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Phoenix Wright Producer Tells Her Tale
Written by Lance Wang on Sunday, January 27, 2008
An objection to the objection.
In a recently released developer blog on the official Ace Attorney website, producer, Minae Matsukawa, tells the story of how the series' most iconic aspect almost didn't make it into the games.
Ben Judd, the head of the localization team and future voice of Phoenix Wright, along with the rest of his staff, petitioned Matsukawa to add voice features into the game, citing their desire to yell into their microphones the way a passion-filled lawyer might on Law & Order. Returning to Japan, Matsukawa approached series' director, Shu Takumi, with the idea but was met with skepticism and protests from some of the developers who didn't see the point of coding a voice recognition system for something so frivilous. After a short verbal scuffle, she eventually received a notice from Takumi saying that while he didn't relish the idea of extra work for something so small, he was willing to do whatever it took to please the western audience. Upon hearing the news, Judd, apparently, christened himself the voice of Wright and hopped into a recording booth where he spent several hours yelling "objection!" into a microphone.
Matsukawa ends the entry by acknowledging the niche nature of the series and thanks the fans for taking to it and promoting it in the way that they have.
This is an interesting case of western extrovertism clashing with more meek Japanese sensibilities and actually managing to win out in the end. Funny how the defining feature of a distinctly Japanese series ended up coming from a North American base. I think, if nothing else, hearing about Judd's enthusiasm only makes the Phoenix Wright character more likeable than he already was.
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney is scheduled for release on February 19.
