Professor Layton VS Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney

 3DS
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 178 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 140 out of 178
  2. Mixed: 26 out of 178
  3. Negative: 12 out of 178
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  1. hopesfall
    Sep 5, 2014
    10
    Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is game made for fans of both franchises in the gaming world. I will say that yes, which franchise you like better will make you enjoy the aspect of the game that involves which character you like better, but it doesn't take away from the game at all. Even if you haven't ever played a Professor Layton, or Phoenix wright game, you willProfessor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is game made for fans of both franchises in the gaming world. I will say that yes, which franchise you like better will make you enjoy the aspect of the game that involves which character you like better, but it doesn't take away from the game at all. Even if you haven't ever played a Professor Layton, or Phoenix wright game, you will love this game if you enjoy puzzles, and contradictions. Even more, it will make you want to go buy the games for these two brilliant characters which is a great way to get into their games. I'm about 13 hours in, and I have enjoyed ever moment, a game to pick up if you own a 3DS!!!… Expand
  2. Jcdbengals
    Jun 7, 2021
    10
    The characters really make the game, and the music... yeah the music is special.
  3. timeknight
    Nov 16, 2014
    10
    This game definitely takes the best of both worlds. There are plenty of puzzles to solve, and many court cases to be a part of. The storyline is well done, the art is unique, and the music is captivating.

    If you like Professor Layton games, or Phoenix Wright games, this one will not disappoint you.
  4. Dsoy
    Jul 13, 2015
    10
    A truly fantastic crossover. However, its biggest flaw is that it is aimed at fans of both PL and AA, and people who have only played one of the game series may be frustrated at some points. But, once you learn the ropes of the game, said "biggest flaw" becomes insignificant, and the game will become an experience you will not soon forget.
  5. bearbishop
    May 8, 2015
    10
    I'm a fan of the Phoenix Wright series, so I picked this game up thinking it would be a cool game to play after I was finished playing Phoenix Wright 3 on the 3DS. Playing the game immediately after playing a Phoenix Wright game made it pretty obvious that this game is short in some of the key Ace Attorney elements. My main complaint would be that every investigation sequence featuringI'm a fan of the Phoenix Wright series, so I picked this game up thinking it would be a cool game to play after I was finished playing Phoenix Wright 3 on the 3DS. Playing the game immediately after playing a Phoenix Wright game made it pretty obvious that this game is short in some of the key Ace Attorney elements. My main complaint would be that every investigation sequence featuring Phoenix is very short and seems pretty shoe horned in.
    To be honest, this doesn't really detract that much from the game at all. It is still plenty long even without a whole lot of collecting clues and interrogating people. The two series worked really well together, and the court sequences are an exciting way to advance the story, even if a lot of the contradictions you find are similar to those in the Larry Butz "The Thinker" case.
    I agree that this game seems like more of a Professor Layton game with Ace Attorney elements, but who cares it is still an awesome game. Great music, cool characters, awesome story this game has it all! I am playing the Miracle Mask now, thanks to this game.    … Expand
  6. GoldenWitch
    Jan 8, 2015
    10
    They did a fantastic job merging these two game series together! The story is complex, characters are memorable, and some of the puzzles are real head-scratchers. Would definitely recommend to both fans of either series or newcomers!
  7. DatoReviews
    Jan 25, 2018
    10
