The Soil Is Pink
Observe as the Spoon Master dutifully guards the Mind Castle from the dangers that lurk in the outside world...
(Maya Fey, clutching her free government-provided assault rifle: “Hey! I’m not that bad!”)
Hosted by Spoonmaster12, winner of the “Year of Luigi” case competition, and risefromtheashes.
Ace Attorney takes place in a world that’s pretty similar to our own. Admittedly there are some pretty major differences, but for the most part, it reflects reality pretty well... well, kind of.
But what if in an alternate reality, instead of the standard boring courtroom procedures with human defense attorneys and prosecutors, the courts were run by birds? Or maybe man-eating cockroaches? That would make for a pretty interesting premise, right? I wonder if something like this has been done before. If that’s not your cup of tea for an ideal alternate universe, maybe in a different universe everyone has superpowers and there is a special court system in place for super-powered individuals? I wonder if that’s also been done before… If that happened, my dream Ace Attorney fighting game spin-off where buff Edgeworth and Phoenix duke it out in an epic battle might finally come true.
(Note from risefromtheashes: Athena Cykes in “Streets of Rage”, where she goes full leftist and judo-throws 200 cops à la Monstrous Turnabout. If you make this it’s an automatic win.)
Your Mission/Task
For this comp, your task is to create a utopian/dystopian society where the rules/social structure are completely different from canon Ace Attorney or the real world.
This could be a world where magic exists, a world that’s run by pigeons or a world where everyone has superpowers. Think of the world as a clay that you can mold to your will.
Now, your world doesn’t necessarily have to have a fantastical setting. It can also be grounded in reality, but there should still be a significant aspect of your world that completely sets it apart from our own. For example, maybe in your world, crime is legal for 4 hours, or maybe certain people can buy a murder pass that gives them free reign to commit murder without any consequence, or maybe this is a world where the concept of lying doesn’t exist at all, so witness testimonies are accepted without question.
Okay, I’ll stop giving you ideas now, I feel like I’ve let my brain do too much talking. I would greatly prefer if you come up with something original, but you can steal one of my ideas if you can’t come up with anything.
(risefromtheashes: Hi! We fully back this theme. Please do not make an exact replica of “Strangers in a Land of Turnabouts” by DWaM, we will notice.
Seriously though, it cannot be underemphasized that the atmosphere/social setting of your case must be significantly different from real-life society and canon AA. You don’t need to have redscale backgrounds and a fully synthwave OST or anything, and you can emphasize existing aspects of real-life or canon-AA society, but we should be able to sense that something is really “different” when we’re playing your case.)
Judging
Story: I like a good story; who doesn’t? Use this premise to try and make the best story imaginable. Maybe it’s a story with lots of goofs and spoofs or maybe it’s a somber and dark tale of love and friendship, or maybe it’s all of those at the same time. I don’t know, you do you.
(risefromtheashes: Actually make the worst story imaginable. If one of you puts “Divergent” in AAO, we will get you sent to prison in real life. It will be so fun. For legal reasons, this is a joke.)
READERS: DISREGARD THE PREVIOUS SENTENCE. RISEFROMTHEASHES WAS NOT JOKING.
Characters: I love well-written characters with fun personalities. Characters can make or break stories. In my opinion, every character deserves love and attention, including the side characters and baddies. So don’t neglect anyone and make them sad.
(risefromtheashes: We love subversion when it comes to character tropes. If you’re naturally good with archetypes and can make them fun and unique in practice, please go right ahead — but overly cliché writing can make a work uninteresting, so stay original with your characters. A really good original character concept can and will be stanned.)
Presentation: I like clean scripts and bug free video games. Admittedly, presentation is my weak spot, because I’m a master of typpos. So… Just to not come off as a hypocrite, I’ll be going easy on you here. But not too easy, because if the bad presentation starts to affect my enjoyment, I’ll turn into angry goomba and spam ping you with clown emojis.
SPOONMASTER12: AAO PROHIBITS SPAM. READERS: DISREGARD.
