9. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Who would have expected Capcom, a studio best known for its love of fighting and JRPGs, to be the one to discover just how satisfying it is to slick your hair back, strap a suit on, and stomp into a courtroom to accuse people you barely know of lying? The increasingly popular Phoenix Wright series is one of gaming's quirkiest, buried so deeply in its niche that it can't even see the niches it's next to. Animal Crossing, Journey, and even crossover-to-be Professor Layton have nothing on no-holds-barred legal brawling in the Unlikely To Be Fun Olympics. Remarkably though, this 3DS IP is extremely engrossing. In a similar vein as the superb Papers, Please, Phoenix Wright's half-puzzle, half-point-and-click gameplay invites players to not only learn the facts of a case or crime, but also prove their stance. Actually doing so delivers the same admittedly petty but oh-so-sweet satisfaction of winning a debate in real life, and is largely to thank for the runaway success the games have seen. The caveat here is an obvious one: Mysteries are only mysteries before they're solved. If you've already spoken to the witnesses, searched the site, and compiled the evidence, you're probably spending your time in another niche.
Austin Wood
Contributor
A freelance games writer, you say? Typically battling his current RPG addiction and ceaseless perfectionism? A fan of horror but too big a sissy to play for more than a couple of hours? Spends far too much time on JRPGs and gets way too angry with card games?
Well that doesn't sound anything like me.
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