    This is easily the best crossover of all time (IMO) and one of the best games i have ever played. It let me fall in love with the Phoenix wright AND the Professor Layton series! The story was so thrilling that I finished the game after one weekend and non-stop playing. Please buy it if you can find it because its seems to get pretty rare!
  8. Tiziown
    May 22, 2021
    10
    Compared to the best games of Layton or Ace Attorney it isn't as good, but the blend between the 2 franchises is incredibly fitting, the puzzles from Layton really help the investigative parts of AA which have always been pretty boring, and the trials are a perfect change of pace after hours of puzzles.
  9. nahobino5_
    Jun 22, 2021
    10
    The most iconic crossover! Puzzles, investigation and court trials work incredibly well together. Layton and Wright are amazing characters in their respective games and they don't lose any of that here. A very enjoyable experience!
  10. Obsidanse
    Sep 11, 2014
    9
    I loved it!
    What a tremendous achievement putting these two games and characters together. Both sympathetically, but not wholesale, recreated from their respective places. Both have been given careful attention so things flow well as a single title and don't feel jarring lay different side by side.
    I got a little bogged down in the Witch hunt trial but otherwise it's first rate Layton    I loved it!
    What a tremendous achievement putting these two games and characters together. Both sympathetically, but not wholesale, recreated from their respective places. Both have been given careful attention so things flow well as a single title and don't feel jarring lay different side by side.
    I got a little bogged down in the Witch hunt trial but otherwise it's first rate Layton and Pheonix in one game!
    Also... If you love the title music to both, just sit back and enjoy this mashup... What a peice :-)    … Expand
  11. naufri27
    Nov 17, 2019
    9
    Tenemos que agradecer a Level-5 que nos traiga este gran crossover a nuestro territorio, en formato físico y completamente traducido y doblado al castellano; ah sí, y con contenido adicional gratuito que amplia un poco la historia principal. Si hubiera sido Capcom la encargada, hubiera cobrado por el DLC metiendo incluso trajes y solo lo hubiéramos visto de modo digital y en inglés.
  12. SrOctopus
    Jan 19, 2015
    9
    An amazing game here. The story is just incredible, and it really mixes this two franchises very well.
    It has a lot of puzzle to solve and the court cases, which are the parts that i most enjoy, are amazing and very well done. Fans of both of the franchises should definitely look this up
  13. Phoenix_Wright_
    Sep 12, 2014
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is the best crossover I have ever played, with almost all elements from both series present. Its developing story is imersive, and it delivers at least 20-25 hours of game play without being a chore to complete, and all the twists like Layton becoming a inquisitor and discovering Laberintia is a heavily isolated place in the real world… Expand
  14. Orioldash2
    Apr 8, 2019
    9
    It's a good game. It's a good game. It's a good game. It's a good game. It's a good game.
  15. Anxo
    Jul 18, 2017
    9
    Un increible crossover (no se si lo he escrito bien) que junta dos de mis sagas favoritas. Me ha gustado mucho como han echo que controles cada personaje. Lospuzzles magníficos, como siempre y los casos en el juicio excelentes también
  16. Alex8011
    Mar 8, 2022
    9
    Great game! Although it may have some minor plot holes, it's as enjoyable as any other game of both series.
  17. Firemam
    Jul 26, 2021
    9
    The best collaboration game though puzzles in game still a very little disappointed with me (who has played both 6 prof Layton game) (i think its maybe because we didn't have a help from puzzle master Akira Tago so the puzzles in game are seem to under my expected)
    Anyways, this collaboration Is an example that game makers should look forward to in the future
  18. Digibutter64
    May 12, 2018
    8
    For the most part, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is a great combination of the two series. I can't speak for Professor Layton (since I've not played one of those games before this), but the Ace Attorney-style trials are still there, albeit not as engaging.

