Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney - Reception

Reception

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney has received generally positive reception, holding an aggregate score of 78/100 and 79% from Metacritic and Game Rankings respectively. It received four nines out of ten, totaled to thirty-six out of forty, from video game magazine Famitsu. Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney was heavily criticized for its linear storyline and lack of replay value. However, 1UP.com commented that, "the Phoenix Wright games are by far the best-written titles you'll find on the DS, and Justice is no different." 1UP.com also commented that the added features made especially for the DS were "super engaging even though the actual actions aren't that difficult to do."

IGN largely agreed with 1UP but commented that "the first Apollo Justice title plays identically to the Phoenix Wright trilogy". IGN Australia noted out that complaints about the previous games, such as that "finding the right path through the game feels like a process of trial and error" and that players could beat the game by "routinely pressing at every available opportunity and then using a minimum of logic," were not fixed in Apollo Justice. " Additionally, "the game's rather obtuse, long-way-around approach to problem solving" caused what IGN viewed to be unnecessary delays to the game. IGN also felt that new features were "a little gimmicky" but did not "detract from the experience in the slightest." However, IGN Australia thought the game was "great" overall. The game was nominated for "Best Story" in IGN's 2008 Video Game Awards, though it did not win.

These views were echoed by many reviews. GameSpot felt that the story, while strong, "moves along at a snail's pace" and that "many of the series' flaws are still present." A "lack of innovation and change" was the main sticking point for GamePro, who thought of Apollo Justice as "a solid distillation of the franchise formula." The Nintendo World Report felt that the game "builds upon the Phoenix Wright trilogy" even though "ameplay remains mostly unchanged." GameSpy pointed out that the game's use of the DS's touch features, "vastly improves the experience" though the crime scene reenactment is "all too brief."

Apollo Justice was highly successful, selling around 250,000 copies during the first retail week according to Mainichi Interactive, and had more than 500,000 copies shipped by the end of its second week in Japan. By the end of 2007, it had sold 515,417 units. While not nearly as successful in terms of sales in North America, the game still placed fifth in games sold for the Nintendo DS during its release week.