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croikSo, 1-2. I...don't really like this case :\
I think this case could have really benefitted from some extra time and a little more seriousness. Of course, seriousness is not the point of PW games... but there were a lot of things in this case that were just completely glossed over.
Like, Mia's death. In the game we've only just met her, but Phoenix has known her for years, and he takes her death surprisingly well. Maya, too, is remarkably chipper by the day after it's happened. Sure the game wouldn't be any fun if we saw them weeping and angsting for days after, and it's not like Mia is gone for good (she has many more trials to save :P) but the impact is pretty dull. At least, it for me, on replay. And since Maya spends the rest of the series not really being affected by any of the horrible things that happen, it doesn't set her up as a character I really care at all about, either. Over all, I'm not that fond of the Feys.
It's also kind of a shame that they gloss over Phoenix having to defend himself. I think they should have saved that for a different case, with all the things that could have gone in it. It also makes Edgeworth look like a complete prick: to have tried the case against Maya, and then to try it against Phoenix, when the witnesses both claim to have clearly seen two people who look nothing alike... He'd have to be braindead not to realize what was really going on. And to prosecute an old friend knowing that... It's a shame we never get to hear anything about that. There's no retroactive "Sorry about that time I tried to get you convicted!" even after they're pals, and it's too bad we never see more of Edgeworth to know what he was thinking then. I think we're supposed to assume that Edgeworth really does want to get criminals behind bars, and thus he just prosecutes whoever the police give him. But intentionally turning a blind eye when it's clear the suspect is innocent is another thing entirely. It's things like that which make me hate 1-5 and the attempt it made to make Edgeworth not look guilty of anything. Sorry, but Edgeworth was a fuck for a while. A retroactive "it wasn't his fault!" doesn't change that. I mean, that's why he has a REDEMPTION story line. I LIKE that he starts as a fuck.
And speaking of Edgeworth, this case is supposedly the first time that Phoenix has seen Edgeworth since deciding that it's his job to "save" him. Watching them in 1-2 I never would have guessed. I'm glad for this replay because Phoenix seems a lot more aggressive that I remembered, and he calls Edgeworth out directly more than once (depending on if you call him a sham, which I did :D). For someone who's been trying to contact him for years, concerned about his well being... Phoenix has nothing to say to him outside of court. Phoenix even admits that he became a lawyer in order to force Edgeworth to see him, and yet even once he has the chance, he doesn't really take it. You'd think he'd grab him and give him a shake, or SOMETHING.
Phoenix gets what he wanted in this case: he beats Edgeworth. He lets him know he was on to him, as far as the witness tampering and even possible evidence manipulation. He accuses him of having not changed. But after the trial, instead of trying to talk to him and ask questions, he leaves him alone for a month until 1-3. And after that it's another month or so until Edgeworth was in trouble.
If Phoenix's goal was to get to Edgeworth and talk some sense into him, why did he wait so long, even after he had the chance?
I think it lends to the weird side of Phoenix's personality: the fact that when he gets to court, he's all gung-ho pointing fingers whos your daddy ace attorney, but it takes a kick in the ass to get him there. Phoenix goes from "Uhhhhh Maya...whatever...." to "YOU DID IT" pretty darn fast. Maybe the translation has something to do with it as well, but in court he's even pretty snarky. But outside of court he doesn't seem to care about a lot of things. The director and the designer describe him as a lump who doesn't have many friends and doesn't get out much.
It's also this case that sets up the fact that Phoenix has little care for due process, the bill of rights, and, sometimes, common sense. He has no trouble sneaking into April's hotel room when she's showering (creepy D:) to steal evidence out of her drawers. Has no trouble presenting it in court without bothering to tell the police ahead of time. Has no trouble going to Grossberg's office and swiping photos off his desk. And of course, he just has to blab to Redd about how he knows he's guilty etc (not all that bright). Though probably the worst is the blackmail at the end of the case. Mia has an excuse, sure--she's dead, he killed her, of course she wants him taken down. But it is such an unsatisfying end to the case, so out of nowhere. It's also a lot like the kind of thing Redd himself would have done, which makes it especially hard to swallow.