    Rather than in London or Los Angeles, this game predominantly takes place in the medieval-inspired Labyrinthia,    For the most part, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is a great combination of the two series. I can't speak for Professor Layton (since I've not played one of those games before this), but the Ace Attorney-style trials are still there, albeit not as engaging.

    Rather than in London or Los Angeles, this game predominantly takes place in the medieval-inspired Labyrinthia, where the inhabitants believe in witches and magic, and hold "witch trials", with anyone found guilty of witchcraft immediately executed. However, although the conversations between characters like Maya and Luke are handled well, the setting prevents many characters interacting with characters from the other series (there's no Professor Layton/Larry Butz interaction here). Also, the new characters vary widely in quality. On one hand, there's pretty developed characters like Barnham, while there are other less memorable ones, like a man called "Tuggit", whose beard tugging seems to be his only unique quality.

    There are some fairly challenging puzzles in the game, and the witch trials can get a bit fantastical with all the "spells" and whatnot. It's clear that they put a lot of effort into the game, and I appreciate that. Overall, a good visual novel and puzzle game.    … Expand
  19. AlexToral_F
    Jul 2, 2017
    8
    Este crossover es un ejemplo de cómo juntar dos sagas diferentes y hacer las cosas bien. Cuando lo vi anunciado me quedé asombrado y a la vez asustado de ver cómo sería el resultado de juntar dos leyendas y he de decir que no ha habido mejor manera de hacerlo.
    La historia es sencilla y algo predecible, sin embargo encaja con la mecánica de ambos juegos. Los juicios se hacen algo    Este crossover es un ejemplo de cómo juntar dos sagas diferentes y hacer las cosas bien. Cuando lo vi anunciado me quedé asombrado y a la vez asustado de ver cómo sería el resultado de juntar dos leyendas y he de decir que no ha habido mejor manera de hacerlo.
    La historia es sencilla y algo predecible, sin embargo encaja con la mecánica de ambos juegos. Los juicios se hacen algo repetitivos y los puzzles son más sencillos que en otras entregas, así que la dificultad deja mucho que desear. Por su parte los personajes están bien diseñados y las transiciones a modo de una pequeña escena levantan el ánimo para desbloquear todas.

    Es un juego bonito y un gran homenaje a las dos familias de fans.
    Nota real: 7,75/10    … Expand
  20. Diegochocho
    Jul 3, 2018
    8
    Me sorprendió para el bien este juego, al principio pensé que este juego estaba muy a su rollo con la historia, pero resulta que todo lo que ocurre tiene una lógica y el final me pareció increíble. Fue un buen crossover entre la saga de Professor Layton y Ace Attorney.
  21. giannis2001
    Jul 23, 2021
    8
    .This game is way better than I though it would be. I am a huge Ace Attorney fan and I was wondering how this crossover will be compared to the series. Although the game feels more of a Professor Layton one, there are a lot of similar things that resembles the AA series and it does it almost as great as well.

    The story is amazing with a huge twist in the end that will blow your mind. The    .This game is way better than I though it would be. I am a huge Ace Attorney fan and I was wondering how this crossover will be compared to the series. Although the game feels more of a Professor Layton one, there are a lot of similar things that resembles the AA series and it does it almost as great as well.

    The story is amazing with a huge twist in the end that will blow your mind. The Medieval setting where magic and witches are real is amazing as well. The gameplay contains a lot of puzzles which are very good and AA trials which are great as well, although not as good as the main series.

    The soundtrack is amazing as well.

    What I didn't like were that there were many annoying characters to deal with, except the main ones, and of course the addition of Phoenix's and Maya's behavior, which made this game's sense of humor way better that it usually Is. Also, I found voice acting to be cringe at some points, but a good addition nonetheless. Overall, it's a great game with an incredibly good plot, great gameplay, interesting main characters and an amazing Soundtrack. Highly recommended.    … Expand
  22. r4igamer
    Jun 16, 2019
    8
    This unique crossover is a powerful draw for fans of either series, but it doesn’t make the most of its potential. It sacrifices some of both series’ challenge, and the alternate-universe story feels like a missed opportunity where there could have been more meaningful interaction between the worlds of Wright and Layton. The witty dialogue writing, however, is as charming and enjoyable asThis unique crossover is a powerful draw for fans of either series, but it doesn’t make the most of its potential. It sacrifices some of both series’ challenge, and the alternate-universe story feels like a missed opportunity where there could have been more meaningful interaction between the worlds of Wright and Layton. The witty dialogue writing, however, is as charming and enjoyable as ever.… Expand
  23. tukumalu
    Jan 25, 2020
    8
    While it is a novel to see both franchises taking leaps in its story-telling towards rather dark places, the eventual conclusion is rather disappointing.
  24. ReviewsAreBS
    Mar 9, 2023
    8
    Good overall. The puzzles were a little on the easier side. I liked the new trial mechanics. The mechanics of the two series were not combined in any real way, so it felt like a mini Layton game + a mini AA game packaged together.
  25. ylajali
    Jan 17, 2015
    7
    I have the feeling that this game could have been much more but it has in my opinion a few but strong flaws:
    - Due to the new dynamic approach to puzzles, they've become much simpler and easier than ever.
    - The trials are by far more appealing than the investigation part. - The classic Ace Attorney mistake: you've more or less guessed the whole plot but you have to painfully go thorough    I have the feeling that this game could have been much more but it has in my opinion a few but strong flaws:
    - Due to the new dynamic approach to puzzles, they've become much simpler and easier than ever.
    - The trials are by far more appealing than the investigation part.
    - The classic Ace Attorney mistake: you've more or less guessed the whole plot but you have to painfully go thorough desperate dialogues and express the contradictions the way the game wants to. This have been always an issue of the saga: it really needs more flexibility.

