Sorry, Apollo Justice: your time is up. Phoenix Wright will return as the lead hero in Ace Attorney 5 on Nintendo 3DS.

The first details of the forthcoming game have been published by Japanese magazine Famitsu, so we now know that the game is set one year after the events of Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney, but that Phoenix will be back in the defence attorney seat.

He's rocking a new look, he's got a new partner (a mysterious woman in yellow), and he's rendered in 3D. From the leaked scans, it looks like Capcom's done a pretty grand job of capturing the 2D look of the first four games in the 3D models.

According to the scan, case one will see the courtroom demolished in an explosion, and the blame is being pinned on a nature-loving schoolgirl who's prone to nervous spasms. Winston Payne's brother plays the prosecutor.



The game's Japanese logo

There's no news on any fresh gameplay mechanics, but Andriasang noticed buttons for facial expressions on one screenshot. Will you be able to manipulate Phoenix's face?

One more thing... It looks like series creator Shu Takumi will not be the lead designer on this instalment, for he's busy with Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney. Instead, Ace Attorney Investigations director Takeshi Yamazaki will take the reins. Motohide Eshiro will produce.

The game will be playable at the Tokyo Game Show (along with this little lot) later this month. It should hit Japan in 2013, but who knows if Capcom will ever translate it into English.

We have since been told by Capcom that it is "planning to release Ace Attorney 5 in the West". Capcom will "have more news soon".