E3 2013: Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies Preview

June 16, 2013

One of the games Rocket Chainsaw got to see for the 3DS is the 5th game in the Ace Attorney series. Starring Phoenix Wright, the game, subtitled Dual Destinies, looks like it is shaping up to be another classic entry in the long line of games.

The demo we played takes place in the first act of the game, with a girl on trial for setting a bomb in the courthouse. Payne is, once again, the prosecutor; this is his first time back in court since Apollo Justice. Apollo himself is back in the game too, although he’s been injured in the courthouse explosion and is all bandaged up.

Wright also has a new sidekick, a girl called Athena Cykes. She’s a determined and over-enthusiastic rookie lawyer that Wright has taken under his wing (pun intended), much as he was taken on by Mia originally. Athena proves to be very useful in court, with special hearing and a holographic gadget that allows her to analyse people for their emotional state. Different emotion icons light up when people say different things. This in turn leads to new testimony segments, where you have to review a witness’s testimony, and catch any contradictory emotions. For instance, while cross-examining the defendant, Wright notices she feels happy when she describes rubble from the explosion almost crushing her. Pressing the issue reveals she was happy because Apollo saved her, bringing new information to light.

The prosecution’s case relies on the bomb being inside a toy belonging to the defendant. However, through cross-examination Wright is able to discover there was in fact a second toy that may have been hiding the bomb, and begins to turn the case around.

Dual Destinies has been given an understandable upgrade to cel-shaded, 3D graphics and they look great and brimming with personality. There are also new 3D effects, such as being able to zoom in and out of the courtroom. Even the iconic “OBJECTION!” speech bubbles and fingers fly out of the screen.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies will be released in Q3 this year as a digital-only release in North America and Europe.