Welcome back to yet another round of Box Art Brawl!
Before we hop onto the case of this week's match-up, let's first take a look at the results from last time. We pitted three covers for the GameCube shmup Ikaruga against each other and wow, it was a close one. The European cover art just topped the competition with 36% of the vote, followed by North America on 35% and Japan at 28% — a real nail-biter.
Speaking of which, this time we are jumping into the world of legal drama, as we assess the cases of three different covers from the 2005 DS title, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. This is the one that started the courtroom visual novel series, introducing us to the ever-objectionable (in a good way, we promise) Phoenix Wright and the sweet joy of piecing together a court case from the comfort of your own sofa.
We have a whopping three covers for you to choose between this time from Europe, North America and Japan. So, let's get this court in session.
Be sure to cast your votes in the poll below; but first, let's check out the box art designs themselves.
North America
The North American cover just oozes courtroom drama, does it not? There's pointing, there's a judge sitting on high, there's Miles' cravat proudly taking up a good portion of the art. It's not the most subtle indication of what the game is all about, but for giving an idea of what you're about to let yourself into, you can't really go wrong here.
Europe
To be fair, if your game title is 50% name, then why not have that character as the sole focus of the cover? In this heavily stripped-back approach, the European cover art is all about Phoenix himself, hitting a smooth power pose in front of an empty white background, with the game's logo taking a much more prominent positioning than in the North American variant. It's not as clear what the game is about, but it's certainly eye-catching.
Japan
If this style looks familiar, it's because many of the following entries in the Ace Attorney series would utilise a similar cover approach going forward. This one places the four main characters — Phoenix, Miles, Mia and Maya — in crisp close-up against a black background. Like the EU cover, this doesn't say all that much about the game itself, but you are going to have no doubt who the main players are.
Bonus - GBA
We have removed this option from the voting because, well, it's on a whole different system and was released only in Japan, but we thought that it would be nice to throw in the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (or Gyakuten Saiban, as it was initially titled) GBA box art for a sneaky peek.
Yes, this lawyer wasn't always about the dual screens and, in fact, began life on the GBA in Japan. This version never received a global release, but we would like to think that it would have carried over the stripped-back cover design if it had...
Thanks for voting! We'll see you next time for another round of the Box Art Brawl.
Comments 48
The European version is the worst. I like the Japanese one the most but the American version tells you what the game is about.
Wow, this is a toughie! I like all three, but I went with NA, as it seems to capture the essence of the game quite nicely. I own the European version, but have not gone with nostalgia bias this time! 😆
I'm a little torn, because I think they all hold their own, but I especially like Japan's artwork, as the composition is something of a trademark for the series, and most future instalments adopt this design internationally.
Australia ended up getting the European art though.
Japan has the most balanced one, not the ultra minimalistic like Europe, but not as lively as the NA one
I love the JP version because it became the series' iconic look, but just look at Maya's face on the NA cover. And the judge's dead eyes. This is tough
MY TIME HAS ARRIVED
This is a pretty tough choice between Japan and NA to be honest (EU's grand as well, just a bit too basic for me): NA is a fantastic piece of art that's pretty much the first thing I think of when it comes to the original AA while Japan is the box-art style more synonymous with the rest of the series while featuring some gorgeous character art from series staple artist Kazuya Nuri. I'm gonna go with NA for nostalgia's sake but all of these are pretty cool artwork/composition-wise.
Also, whilst I'm here, I love how all 3 of these don't give anything away about the game's plot; it's a fine line to straddle between minimalism and blandness and these do a fine job of it imo, great stuff 👍
The EU box art reminds me of Mario Kart DS's box art. Just the main character on a white background.
The USA version does a much better job showing the main characters, and that it's a game based on the court of law (but a fun one). Clearly the winner, and I wish I had this version.
The Japan version is fine, but a little too simple, and doesn't show much. It's a shame the US/EU use this style for the rest of the series.
well, only one of them has cleavage.
North American for me since it shows not only most of the main characters like the Japanese one (excluding Mia, but including Judge), but also the courtroom (bonus points for Phoenix pointing his finger not just in the logo, Maya pouting and especially smug Edgeworth)!
Not a fan of the European one at all as it's way too minimalistic and so doesn't show you anything about the game other than Phoenix (funnily enough one of the characters you see the least since investigations are through his point of view).
I’m between the eu and jp versions. I feel the us one looks like a bootleg.
The Japanese version wins in the end since that's the design they ended up using in the sequels.
I'm mixed in that I think the US one is probably the best individually but I kind of have the most attachment to the Japanese one because that's the format the series largely uses.
All I can decide is that the EU one is good, but the least attractive. NA and JP are tied.
I like the NA one. It gives off Spiderman pointing at Spiderman vibes.
Japan. I would've voted the NA one but I don't like how the same pose is shown twice, even if one of them is just a logo silhouette, so that kicks it just below the Japanese one for me.
