 has a series of plus-shaped scars going across his face, and he's probably one of the sweetest guys despite his deteriorated intelligence... which makes his ultimate fate {{spoiler|of poisoning himself just before he can be proven not guilty}} even more tragic.

* [[Grand Finale]]: 3-Case 5 neatly wraps up the trilogy.

* [[Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow]]: Winston Payne ({{spoiler|Inin five words... "My... hair... is... flying... away!"}}). The judgeJudge notes that Payne has lost his spirit along with his hair very soon after. It's mostly true, though he keeps more of his general ineffectiveness than he regains his self-confidence....

* [[Hypocritical Humor]]: Franziska in 3-Case 5:

'''Phoenix:''' I was only copying you. }}

** Let's not forget {{spoiler|Edgeworth}} in 3-Case 4:

{{quote|''' {{spoiler|Edgeworth}}''': Young people these days simplydon't know how to respect their elders.

''' {{spoiler|Mia}}''': (Why you...! You're even younger than me, you hypocrite!) }}

* [[Identical Stranger]]: Wright's doppelganger doppelgänger {{spoiler|is a complete subversion. Aside from the hair, they don't even have the same skin color or accent.}}.

* [[I Never Told You My Name]]: Iris to Phoenix in the last case. When confronted about it, five psyche-locks appear before her and the issue has to be dropped. It's not explained until the very end of the game. {{spoiler|The fact that you ''can't'' ask her about the subject later actually [[Foreshadowing|foreshadows]] the fact that she's Dahlia.}}.

* [[Informed Ability]]: Ron Delite wears a vivid green jacket/vest with a cape-like back. It has large, very dramatic cuffs near the hands. There are a large number of bright, gold-colored leaves going down the front of his costume. He keeps his very red hair in [[Star Wars|Princess Leia hair buns]] that occasionally spiral outward. He has a baby face and an effeminate appearance that would be considered attractive by bishonen standards. Even by animated character standards, he has a very expressive face that moves between expressions that show surprise/determination, uncertainty, and pouting/fear. He frequently shrieks loudly at people to get their attention. '''And we're supposed to believe that he has a hard time getting people to notice him.'''.

* [[Lethal Chef]]: Jean Armstrong again, along with Viola Cadaverini in the same case. {{spoiler|Two different types, though;: Armstrong is just a terrible cook, while Viola at least implies that poison is a key ingredient in her 'cooking'.}}.

** Well, he wasn't that much of a [[Jerkass]] before {{spoiler|he got poisoned and fell into a coma, and he wasn't that much of a chauvinist back then from what we can see}}. And, c'mon, there must be a few times back in the second game when you wish you could punch Franziska in the face.

** The Fey family's surname. The definitions of the word "fey" include: "appearing to be under a spell; marked by an apprehension of death, calamity, or evil" and "supernatural; unreal; enchanted.".

** Mask DeMasqueMask☆DeMasque. He wears a mask , {{spoiler|1=and Ron DeLite just put masks over his name!}}!

* [[Meido]]: The Tres Bien cafe. The food is terrible and over-priced—hencepriced, hence the only regulars that aren't mobsters are perverts.

* [[Musical Spoiler]]: {{spoiler|Subverted for the final piece of evidence in the last case; the music keeps going either way, tricking you into believing that you failed.}}.

* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: At the beginning of caseCase 3-2, Phoenix easily gets Ron DeLite off a larceny charge by proving he was somewhere else... only for Godot to come up to him afterward, say there was a murder committed there, and haul Ron off into custody ''again''. What, you thought it ''wouldn't'' be [[Always Murder]]? {{spoiler|Made worse by the fact that he ''was'' the thief and turned himself in out of guilt. Phoenix was defending him because his wife told Nick he was a delusional [[Fan Boy]].}}.

** {{spoiler|He was the thief in general, but not in that particular instance. He turned himself in to ensure he could have an alibi for the aforementioned murder.}}.

* [[Punny Name]]: Luke Atmey likes to be the centre of attention.

* [[Rewatch Bonus]]: Playing caseCase one1 again after the game is extremely noteworthy given [[The Reveal|The Reveals]] at Cases 4 and 5.

* [[Running Gag]]: Phoenix cleaning the toilet in 3-Case 2.

* [[Sdrawkcab Name]]: Maya insists on referring to Phoenix's imposter in 3-Case 3 as "Xin Eohp". {{spoiler|Furio Tigre is less than impressed the one time he hears her say this.}}.

{{quote|{{spoiler|'''Maya''': Ah! It's Xin Eohp!}}!

{{spoiler|'''Tigre''': Who you callin' "Zinnee Oooope"!?}}!?

{{spoiler|'''Maya''': Aaaaah!}}!

