Good New for Ace Attorney fans!

I said good news, not great news... great news would've been both Edgeworth games getting an English release... but here's the good news:

Unlike Darkstalkers, Ace Attorney will not be stopping. It seems the collections have been doing well. It helps having all six (out of eight) games in the same console, you know. Hopefully, this will Motivate Capcom to do an Ace Attorney 7... even of it means no more Wright... 

I would be sad if Ace Attorney is forgotten like Darkstalkers... the fact that we've been 3 co sole generations without a true Darkstalkers game is sad. 

Guess I'll have to satiate my desire for Ace Attorney by playing the Meiji Era Ace Attorney then.

Herr Forehead Trilogy is coming... OBJECTION!!

 We got the Ace Attorney Trilogy remaster a while back... now the second volume of the remasters, the Apollo Justice Era games are getting their own remaster in 2024. If this is true, then all the Ace Attorney games will be available in a single console outside the 3DS...

That is awesome, but there is a problem. The Edgeworth games are being forgotten once again. 

I never even saw the game until it was too late AND it got a sequel that stayed in Japan. Since the Edgeworth games are supposed to be between PW3 and Apollo Justice, it would make sense for them to be released WITH the Apollo Justice Trilogy. It's not like they're making Edgeworth 3... but at least we get Trucy's Panties in HD... 

I found my 2DS!!

 Just in time for the Nintendo eShop closing its 3DS doors... I have to shamelessly admit that I only looked for it to get the Ace Attorney DLCs...

I know I said in the past that I would not buy downloadable content since it should come with the game.

 Unfortunately these last two Phoenix Wright games are exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS and the 3DS store closes Forever on Monday. So it was either never play those special cases or swallow my pride and pay 12 bucks for the two DLC. I paid for them and also downloaded Apollo Justice for three bucks. So in a way everything balances out.

Capcom never released the Edgeworth investigation games, so those are MIA. 

I most assumed that those will never come out in modern consoles, so I might as well forget about them. Now that I have Apollo Justice, I guess that I should restart the Ace Attorney series and play the games chronologically and while I'm at it review Herr Forehead's game.

I should also locate the anime that may be in one my DVD boxes... unless my brother took it when he moved out.

Guess I better practice my pointing and the 3 key phrases: Hold it! Objection! Take that!

While I'm at it, Capcom, How about an Ace Attorney collection?

The Ace Attorney Trilogy, Apollo Justice, Dual Destinies, Spirit of Justice, and the 2 Edgeworth investigation games... now if this collection sells, maybe you could consider Ace Attorney 7?

You know Capcom, there are 3 more Ace Attorney games...

But the ability to play an HD version of the first 3 Ace Attorney games on a home console intrigues me...

Betting it will be a digital only release, because Capcom hates the Ace Attorney fandom.
But I love me some Ace Attorney games...
Now if you just would gove us Apollo Justice, Dual Destinies, Spirit of Justice and the Edgeworth games...

But I can make the Von Karmas my bitches... and tell albino Cyclops where he can shove his coffee...

It came from the Toy Chest: X-Force!!

So, with Juggernaut on the loose, Deadpool decided to form his own team.
It will be cooler than the Avengers, but it won't have a lame name like X-Men, which sounds like a band of transexuals... I love a little futa action every now and then, buyt my team needs to sound badass! Something a bit like: X-Force!! whaddya think?

Sounds lazy and uninspired, but it's YOUR TEAM, so call it whatever you like.
So, DP, who are the members of your Sex force?

No fair, dude! That's an even better name, but the bunch of uptight twatmuffins from the Comics Code Authoritah wouldn't allow it...
OK we have Domino... no relation to the pizza. I asked.
She gets lucky with Cable and she gets lucky... as in she has like really good luck.

Like Longshot?

Funny that you Mention Longshot, because my next Member IS from Mojoworld... Here's Shatterstar! He's gay!

Deadpool, just because he dresses gaudily, doesn't mean you can mock him that way!

No, dude! I mean he's bi. But that's not the most shocking thing about him. He's his father's son and his son's father...
Wade. We all are our fathers' sons and our sons' fathers...

I mean that his son is his father and his father is his son...

Holy grandfather paradox! And who's the angry hottie?

As a mandate, every Marvel team must have a Wolverine... my wolverine has bobs and vagene.

