But aren't they meant to go together?
Also, I replay the games every month (Every one of them) and LOVE doing it.

That's why I feel myself loving 2-2 even more. They go together in an even better way than I remembered.

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I guess...but it sucks that the only thing they really share is one of the culprits.

I enjoy replaying these games when they announce a new one, like what i'm doing now because of AA6, really it's the only time i play 2 because that's my least favorite one, but i enjoy marathoning these games anyway.

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I replay them a lot, although in some ways I wish I didn't so often.

Basically in middle school I beat 1-4 - by the end I had played 1 and 4 twice and 2 and 3 once. Then in high school I'd always get the urge to play but I was kind of OCD about playing them in order so I'd always start with AA1, get into it, then lose interest for a couple months and when I got into it again I started the game again from the beginning. This cycle meant I never got past 2-2 for a long time. (I know, it was crazy). After it was obvious GS5 wasn't going to be coming out anytime soon I kind of lost interest and ended up not hearing about AAI until late 2011 when I played it. This made me finally go back and play the other games (and I replayed AAI in between T&T and AJ). I ended up taking a break between AAI and AJ and ended up finishing AJ in the fall of 2012. This was great because I hadn't played these games in years so a lot of it was new to me.

In the summer of 2013, I proceeded to start playing AA1-4, AAI, and a combination of the Fan translation beta (which wasn't fully done yet) and youtube translations of GK2 over the course of 3 months knowing that DD was coming out in the fall. DON'T EVER DO THIS. I started getting tired of AA around AAI and while I really enjoyed DD I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I was really in love with the gameplay; by the time DD was out I was at the point where I'd try and count how many Cross-Examinations had occurred to see when the trial would be over.

Because I'm stupid, I did the same thing with VS, only I skipped AJ and DD since those would come after chronology-wise. I also took this opportunity to finish all the Layton games I hadn't played yet, but again I started getting tired of the AA gameplay and was in a position where I felt forced to play because the new one was out. After this, I decided I was never going to replay like this again. Back then I was still thinking DGS would be the next game to get released and since that one comes before everything else I wasn't worried about replaying any.

So then last September GS6 was announced, and I decided I wasn't going to replay them all again, despite the little voice in my head which always says "But this might be the last one to come out here! What if you don't get the chance to replay them all again in anticipation for the new one?". A couple weeks later, though, for the first time since 2011 I had the actual urge to play AA. I ignored it at first but I realized I really wanted to play and ended up buying the trilogy and finding all of it fun again. After that I played VS and the AAI games and I did get a little bored near the end (I ended up taking a break on GK2 for two months) but part of that has to do with how the gameplay is different - I tend to prefer the main series gameplay. But I just played through AJ and loved it and I'm playing through DD now and am really enjoying it - the only thing that starts to bore me is the slower text speed which does sometimes make me fall asleep. I wish you could change that. If I get the urge to play AA in the fall before GS6 is released then I will probably go back and play DD in chronological order with the DLC costumes just to make it different.

In conclusion, I think replaying the AA games are great and if you wait enough time (my time seems to be 2-3 years) they can be almost as new and surprising as when you first played. In some ways, I think the second time through an AA game is the best, because you now know where the story is going and you catch some of the foreshadowing. But if you're planning on playing them again in anticipation for the new one, I'd say give yourself at least 6 months so you have enough time to take a break and not let yourself get burned out.

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I'm replaying Bridge to the Turnabout, and I just now realize how ridiculous moving Misty's body was. You're telling me there was absolutely no other way to move the body than to tie it to a snapped suspension wire (which Dahlia somehow reached despite it hanging in midair from the middle of a burning bridge) and swing it like a pendulum? Yeah, my willing suspension of disbelief just snapped.

Also, Pearl and Larry should start a folk band. They seem like the types to do that.

Gosh am I excited about replaying case 1-4 this year's December.

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It's a tradition for me to play that case so the game days match real life days. Even the first time I played 1-4, it was entirely coincidental that I started it on December 25.

Now, on topic... I've been marathoning the games as of late. I just finished AJ and now am doing AAI1. I see AJ in a slightly better light. The mysteries feel more organic and subtle than the Yamazaki games (for the most part, I cannot stress that), but there are some exceptions. For example, Turnabout Serenade. Once you prove the relevance to Lamiroir's magic trick (proving relevance is something Takumi just loves to do in this game) you'd expect her to tell all about the trick, but she instead stays quiet as per her contract. Lady, your partner is on trial.

Apollo Justice's last case feels like it builds up to an epic climax, but the final trial is such a letdown. You only present two pieces of evidence and perceive one tell. Then, you sit for about ten minutes while the game plays itself. Even at the breakdown, you do nothing. Klavier is the one who brings up the Jurist System (Apollo had "almost forgotten"). Who was the one who brought Kristoph to justice? It wasn't Apollo, or Klavier, but Wright. This whole trial just puts the player in the audience to watch it play out.

Oh, and the Kidnapped Turnabout in AAI is the worst case of all time. I don't care about any of the characters.

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I had a weird cycle when I was first getting in to the series where I'd go "I'm gonna play AA again and finish it this time" and I'd lost my save since last time so I played 1-1 and 1-2 over again and then got to 1-3 before going "eh I'm going to put this down".

Took my a while to push myself to slog through the whole thing.

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