Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies - Thoughts

[contains minor spoilers]

Like Mega Man X6, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies is an unnecessary sequel to a finished storyline, failing to do a single thing better than its predecessors. Unlike X6 however, Dual Destinies remains a "fun" experience from start to finish... provided you can ignore its flagrant leaps in logic. The core Ace Attorney experience remains intact—quirky characters, queer mysteries, and plenty of manzai—so it's not like Dual Destinies is the untouchable black sheep of the series. It's just that the game is... sadly mediocre.

The big question that Dual Destinies struggles with is "who is the main character?" There's effectively three different protagonists (Athena, Apollo, and Phoenix) and they often bump shoulders to stay in the spotlight. By all accounts Dual Destinies is Athena's story and I quite like her cheery demeanor—but Phoenix Wright curiously receives the most screen time. Meanwhile Apollo flitters about, initially acting as a straight man to Athena's naïve goofery before transforming into this weird... aloof vigilante? It's hard to discuss him without veering into spoilers, but I can reveal that despite the series landing into his hands in Apollo Justice, he (and Trucy) have been wrongfully sidelined here. It's like Capcom wanted to return to the Phoenix Wright of old, as well as continue Apollo's journey, and introduce a brand new character. And then instead of making different franchises for each, the developers shrugged and mashed them all together, not realizing it would result in an unsatisfying and messy story.

Speaking of, Dual Destinies comes with plenty of fun twists and turns fans have come to expect from the franchise, but the central theme underpinning the game is extraordinarily weak. Dual Destinies hammers home the ominous "dark age of the law" at every opportunity it can get in its latter half, but it doesn't lead to any pointed remarks or nuanced insights. In fact, the story feels like the most uninspired shonen anime, where "truth = good, lies = bad" and your clients are hopelessly innocent while the killers are unapologetically evil. Even the game's central antagonist—the elusive "Phantom"—shows a lot of promise in the case they're involved in, but the trial inevitably devolves into slapstick, stretching the limits of plausibility as you cry out, "How the hell haven't you been arrested yet?!"

While I can forgive the storytelling of Dual Destinies somewhat—Ace Attorney games never aim to be literature—I remain disappointed in how simple the game's cases are. Dual Destinies is obsessed with guiding the player to its solutions, badgering them with unsubtle hints even after the answer couldn't be made more obvious. On one hand it's nice being able to play a Ace Attorney game without gambling on loosely-related evidence, but on the other your brain barely gets a workout. The only time you're forced to seriously ponder a case is right before the game makes a bizarre leap of logic—surely the killer didn't go to this length to cover their tracks, right? There's always a little bit of that in every Ace Attorney title, but I don't remember it being quite so egregious and cartoony.

Ironically, the oft-derided case 5-2 was my favorite of the lot. I found its theme charming and each stage of the trail was interesting and vaguely plausible—outside of one or two details. It might also be because it centered upon the Apollo & Athena duo, which felt more refreshing than playing as Phoenix Wright for the... 13th? 14th time? Besides that, no other trial stood out to me as notable; 5-1 was unconventional but weak, 5-3 took a nosedive towards its end, and the final two cases squandered too much of the Phantom's potential.

But I'm not all groans and gripes—Dual Destinies knocks its presentation out of the park. The new 3D models are smooth and lively, replacing the 2D sprites almost seamlessly. Likewise the soundtrack continues the franchise trend of implanting secret earworms in your head and being generally fitting overall. I also enjoyed the new mechanic Athena brings to the table (the Mood Matrix), as its more engaging and sensible than having the magatama magically detect lies, or using Apollo's bracelet to repeat a sentence over and over. Occasionally the Mood Matrix could be misleading based on how you think someone should be reacting to the situation, but as there's no penalty for wrong answers, it's really not too bad.

I suppose I was too hasty comparing Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies to Mega Man X6, considering the latter is an irredeemable trash fire while the former is just... dull. But conversely it's hard not to see Dual Destinies as the low point of an otherwise fairly remarkable series. It's loyal to the franchise's roots and earnest in its efforts, but its passion fails to overcome just how bog standard the entire game is. If you've not tired of Ace Attorney's peculiar brew, Dual Destinies might be your cup of tea. But I personally feel that Capcom needs to spice up this blend before it gets too bland...

... Thankfully, The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles would be the answer to my problem.