Holy crap! Little Laura has grown up!

Now can I do the review part?

Articulation:
Let's begin with Domino:
Her articulation seems to be on par with female Marvel Legends figures. She has a great range on her torso. My main gripe with Hasbro ML is their inability to do the splits.
4.0
Let's get cracking up on Shatterstar
The half-cape and pauldron hinder his arm articulation a little bit. Like Cyclops, he has a ratchet joint built on his shoulders. Other than that he's decent enough.
3.5
Now let's tackle X23
Her hair gets a bit in the way and her torso seems to be a bit too stiff.
3.5

DP: Alright team just like we practiced!!
Everyone for him or herself!!
Cable: That's not much of a strategy...
DP: Trust me Dig Bick... This will all work out...
Cable: what did you just call me?

Paint and sculpt
So, Domino is mostly in black plastic with a few gunmetal, silver and white accents. Her face sculpt is really beautiful. I could see parts of her being used for a more "commando" Mystique.
4.5
Shatterstar looks like Shatterstar and that includes the silly half-cape with gigantic pauldron and the soarring helmet... TBH, I only bought him because if the grandfather paradox joke, Deadpool 2 reference and he cost me 8 bucks at KMart due to a blowout sale plus Shop Your Way rewards points or free cash when buying toys.
5.0
Laura, Laura, Laura... there is always something wrong with your figures... either the face gets made too chubby and cherubic, you end up like a black haired Avril Lavigne, or the snarling face makes you look like you're pushing 40.
Hopefully the Sauron Wave has a prettier looking second head for you.
3.5

Accessories:
All include a BaF piece. (Shatterstar includes a piece of Warlock, while X-23 and Domino have Sasquatch bits)

Domino: 2 guns
4.0
Shatterstar: his swords
4.0
Laura:
Do her claws count? Why doesn't she have her toe claws?
3.0

Juggernaut: MWAHAHAHA! I'M UNSTOPPABLE!!
PW: I can still sue the gem of Cyttoram out of you, unless you surrender.
Juggernaut: You don't scare me, little man...
PW: Need I remind you of Kuurth?
Juggernaut: I'll stand down...
DP: I love it when a plan comes together!!

Overall:
Not sure this team is good enough to stop the Juggernaut, Wade... I mean, Ms. LUCKY here got a 4.17 Shatterstar got a 4.17 and Loliverine got a 3.33 as her final score... I guess that my anti-X-23 bias may be because I don't like fully grown Laura and prefer her as a Lolita Wolverine.
But how did it go with Juggy?

X-Force!! Now with PhoeniX Wright...

Wait, you mean to tell me that a non-She Hulk Lawyer beat the Juggernaut? Eh, weirder stories have come out of the Toy Chest before...

Ace Attorney: the Anime English dub: the rant

Since my birthday is coming up, I got myself a couple of presents. The Phoenix Wright figure was one of them. (I tend to avoid Figma, because that are a bit too expensive for what they come with.) But keeping the Ace Attorney theme, the Anime part 1 was available (basically the first game)

So here are my thoughts. I vaguely recall that I commented that the anime is an abridged version of the games... No, not an abridged parody like DBZA or YGOA... Or the far superior SAOA to the official SAO.
That is something that is kept on the English dub. Mostly because they can't add scenes like the fan based parodies.

One peculiar thing about the subtitles:
There are two versions the Naruhodo Ryuuichi version or the Phoenix Wright version.  That's a nice effort on Funimation'' part. Sal Manella even speeks in 1337 in the subtitles, which is a nice nod to the games...

There is one teensy weensy thing I don't like:
Sam Riegel is not Phoenix Wright... They replaced him with a Funimation VA
...
Edgeworth, who is voice by Kyle Hebert in the games, and is a Funimation VA...

Is not playing Edgeworth... I know, right?
So, Future Trunks is Phoenix... Mia Fey is none other than Android 18!!!
Cody Hawkins, Steel Samurai fan is Goten. Sadly no signs of Schemel and Sabat on this...
Random Trivia from the Japanese version:
Von Karma is played by Akio Otsuka...
Also known as the Japanese counterpart to David Hayter and Queefer Sutherland...

