“Conflict of Interest” – Cases Ranked / Review

After playing and loving “Contempt of Court”, I decided to play the other renowned Ace Attorney fangame – “Conflict of Interest”, itself inspired by the former.

It got off to a shaky start, but I was thoroughly impressed with it by the time the final credits rolled. Before I give a quick review, let’s rank all five cases!

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Meh

5 – A Turnabout Is Worth a Thousand Words (Case 1)

Sloppy dialogue, a boring plot, forgettable characters, tedious contradictions … “A Turnabout Is Worth a Thousand Words” got off to the worst possible start.

In fairness I think it’s just meant to be a tech demo and it doesn’t relate in any way to the storyline to come, but it was so mediocre that I stopped playing for three months. So yeah, not great.

Good

4 – Turnabout on the Web (Case 3)

Just to be clear, there is a HUGE jump up in quality from now – people online said that “Turnabout on the Web” was a weak case (possibly because outdated versions were glitched? I’m not sure), so I was pleasantly surprised to find a genuinely enjoyable experience.

What feels like a basic plot at first soon develops into a case of mass intrigue that relates to the overall story, and even if some of the characters (and trial penalisations) were annoying I still had a fun time.

Great

3 – The Rogue Turnabout (Case 2)

After taking an aforementioned break due to how lacklustre the opening case was, “The Rogue Turnabout” roped me in immediately with its great intrigue and epic length.

Sir Gallante is one of the best killers in any Ace Attorney game (but I won’t spoil who’s behind the mask!), and if it wasn’t for the quick confession and general jankiness of some investigation segments it could have been one of the best Case 2’s ever.

Amazing

2 – Turnabout into the Unknown (Case 5)

The final case of Conflict Of Interest had a lot of loose ends to tie up and story to conclude, but it somehow delivered one of my favourite Ace Attorney experiences ever.

“Turnabout into the Unknown” has a legendary defendant twist, a fun flashback, the JUDGE of all people spotting a contradiction … so if it wasn’t for the bloated ending and slightly underwhelming culprit, this could have been a flawless closing case.

1 – Turnabout Consequences (Case 4)

Usually whenever I play an Ace Attorney game I expect the final case to be my favourite, so I was blown away when the penultimate case – “Turnabout Consequences” – provided an experience like no other.

Rarely has a case – a non-finale case, no less – moved me as much as this did. It has an amazing set-up, a tragic ending (with the wrong murder motive … but that’s a hot take for another day!), and long-lasting implications on the plot.

Decisions you make here can actually majorly affect how the final case of Conflict of Interest plays out. How awesome it that? They should definitely introduce a system like that in the main series!

Overall Rating: A-

There were some annoying testimony penalties during trials, and some of the contradictions were either too hard or too vague, but I thoroughly enjoyed my time with “Conflict of Interest”. I’d say it’s even better than “Contempt of Court”, which I didn’t think was possible!

If you’re interested, this is how I’d rank all of the fangame cases together (i.e. “Contempt of Court” and “Conflict of Interest” side by side):

1. The Ensnared Turnabout (CoC-4)
2. Turnabout Consequences (CoI-4)
3. Turnabout into the Unknown (CoI-5)
4. The Rogue Turnabout (CoI-2)
5. Turnabout Scapegoat (CoC-1)
6. Turnabout on the Web (CoI-3)
7. Turnabout of the Snow (CoC-3)
8. The Haunted Turnabout (CoC-2)
9. A Turnabout Is Worth a Thousand Words (CoI-1)

And here’s how I’d rank ALL of the Ace Attorney games I’ve played (fangames included!), with a quick explanation for each:

1 – Trials & Tribulations

Still the GOAT for the way it ties together a trilogy’s worth of storytelling.

2 – Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve

A phenomenal game, which may even claim the top spot in time.

3 – Investigations 2: Prosecutor’s Path

One of the best-written, most cohesive games in the series.

4 – Spirit Of Justice

Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I love the creative risks the developers took. While it may not have the narrative drive of a game like “Conflict of Interest”, it has a bigger creative budget so it was always going to win.

5 – CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Yep, I rank this fangame that highly. If you don’t count the first case (which is more of a tech demo than anything), the four-case story it weaves blew me away with its intensity and ingenuity.

6 – Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

The OG, and still a classic.

7 – Dual Destinies

It plays it safe more often than I’d like, but “Dual Destinies” is still a fun time.

8 – Great Ace Attorney 1

The first Great Ace Attorney game suffers from pacing issues, and it doesn’t get properly good until the final case, but I could already appreciate the new direction.

9 – CONTEMPT OF COURT

I was very impressed with what “Contempt of Court” managed to achieve as a fangame, but it was only the first and last cases that truly wowed me.

10 – Justice For All

“Justice For All” is similar to “Contempt of Court” in that only half of its cases are good, but the bad cases here are abysmal. Still, the good ones are series highlights.

11 – Apollo Justice

I’m still mixed on “Apollo Justice”, but these days I lean more towards the positive side.

12 – Investigations 1

The only Ace Attorney game I dislike. The investigations are boring, the story goes nowhere, and the final case is incredibly weak in the grand scheme of things.

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