    I love both Layton and Phoenix's games but the result, while it's well made, does nothing new.    … Expand
  26. BaganLeleo
    Mar 26, 2015
    7
    As someone who has never played a Professor Layton game I found his segment boring, but the trials are the same as the ones that we have grown to love from the Ace Attorney series, also the voice acting (for Pheonix and Maya at least) sucked and the difficulty of the puzzles were incredibly inconsistent, but overall it's a good game
  27. lejdcool
    Oct 17, 2015
    7
    Layton vs Wright was interesting crossover that tragically missed its full potential. The characters atmosphere and music all had the Layton touch that we've come to know and love, but the gameplay took a slight impact. There are far fewer puzzles than any layton game before and they were all about a 6 on the difficulty scale, while pheonix's trials required less critical thinking and moreLayton vs Wright was interesting crossover that tragically missed its full potential. The characters atmosphere and music all had the Layton touch that we've come to know and love, but the gameplay took a slight impact. There are far fewer puzzles than any layton game before and they were all about a 6 on the difficulty scale, while pheonix's trials required less critical thinking and more tedious interrogation work to progress the trial. Speaking of, though this was supposed to be a game that put both characters on equal footing it was clear that this was a level 5 game and layton was the real star of the show.

    All of which is forgivable had the creators not made two mistakes, one being the sandbagging of an interesting character and hindering his development. The other being that there were inconsistencies and plot holes from the beginning of the game that weren't explained by the end of it. Some of which, not all, were forced to be explained in free DLC.

    Overall while entertaining and a good time waster it just feels like there could have been so much better than it turned out.    … Expand
  28. saibhandari
    Aug 15, 2015
    6
    A huge disappointment compared to other Ace Attorney games, but a good enough game on its own. I found it enjoyable, but I expected so much more and the ending was pretty crap.
  29. Cosmozerk
    Mar 26, 2016
    6
    As a fan of the Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton games this not only is a big disappointment, but it also is....well...let's just move on.

    STORY: The story begins with a girl named Espella who is escaping from a bunch of black-flying-red-eye-creatures in car controlled by (insert the name of the guy i don't remember), eventually they end up in a car accident and the man tells Espella    As a fan of the Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton games this not only is a big disappointment, but it also is....well...let's just move on.

    STORY: The story begins with a girl named Espella who is escaping from a bunch of black-flying-red-eye-creatures in car controlled by (insert the name of the guy i don't remember), eventually they end up in a car accident and the man tells Espella to look for Professor Layton, meanwhile Phoenix and Maya are visiting London...because of Attorney reasons. Eventually Espella finds Professor Layton and tells him all what happend + the fact that the black-flying-red-eye-creatures were actually witches, of course the Professor doubts about her testimony until his apprentice Luke let's one of the Witches get in the room and capture Espella, then they find her and send her into a boat and the Professor and Luke get trapped in a book, a crime occurs, Phoenix defends Espella, "Not Guilty", Phoenix and Maya get trapped in the book as well...oh god.

    I don't know how to explain it, but this story feels...bland, at no point does the story actually gets entreteining and on top of the main story, since this is also an Ace Attorney game, we also get uninteresting, boring, cliche and distracting mini-stories that are nowhere near as great as the normal Ace Attorney games. My biggest gripe with the type of way that they delivered the story is with the combining of the main stories of Professor Layton and the mini-stories of Ace Attorney, they tried their best to make it work, but this combination doesn't work at all and is one of the reasons mini-stories are MINI-STORIES!!!, you can't have this type of important stories on their own right with a main story because they distract from the point of the game, you can technically say that that's not true since side-quest do exist, but the difference there is that those are optional and don't distract from the main story, but here they just distract and i would of prefered the game having a main story and using the courtroom segments to reinforce that plot instead of creating an unimportant one.

