Justice for All
After buying Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, I knew I was hooked. It is one of the best, most interesting, and certainly most addictive games I've yet played. My little brother seems to agree with me, based on the fact that he keeps on borrowing the game and playing his way through. Naturally this meant that I needed to go and buy the next in the series - having done so and just finished it, I have to say I am pleased. In my opinion, when set against the cases of the first game the first three cases of Justice for All are somewhat below the standard that was set by the first, especially the fourth case, which left things on a pretty high note. The first case of Justice for All is, in my opinion, the worst offender - it's necessary for newcomers as it acts as an introduction, but for people who have played the first game might find it rather dull - the most important feature is to introduce two of the changes to the gameplay that were introduced for the sequel.
Please don't misunderstand; I am not saying that the first three cases are not fun (indeed, they're quite enjoyable) however, when set against the standard of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (especially the final few cases) they didn't seem to quite reach the same point that the cases of the first game did. The fourth and last case makes up for everything that the other three lack, however, and I'd say that it is very worth buying the game even if only for that last case. It is amazing, very long, and full of twists and shocks - it's one of if not the best case in the first two games, in my opinion.
Several new features include psych-locks, which appear when a person is lying and which you need to break with pieces of evidence. These jump between fun and frustrating, as it's cool to figure out what will unlock a person's secrets and also slightly maddening when everyone you talk to has secrets and you don't know where to get said evidence that will force them to talk to you. Another new feature is the ability to present character profiles as well as evidence; something that makes that second half of your court record suddenly much more important and worth paying attention to, as well as making it a lot harder to just bluff your way through when you figure you're probably supposed to present something here but don't remember what. They also changed your 'life' meter from the way it was in the first - instead of always getting five chances, there's instead a continuous bar that various amounts can be subtracted from if you do something wrong. It makes some actions much more of a risk, some much less - and it doesn't refill with every recess, which makes keeping track of everything all the more important.
For the most part I enjoyed the soundtrack of the first game a bit more, though I loved certain tracks on the second game as well. There's a cast of returning characters you've grown to love as well as new ones (including a new prosecutor, who makes things... interesting, to say the least) who are just as wonderful as the characters in the first game.
Overall I'd call this game a very fitting sequel to Ace Attorney, and would certainly recommend it to any fans of the first game or anyone who enjoys challenging, logic based, fun and funny games. Or everyone, actually, and the first game as well as it's just one of those kinds of games.
Overall it was excellent. A wonderful entertainment.Read full review