Here's the thing: I cannot recommend this anime because I am far too biased to make a fair and objective judgement. The Ace Attorney series has a soft spot in my heart and I cannot truly say that you should or shouldn't watch it. I'd say that it's about 70% faithful to the game. Some changes, whether I like then or not we're done for pacing, since visual novel games tend to have a slower pace. Despite these differences and changes in VAs, I enjoyed the series.

It came from the Toy Chest: OBJECTION!!

I mean, the title of this rant is: OBJECTION!! can't you connect the dots? Or do you want me to channel Mia Fey to spell it out for you?
Naruhodo Ryuuichi, or Phoenix Wright for us Westerners, the Figma... I finally caved in and got me an Ace Attorney... No news about any other Ace Attorney figures being made... I really only need at least two more to kinda consider an acceptable display: those are Maya and Edgeworth... Or at least just Maya, because that way I could slip in a reference to MVC3 in a Marvel Legends display

Now to explain Phoenix to everyone.
He's a lawyer from Japan/an alternate dimension where the US didn't persecute the Japanese-Americans during WWII and California got a bit more Japanized... Depends on who you ask. He has to solve some of the strangest death cases around, and more often than not, the people closest to him usually end up being framed for crimes they didn't commit.

Articulation:
It's no secret that I am not a fan of Figma figures... Then again, most of the Figma ítems I have MIGHT HAVE BEEN bootlegs. But since I now have an undeniably official Figma product. The articulation is fine, in theory. It's very hard to keep him standing WITHOUT USING THE STAND. HesH a bit wobbly at the thighs and knees.
4.0

Paint and Sculpt:
Yes, he has "ugly joints" but that's a Japanese figure thing. They allow for some poseable, but can be a bit unsightly for some. (Figuarts hides these joints a little bit more, but not by much.) Other than that, the essence of Wright is well captured. Mostly molded in the appropriate colors means very little paint. Luckily, there are no paint issues on mine.
5.0

Accessories:
Spiky haired lawyer has a lot:
6 signs. Hold it! Objection! Take that! and the Japanese counterparts to them.
2 stands: one for the Ace Attorney and the other for the signs.
Piece of Bench.
2 extra faceplates
Evidence papers
13 extra hands...
If I had ordered the far more expensive exclusive edition I would have gotten:
The sheepish grin that PW makes when he screws up...

Which is a load of crap if you think about it.

That's literally the third most important expression from Wright. If it had been the drenched in coffee face from Trials and Tribulations, it would've been better.

In any case, Wright gets a 5.0

Overall:

Phoenix gets a 4.66 as his final score. It's a decent score. Better than decent, that IS A GOOD SCORE. The Articulation issue kinda ruined it for me.

Ace Attorney: 6 I see what dead people see gimmick!

The Previous Ace Attorney Game allowed me to find Justice... Not you Apollo, with the Power of Emojis... Now I can use the Power of Emojis, the Lie Detecting Magatama, and Apollo's Creepy Stare to find the Truth... In addition of the Peering into dead people's last memories Seance thingy.

So, let's review the Possibly final main Ace Attorney game, unless Capcom decides to do Ace Attorney 7 where Pearl decides to become a barely literate Attorney. (Remember the Gravy accident thing)

Story: With very few spoilers.

So, Phoenix is in the Mystical Kingdom of Khura'in, not related to Kurain Village, well aside the name and spirit thingies, because Maya. Phoenix, as always is still a magnet for Trouble. He's in a land where Lawyers are the worst thing a person can be. The games tend to be very anti-lawyer, but this one takes the cake. Here Phoenix, Apollo, and Haruhi fight the greatest court battle of their lives and the stakes are higher... The stability of Khura'in is at stake now that a Lawyer has shown up to their Anti-Lawyer kingdom. There's the usual Ace Attorney tropes. We still get some Fey Family Mysteries, and we also have Trucy's panties... They are Magical and TARDIS-like.

8.5 Mostly, because one of the cases was pretty much a deviation from the main story just to give Haruhi something to do.

Graphics:
as a 3DS(in my case 2DS) game, the Graphics are a huge improvement over the GBA Graphics from Ace Attorney 1-3 (Which were GBA Games ported to the DS) The Few Anime Cutscenes were enjoyable and both the game graphics (3D Models made to look like the traditional sprites)
9.0

Gameplay:
This game is a visual Novel, so you're just pointing and clicking through Court, occasionally yelling "Hold It, Objection, or Take That!" at the Microphone. You will be doing pointing, clicking and tons of reading as well during the investigations. Certain "special events" where you can dust for prints, use your character's powers will come to play in and out of Court. The Seance Gimmick is nice, but setting up to it feels a bit convoluted.
9.0*
*= I like visual novels, so to me, it's easy to rate them higher, but the average Call of Doody player might hate the slower pace. Now, for a Visual Novel game, this game is pretty decent, hence the higher rating.

