Reviving Justice: The Future of the Ace Attorney Franchise

  • 01-10-2024 |
  • James Terry

Capcom has hinted at exciting new possibilities for the Ace Attorney franchise, which has seen a steady stream of new content. Recently, remastered editions of various titles that were exclusive to the Nintendo DS and 3DS systems have been made accessible, including those that were never released in English until now. In 2024, Capcom launched the Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy and the Ace Attorney Investigations Collection, both featuring updated graphics, enhanced accessibility features, and support for PC and all current gaming consoles. Despite these remastered versions, fans are eagerly anticipating a fresh title in the series, which could be referred to as Ace Attorney 7.

The last significant release was in 2016 with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney − Spirit of Justice for the 3DS, making the demand for a new game even more pressing. Encouragingly, there are indications that such a game could be on the horizon. Kenichi Hashimoto from Capcom mentioned that the Ace Attorney series will continue to generate content. Although there are no concrete details about a new game currently in development, it is possible that he was alluding to other projects, such as merchandise and multimedia expansions. According to translated comments from Nintendo Everything, he expressed a clear vision for the future of the franchise, stating that they are exploring various avenues for growth, including mixed media. While he could not provide specific information at this time, he affirmed that they have exciting plans that will be shared when the moment is right.

On a positive note, Capcom has completed revisiting older titles in the franchise, having remade all mainline games and spin-offs, with the exception of the crossover game, which is owned by another company. Therefore, if Capcom intends to release new entries into the series, creating entirely new games seems to be the only remaining option, unless they have alternative plans within the mixed media realm.