Capcom announces Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies for Nintendo 3DS

Phoenix's latest escapades will be coming this year, but digital only.

This morning Capcom Europe and Capcom America both confirmed something that is bound to excite the most intense of Ace Attorney fans. Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies, previously known simply as Ace Attorney 5, is coming to the west.

A rather vague press release sent out by Capcom this morning confirmed that the latest game would be coming to western territories in Autumn this year, which is definitely much quicker than we expected.

In a move sure to spark controversy, the game will also be available exclusively on the Nintendo eShop in western territories. So if you want a boxed copy, not only is a Japanese version going to have to suffice but a region matched console to play it on too. Kotaku asked Capcom why they chose a digital release schedule for Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies and came back with the following:

[quote]“Historically it’s been tough to attract long term retail support for Ace Attorney titles. With the release of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies we wanted as many people as possible to be able to enjoy the game for as long as possible. With that in mind we have opted for a digital only release via the Nintendo 3DS eShop.

“We understand that this decision may upset fans who wanted to have a physical version of the title to add to their collection but we believe this direction is the best to take to ensure that fans are able to enjoy the game at their own leisure.

“We will be confirming details on the price point soon so please stay tuned for more information on the latest in the Ace Attorney series.”[/quote]

Dual Destinies sees players return to the role of Phoenix Wright, and is set eight years after his last appearance in court. The opening case takes place in a destroyed court room, where players must investigate the cause of the destruction while also battling it out with Gaspen Payne, the younger brother of Winston Payne from previous Ace Attorney games.

The game features a new art style, not dissimilar from Layton’s recent outing, Miracle Mask, employing full 3D graphics instead of traditional two dimensional sprites. Much like Layton, the game also allows players to investigate crime scenes, zoom in and pick out certain details in full three dimensional environments rather than static backgrounds.

Phoenix will be joined by controversial character Apollo Justice as well as a new associate attorney, Athena Cykes. Athena has the ability to psychoanalyse witnesses to introduce a unique “Mood Matrix” to detect emotional state of a witness and determine their current temperament. Comparing witness statements with supposed feelings offer a new way for players to point out and highlight contradictions during testimony in court.

Of course, we haven’t confirmed an Australian release date just yet – however as soon as we have confirmation you will know.

James Mitchell

Avid gamer since I was as young as three years old when I received my first NES. Currently studying full time and consider myself a balanced gamer. Enjoy games on all systems, from all genres, on all platforms. Sometimes feels like he's too optimistic for this industry.