Controls:
The Buttons are mapped to areas of the touch screen and react exactly the same whether you push the button or touch the screen. Since it's a Visual Novel, it's not that complicated.
9.0

Sounds and Music:
I'm a bit of a mixed bag here: The music and VA work is REALLY great, but  I am a bit disappointed that Phoenix's theme is the Trials and Tribulations Objection! (I prefer Ace Attorney's) and that the Plumed Punisher's Very Original Theme sounds like a lamer rip-off from the Sexy Theme of the Steel Samurai! (especially those Taiko Drums at the beginning!) Other than that, it's all great... but seriously, that plumed punisher theme hurts my ears!
8.5

Fun Factor:
Here, your mileage may vary. I for one enjoy some slow paced games like visual novels, dating sims, and yes, that includes some eroge, because the visual novel style is suitable to those kinds of games...
But back to Ace Attorney... As I said, it's a Visual Novel and I play them mostly for the story and those Screw Real World Logic, we're going with THIS CRAZY IDEA that somehow works.
9.0

Overall:
Yes, I am WELL AWARE of my Pro Ace Attorney Bias, but the only section where I'm truly biased is Fun Factor, since that's the one where I try to put a numerical valye on my enjoyment, but I tried to be as impartial as possible. That's why the game gets an 8.83 as its final score.

HOLD IT!! A Phoenix Wright Figure!?

My reaction when seeing the figure

Figma's people seem to want some of my money... Naruhodo Ryuichi is getting a Figure made.

I guess I better be ready to yell OBJECTION!! to my common sense, since it'll try to stop me from getting this... Common Sense's interference has delayed my getting a Ranma figure... But that's mostly because I'd need a whole ensemble there... At least with Phoenix, all I'd need is an Edgelord Edgeworth... Maybe Franziska von Karma, Godot, Simon Blackquill, Athena... Especially if she has a shocked face... Oh yeah, Gavin, Then Trucy and her Magic Panties. But I musn't forget about Maya, Pearl, Mia possessing Maya, Mia possessing Pearl and the most important character besides Wright and a Prosecutor... The Judge! OK Maybe Nahyuta Sahdmandhi, Rayfa Padma Khura'in...and Herr forehead... But the one character we must never get is The one from Rite of Turnabout... You know the one I'm talking about... well, you would if you've played Spirit of Justice... But we should totally get Manfred von Karma.
Damn, that list grew far more than I expected... And that's not asking for the Detectives, Witnesses, etc... Larry Butz FTW!  I can almost see my common sense clutching my wallet.

TAKE THAT!! However you want to take it... I just hope he isn't too expensive... or that we get at least a Western version with Hold it! Objection! and Take that! signs! Oooh! Displaying him with Marvel Legends as a nod to UMVC3...

So, 2D isn't that bad...

I am talking about the N2DS. I still stand with what I said back when it was released. I don't see me carrying one around, due to its clunkiness... I may have gotten hold of one just to point the stylus at it and yell: "Hold it!" "Objection!" or "Take that!" For Puzzle games or point and click visual novel kind of games, it works fine... Or games that decide the fate of the world via Children's card games!
Settling stuff on Smash, well, that's a different story. The console's clunkiness come into effect here.
Marathonic sessions of more action oriented games make the console slightly uncomfortable.

I'd have to pay to get Cloud or Ryu... which brings me to my next point.
*expletive deleted* the Nintendo eShop *expletive deleted* it in the ass sideways with a Corporation sized cat *expletive deleted* Won't accept my credit card. (address not matching or some BS) so, the only way to get games is to go to a store and buy eshop cards... I mean at least PSN accepts PayPal (when it doesn't want to accept my card) 2 Games (Mario Kart 7 and Ace Attorney 5) take nearly 2Gb out of the 4Gb SD Card that it comes with... Need a bigger card. But as I was saying: The Nintendo eshop feels a bit clunky. Sure it's "easy to navigate" using the touch screen and stylus, but the loading times between sections can be a bit annoying. Like when you download a game:
It doesn't REALLY TELL YOU the size of your downloads. It only states: Game takes X blocks from the Y blocks you have. It doesn't even give you a time estimate of the download. You just wait... for an undetermined amount of time... At least other consoles give you a time estimate, so like if you're donloading an XBOne game, you have an estimate of say 5 hours until the game downloads, so you can go to the movies, play 360, or something... Here you have your awkward not so portable portable console that gives you a non-standard measurement for download and I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY loathe Digital Only games.

