Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Dual Destinies Review Part II (Final) + Bad Ends

Hi! Well, back when I started my blog (My first review & post if you don't count the "Welcome" actually XD), I did this massive part I review of Dual Destinies. Many months of laziness later, I decided to just condense it all into one with much less detail. XD Oh and because I'm cheap, this doesn't cover the DLC *sigh*


This game...was just brilliant. I love it so much, you have no idea. And that final case hoooly crap. (」゜ロ゜)」 Between the final case here and the final case of Trials & Tribulations... I'm not sure which is better. 

The last chapter especially was just "feels, feels, FEELS. LET'S ALL JOIN THE FEELS BANDWAGON." *ahem* There were many new interfaces such as the multiple save slots, backlog, lack of pixel hunts, etc. etc. that I covered back in part I. These new features plus the whole cutscene business gave a fresh feel to the series that didn't seem forced at all. :3 The use of 3D models took a bit to get used to, but once I did, I didn't mind it at all, and it gave much more depth to everything. As with Ace Attorney, there are always those weird quirky cases that you can't help but liking. And with the now mature M rating, there are a bit more insinuations that Capcom can get away with. *snicker* The flow of the game was very nice (well, minus those two cases in the middle that went on forever, but they had good reason to), and the cases were all lined up so that they connected to the fifth final case of the game, but not in a chronological manner. The game is still very "linear" in terms of choice interaction, but that's to be expected with Ace Attorney and visual novels as a whole. After all, if it's not broken, don't fix it. Even if there aren't many choices, there are still plenty of twists. As with all AA games, there is also much hilarity and puns. The OST for this game is also gorgeous and I enjoyed listening to it very much. For lack of better words, here are my various emotions about the story/twist throughout the cases: (」゜ロ゜)」, ლ(ಠ益ಠ)ლ, 
(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻, ┬──┬◡ﾉ(° -°ﾉ), (;*△*;), (●´艸`), (* >ω<), (*._______.), ( •᷄ὤ•᷅)？, (゜▽゜;), ༼ ༎ຶ ෴ ༎ຶ༽

Capcom actually did a good job of promoting the newest addition to the Ace Attorney franchise. Although I'm a little bummed out that it's not a physical copy so that I can add it to my shrine collection, it played a huge role in actually saving the Ace Attorney franchise. So many digital copies of the game were sold and now that many people have experienced Dual Destinies, they may go back to play the old games to see where it all began (and understand all the references and gags to old games. Stepladders vs ladders anyone?)

As a little sidenote, there are also some references to other Capcom games. I don't have a screenshot of it, but there's one scene in The Monstrous Turnabout where Trucy is making analogies to Agni and Rudra. (´艸`●) (Devil May Cry anyone?)

Some people may feel a little disappointed that the game wasn't focused primarily on Phoenix: It was split between him, Apollo, and Athena and even then the main star of the show was Athena. I'm totally chill with that. I actually enjoyed Phoenix as the aging mentor who's passing along Mia's knowledge. He's not as bluff crazy as the first three games, and he's not as sly as the fourth game (though still intelligent) - it's a nice mix of them all. This game also gave Apollo Justice more screentime to help flesh out his character, because the fourth game didn't do him much justice (//slapped) in giving him that much of a development. Athena had nice development as well and it's nice having a female defense attorney after Mia.

As with all Ace Attorney games, there are always quirky characters and overly complex cases that make the series so endearing~ Also, going back to the M rating... This is probably the darkest game of the series. There is a ridiculous amount of tension in this game. It subtly hints at a bunch of things that actually can happen in real life (ex. Corruption, choosing between what's right & wrong, etc. etc.) and does a fine job of doing so.

Now as much as I love Ace Attorney, there are always things that make me go wtf. First of all, what happened to the MASON system in the fourth game??? That completely got shoved out the window along with some other loose ends from that game. I also feel that Phantom could've been a much better character. He had potential, but the way they ended him was a complete cop-out imo (and no one cares there's a sniper in the courtroom???). Another thing... WHY ARE THE LAWYERS GETTING YOUNGER AND YOUNGER? What's the next prosecutor, a baby? ಠ_ಠ The series is starting to take on too much of an anime feel I'm not entirely fond of. Example, here's an early concept art of Athena.... There was also some romance I didn't particularly care for, ex. Apollo & Juniper, that made it seem a little forced. 
(´し_｀〃) The whole love triangle thing in Turnabout Academy is understandable though, since that was initially a motive for the murder (because we all know there are people in the world who will kill just to take their beloved). Ah, it's also during this scene that Capcom hints at more real life stuff, like lesbian relationships (just throwing that out there)

But don't let the gripes discourage you of buying the game. They're just little rants of a fangirl haha. All in all, if you're a  fan of the Ace Attorney franchise/wanting to get into it, it's very much worth your money. 
(*´・ｖ・)

And so, I now slink off back into the shadows to wait for more news on any Ace Attorney games or merch (¬‿¬)

You can read the bad endings of Dual Destinies below if you want, but my review ends here. :3 Until next time ♪

Bad Endings
If I'm not mistaken, there are 3 bad endings that are available in Dual Destinies. And they all happen in Turnabout for Tomorrow

Bad End 1:

Kay. So the first bad ending is during Simon's Mood Matrix testimony. For this to occur, you need to have your penalty bar go to zero by repeatedly selecting the wrong answer. At this, the judge is all "There's no need to prolong this trial" yadda yadda. Blackquill is still responsible for the murder of Metis Cykes.

Prosecutor Blackquill was executed as scheduled the next day.

As for Aura Blackquill...

She and her robots took Trucy and the rest of the hostages and vanished without a trace.

Athena left the office... Apollo stopped smiling...

And I, realizing my uselessness as a lawyer, took off my badge for good.

Aw man, I think this is worst than Justice for All's bad ending with Maya ;______;

Bad End 2:
The next bad ending is when you're cross-examining Fulbright, trying to figure out the identity of the Phantom.

If you can't establish that he's Phantom then.... this happens.

Omg nooo no no, it's this pose... (Originally from Justice for All with Maya's case) The judge says that the defense can't prove that Fulbright is the Phantom and that they'll just has to see what the prosecution can dig up in the future.

After that, the Phantom vanished completely.

The cases remained unsolved, and we were never able to uncover the truth.

As the days passed, the dark age of the law... only grew darker and darker.

Well, this ending is....slightly better. I mean Athena and Blackquill do get to go free, but now Phantom can continue lurking, taking another's face and exterminating the lives of others. A bittersweet ending ._.

Bad End 3:
The third bad ending is during the whole part where Simon reveals how Athena's going to "fix" her mother and Athena goes up to the witness stand to confess her guilt, but then her black psyche locks break, and her memories come back. At this, they look at the seven year old where *gasp* a man is leaving at 2pm! (This scene took me forever to find again in the chapter select, it's not even funny) And now...we must incorrectly answer the forced questions (either "If the culprit was wearing the jacket, how did it get back to the lab" or "When did the culprit have the chance to bring the jacket back")
Now Aura is all "That's enough. I've had more than my fill of your worthless arguments. This trial is over. Now, hand Athena Cykes over to me! You know what will happen if you don't!"

 No matter what I said, I couldn't change Aura Blackquill's mind.

 Athena was taken away... and I never heard from her again.

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