I’ve always been a big fan of this series for the Nintendo DS.  While a point-and-click adventure game about a lawyer may not seem like a blast, any fan of old Encyclopedia Brown books, old “Whodunit” TV shows, or general problem solvers will get a kick out of these games.  Plus, the games have a great campy writing style and a host of memorable characters.

The newest chapter, “Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth”, is about to come out, and Gamespot has an exclusive Flash version of the first level of the new game.  i definitely recommend you give it a go.

Click here to play the demo!

So I was sitting at my friends’ watching the Oscars last night, and was shocked to see cosplay at the ceremony. When they announced best supporting-actress and panned over to the recipient, Tilda Swinton, it struck me. Her awards show attire made her have an uncanny resemblance to a certain video game attorney: Phoenix Wright. Is Ms. Swinton secretly a fan of the series and who sought to pay homage to our favorite “ace attorney” on the global stage? They certainly share a hair-style and a predisposition to emphatic pointing gestures…

- Oscars photo courtesy of Reuters

So there is a reason that this is funny besides the reference to hemorrhoids: friends of mine are in a band called “Harlem Shakes” (check them out!). So when this bit of dialogue popped up on the screen, I had a nice chortle at the coincidence. So, “Shakes” fans, here is yet another reason to play this fantastic Capcom title.

Listen to: Harlem Shakes – “Sickos”

Capcom’s “Phoenix Wright” games are an absolute blast. There is nothing quite like playing a “laywer sim” that combines the excitement of an “Encyclopedia Brown” case with a dash of “Choose Your Own Adventure”, “Law and Order,” and “CSI”. As a result of working my way through the series, I do find myself yelling “objection!” a lot more, and it has rekindled my love of old mystery shows (“Matlock”, “Father Dowling”, “Murder She Wrote”, etc.)

The newest installment is called, “Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney”, and will be landing on the Nintedo DS in February.

After the jump you can play a flash demo of the game courtesy of Capcom that gives a flavor of what we have to look forward to.