Now, it kinda sounds like I HATE the 2DS... I don't. I got it because it was cheaper and it came with Mario Kart... The other option was a more expensive 2DS and a Pokémon game... and right now I'm tired of Poketto Monsutaa Go!!

So, yeah! I also got Dual Destinies and I'm on the final case of the game without counting the DLC... Guess I'll have to get another eshop card soon (Spirit of Justice and the DLC Cases for both games.)

I noticed that I don't REALLY NEED TO HAVE PLAYED Apollo Justice, but it is recommended that you do. It explains the Apollo Gimmick better and makes you familiar to it. Also it helps you understand Trucy's Panties... Also, if you don't play Apollo Justice, you won't understand what the Hell Happened to the Wright Law Office... Sure, you can read wikis, but it's not the same...

So, how to review the game... I mean, you played one Ace Attorney game, you have an idea how ALL OF THEM PLAY LIKE.

You start with a Murder. Then you go to court. There the Prosecutor, who is usually some sort of freaky weirdo, no really, they are weirdos... And more often than not, they have some sort of grudge against you. They reveal the Witness and all you need to do in your cross-examination is find out the contradictions in their testimonies and point them out. With the correct pieces of evidence, you can corner the witness and debunk their testimony. If this witness is not the Murderer, the plot thickens.
In longer cases, court is adjourned for the day and you get to do your own investigation. Find more clues, witnesses and you return to Court. There the Cycle repeats until the case is solved and your client is found Not Guilty... Except that one time...

Each Sequel has a "gimmick"... I should say, Each LAWYER has a Gimmick. It's just that they show up on the sequels. Mr. Wright has the Fey Magatama, which allows him to see Psyche Locks in people. Basically, it allows you to "Force the truth" out of characters via a "Magic Interrogation".
Apollo has his Magic Bracelet that allows him to STARE INTENSELY AT PEOPLE... and I mean Creepy stare kind of thing. He can stare at twitches and "force people to tell the truth"...

The New Gimmick comes from the new Lawyer, Athena Cykes... She uses a "Mood Matrix", which is basically "Forcing people to tell the Truth" using the "Emoji version of the Magatma"...

That's not all... Athena Cykes has a Secret. Remember the Haruhi Suzumiya Ace Attorney references in one episode? (Yes, Athena has an in-game secret as well, but no spoilers here)

Well, Athena is voiced by the same VA who voiced Haruhi... One has to wonder if that's how she got the Ace Attorney gig... If so, then nice move VA Casting folks!

Now back to the game. No longer bound by sprite art, the game has 3D models of the characters and uses those in the court and investigation, but the game is exactly the same as the NDS previous games. We have animated cutscenes with voice acting and past protagonists can use their gimmick in the case that you're stuck with them.

It's hard to rate an Ace Attorney game, since they are pretty much Visual Novels and I KNOW that's not a super popular genre. There isn't THAT MUCH Replay value, because it's a Visual Novel game. There are no different outcomes, because the path is set in stone. Now the cutscenes are a breath of fresh air... Kinda makes me wish we had a WiiU Ace Attorney game just to have a fully voiced game.

Now, the 2DS is a 3DS without the 3D gimmick and is capable of Near PS2/Gamecube graphics, which for a Nintendo Handheld, it's pretty amazing. The Normal DS was barely a portable N64... and the GBA was a souped up SNES. But the question is: ARE THE GAMES FUN? Well, like most consoles, you WILL FIND some good games, but a ton of crap as well. So far, I've only got 1 Nintendo game (Mario Kart 7) and one Third Party game, (Ace Attorney 5: Dual Destinies). I was able to borrow Smash from a co-worker to test the Unit with a physical game.