(risefromtheashes: We’re much more autistic about presentation so don’t expect anything to get missed by us. *wink*)
Gameplay: Ace Attorney isn’t a kinetic visual novel, it has lots of fun gameplay. I like gameplay, I love gameplay. As an avid fan of murder mysteries and detective fiction, I’m looking for good case logic, challenging but fair contradictions (I always love a good challenge) and who knows? Maybe some innovative new gameplay mechanic. Admittedly, your case doesn’t HAVE to have gameplay, it can just be a fully text-based visual novel, but I will warn you that I prefer clicking and figuring things out. But don’t let that stop you from creating your dream project. If your story is engaging enough, I might be willing to overlook the lack of gameplay.
NOTE FROM RISEFROMTHEASHES REDACTED.
Theme Relevance: Remember that your world should feel different and have a different ruleset/social structure than our own. A world where Phoenix is a street vendor instead of a lawyer is just an AU depiction of Phoenix; if the world doesn’t feel different, it’s not really theme relevant. Bonus points if your premise plays into the mystery/plot in a significant way.
(risefromtheashes: Please DO NOT go wild and have fun with this theme; try to make your utopia/dystopia truly stand out in both rules and atmosphere; extra creativity is highly DISencouraged. But we understand if you can’t write “1984” in three months LOL. If you do something simple and execute it very well, that’s better than doing something complex and executing it poorl—
Wait, something’s wrong. NOTHING IS WRONG. What’s happening?)
R U L E S
> ENTRIES MUST BE CREATED BETWEEN MARCH 25, 2024 and JUNE 25, 2024.
> ENTRIES MUST BE SUBMITTED TO SPOONMASTER12 AND RISEFROMTHEASHES WITH A WALKTHROUGH INCLUDED.
> ENTRIES MUST NOT BE SHOWCASED UNTIL BOTH HOSTS' REVIEWS ARE RELEASED.
> ENTRIES MUST NOT BE EDITED AFTER SUBMISSION, UNLESS GIVEN PERMISSION TO FIX MAJOR TECHNICAL ERRORS. ENTRIES MAY BE EDITED FOR MINOR CHANGES AFTER JUDGING, BUT SUBSTANTIAL UPDATES ARE PROHIBITED UNTIL THE COMPETITION IS CONCLUDED.
> ENTRANTS MUST DECLARE THEIR INTEREST IN JOINING ON THIS THREAD TO FORMALLY ENTER THE COMP.
> ENTRIES MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR ALL "ACE ATTORNEY" GAMES, INCLUDING SPIN-OFFS, EXCEPT "PROFESSOR LAYTON VS. PHOENIX WRIGHT". ENTRIES MAY BE SET IN LABYRINTHIA IF NO MAJOR PLOT SPOILERS APPLY. SPOILERS FROM NON-"ACE ATTORNEY" PROPERTIES MUST BE SPECIFIED.
> ENTRIES MAY FALL UNDER THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES: TRIAL || INVESTIGATION || COMEDY || MISCELLANEOUS
> ENTRIES MAY BE INCOMPLETE UPON SUBMISSION.
> ENTRIES MAY BE CREATED IN COLLABORATION BY MULTIPLE USERS. PLAYTESTERS MAY NOT JUDGE OR ENTER THE COMPETITION.
D E A D L I N E
ENTRANTS: SUBMIT YOUR FULL ENTRY AND WALKTHROUGH TO SPOONMASTER12 AND RISEFROMTHEASHES VIA AAO PMS BY 11:59 PM EDT ON JUNE 25, 2024.
A STRICT 24-HOUR GRACE PERIOD WILL BE PROVIDED IN CASE OF LAST-MINUTE CHANGES OR TECHNICAL ISSUES.
MEMBERS OF THE "ACE ATTORNEY CASE DEVELOPERS" DISCORD SERVER (INVITE LINK ENCLOSED) MAY SUBMIT THEIR ENTRY AND WALKTHROUGH VIA DISCORD TO @THEEBSIE AND @THEMINDCASTLE.
