Yesterday I was messing around with the Nintendo Channel and I came across the demo for Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth. I really didn’t know what to expect since this game is going in another direction from the series, but I walked away satisfied by what I experienced.

For those of you that don’t know Phoenix Wright was released in North America in 2005 but had previously been a popular series on the Gameboy Advance in Japan. You play as a lawyer who defends the innocent in the courtroom and constantly screams “Objection” while pointing his finger. I grew to love the series because of the humor and character development.

The demo isn’t long but it’s just the right length to get a better understanding of the change in gameplay. Ace Attorney Investigations steps out of the courtroom and onto the actual crime scene. I had to get use to controlling Miles Edgeworth around the environment, but it didn’t take long at all to compare it to an older adventure game.

The demo has you focusing on the murder that took place in Edgeworth’s office by tapping the screen on objects around the room. That aspect of the game is very similar to what we’ve already seen in previous Phoenix Wright games.

While the courtroom is out of the picture you’ll still find yourself figuring out clues by using contradictions and logic. The few scenarios that come up in the demo really don’t offer too much challenge. Hopefully this isn’t telling of the difficulty in the game.

Unfortunately the graphics aren’t nice. The characters seem very blocky with very little detail. This is disappointing since the series previously had vibrant graphics and solid animations.

Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth will be making an appearing on store shelves in a few days and I’m interested in playing more. The last Phoenix Wright game felt a little lackluster so I have my fingers crossed that this will pick up the pieces.