It bugs me that many of the console's games are Digital Only. But to be honest My last two Nintendo Portables have been bought to play Ace Attorney games and Yu-Gi-Oh! Now I also have Mario Kart... now if they made a Mario Maker 3DS...




I'd still need a WiiU if I wanted to upload courses online... but that will have to wait for some other time... I just have to wait until December to play SMM3DS...

Odds and ends 9-1-16 A Shapeways Extravaganza is coming... and other stuff

I have a few shapeways items ready for review... I just need to finish painting and taking pics of them. I shall sprinkle these reviews during the month... Some come from Familiar Reviewers like DJForce, or Freeman's Mind Toys, others come from brand new (to me as a customer) Shapeways masters like He-Bro and Spot 138. Not sure if I'll do these in multiple rants or a single super rant.

We'll see how this develops.

Holy Crap! (feel free to add Batman here) Deathstroke will be Batffleck's nemesis on the Battfleck solo movie. 

This is, to me, an unexpected choice. I mean, we got a taste of Leto's unfunny Joker fanboy in suicide squad... So it would have made sense to force feed us more Leto on Batman's Solo adventure. The greatest thing about Deathstroke is that he could be a force to be reckoned with physically... Also, since he's known to have a beef with Dick, this could mean an appearance by Nightwing? (Probably not.)
It's also rumored that Joe Mangianello is going to be Slade... From Flash Thompson to Slade Wilson... huh... Wait... JK Simmons is going to be Jim Gordon... Willem Dafoe's in Aquaman... Now Joe Mangianello? I'm gonna call it now and Kirsten Dunst is going to be Poison Ivy and Tobey Maguire will be Clayface.... James Franco as Cluemaster?

Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that Spirit of Justice, aka Phoenix Wright 6 is officially a Digital Release... DAMMIT!! Not too fond of Nintendo's eShop... Looks like I'll need to buy a larger SD Card so I can buy Ace Attorney 5 and 6.

Hold it! Objection! Take that! A NEW Phoenix Wright game!?

I've got to be honest here: I've been WAY Behind on the Ace Attorney series... TBH, I wan't too motivated to play the games where good ol' Nick isn't a protagonist... I was never able to find the Edgeworth game. And Dual Destinies is a Nintendo eShop game only... I may need a 3DS or a 2DS then... But I kinda need the 2/3DS anyway since:

There is a Sixth Game!!!
I kinda knew about a Phoenix Wright game being digital only, but I thought it was the remake of AA 1,2,3...
So, I got to catch up... Play Apollo Justice, maybe get somewhere in Investigations and then get Dual Destinies from the eShop after getting the 2 or 3 DS.

Curse these Digital Only releases... but at least we're getting more of Ace Attorney...

There's a Phoenix Wright anime and no one told me about it!?

Hold it! you don't mean the Haruhi Episode?
Nope! I mean Gyakuten Saiban! Animated!!

Yes, I have a raging boner right now... No, you did not need to know that. Yes, I could have gone with my nipples are incredibly hard right now, but then again it still is TMI... Let's say I'm so excited and I just can't hide it!
If I hadn't been obsessed with the Ace Attorney games a few years back, this anime would not have been anywhere near my radar. I am angry at myself for it NOT BEING IN MY RADAR...

So, I'll watch one episode and go to bed... Just one because I have to work later today... Curse you insomnia!! Can't wait for the English Dub... Hopefully they'll bring back 200X Donatello as Phoenix...

It's like the game... but with ANIMATION!!! If an anime is 13-26 epsiodes normally... I should expect ALL 3 Phoenix Wright games!?

HOLY CRAP!! Screw Mr. Big Forehead Apollo... Your game is cool, but you ain't Naruhodo!!

Marvel VS Capcom 3 made my fingers bleed!!

I went on a ride and fought for the fate of two worlds. Got my butt kicked a LOT of times... Phoenix Wright takes some time to master... Well to be fair I never played MVC3 before... Wasn't going to buy MVC3 with Ultimate MVC3 coming soon... (well it already came, but you get my point... I guess)

I can't stop loving this hyper move (even if it's a huge pain in the ass to set up)
Also I love beating opponents with X-23... (not cause X is an easy character to use, but cause her voice sounds like an angry Twilight Sparkle... yeah, Ponies are my new Hannah)

The game feels familiar, yet different... A LOT Different...
Due to the changes in the controls characters have some older moves switched... This hurt me a lot while playing as Spidey... Looks like I'll have to relearn how to use him before venturing online... They switched the Web swing, but added a nifty Web zip... also the Maximum Spider seems a lot more badass now.
Heck! Even plain vanilla Ryu got a couple of new moves... Yeah, Hadoken guy has some new moves... How about that?