E N T R A N T S
> SUPER LEGENDA: ENTERED.
PORTFOLIO OF COMPLETE CASES IS SCARCE, BUT RECORDS INDICATE GENERAL COMPLIANCE WITH CANON CONTENT. "TURNABOUT OF THE FINAL DAY" ACCEPTABLE. "LOOKING BACK" CEREMONY UNACCEPTABLE, BUT THIS MAY BE DUE TO AFFILIATION WITH RISEFROMTHEASHES; INVESTIGATE FURTHER. LOW RISK LEVEL AS OF NOW.
> DJJ6800: ENTERED.
SLIGHT VARIANCE IN PORTFOLIO. SOME CROSSOVER CONTENT WITH OTHER SERIES, SOME POST-CANON AA CONTENT. "TURNABOUT IN THE SPOTLIGHT" ACCEPTABLE, "TURNABOUT REALITY" AND "TALES OF A TURNABOUT" UNACCEPTABLE. MODERATE RISK LEVEL; KEEP UNDER PASSIVE OBSERVATION.
> DEATHBYAUTOSCROLL / BENCH: ENTERED.
DEATHBYAUTOSCROLL IS A KNOWN OUTLIER. LACKS LENGTHY FULL RELEASES BUT EXISTING RECORDS SHOW A TENDENCY TO BRANCH OUT. "ERINACEINAE GRIMINANCE" OBJECTIVELY DANGEROUS; "THE IMPOSSIBLE TURNABOUT" CLEARLY A JOKE CREATION. COLLABORATED ON "TRUCY'S MAGICAL CATASTROPHE" (CANON-BASED) WITH SONNIE CELANNA, A SLIGHTLY MORE REPUTABLE USER.
RESEARCH INTO BENCH SHOWS A CONSISTENT RECORD OF DROPPING OUT OF CASE COMPETITIONS. ONLY KNOWN CASE: "TURNABOUT CROSSOVER", INVOLVING SEVERAL DIFFERENT USERS' ORIGINAL CHARACTERS. POTENTIALLY A TROLL?
THIS DUO IS HIGH RISK; SURVEIL CLOSELY AND PREPARE TO BAN IF NECESSARY.
> XAVIERWRIGHT: ENTERED.
PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS SHOWS THAT AT LEAST ONE CANON CHARACTER IS PRESENT IN EVERY CASE. HOWEVER, ANALYSIS OF "A NEW WORLD OF TURNABOUTS" IMPOSSIBLE DUE TO CREATION ON ANOTHER PLATFORM (PYWRIGHT). CHARACTERS "BEN TENNYSON" AND "HENRY JEKYLL" IMPLY INSPIRATION FROM OTHER SOURCES; INVESTIGATE FURTHER. LOW RISK LEVEL AS OF NOW.
> CODINGANT / IKUZONOS: ENTERED.
CODINGANT: "A TURNABOUT ON RAILS" IS CANON-ADJACENT; ACCEPTABLE. HOWEVER, APPEARANCES DECEIVE. "SIDELINED FUTURES" RENAMES MULTIPLE CANON CHARACTERS; REASONS UNKNOWN. "YEAR OF LUIGI" COMPETITION RECORDS SHOW THAT "THE TURNABOUT PROBLEM" WAS FALSELY ADVERTISED. UNPREDICTABLE; TO BE PUT ON METIS, INC. "MOST WANTED" LIST.
IKUZONOS: INITIALLY NOT DANGEROUS, BUT CASES HAVE BEEN BRANCHING OUT OVER TIME. "PAINT GHOSTS OVER EVERYTHING" AND "FRAGMENTS OF A TURNABOUT" VIABLE; "LAST CHANCE FOR TURNABOUT" BARELY; "THE ILLOGICAL TURNABOUT" COMPLETE NONSENSE. DANGER IF THIS TREND CONTINUES. MODERATE RISK LEVEL.
