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A shallow courtroom game based on blockbuster TV series of the same name,
L.A. Law is an ambitious design that is ultimately flawed due to logic inconsistencies
and limited interaction. As an associate working for a large L.A. law firm, you must
take on assignments from senior partners. Choose to play as either Jonathan, Abby, or
Victor, all of whom are rising stars in the TV show. Each time you defend a client
successfully in court, you are given a new assignment and a chance at being promoted.
The game ends when you climb to the highest rank in the firm and elicit congratulations
from the founding partners. The game is divided into several cases, starting with
"The Wrathful Race," in which you must prove your client's innocence in a car crash.
You have a limited time to prepare each case before being ushered into court, and
every action takes time in the game so you must carefully decide what to do. The
problem is, sometimes that is not very logical. You can use the library to research
past cases, in hopes of finding legal techniques and information that pertain to your
own case. You also can ask various senior partners in the firm for advice, which are
generally very valuable and tell you exactly what to do next. These take time, however,
so you must use this "hint" function sparingly. When you feel you are prepared to go
to trial, you can go to court any time you want. The courtroom sequence is much better
than pre-trial, since there are several actions you can take, and the final judgement
can vary depending on how good your arguments or pre-trial preparation is. You can,
for example, raise objections to the opposing counsel's questions, move for a mistrial,
or even request continuance from the judge if you feel you need more preparation
(this is hardly granted). Although your questions to the witnesses and their responses
are "canned," it is still fun to watch their reaction and effects on the opposing lawyers. |