Semi controllable Shinkuu Hadoken!!

Also for a Final boss we get something bigger than Apocalypse:

Bigger Than Cyber Akuma...

Bigger than Onslaught

Bigger and badder than Abyss

FREAKING GALACTUS!!


It was inevitable... I kinda expected him in MVC 2 but what the heck, The Big G is here (Surprisingly no Silver Surfer...)

I should go more in depth into the review now that I've gushed all over the game... Remember that I NEVER PLAYED the Vanilla version of MVC3... Since this is a game review, the scale is from 1 to 10...

Story: A dimensional rift or something is making the "Capcom Universe" and the Marvel Universe to have people cross among the dimensions. Doctor Doom, being the incredibly nice guy he is, contacts the nicest guy in the Capcom Universe... Albert Wesker... They basically join forces and leech off Energy from Galactus in order for Capcom to invade Marvel and Viceversa... Sadly the likes of Ryu, Spider-Man, Chris Redfield, Captain America, Phoenix Wright, and Wolverine are trying to put an end to this evil plan... Now I'm not so sure if the previous games are in continuity, but that's pretty much the story...
4.5 It's the most coherent set up to have a crossover of this magnitude, but since it's a fighting game... the endings become a non-canonical mess... some of them are incredibly weird and would make sense in the character's universe (Mostly from the Capcom side)

Graphics: Obviously this is a PS3 and XBOX 360 game, so the Graphics, by default are better than a PS2 Game. The good old sprite-based games have been left behind. As a fan of sprite art, I think that this decision sucks. On the other hand, Capcom reuses those old sprites more than Mattel reuses buck pieces... ZING! They went with 3D models cause of SF IV and all that, which helps in making Alternate looks less than simple palette swaps (in some cases) Also the Street Fighter 4 Characters look a bit better in this MVC3 Style than their SF4 counterparts... a bit "cleaner" and more reminiscent of the MVC2 and earlier sprites... but 3D
8.5

Gameplay: Hoo boy, where to start: I'll start with the controls. The MVC series has suffered through various changes throughout each sequel.
I shall show them as if they were on a normal arcade joystick with the settings as if they were the ones from the Arcade version (on MVC 1 and 2)
W=Weak, M = Medium, H= Hard, P = Punch, K = Kick, S = Special, and A = Attack

MVC (1)
WP MP HP
WK MK HK
Traditional Street Fighter Style Controls, if you played Street Fighter, you can play this one quite easily.
MVC 2
WP HP Assist 1
WK HK Assist 2
I guess you have noticed something: "Where's the medium Punch or Medium Kick Button?" well the Assist buttons ate them... you have 2 partners now... you need one button to summon him/her/it on the fly... The Medium attacks still exist in the combos... by pressing the WP or WK.

MVC3
WA MA Assist 1
HA SA Assist 2
First thing I noticed was that there are no specific punch or kick buttons... What the heck is this SA Button... Special Air Launch... (To start Air combos) This control scheme almost feel like the one from Tatsunoko vs Capcom, but modified to fit the MVC3 style... Simpler, but not necessarily easier... Remember when I said earlier about releasrning how to use Spidey and stuff, this is why.
Old Spidey Web Swing (MVC 1 and 2)
▼◄ Kick
New Spidey Web Swing (MVC3)
◄▼◄ Any Attack (except SA)
If I do: ▼◄ Attack, I do a Web throw...
Ironman's smart bombs changed from a Punch + Kick attack into a Shoryuken type of move (►▼► Punch) which still keeps throwing me off a bit.

It might seem like nitpicks, but after MORE THAN eleven years of having some moves ingrained into our brains by a series of commands, changing the commands DO throw us off...
Once you get that out of the way, the controls are pretty responsive.
and the game is pretty much the same thing we've had since the past 11 years with MVC 2... An insane orgy of flashy attacks in order to drain the energy out of your opponent's bar. As you can see on the previous MVC3 videos, there's flashy, crazy and over the top.
8.5 The changes in controls bother me a bit... Made me shift form an average player to a total newbie.

