Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice whisks players to the kingdom of Khura’in, but Capcom had once considered seeing the Wright Anything Agency owner defend mafia clients in an underground court.
That’s according to game and scenario director Takeshi Yamazaki, who shared that, as Phoenix had become a renowned lawyer, they had wanted to place him in a situation where he felt cornered.
The seedy underworld was, therefore, a clear choice, with concept that Capcom brainstormed seeing the attorney faced with false testimonies, forged evidence, bribes, blackmail, and more.
“There was one real sticking point while I was writing the design document for Spirit of Justice, and that was how were we going to put Phoenix in a corner, given that he’d become this legendary lawyer in the course of this series,” Yamazaki discussed with Siliconera.
“One idea was to have Phoenix stand as a lawyer in an underground court that served the likes of the mafia and other underworld inhabitants. That underground court would hold trials and render judgment on those who’d broken the rules of the underworld, meaning that even Phoenix would have a tough time believing in his own clients.
“Furthermore, everyone involved in the trials would be members of the underworld, including witnesses and prosecutors, so naturally, there would be false testimonies, forged evidence, bribes, blackmail, and other dirty dealings going on. Under those circumstances, we figured even Phoenix would feel incredibly like a fish out of water.”
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice is now available exclusively on the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS worldwide.
