3.5/5 ★ – fez219's review of Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth.

A solid but not standout Ace Attorney game. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it never reaches the highs of the original trilogy. Newcomers should start with the originals. But playing as Edgeworth is hilarious, and there's tons (arguably too much) of fanservice and references for veterans of the series. So if you've played the first three games, this is a solid next step, especially because it lays the foundations for its excellent (but unfortunately yet to be officially translated) sequel. Unlike the main series, Edgeworth plays differently in that he never goes to court. You might think based on the title and introduction to the new gameplay mechanics that this means the game is almost entirely about investigation. That's not the case; the majority of the game is still classic Ace Attorney cross-examination, just out on the field instead of in court. It's fun! But I wish the game leaned into actual investigation a bit more. The third person view and zoomed out sprites are a refreshing change for the series, with a cute diorama-like feel. The new logic feature is fresh, but could have been more complex, with more options and uses. There's also a visually awesome new feature where crime scenes are holographically recreated, but I would have enjoyed more interactivity with it. It basically is just a new dressing for crimes scenes that automatically happens at certain points, and you lack agency over how to interact with and modify it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good Ace Attorney cross examination. I just wish there were more mechanics like the new logic feature, along with more interactivity to Little Thief, to make playing Edgeworth and investigating feel distinct from the usual courtroom battles. As far as the cases go, I generally like them all. They're each in a completely new location that's fun to explore through the new presentation. The mysteries are generally pretty fun, with some cool twists. But they sometimes drag with overlong cross-examinations and too much repetition of tropes from the original trilogy with inferior execution. That's not to say these moments or cases or bad, they just the broader plot of the game never reaches the emotional or plot highs of the original trilogy. The moment-to-moment writing is still great. Edgeworth is absolutely hilarious, returning faces are fun as always, and the new characters are all a good time. Kay and Lang are the clear standouts, which is good, seeing as they're probably the two most central new cast members. Unfortunately, I felt that neither Kay nor Lang received enough development. I really like them! I just wish the story did more with them and dug deeper into their emotions and motivations. Replaying AAI never quite gave me the rush and nostalgia that replaying the original trilogy did. The music is good but not great. I think that basically describes pretty much everything about the game. Nothing about it is amazing. But for series fans, simply getting the chance of playing as Edgeworth is more than enough of a draw to jump back into Capcom's silly legal world. There is also one other very compelling reason to play the game: its sequel is absolutely excellent. It's been some time since I've played it, but I still remember some of the amazing characters and moments. Much of the characters here carry over to Ace Attorney Investigations 2, so I highly recommend playing this title to play the sequel. It's easily one of the best games in the series. Hopefully it is given a proper translation soon, but the existing fan translation is just as high quality as any other Ace Attorney localization. I highly recommend it! In the meantime, I hope Capcom not only translates AAI2 but ports both titles to modern consoles. The announcement of the Apollo Justice Trilogy makes this more than a pipe dream!