The moment I glanced upon this title, my mind shouted OBJECTION! But my confusion was tempered by a fair amount of curiosity and a morsel of pure delight. You may be confused at this point, so let me elaborate. Ace Attorney Phoenix Wright is a line of attorney games where players are thrown into the middle of an anime-ish court case drama. I've never played a game like this, and the opportunity to try out something entirely new - like a court case DS game - was mouthwatering, even though there was a possibility of it falling flat. The style intrigued me, as I quite enjoy anime from time to time. As a matter of fact, I also enjoy watching the courtroom dramas (The Practice and Boston Legal come to mind), so, theoretically, a court room anime DS title: WIN!

I dove straight into the game, not knowing what tgo expect.

Players take up the mantle of Phoenix Wright, a skilled attorney who has the utmost belief in his defendants' innocence. Not only that, but his slicked up hair is nearly as cool as his crazy name. As Phoenix Wright, you are responsible for defending your suspect by cross examining witnesses and utilizing evidence. You will collect pieces of evidence as the story progresses. Most of the game is spent listening to the witnesses and trying to exploit discrepancies in their testimonies. If you find that their testimony contradicts the evidence or knowledge you have, you can object by pulling out the material thereby disproving their statements. However, if you utilize evidence which does not have any backing or relevance, you will damage your court case. If you make too many of these mistakes, you will lose the court case and your defendant will be charged as being guilty.

The game is really immersive. It often feels as if you're playing your way through an anime. This is great for fans of the art style, and just as cool for people who aren't as clued up. The whole game is scripted out, which adds to its story-driven appeal, but this can be off-putting for gamers who crave more freedom. The difficulty in this is that players are required to provide the exact piece of evidence that has been scripted into storyline in order to trigger the scripted statement that follows. Most of the time, you will be able to work out the correct item after a good amount of scrutinizing and thought. You may find yourself examining a photo to find a hole in a suspect's alibi, or you may be called to point out a reason why a bloodied piece of clothing is actually a false duplicate.

This title is a story-driven, problem-solving game at heart, and is really rewarding once you work it all out. The plot itself is wonderfully intricate, and truly worthy of a courtroom drama. The music and sound effects create a great ambiance, and create the suspense and pressure of a true cross examination. The character design is pretty cool, and much attention has been put into creating deep, engrossing personalities.

Though a great deal of the action occurs in the court room, you also have to move between various crime scenes or locations in order to gather evidence or chase up leads. If you uncover the correct clues, your knowledge of the case will increase and you might get new pieces of evidence. Phoenix Wright also gains a special ability which allows him to pry out information from the most stubborn suspects in sequences that play out like mini court cases.

For anime lovers, this game hits the nail right on the head. The are tons of face faults, stereotypes, character quirks, flashbacks and plot turnarounds, which are complemented by perfectly typical anime characters and humour. Whenever you disprove a statement, it is almost as if you are unleashing your special anime attack, you know, like when Goku fires his Kamehameha energy blast. Gosh I feel like such a geek, AND I LOVE IT! The music kicks into a serious action as everyone from the judge to the opposition react in a manner fitting of the best animes.

Control-wise, you can either navigate the game by using the DS stylus to tap the various options, or by using the buttons. Personally I found the buttons a bit easier as I'm lazy, but the stylus felt good, too. You can even use the built-in mic to shout objections - once again, it is not crucial to the game, but it is a nice touch. The game allows you to save at virtually any point of the story, and this helps a great deal if you find yourself blowing cases often.

This game is not for everyone - you'll either love it or you'll hate it. Fortunately for me, I loved it. It definitely widened my gaming experience, as I have played nothing like it. If you are looking for a diverse, open game, then this is probably not for you. However, for those who like engrossing storylines, problem solving, and anime, this title is GUILTY AS CHARGED (eat that cheese and enjoy it!)