{{spoiler|'''Phoenix''': (Come out from under the table already, Maya!)}} }}

** In the same case, Maya asks whether they'll find her doppelganger,doppelgänger "Ayam"." {{spoiler|As it turns out, they do, sort of, but the person Viola impersonates isn't Maya.}}.

** And then there's the victim of the same trial, Glen Elg, and his boss, Lisa Basil.

*** And another Blue Screens employee, Adam Mada.

* [[She's All Grown Up]]: [[Invoked Trope]] in 3-Case 3. A recalcitrant witness is [[Incredibly Lame Pun|titillated]] by waitress outfits like the one Maya is wearing, but since Maya is small and looks young, he has no interest in her. Mia then takes over Maya's body, which changes it to Mia's rather... ample form. The witness becomes much more helpful.

'''Phoenix''': No, Maya, [[300|that is]] [[Devil May Cry|SPARDA]]. }}

** There is even a shout out to ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]''.

** Mask*DeMasqueMask☆DeMasque's symbol looks an awful lot like a [[Super Mario Bros.|Phanto.]].

* [[Sickeningly Sweethearts]]: Phoenix plays one half of the equation. The other side only looks like she shares this, though... {{spoiler|Maybe she does. Or better said, her twin sister does.}}.

* [[Sissy Villain]]: Subverted in caseCase 3-3. Jean Armstrong is very much a sissy, and has a criminal record, a motive, an opportunity, and the means to commit murder, but is not the culprit.

* [[Snow Means Death]]: Case 3-5.

* [[Stealth Pun]]: {{spoiler|DAHLIA Hawthorne's most famous murder was committed using poison.}}.

** {{spoiler|Then again, it turned out that it wasn't a murder. Diego Armando was assumed dead, but woke up from a coma 5 years later.}}.

** This, along with [[Exact Words]]: "{{spoiler|I was not the one who took her life, no.}}"

* [[Thief Bag]]: Mask*DeMasqueMask☆DeMasque uses the Japanese-green-and-white-swirl variety.

* [[Title Drop]]: Luke Atmey calling himself the "Ace Detective" prompts Phoenix to introduce himself, "I am Phoenix Wright... Ace Attorney.".

* [[Too Dumb to Live]]: Phoenix and Maya are investigating a murder that was apparently committed in a restaurant and carried out through poisoned coffee. Meanwhile, Phoenix hears that his client was apparently fooled by a Phoenix impersonator who shares Phoenix's spiky hair. During the first day of trial, there is a witness who says he saw the defendant, a petite dark-haired young woman, {{spoiler|put something in the coffee}}. After asking the witness to describe {{spoiler|who he saw in more detail}}, Phoenix suggests to the court that {{spoiler|the witness only saw the woman from behind}}. At some point, Phoenix and Maya go into the restaurant's kitchen and find {{spoiler|the restaurant owner, who is deeply in debt, being confronted by a petite, dark-haried young woman who acts as though she is mentally unstable and threatens to burn down the restaurant if he doesn't repay what he owes}}. When they inquire about this, {{spoiler|the owner tells them that the woman threatening him worked for a loan shark called "the Tiger" who has spiky hair like Phoenix's and gives them the lender's address}}. When they go there, they meet {{spoiler|the same young woman who threatened to burn down the restaurant. She's giggling creepily like she was before}}. Phoenix and Maya are offered coffee. '''They actually drink it!'''

* [[Tragic Villain]]/{{spoiler|/FallenHero[[Fallen Hero]]}}: {{spoiler|Diego Armando/Godot}}.

* [[What Happened to the Mouse?]]: Minor, but curious. At the end of ''Justice forFor All'', Franziska von Karma says that she'll give {{spoiler|the card with Maya's drawing of Phoenix}} to him the next time they meet. She doesn't.

*** Or {{spoiler|Dahlia took it. She was apparently living under her real name for 14 months in between caseCase 4 and caseCase 1. It seems unlikely that Ivy University would give her a free ride or that her father would pay for her tuition}}.

* [[Yakuza]]: Furio Tigre, a.k.a. the "Phony Phoenix Wright", as well as Dee Vasquez; the English version changes it to [[The Mafia]].

* [[Yamato Nadeshiko]]: {{spoiler|Dahlia's twin sister Iris.}}.

* [[Yandere]]: {{spoiler|Dahlia Hawthorne, though twisted with hate for Mia rather than love for anyone. Maybe, Viola Cadaverini as well.}}.

* [[Your Princess Is in Another Castle]]: In the final case, after a long and arduous battle, {{spoiler|Dahlia Hawthorne is exposed for the failure she is}}, and the case seems to be resolved... but then Godot chimes in, pointing out that {{spoiler|it still hasn't been established who actually did the stabbing}}. Thus, there's one final gameplay segment over which Phoenix eventually proves that {{spoiler|Godot himself}} is responsible.

[[Category:Wii WareWiiWare]]