Ace Attorney Deep Dive: “Turnabout Time Traveler” (Spirit Of Justice – Special Case)

We’ve made it – after thirty cases of Deep Diving, we’ve finally reached the most recent cast in the mainline games as of the time of writing this post. “Turnabout Time Traveler” is a special case added onto “Spirit Of Justice” … so is it as special as it claims to be?

I’ll be deconstructing the case in ten distinct categories and giving a score out of ten for each. This will give a definitive score out of a hundred, if the maths checks out!

Before we begin, you can check out some of my related blog posts below:

Micro Story

“Turnabout Time Traveler” is ultimately a story about love, revenge, and – you guessed it – time travel. But not really.

It takes place at an ill-fated wedding ceremony, where a pendant has apparently “rewound time” so that the reception happens twice. An outlandish claim … made even worse by the fact that it’s Larry Butz making it.

Even though the Micro Story isn’t what we came for (as the OG cast are back in action and get all of my attention), I was surprised by how solid the love themes are here. Though not a high stakes case by any means, it tells its story well.

Score: 8/10

Macro Story

Is “Turnabout Time Traveler” connected in any way to the events of “Spirit Of Justice”? No, not at all, which will hurt the Macro Story score a bit. But I also talk about the main characters in this section – and we’ve got some big hitters returning to the fold.

Phoenix, Maya and Edgeworth are all back! I’d be lying if I said their characters have changed or evolved much, but it’s so nostalgic and fun to see the OG trio back in the driver’s seat. The courtroom segments between bluffing Phoenix and sassy Miles are exactly what the doctor ordered.

Bonus point for the case’s pun name – “Turnabout Time Traveler” is about time travel AND going back to a time when it was Phoenix and Maya against Edgeworth!

Score: 7/10

Mystery

Obviously, the main Mystery surrounding the events of “Turnabout Time Traveler” is … well … time travel. How it’s possible, what might’ve actually happened, that sort of thing. It’s a pretty good hook straight off the bat.

The other Mysteries involve the contents of Sorin Sprocket’s notebook and why he’s writing so feverishly, as well as the identity and possible relevance of Selena Sprocket’s fiancé. I worked out both pretty quickly, but at least the Mysteries were there.

Score: 7/10

Side Characters

There are three Side Characters in “Turnabout Time Traveler” that I want to talk about.

Larry Butz is back, as he’s just as much of a pain in the backside as he ever was. His chemistry with Phoenix, Maya and Edgeworth is still fun … but you can tell nobody in-universe likes him very much.

The defendant of this case, Ellen Wyatt, is pretty solid as defendant’s go. Her love for Sorin is the most endearing part of her character, and it’s an affection that shines through especially in the final scenes.

By far my favourite character has to be Sorin Sprocket. He’s the other half of the love story with Ellen, but his added character quirk of memory loss makes him such a fascinating part of the story. He’s such a pure soul, and his manipulation at the hands of others made me irrationally angry. He might genuinely be the best one-off Side Character in the series (excluding Culprits and defendants), on par with Jake Marshall or Valant Gramarye.

Score: 8/10

Soundtrack

There aren’t too many new additions to the Soundtrack in “Turnabout Time Traveler”, but the score is pretty solid all around. “Spirit Of Justice” has been the epitome of good with its music – there are no bad tracks, but no series stand-outs either.

I liked Ellen Wyatt’s theme, and hearing Larry Butz’s theme again was always going to feel nostalgic, but I also really liked “Will You Marry Me”.

Score: 7/10

Investigations

When the Investigation started and it turned out we’d be exploring a steampunk Flying Chapel, I was hyped. What we ended up getting were a few steampunk-ish rooms that blended together after a while.

The main reveal outside of court is that Selena Sprocket had a fiancé (who is pretty obviously Nichody). The Investigation phases aren’t bad, but I was definitely itching to get into the courtroom to see Phoenix and Edgeworth do battle.

Score: 6/10

Trials

The Trials in “Turnabout Time Traveler” are clearly all about Phoenix and Edgeworth returning to the spotlight, but the actual Trial content was pretty solid too.

There are the reveals that the wedding reception was held twice and Sorin’s notebook was tampered with, and there were a couple of all-timer testimonies with “Nick Is A Jerk Face!” and “Right To Remain Silent”.

To cap it all off, it ends with a great “Culprit realises he was wrong” scene, as well as Sorin and Ellen finally getting the happily-ever-after they deserve.

Score: 7/10

Case Logic

This is a case that floats the idea of time travel for a good chunk of its runtime. The writers say it with a straight face. “Turnabout Time Traveler” won’t end on a good Case Logic score.

Larry seeing a “pterodactyl” out the window is one level of ridiculous, but the X-rays?!? The spiked skull and the bone cravat?!?!? It’s a funny joke in the moment, but the medical implications are astounding.

Score: 6/10

Culprit

In hindsight, Pierce Nichody is a lot like one of my favourite Culprits – Enoch Drebber from “The Great Ace Attorney”. They both have a robotic artstyle / demeanour and they’re both out for revenge. The difference being that this guy is far more one-note and forgettable.

Nichody enacts his revenge and eventually learns the errors of his ways in a touching scene, but otherwise he parades around as an archetypical evil butler.

Score: 7/10

Charm

The steampunk aesthetic of the wedding reception is pretty unique. The story of love is endearing. But c’mon … it’s the main cast that provide most of the Charm.

It’s so great to see the old gang (… including Larry) back in action for maybe the last time ever, and their chemistry is evergreen. If this is the final courtroom showdown between Phoenix and Edgeworth, they went out on a suitably silly one.

Score: 8/10

FINAL SCORE: 71/100

While not a crazy case by any means, “Turnabout Time Traveler” was more solid overall than I remembered.

As is tradition whenever I reach the end of a game, here are the “Spirit Of Justice” scores from best to worst:

1 – Turnabout Revolution [85]

2 – The Magical Turnabout [73]

=3 – The Rite of Turnabout [71]

=3 – Turnabout Time Traveler [71]

5 – The Foreign Turnabout [64]

6 – Turnabout Storyteller [48]

And as a special treat, since this is the final case of the main series, here are the games ranked from best to worst average score:

1 – TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS [76.0]

2 – DUAL DESTINIES [70.5]

3 – SPIRIT OF JUSTICE [68.7]

4 – PHOENIX WRIGHT: ACE ATTORNEY [68.4]

5 – APOLLO JUSTICE [66.3]

6 – JUSTICE FOR ALL [62.3]

While I’m not surprised “Trials and Tribulations” won by a decent margin since that game is so solid across the board, the rest of the ranking surprised me. “Dual Destinies” was more consistent than I remembered, and I’m shocked to see “Apollo Justice” not finish last … I guess Case 1 & 3 of “Justice For All” must’ve really let it down.

Aaaaand that’s my list! And possibly the end of my Ace Attorney Deep Dive series as well. Thank you to all who stuck with me through this pedantic journey.

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