So, stealing from and blackmailing criminals is all right, as long as they're guilty. Later in the series, accusing someone of being guilty before you have full proof, along with lying to them in open court in order to pressure out a confession, also slip under Phoenix's belt. I'm not condemning him, because he's usually right and he does care about the truth--he backs off when he learns he's wrong. Also, gameplay wouldn't go anywhere if Phoenix didn't break some rules. They're necessary infractions. But it does say something about Phoenix and his morals: breaking the rules is okay, if it gets the bad guy caught. That, more than anything else, is a consistency in his character through all 4 games.
I've seen a lot of people complain about HoboNick, saying "Phoenix would never do that!" but the truth is he's done most of it already. All that's changed is the degree.
'Course, the police and the prosecutors are much worse. They believe in breaking rules AND they don't really care about the truth (or in some cases, are just too simple-minded to know it when they see it. Poor Gumshoe...). It's kind of frustrating that in 1-2 you can present April's wiretap and no one suggests that Phoenix simply made it up, while in later cases they demand proof of tiny details. If April had simply said "That's not mine" would the judge have dismissed the evidence? Phoenix couldn't prove when or where he got it. It's hard to believe Edgeworth let him get away with it.
So...yeah, I don't like this case :P The PW games aren't perfect and I wouldn't want them to be, but this case in particular exposes some of the flaws of the franchise:
1. The fact that you don't get any POV except for Phoenix's, which limits what you know about the other characters. Large amounts of time pass between cases without any indication of what happened, because it would just take too long to expand on. Even plot points within the case at hand are glossed over to keep things rolling. GS4 continues this, though by then I was used to it.
Of course, as fans we always want to know more, but there's only so much that can fit in a text adventure before it bogs down.
2. Inconsistency in what Phoenix is and isn't expected to prove through evidence. Some things are just accepted because one person says it; some you have to fight tooth and nail to prove. Annoying at times :\
I don't want to be a naggy-nelly but it's true! B: Thankfully, PW is so fun that you don't worry about the flaws too much.
Yes I'm an hour late, but I was babysitting cousins, and that cut severely into my game time! >:I
I think this case could have really benefitted from some extra time and a little more seriousness. Of course, seriousness is not the point of PW games... but there were a lot of things in this case that were just completely glossed over.
Like, Mia's death. In the game we've only just met her, but Phoenix has known her for years, and he takes her death surprisingly well. Maya, too, is remarkably chipper by the day after it's happened. Sure the game wouldn't be any fun if we saw them weeping and angsting for days after, and it's not like Mia is gone for good (she has many more trials to save :P) but the impact is pretty dull. At least, it for me, on replay. And since Maya spends the rest of the series not really being affected by any of the horrible things that happen, it doesn't set her up as a character I really care at all about, either. Over all, I'm not that fond of the Feys.
It's also kind of a shame that they gloss over Phoenix having to defend himself. I think they should have saved that for a different case, with all the things that could have gone in it. It also makes Edgeworth look like a complete prick: to have tried the case against Maya, and then to try it against Phoenix, when the witnesses both claim to have clearly seen two people who look nothing alike... He'd have to be braindead not to realize what was really going on. And to prosecute an old friend knowing that... It's a shame we never get to hear anything about that. There's no retroactive "Sorry about that time I tried to get you convicted!" even after they're pals, and it's too bad we never see more of Edgeworth to know what he was thinking then. I think we're supposed to assume that Edgeworth really does want to get criminals behind bars, and thus he just prosecutes whoever the police give him. But intentionally turning a blind eye when it's clear the suspect is innocent is another thing entirely. It's things like that which make me hate 1-5 and the attempt it made to make Edgeworth not look guilty of anything. Sorry, but Edgeworth was a fuck for a while. A retroactive "it wasn't his fault!" doesn't change that. I mean, that's why he has a REDEMPTION story line. I LIKE that he starts as a fuck.