THIS DUO IS HIGH-RISK. ASSUME CODINGANT TO BE THE MAIN PERPETRATOR; COULD HAVE RADICALIZED IKUZONOS AGAINST AAO TRADITIONS. TAKE DOWN CODINGANT FIRST, THEN INTERROGATE IKUZONOS.
> SPONGESONIC: ENTERED.
"THE SECRET TURNABOUT": FAIRLY REASONABLE CASE. "TURNABOUT TURNABOUT" NOT SO MUCH, BUT TECHNICALLY WITHIN BOUNDS OF CANON DESPITE TIMESPACE-SHATTERING NONSENSE. TENDENCY TO GET INVOLVED IN COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS WITH KNOWN RISK USERS, HOWEVER. LOW RISK, BUT CONSIDER PASSIVE SURVEILLANCE.
> ICANNOTHINKOFANAME: ENTERED.
NO PUBLISHED CASES. PAST COMPETITION RECORDS INDICATE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS "CHANCE DATE" AND "DEVON BONTES" ATTENDING THEMIS LEGAL ACADEMY. SEEMS ACCEPTABLE, BUT INFORMATION BASE IS INSUFFICIENT. UNKNOWN RISK LEVEL; INVESTIGATE FURTHER.
> R04: ENTERED.
NO KNOWN FACTS ABOUT THIS USER. NO OTHER POSTS PRIOR TO ENTERING CURRENT COMPETITION. PROFILE INDICATES INTEREST IN THE KAGEROU PROJECT, A NON-"ACE ATTORNEY" PROPERTY. RISK LEVEL LEANS MODERATE FOR NOW; SURVEIL CLOSELY.
> APPLEKITTY / PUPPY DANCE 9: ENTERED.
APPLEKITTY: CREATOR OF "SNATVERSE", A HIGHLY ABSURDIST ALTERNATE UNIVERSE OF THE "ACE ATTORNEY" SERIES. CO-CREATOR OF "TURNABOUT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS", A "COMEDIC" SPOOF CASE, WITH KNOWN AAO TERRORIST EEREW. RISK LEVEL IS HIGH.
PUPPY DANCE 9'S ONLY KNOWN CASE, "PRAYERS A THOUSAND-FOLD", IS DANGEROUSLY CREATIVE AND POSES A GREAT RISK TO THE AAO ECOSYSTEM. FURTHER ORIGINAL ASSET CREATION THROUGH PAPER-FOLDING MECHANICS MUST BE PREVENTED.
THIS DUO IS HIGHLY, HIGHLY DANGEROUS. THIS CANNOT BE UNDERSTATED. PURSUE WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE, AND IGNORE ALL DECOY GRAPHICS OF INFANT ANIMALS.
> OMROOM: ENTERED.
NO PUBLISHED CASES, BUT PAST COMPETITION RECORDS INDICATE TWO ENTRIES. "TURNABOUT RIVALS": BASED OFF OF "TURNABOUT CORNER"; ACCEPTABLE. "THE APOSTLE'S TURNABOUT": POST-APOCALYPTIC CASE WITH NO KNOWN CANON APPEARANCES; OBJECTIONABLE. POST-APOCALYPTIC DEPICTIONS COULD IMPLY HIGH LEVEL OF AWARENESS.
HIGH RISK LEVEL; AIM FOR CLANDESTINE TAKEDOWN.
> SOLDIER: ENTERED.
NO OTHER POSTS OR ACTIVITY; HEAVILY THEMED AFTER CLOUD STRIFE FROM "FINAL FANTASY VII". POTENTIAL CROSS-FANDOM MOLE, OR SUDDEN CHANGE IN INTERESTS? POTENTIAL ENTRY IS COMPLETELY UNPREDICTABLE; COULD BE A FANDOM CROSSOVER SIMILAR TO CASES BY DJJ6800. MODERATE RISK LEVEL; TREAD WITH CAUTION.
> SKYEM: ENTERED.