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Images obtained from: nintendo.co.uk, amino.com, gsmarena.com, toucharcade.com

BYE-BYE BOXBOY! - Thoughts

I leave the BOXBOY! 3DS trilogy more pleased than how I entered it, all thanks to its fabulous finale BYE-BYE BOXBOY! Despite failing to rid the series of its fiddliness, BYE-BYE BOXBOY! emerges well ahead of its predecessors by invoking their best aspects: BOXBOY!'s creativity and BOXBOXBOY's intensity. Gone are repetitive mechanics you've long-since learned, replaced by fresh ones like jump-boosting wind, box-buoyant water, weighted scales, and plenty more. On top of that are irritation-free escort quests (!) and four excellent new box powers that change how you traverse levels. Throw in some truly challenging bonus worlds, and BYE-BYE BOXBOY! becomes precisely the puzzle-platformer I wanted out of HAL.

However, I have to be honest—my brain's rotted a bit since I first played the series. I read my previous entries and nearly all of my criticisms still apply. The box limit sharply alternates between generous and cruel, mechanics can have unintuitive rules (eg no snaking in water), the front half of the game is too simple, and the performance-focused grading system remains an ill-fit for the experience. And yet... I wasn't really bothered by any of these... hence the rot. I've grown used to the roller coaster difficulty curve, the game's reliance on phantom boxes, and needing to restart a stage because I don't have enough boxes left to reach the final crown. While I recognize that these problems are no less prevalent in BYE-BYE BOXBOY!, they're somehow less irritating to me now, roughly as intrusive as an ant in my kitchen. Whether that's because I took a break between the games or I've just grown numb to the fiddliness, I'm unsure of—I'm just glad I didn't have to keep an ongoing list of mechanical eccentricities (besides the no snaking in water.)

Perhaps I owe my blind enjoyment to the bevy of new mechanics, each one keeping the gears in my brain turning. While there's still too many tutorial levels for my tastes, it's offset by the experimentation that comes with each strange new gimmick, pushing you to discover the ins and outs of how they operate. This is especially true for the new box abilities, which are easily my favorite part of the game. They're quick to understand but hide a lot of neat tricks, similar to what it was like getting the double box sets at the end of BOXBOY! Except instead of one game-changing power you have four, with each being better than the last. And as soon as you get a grasp on one it's time to move onto the next world—and the next mechanic.

I didn't truly appreciate BYE-BYE BOXBOY! until I reached the end, where the postgame worlds nearly doubled my playtime. I had multiple zen moments here as seemingly impossible puzzles gradually unfolded from "no way!" into "oh that's how!" Most of the stages took multiple attempts, lasting anywhere from three to thirteen minutes, with the worst offenders being 19-6, 20-5, 21-7, and 21-8. These stages were not only tricky to figure out but came saddled with painfully precise box limits, forcing me to develop new ways to cut corners. Although I managed to figure everything out on my own, I definitely wouldn't fault anyone for getting stuck here and dropping the game. For me though, it was puzzle nirvana.

Luckily, for the less intrepid there's the new challenge worlds: single-screen puzzles with a nifty restriction, like no throwing boxes, snaking, or even jumping. They're not as stupefying as the postgame worlds but they can occasionally throw out a solid stumper like C4-5 and C5-8. I like that these act as clever glimpses into more ways that HAL could play with the BOXBOY! formula, though I doubt a full game could be made from them like the dual box mechanic was. Still, the challenge worlds offer a diverse set of puzzles that play with your understanding of BOXBOY!'s usual mechanics—which is true of all of BYE-BYE BOXBOY! and is likely why I enjoyed it so much.

Overall, the BOXBOY! trilogy is an entertaining and cute set of games, although I'm unsure if I'd call them "essential." They're worthwhile puzzlers for the 3DS in any case, rivaled in my mind only by the Pushmo titles (which I remember being far more delightful and less confounding, but it's been a while). I also have to give kudos to BYE-BYE BOXBOY for achieving the rare feat of ending a trilogy on its highest note, closing out not with a whimper but a planet-sized bang. I've not played BOXBOY + BOXGIRL yet, but BYE-BYE BOXBOY has ensured that I'll go into it with a smile on my face...

... Likely because I'm finally immunized to its befuddling quirks.