Sounds/Music: Most of the themes from returning characters (and Capcom newcomers) are remixes from previous themes or from the game they come from. X-23 has some lyrics in her theme, which is kinda weird... First time I heard it I almost crapped my pants.
Voices are pretty good... I think none of the original voices from previous MVC games made a comeback...
Wolvie ain't Cal Dodd anymore... Christopher Daniel Barnes ain't Spidey anymore... Yes Greg Brady, Prince Eric from Little Mermaid are Spidey... Now we have Josh, Spectacular Spider-Man/Young Ocelot Keaton as Spidey, which is OK except his annoying WEB SWING battle cry... Yes, again with the web swing... X-23 is Tara Twilight Sparkle/Timmy Turner/Bubbles Strong... Cause she was X-23 in Wolverine and the X-Men is why they skipped Andrea Libman as X-23...

So, this means that Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie AND Twilight Sparkle have been X-23.
I love Tara's voice but she sounds too much like Twilight Sparkle... Maybe If X-23 sounded more like Pinkie Pie she'd be more Adorable...

On the other hand Jennifer Hale is playing Jean Grey... Dammit! This ruins my chances of having Black Cat in a MVC game... On the Capcom side things are a bit better: The VAs from SFIV and RE5 return to voice their characters. So, aside the annoyingness of Spidey's Web Swing... and X-23 sounding too much like a pissed off Twilight Sparkle, the sound Department gets an 8.0

Fun Factor: (offline) Like I've said before, I'm more of an anti-social player so the online mode does not motivate me much at all... I did got in a few battles online... Beginner's lobby, my ass!
OK, so back to the offline mode. there's the arcade mode, mission mode and training mode (haven't played offline versus... being an anti-social gamer and all that)
SO, arcade is very simple: Beat the crap out of various sets of characters until you reach Galactus and kick his enormous planet eating butt!
Training is where you can practice the moves and stuff.
Mission Mode is like Training mode, but with certain goals...
Offline the game gets a 7.5 While Galactus is easier than Onslaught, some of his moves are a tad too overpowered.

I'm not rating it online cause your mileage may vary.
Now for the overall score of Ultimate MVC 3:
7.4 It's not bad, but for a game that fans have been waiting for 11 years feels like it's missing something... besides Jill and Shuma Gorath... hate that Capcom is once again using Jill and Shuma Gorath as DLC, since they could've just added them to the disc since this is "an expansion" to Normal MVC3.

Take That! Hold it! Objection!

I'm feeling the Phoenix Rising from the ashes, No I ain't talking about Jean Grey... Once again I'm talking about Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney: the movie. I vaguely mentioned it in an article with Bear Grylls acknowledging his pee drinking...

Well, the movie seems to be getting made...

My brain exploded twice! when I saw this...

After this Phoenix Wright Business I should take a cold shower... On second thought I should not... More pics can be seen here... There is only one thing that has been a disappointment for me...

Ryoga is probably lost...

Probably lost as well...
Still don't have an idea of what I'm talking about? Ranma 1/2 in Live Action... Luckily it's made in Japan and the Ranma 1/2 WTF factor will probably remain as intact as the budget allows...

Once again I see myself writing something Mattel related... Don't worry Mr. Neitlich, this time it's Barbie Related... Another adult collector barbie stirs up some controversy... She's inked! *Le Gasp!* think of the little children! OK, ass-backwards reactions like this justify the reason why Mattel employees treat their customers like morons...
The Tokidoki Barbie is a Gold Label item... Remember the Twidoll reviews?
The Twi dolls are Pink Label... The lowest of the Barbie Collectible Totem pole...
The Tokidoki Barbie is a Gold Label item... What do these mean?
Platinum Label is the TOP of the Totem. Their production numbers are allegedly less than 1,000 dolls.
Gold Label is the second most valuable level with less than 25,000 dolls. The "Controversial Barbie" is a Gold Label Item... (already sold out on Barbiecollector.com)
Silver Label are a step above Pink and they CAN be found on retailers, but not all 50,000 of them... SOME make it to retail...
Pink Label are widely available, but in lesser amounts than normal plain old barbie dolls marketed for girls.

The "Controversy" is just a bunch of people who don't understand the adult collectors and think that because it is released under the Barbie Brand, then it IS for girls.