"TURNABOUT DIVERGENCE" HEAVILY CANON-BASED ALTERNATE UNIVERSE; OTHER KNOWN CASES, WHILE NOT CANON-ADJACENT, SEEM MORE EMOTIONALLY CATHARTIC THAN INTENDED TO SABOTAGE AAO ECOSYSTEM. LIKELY A REGULAR USER, THOUGH PAST INVOLVEMENT WITH TRYBIEN AND DYLAN DOG (SSARG GROUP) IS CONCERNING. LOW RISK LEVEL FOR NOW, BUT INVESTIGATE IF COLLABORATIONS RESURFACE.
> SUPERAJ3: ENTERED.
ALL HANDS ON DECK; PURSUE WITH EXTREME PREJUDICE.
ONE OF THE MOST UNPREDICTABLE DANGERS OF AAO, AND TOPPED ON METIS, INC.'S "MOST WANTED" LIST ONLY BY THE SSARG GROUP. "THE SUBLIME TURNABOUT" REVEALS METIS, INC. SECRETS UNDER THE GUISE OF A REWARDS PROGRAM SCAM; REAL-LIFE STATUS AS A LAWYER IMPLIES NETWORKING CONNECTIONS CAPABLE OF LEVELING AAO. LOCATION BASIS IN AUSTRALIA MAKES TARGETING MISSIONS SIGNIFICANTLY MORE DIFFICULT.
> PINKCOCOAPOWDER / PARCARK: ENTERED.
CLOSE ASSOCIATES OF APPLEKITTY AND EEREW. PREVIOUSLY ENTERED A COMPETITION TOGETHER WITH "TURNABOUT PIZZARIA", LIKELY RELATED TO THE "FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY'S" (COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE) FRANCHISE.
PINKCOCOAPOWDER HAS ALSO WORKED ON "ATHENA CYKES INTERLUDE: TURNABOUT EXPO" (INAPPROPRIATELY SILLY) AND "THE PERFECT TURNABOUT" (UNCHARACTERISTICALLY NORMAL-SEEMING CASE, BUT CREATED WITH EEREW AND APPLEKITTY).
PARCARK'S POSTS INDICATE A CLOSER CONNECTION TO RISEFROMTHEASHES THAN MAY BE PRESENT ON AAO; POTENTIALLY A FLOATER BETWEEN MULTIPLE TERROR GROUPS.
THIS DUO IS HIGH-RISK. PROCEED WITH CAUTION.
> DYLAN DOG / TRYBIEN / MASQUERADEDEMURE: ENTERED.
THE SSARG GROUP HAS RESURFACED. THEY MUST BE STOPPED AT ALL COSTS.
DYLAN DOG AND TRYBIEN: CO-CREATORS OF THE "SUPER SCARY ARG", A HIGHLY RIDICULOUS COLLABORATION THAT SHATTERS THE FOURTH WALL INTO OBLIVION AND THREATENS THE FABRIC OF SOCIETY. ABSURD DEPICTION OF EEREW SUGGESTS PERSONAL INVOLVEMENT; APPLEKITTY'S INVOLVEMENT SUSPECTED BY EXTENSION BUT NOT CONFIRMED. OTHER CASES MAY SEEM NORMAL ENOUGH BUT LIKELY HIDING DANGERS.
MASQUERADEDEMURE: SEEMINGLY A NORMAL USER IN THE PAST, BUT INVOLVED WITH BOTH THE SSARG GROUP AND RISEFROMTHEASHES IN THE PAST YEAR (INCLUDING COMPETITION ENTRY "PROFESSOR LAYTON VS. MILES EDGEWORTH", A DANGEROUSLY INNOCUOUS CASE THAT COULD BE HIDING INSIDIOUS SECRETS). MAY HAVE BEEN INVOLVED FROM THE BEGINNING; INVESTIGATE FURTHER.
> EEREW / THE FURY WRAITH: ENTERED.
THE EAGLE HAS LANDED.