North America wins (imho). And without their crazy lawsuits we wouldn’t even have this fine game.
Europe’s actually looks like a sign post advert for a lawyer that you’d see on a US highway.
Japan’s looks like an advert for a TV show about lawyers.
I actually like all three.
When I was a kid I laughed as European version looked like he had a huge ****
I still laugh now that I think back
@Ironcore I have pretty much exactly the same feeling about the NA cover. Pretty surprised it's walking this one when the iconic lineup cover is right there on Japan's entry.
JP one for me this week. Gyakuten Saiban, Ryûichi Naruhodô, Reiji Mitsurugi, Mayoi Ayasato... I hate transcreations...
I like both NA and Japan box arts but the smug Edgeworth won me over. I actually have a Japanese copy because it was cheaper and has both Japanese and English. Now, earlier this year, more than 10 years later, I played the first case and half of the second case in Japanese. It's nice that it gives you individual save files for both languages.
My collection of the original trilogy is a fun one. 1 is JP, 2 is NA and 3 is EU copy.
Narrowly went with North America since the cover conveys a good sense of the action. Not to mention Edgeworth looks pretty darn smug. XD I do like the portraits on the Japanese cover too. Not a fan of Europe's minimalist approach here.
Artistically, I like Europe's the best, but as for giving you an idea what the game is like, the America cover is the best.
North America gets my vote for best cover for showing a courtroom setting and also for high amounts of smugness.
Europe. This is an easy one.
This is a clear win for North America for me. It shows what the game is all about: pointing fingers.
You could turn it into a poster or something.
The Japanese one is also a runner-up.
EDIT: I love how the white silhouette of the logo in the GBA version is pointing at the "Best Price" label while it has his mouth open, kind of like saying "holy $*** it's cheap".
I love the North American box art, the Japanese one is pretty cool as well.
Europe is easily the weakest this week.
Tough call between the US & JPN box arts, but I went with US in the end.
Box Art Brawls Current Total:
Europe: 56
Japan: 58
North America: 63
Australia and New Zealand: 1
I don't like any of them. That long white silhouette is weeeird.
I rarely vote for NA (I think I've only done it once before). Not that I'm prejudice but I just think other regions do it better... however this one is a clear winner!
NA is nice and goofy - dig the crossing arms, and what is she eating? Europe, if I didn’t see the title, I’d think he was a Realtor. NA it is.
While I love both the NA and JP art, I went with the clean look of Japan. America’s is more dynamic, but it bugs me that both Phoenix and the logo are pointing.
The North American one is the most dynamic which, to someone like me that is not into this series, seems to be the most interesting one. The Japanese one is not bad, though a bit boring. The European cover is also a choice in the poll, which is about all there is to say about it.
I'm clearly in the minority here, but I just really like the EU version's clean approach.
The NA version IMO is just...epic! The European is a bit too minimal for my tastes. And the Japanese one is respectable too, but i can't just look past that NA art.
I can't tell on the Japanese one who the main character is except that the logo is pointing at him. I have no objection to the NA one though. See what I did there?
@fabiop I did notice that the EU one suffers from being vulnerable to being snickered at by middle school boys.
@FantasiaWHT You have a good point. See what I did there again?
I like the NA one best, but the perspective and detail (or lack of both) in the background makes it seem more like some sort of temple, not a court room.
Think the american shows the courtroom feeling best. But i think it wod be better if the logo was a bit smaller. Because now you have the two arms reaching each other….
Like the gba version though.
While I like the Japanese box art for many reasons I absolutely adore the American one. Again a box art where if I saw it as a kid I would have absolutely begged for the game as it’s just so pretty and cool. The way it portrays it’s characters and their personalities is just so cool. I love it.
Japanese and NA covers both pretty good for different reasons. I went with Japan this time but it was a veeeery close call.
That scan of the NA cover is pretty poor quality compared to the other two, though. I'm glad to see it isn't affecting the polls too much.
@Uncle_Franklin a fellow man of culture (. )(. )
Also merci beaucoup for the weekly totals! Really completes the Box Art Brawl experience.
It was a tough choice between the North American and Japanese variant but I ended up choosing the North American one. I think it sums up the drama that the series is known for quite well.
I have the whole series in Japanese and love that they keep the theme the whole series. So Japan for me.
I like the simplicity of the European one. The Japanese one looks too anime, which is good for the territory but looks bad to me. The American one is uggo.
Something I noticed... In Europe you can play the game at 7, but in other territories it's a TEEN rated game.
I knew Europe was gonna be last but its my favorite
I hate the way Edgeworth, and subsequently everyone in the HD versions, looks.
So the thing is: do I vote for the one conveying what the game is about, or the one that looks cool and pretty?!
Went with the first one because I think that's more important. Maya's puffy checks really do sell this one!
No doubt for me, NA cover is the best one (even with Maya strange expression)
I prefer the Japanese one but I would understand why ppl would go for NA.
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