Publisher: Capcom
Platform: Wii, PS2, PSP

If you know your way around games for handhelds, then you’ve definitely heard of Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. Capcom’s series on the Nintendo DS started a whole new gaming trend with an interactive style of gameplay that has spanned three games so far. Sony PSP and home console owners hadn’t had the chance to experience this revolution until now. Enter Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law.

Using a similar formula as that of Phoenix Wright, Birdman is a lawyer simulation game that allows you to take control of the superhero-turned-attorney from the popular animated series on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim. The same laugh-out-loud humor from the show has been placed into the game as you control Birdman and lead him through five court cases with the who’s-who of the old school cartoon universe. While the game plays like Phoenix Wright, Birdman’s gamers are really only getting about two-thirds the same experience that the Ace Attorney players get.

As you play through the comical (yet sometimes head-scratching) scenarios, you will find yourself collecting evidence, taking testimonies and even doing a little bit of impromptu crime fighting with your “Ace Attorney”. Using the capabilities of the more powerful hardware, every piece of dialogue is completely voiced over and animated giving the player the feeling of actually interacting with an episode of the series. All the characters from the regular series make an appearance throughout the game and Capcom gets kudos for using the original voice actors for all the dialogue.

The main gameplay revolves around the action in the courtroom. Through careful cross-examination of witnesses, it’s completely up to you to solve the case and make sure justice is upheld. Sometimes you will be the prosecutor and sometimes you will be the defense. While interviewing people on the stand, it’s your job to find holes in the testimony and either press for more information or present evidence that contradicts them. This single part of gameplay is where Harvey Birdman lacks from Ace Attorney. Instead of making objections during the cross-examination, you must wait for the right time to present material and nail the case. The loss of that key feature hurts the overall gameplay significantly because unlike Ace Attorney, it never feels as if you are actually engaged in the round-and-round debates that DS owners have experienced for three games.

Overall, the gameplay isn’t bad, just lacking and with only five cases, anyone with time on their hands can complete the game in one or two sittings. There are rewards for being thorough in Harvey Birdman. Do the right thing or make the right choice and you will be rewarded with more chances to represent the case or even unlock bonus videos with cameos from characters from the Street Fighter universe (a total of five in all). Ultimately, this game is just for laughs with little brainpower involved.

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