    On top of that we have the characters, now i didn't mentioned the characters in my Ace Attorney review because many of them while important in their mini-stories, they really weren't important in the game as a whole, but i did mentioned that all of them were excellent in terms of design, personality, backstories and even names (this holds true for Professor Layton as well), but here is the complete opposite, aside from the main 4 we only get 3 remotely interesting characters, Espella, Sir Zacharias Barnham (the prosecutor or Inquisitor) and the High Inquisitor, every other character is bland, generic and not memorable overall, i mean ,do you remember Kira? i'm sure i don't, there is certainly no Ben & Trilo or Luke Atmey here.

    PRESENTATION: In this game they decided to go for a 3D look and it's actually pretty good, they translated every animation and added some new one's to the characters and many of the models look very nice and i actually prefer the model of Phoenix in this game over the one in Dual Destinies, but that's just me. The music is very nice, tho i feel like it doesn't live up to both series, but it's still a good soundtrack overall, the backgrounds are also very well done and another thing that is great is the cutscenes, which are done in a clean anime style that looks very nice. But not everything is perfect, the animations can get stiff at times, the framerate also stutters when there's too many characters on screen and the expressions...uuugh...ok the expressions of the characters were one of the things that i most enjoyed in the Ace Attorney games, but here every character when they get contradicted just put a "surprise" face and jumps back a little bit, that is soooooooo lame and boring, they ****** up something that i really enjoyed and that's just...uggh. The presentation is overall not as strong as the standards of either series, but i still consider it a decent presentation.

    GAMEPLAY: The gameplay is a mix between the courtroom segments of Ace Attorney and the Puzzles of Layton. In the Layton part you explore the overworld finding puzzles to resolve in different ways, you also find evidence and coins that you use to get clues in the puzzles or the courtrooms, which resolves the problem of getting stucked and in the courtroom parts you find contradictions in witnesses testimonies and use the evidence to point out the contradictions and press them to get more information, you might notice that i'm using plural sentences and that's because the biggest addition to the courtrooms is that you can interrogate multiple witnesses at once, but this only means that they will contradict themselves anyway so i don't see the point.

    Overall this is the weakest game of both series and a decent presentation doesn't save it from mediocrity, this is game i will never touch again. i'll give it a 6/10.    … Expand
  30. chad_pattan
    Aug 19, 2018
    6
    I had completely missed this game the first time around. The last I recall was a news article that suspected the game would never be released outside of Japan. Four years later and I stumble across a 30% discount for it - a game I always wanted to play.

    Unfortunately, while I've got no issue with the story interconnects, I do have issue with the fact that they haven't fixed the    I had completely missed this game the first time around. The last I recall was a news article that suspected the game would never be released outside of Japan. Four years later and I stumble across a 30% discount for it - a game I always wanted to play.

    Unfortunately, while I've got no issue with the story interconnects, I do have issue with the fact that they haven't fixed the underlying issues with both Layton and Phoenix Wright. Also, I'd preferred they not voiced Phoenix Wright's side, because none of them sound right. It also irks me to hear Maya call Phoenix "Nick" instead of "Mr. Nick" as the child she is.

    On the Layton side it's always the same. When Layton himself is solving the puzzle, it's dirt simple and straightforward. When the kid is solving, there's weird curveballs to the puzzle. I wouldn't call them mind bending, just annoying.

    On the Phoenix side, it still suffers from the situations where you'll find a clear contradiction but can't explore it because it's not "the" contradiction they want you to pursue. Situations like a guy's chocolate prints where he clearly always holds the chocolate in his left hand, yet the prints are right-handed.

    The storyline is still intriguing - as is frequently the case with both games - so I'm not bashing it. But I wish they would have fixed some of the underlying issues.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

14
#14 Best 3DS Game of 2014
12
#12 Most Discussed 3DS Game of 2014
25
#25 Most Shared 3DS Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 69 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 55 out of 69
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 69
  3. Negative: 1 out of 69
  1. Gamers\' Temple
    Sep 30, 2014
    88
    No one should object to this enjoyable crossover.
    Read full review
  2. ActionTrip
    Sep 29, 2014
    75
    I especially hope that another cross-over comes down the line, as these two finger-pointers make mystery-solving magic together.
    Read full review
  3. Universo Nintendo
    Sep 23, 2014
    85
    Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is a love letter to fans. Everything the game tried to do, and did, was to please those that experienced at least one Professor Layton and one Phoenix Wright, and managed to enjoy the stay in these worlds. The world here may be different, but it's still familiar.
    Read full review
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