And speaking of Edgeworth, this case is supposedly the first time that Phoenix has seen Edgeworth since deciding that it's his job to "save" him. Watching them in 1-2 I never would have guessed. I'm glad for this replay because Phoenix seems a lot more aggressive that I remembered, and he calls Edgeworth out directly more than once (depending on if you call him a sham, which I did :D). For someone who's been trying to contact him for years, concerned about his well being... Phoenix has nothing to say to him outside of court. Phoenix even admits that he became a lawyer in order to force Edgeworth to see him, and yet even once he has the chance, he doesn't really take it. You'd think he'd grab him and give him a shake, or SOMETHING.
Phoenix gets what he wanted in this case: he beats Edgeworth. He lets him know he was on to him, as far as the witness tampering and even possible evidence manipulation. He accuses him of having not changed. But after the trial, instead of trying to talk to him and ask questions, he leaves him alone for a month until 1-3. And after that it's another month or so until Edgeworth was in trouble.
If Phoenix's goal was to get to Edgeworth and talk some sense into him, why did he wait so long, even after he had the chance?
I think it lends to the weird side of Phoenix's personality: the fact that when he gets to court, he's all gung-ho pointing fingers whos your daddy ace attorney, but it takes a kick in the ass to get him there. Phoenix goes from "Uhhhhh Maya...whatever...." to "YOU DID IT" pretty darn fast. Maybe the translation has something to do with it as well, but in court he's even pretty snarky. But outside of court he doesn't seem to care about a lot of things. The director and the designer describe him as a lump who doesn't have many friends and doesn't get out much.
It's also this case that sets up the fact that Phoenix has little care for due process, the bill of rights, and, sometimes, common sense. He has no trouble sneaking into April's hotel room when she's showering (creepy D:) to steal evidence out of her drawers. Has no trouble presenting it in court without bothering to tell the police ahead of time. Has no trouble going to Grossberg's office and swiping photos off his desk. And of course, he just has to blab to Redd about how he knows he's guilty etc (not all that bright). Though probably the worst is the blackmail at the end of the case. Mia has an excuse, sure--she's dead, he killed her, of course she wants him taken down. But it is such an unsatisfying end to the case, so out of nowhere. It's also a lot like the kind of thing Redd himself would have done, which makes it especially hard to swallow.
So, stealing from and blackmailing criminals is all right, as long as they're guilty. Later in the series, accusing someone of being guilty before you have full proof, along with lying to them in open court in order to pressure out a confession, also slip under Phoenix's belt. I'm not condemning him, because he's usually right and he does care about the truth--he backs off when he learns he's wrong. Also, gameplay wouldn't go anywhere if Phoenix didn't break some rules. They're necessary infractions. But it does say something about Phoenix and his morals: breaking the rules is okay, if it gets the bad guy caught. That, more than anything else, is a consistency in his character through all 4 games.
I've seen a lot of people complain about HoboNick, saying "Phoenix would never do that!" but the truth is he's done most of it already. All that's changed is the degree.
'Course, the police and the prosecutors are much worse. They believe in breaking rules AND they don't really care about the truth (or in some cases, are just too simple-minded to know it when they see it. Poor Gumshoe...). It's kind of frustrating that in 1-2 you can present April's wiretap and no one suggests that Phoenix simply made it up, while in later cases they demand proof of tiny details. If April had simply said "That's not mine" would the judge have dismissed the evidence? Phoenix couldn't prove when or where he got it. It's hard to believe Edgeworth let him get away with it.
So...yeah, I don't like this case :P The PW games aren't perfect and I wouldn't want them to be, but this case in particular exposes some of the flaws of the franchise:
1. The fact that you don't get any POV except for Phoenix's, which limits what you know about the other characters. Large amounts of time pass between cases without any indication of what happened, because it would just take too long to expand on. Even plot points within the case at hand are glossed over to keep things rolling. GS4 continues this, though by then I was used to it.
Of course, as fans we always want to know more, but there's only so much that can fit in a text adventure before it bogs down.
2. Inconsistency in what Phoenix is and isn't expected to prove through evidence. Some things are just accepted because one person says it; some you have to fight tooth and nail to prove. Annoying at times :\
I don't want to be a naggy-nelly but it's true! B: Thankfully, PW is so fun that you don't worry about the flaws too much.
Yes I'm an hour late, but I was babysitting cousins, and that cut severely into my game time! >:I
