One could say that the Ace Attorney series has seen a slight resurgence over the past few years. Capcom shipped Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy on Switch in 2019, followed by The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles in 2021 (which were localized for the first time). Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy is also coming out very soon. The good news is...
Makes sense to port them in this case. More than in most series with an overarching story, lots of context in later Ace Attorney games is missed if you haven’t played the earlier games. It’s not to Kingdom Hearts level (the above only really applies to the main entries, you don’t need to play Investigations or GAA), but still more than most.
I’m totally on board with the ports, but I actually don’t like people pushing the idea that you have to play every single one in order, especially since some don’t age well.
The first I saw of the game was a playthrough of Trials and Tribulations. The twists were shocking, and the best part was, nothing I saw really spoiled me on the appeal of the prior games. They didn’t bring back any prior villains/murderers, and I knew what I needed of core characters.
I’d argue the same could even be said of Apollo and Trucy in later games. “This guy is an apprentice lawyer. This magician is Phoenix’s adopted daughter.”
Part of that to me is that the main appeal is the individual mysteries, and not the character progressions - of which there hasn’t been much. Phoenix himself doesn’t really even change past the end of his third game.