EEREW: PART OF METIS, INC. "MOST WANTED" LIST. INFAMOUS FOR AN ABSURDIST SENSE OF HUMOR THAT HAS SENT AAO DOWN A CHAOTIC LANDSLIDE. CO-CREATION OF "THE BASED TURNABOUT" AND "TURNABOUT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS" REMAIN DECISIVE EVIDENCE OF MALICIOUS INTENT; OTHER SUSPICIOUS COMPETITION ENTRIES CORROBORATE. NATURE OF OTHER POSTS IMPLIES FINGERS IN MANY PIES.
THE FURY WRAITH: LONGTIME USER WITH SEEMINGLY NORMAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO AAO ("TURNABOUT RETRIBUTION" FRIVOLOUS BUT BRILLIANT SPIN ON AA4 CANON), BUT POSTS AND PREVIOUS COMPETITION CEREMONIES IMPLY A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP WITH EEREW. MODERATE RISK LEVEL, BUT INTIMATE RELATIONS OVERRIDE OTHER INCONSPICUOUS ACTIONS.
> AWSOME2464: ENTERED.
FINALLY, A NORMAL USER. KNOWN CASES "THE EXPERIMENTAL TURNABOUT" AND "TURNABOUT HEARTACHE" BOTH STAR PHOENIX WRIGHT AS PROTAGONIST AND HAVE NORMAL TRIALS (THOUGH SOME CHARACTER RELATIONSHIPS CONTROVERSIAL). SUPERNATURAL PHENOMENA EXIST IN BOTH CASES BUT ARE USED AS SETTING BACKDROPS À LA "PROFESSOR LAYTON VS. PHOENIX WRIGHT" INSTEAD OF BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL, AND MYSTERIES ARE STRUCTURED LIKE CLASSIC "ACE ATTORNEY". RISK LEVEL ZERO.
> GUARDIANDREAMER: ENTERED.
MOST RECENT RELEASE "QOTU" USES EXCLUSIVELY CANON CHARACTERS WITH JAPANESE NAMES; ACCEPTABLE. OTHER RELEASES COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE, HOWEVER; "TSTLGOLAHAPASTTTSTATTGGOF" WORST OFFENDER. ORIGINAL CASTS AND SETTINGS IN WORKS; "ACE ATTORNEY" ASSETS USED AS MERE BACKDROPS. PLACES IN TOP FIVE OF METIS, INC. "MOST WANTED" LIST; ATTEMPTS MUST BE MADE TO ASSIMILATE.
> JOFE: ENTERED.
CREATOR OF "MAX JEFHT: ACE ATTORNEY", A FULL FANGAME ORIGINALLY CREATED IN FRENCH. (METIS STAFF: CONSIDER HIRING A FRENCH TRANSLATOR AS ONLY TWO CASES ARE RELEASED IN ENGLISH.) "MAX JEFHT" IS EXPLICITLY NON-CANON, BUT GENERAL STRUCTURE SEEMS TO MIMIC CANON "ACE ATTORNEY". MODERATE RISK LEVEL.
> SAMALLAMA: ENTERED.
CREATOR OF "BEATRICE VERDICT: ACE ATTORNEY", A SEEMINGLY SERIOUS FANGAME. HOWEVER, PROGRESS SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN HALTED IN FAVOR OF FRIVOLOUS CREATIONS ("RUDOLPH LIESE: DETECTIVE NOIR", "INTO THE TAKUMI-VERSE" AWARDS CEREMONY). THEIR SELF-INSERT SPRITE SET HAS MADE APPEARANCES IN "SSARG" DESPITE NO DIRECT INVOLVEMENT. HIGH RISK LEVEL.
> KARLMARXY: ENTERED.
AAO RECORDS INDICATE TEN YEARS SINCE REGISTERING, BUT POST DATABASE SCARCE. EXISTING POSTS SEEM TO MOSTLY REVOLVE AROUND CANON CHARACTER CONTENT (SPRITES, VOICES). USERNAME CHANGED RECENTLY; POSSIBLY LEADING A COMMUNIST REVOLUTION? IF SO, PRO- OR ANTI-CANON? UNKNOWN RISK LEVEL; KEEP AN EYE OUT.
*eating noises*