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Images obtained from: nintendo.co.uk, michibiku.com, darkstation.com, 2dradar.com

BOXBOXBOY! - Thoughts

Alright, so first things first: BOXBOXBOY! does not solve any of my complaints that I had with the previous title. It is direct sequel to the last game not just in name, but in style, design, and gameplay as well. Not only do all of the mechanics from the previous entry return for an encore, but the central gimmick this time around—creating two different "stacks" of boxes—is actually the final ability you're taught in BOXBOY!'s postgame. BOXBOXBOY! fails to bring new ideas to the table, making it less of a proper sequel and more like a collection of spillover puzzles that HAL never got around to finalizing. This might sound like a harsh condemnation of the square boy's second foray, but there's one major upside that keeps the game from feeling vestigial: BOXBOXBOY! isn't afraid to get tough. And no, not simply "remove the kid gloves"-tough—I'm talking "brass-knuckled wallop to the jaw"-tough.

BOXBOXBOY! unfolds in parallel to its predecessor, introducing each mechanic to the player bit by bit across a similar sequence of linear worlds. Your new ability to make a second stack of boxes will keep the experience from feeling overly familiar, though most obstacles boil down to "make stairs with one stack, use the second to complete the puzzle." While the opening few hours of BOXBOXBOY! failed to impress me beyond a smirk here and there, none of the puzzles felt as slow or half-witted as those in the previous game. If anything, BOXBOXBOY! came across as a competent—albeit needless—remake of the first game.

Right around World 6 or so, you'll begin to notice some devious stage design and crown placement that might impede you for a few minutes. The puzzles will be tricky but not anything too taxing... until you reach BOXBOXBOY!'s relentless postgame worlds, where every other screen will have you muttering "how the hell am I supposed to do this?" World 14-8 and 16-5's crowns in particular were nasty, prickly little monsters that had me stumped for over ten minutes, and the penultimate level has one of the most cramped, soul-crushingly precise puzzles I've seen in a Nintendo game. There were dozens of other moments that had me massaging my noggin in despair, but that penultimate puzzle alone took me longer to solve than the entire final world from the first BOXBOY! That alone is worthy of some mad respect.

Yet despite the more stupefying puzzles, BOXBOXBOY! doesn't take much longer to complete than BOXBOY!—expect roughly five hours from both titles. This is because all your knowledge from the first game easily carries over into the second, letting you zoom through the early stages with advance techniques all while the game is trying to teach you pressing switches. And if you're feeling particularly naughty, every costume from BOXBOY! transfers over, including the speedy ninja outfit and bouncy bunny hood. In an interesting development, you'll actually need them for the costumed-specific challenge world, which locks you inside of these sequence-breaking suits and then tosses you through a gauntlet of old levels, where you're forced to finish them with fewer boxes than normal. The challenge world doesn't hold a candle to some of the postgame puzzles, but it's a neat twist to the regular formula that kept the spirit of the game intact.

And that spirit, unfortunately, is still dexterity-focused with a side of fiddliness. BOXBOXBOY! continues to grade players on their speed and thriftiness, which is a terrible combination in a game where you can't see the full level, you can't see a grid to measure distance, and you can place boxes on the very corner of a cliff to cut corners. I've already listed a bunch of grievances in my last entry so I don't need to recite them all—but don't worry, I've found more!

First: phantom boxes don't count towards the crown total, but will count when you're at "0 boxes left to use." Second: with a box attached to your hip, you can't jump and wedge that box into a one-square tall hole... unless you happen to hit a ceiling when you jump. Third: while having your legs dangle over spikes will still kill you, your legs won't dangle if there's a box you can snake to at the end of your stack. And lastly: while phantom boxes cause their corresponding corporeal stack to disappear, the phantom box will get made before the disappearance affects the world. That sentence might read like a brick of philosophical nonsense, but its a quirk that lets you grab the crown in 14-8 by using a phantom box to push yourself to safety before a switch de-presses and kills you. Trust me, if it sounds weird and stupid, imagine how I felt seeing it happen and having that sentence be the simplest rationalization I could come up with.

When it comes down to it, I'm not sure which of the two games I prefer. BOXBOY! has more originality and freshness, while BOXBOXBOY! sees the box mechanic stretched to its mind-boggling limits. The latter is a stronger puzzle game—and thus a easier recommendation—but it doesn't make sense without the introductory context provided by the first title—which makes it perhaps the better recommendation. Worse yet is that both games are bogged down by mechanical weirdness, which may not frustrate casual players but will feel downright ludicrous to those with an eye for elegant design. HAL did an admirable job building off of BOXBOY's base for its first sequel, but they only built the game vertically, recycling concepts instead of expanding outwards with clever new ideas. Hopefully with the next entry, I'll see a tasteful marriage of the first game's innovation with the second game's sharpness... because I don't have hope that the fiddliness will ever go away.

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Images obtained from: nintendo.com, nintendolife.com, gameinformer.com, macombdaily.com,