Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: An Almost Perfect Game

Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney was one of my most-anticipated games in a long time. Two of my favorite series in a medieval fantasy setting. Could it get any better than that? Now I’ve finished it, and it’s time for me to gather my thoughts. Any spoilers will be hidden, but I will discuss my impressions of certain things, so keep that in mind.

About 90% of PL vs PW is amazing. It’s pure, concentrated awesomeness. I couldn’t sleep at night because I wanted to know what happened next, I played it every chance I got, and I let it wreak havoc with my emotions. The more I played it, the more I thought Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright might be my favorite game ever.

Not just my favorite Layton game. Not just my favorite Ace Attorney game.

My favorite game ever.

However, the remaining 10%, the ending of the game and the solution to the overarching mystery, is a nonsensical mess of plot holes I hate with a burning passion.

So let’s go back to talk about the first 90% of the game. Since my playtime came in at 28 hours and 30 minutes, that’s a solid game’s worth of awesomeness. It is #1 on my 3DS’s list for average play session length, as I played it for hours at a time.

Gameplay is pretty evenly split between the two series. A typical Ace Attorney game is split into investigations and trials. Here, it is the same, except the investigations are handled through Professor Layton gameplay. It’s also split into chapters, standard Layton story structure. The characters aren’t restricted to their own sections–Layton and Luke stand in court, while Phoenix and Maya solve some puzzles.

Some elements have slight tweaks, perhaps to make the gameplay more accessible to series newcomers. For example, during the investigations, the map screen shows you the number of hint coins and hidden puzzles in an area. This is great for completionists and for anyone whose search for a hidden puzzle usually resulted in wildly tapping everything on the screen.

Trials are also made slightly easier as you can use the Layton series’ hint coins to narrow down your options, although my struggles proved to me beyond just a vague feeling that Dual Destinies, while fantastic, really was much easier than the rest of the series.

The first trial is a usual Ace Attorney tutorial case, right down to an English counterpart for tutorial prosecutor Payne. Once the characters enter Labyrinthia, however, where the majority of the game takes place, a great new feature is introduced. In these medieval witch trials, no one believes in getting testimony from one witness at a time, so you cross-examine multiple characters at once. That allows for new ways to find contradictions (and get hilarious optional dialogue) and made for some of the best moments in the game. I would love to see mob testimonies return in future games.

Of course, the Layton sections are filled with puzzles (and the occasional Ace Attorney crime scene investigation, but not as many as you’d expect). The puzzles… vary. Overall, I’d say they’re easier than those in the main series. On the other hand, some of the puzzle instructions had such confusing wording, I didn’t know what I was supposed to do. Regular Layton puzzles are harder, but clearer in their presentation.

It holds true to many series traditions, so if you’ve played Ace Attorney and/or Professor Layton games before, there will be moments where you grin and nod. For example, as a Layton fan, the moment I heard something about a mysterious tower, I knew we’d go there.

Throughout all of this, amazing music played. I already ordered the soundtrack from Japan. Here are two of my favorites.

Of course, the stars were Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton, each with a trusty sidekick by their side. Maya and Luke were not in the spotlight as much, but still played important roles in the story.

Maya also contributes a good dose of Ace Attorney humor

Several new characters were also introduced, although these were mainly Layton-style minor characters to serve as witnesses or puzzle-givers. Some were quite memorable and entertaining despite their small roles, and longtime Ace Attorney fans will be delighted by one cross examination.

The new character most central to the story, Espella Cantabella, isn’t actually a very interesting character. She’s sweet, she’s there to be protected and defended, and she’s accused of being a witch. While she’s pleasant enough, to me she’s more of a device to drive the plot than a great character in her own right.

Much more memorable was the new prosecutor, Inquisitor Zacharias Barnham, whose theme song I shared above. As you might guess from his title, he’s out to capture and condemn witches. (And by “condemn,” I mean “burn.” This game has some darker moments than either series is used to.) He’s also a knight. (His adorable dog, Sir Constantine, is also a knight.)

Barnham was my favorite of the new characters. Not only was he cool, but he also had some good character development moments. He quickly stood out to me as a key figure in the plot.

Until the ending happened, the story was stellar. I won’t spoil anything, but there were some seriously exciting moments. As you probably know, the basic premise is that Wright and Layton are drawn into a world where magic exists and witches threaten the land. This sets up a lot of cool stuff, such as using the details of how a spell works to prove there was a different witch at the crime scene.

With the concept of a Storyteller who decides everything that happens in Labyrinthia’s Story, I wondered if it would get all meta about the concepts of telling a story… there were a few hints of that, but nothing major.

Magic, witch trials, knights in armor, puzzles galore, and Phoenix Wright doing what he does best in the courtroom–it was a truly epic experience.

I loved it, and that’s why the ending hurt so much. I may make a second post, outside of this spoiler-free review, to discuss the sheer amount of plot holes in the ending. I can accept a lot of absurd twists (another Layton tradition). This one just went too far.

But don’t let that dissuade you. I hate the ending, but that doesn’t change the fact that 90% of the game was the best thing I’d ever played. If you’ve been on the fence, trust me and buy Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney!

And when you’re all done… join me in coming up with an alternate ending of the same high quality this amazing game deserved!

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