Gyakuten Saiban - Game Vocabulary

One very popular game that almost everyone knows from a certain meme is Gyakuten Saiban 逆転裁判, also known as Ace Attorney, where the lawyer Naruhodo Ryuuichi 成歩堂龍一, a.k.a. Phoenix Wright goes around lawyering miraculously. Since this is really fun game with a lot of Japanese text to read and that requires actually understanding the phrases to win, I decided to compile in this post some of the vocabulary you need to play the game in Japanese.

Before anything else, I want to say that the game isn't that hard to understand to someone who's been learning Japanese for some time. Of course you need some knowledge of the language, and at least be able to read a mangao r another in Japanese. But it's a lot easier than reading a light novel, for example.

The style of the game is a visual novel. There's no action in real time, only text. So you can relax and use a dictionary as much as you want. Personally, I think it's a very fun story, and the interactions between the protagonist and other characters are great. Really an excellent series.

Atention: the first and second game has been adapted into an anime. Do NOT watch the anime! It's full of spoilers. The game is based on showing the right evidence at the right time, and the anime will tell you which they are, that is, it won't be challenging to play after that.

(besides that, whose idea was it to adapt a game a game where you stay in a court interrogating people for hours?)

Anyway, let's start with the most important vocabulary:

igi ari 異議あり in Japanese and its translation to English, "Objection", from the game and anime Gyakuten Saiban Sono Shinjitsu ni Igi Ari! 逆転裁判その真実に異議あり! (Ace Attorney), said by character Naruhodo Ryuuichi 成歩堂龍一 (Phoenix Wright)

gyakuten 逆転
Reversal. (from losing to winning)
gyakuten saiban 逆転裁判
Judgement of reversals.
sono "shinjitsu" ni igi ari その「真実」に異議あり
[I] have an objection to this "truth."

(obs.: never translate titles)

People and Their Titles

hikokunin 被告人
Accused. Defendant. (you help this guy)
higaisha 被害者
Victim. (who died)
shounin 証人
Witness. (who saw the crime)
kenji 検事
Prosecutor. (who's convincing the judge the accused is guilty)
bengonin 弁護人
Attorney. Defender. (who's convincing the judge the accused is not guilty)
saibanchou 裁判長
The judge. (of the trial being held)

saibankan 裁判官
A judge. (any judge)
bengoshi 弁護士
An attorney. (not specifically the one defending)

kawa 側
Side. (suffix)
kenji-gawa 検事側
The prosecution. (side of the prosecutor)
bengo-gawa 弁護側
The defense. (side of the defender)

irai 依頼
A commercial order for a given service. A task. (like the one to defend someone)
irainin 依頼人
Client. (in the case of a bengoshi, probably the hikokunin)

kankei 関係
Relation. Relationship. (of someone with someone, something with something, etc.)
kankeisha 関係者
Someone related. (to the crime, a witness etc.)

hakken 発見
Discovery. First sight. (of the dead body of the victim, for example)
hakkensha 発見者
Someone who discovered something for the first time. (the person who saw the dead body first)

keisatsu 警察
The police.
keikan 警官
One police. (policeman)
keiji 刑事
Detective. (of the police)
keibi 警備
Guard. (of the court, for example)

okasu 犯す
To commit. (a crime)
hannin 犯人
The criminal.
shin han'nin 真犯人
The true, real, actual criminal.

Elements of a Crime

shitai 死体
Dead body. Corpse.
shiin 死因
Cause of death.
genba 現場
Location of the crime. (where it happened)
douki 動機
Motive. (to commit the crime.)
(You need this because apparently there are no psychopaths in the game who kill without motive)
buki 武器
Weapon. (with which the victim was murdered)

Proofs, Testimonies and Evidences

shouko 証拠
Proof. (that something happened)
shoukohin 証拠品
Physical proof, Evidence. Object that proves something.
shougen 証言
Testimony. What the witness said.
shougen suru 証言する
To testify. (the act of a witness making a testimony)
shougen kaishi 証言開始
Start of testimony. (shows before a witness speaks)
shougen chuu 証言中
Testifying. During the testimony. (shows while the witness speaks)

kettei 決定
Decision.
ketteiteki 決定的
Decisive. Conclusive.
ketteiteki na shoukohin 決定的な証拠品
Conclusive proof. Conclusive evidence. (with this we can basically stop the trial 'cause we're done)
ketteiteki na shounin 決定的な証人
Conclusive testimony.

kiroku 記録
Record. Registry.
houtei kiroku 法廷記録
Court records. (where you can see the shoukohin in the game)

shitsumon 質問
Question.
shitsumon suru 質問する
To ask.
kotaeru 答える
To answer.
jouhou 情報
Information.
hakken suru 発見する
To discover something for the time.
mokushi 目視する
To see (something). To have seen something.
keisatsu wo yobu 警察を呼ぶ
To call the police.

Interrogation

jinmon 尋問
Interrogation. (of a witness)
tsukitsukeru 突き付ける
To put in front.To thrust forward. To present. (an evidence)
yusaburu 揺さぶる
To shake. (someone for more words)
igi ari!! 異議あり!!
Objection!! (literally: "have objection")
("to object" and "objection" are court-lingo meaning "I don't believe any of this bullshit you just said")
matta!! まった!!
Wait! Stop! (from the verb matsu 待つ, "to wait")
tsukkomi 突っ込み / ツッコミ
Retort. Attack (when given chance).
(of counter-attacking the prosecution through flaws in the evidences presented)

Truth and Lie

shinri 真理
Truth.
shinjitsu 真実
Truth. Reality.
shinsou 真相
Truth. (yeah, don't ask me the difference between these three words)
shinjiru 信じる
To believe. (in someone, or that something is the truth)
hon no X 本のX
The true X. (ex.: the true criminal)
mujun 矛盾
Contradiction.
mujitsu 無実
Lack of truth. Innocence (untrue accusation).
uso 嘘 / ウソ
A lie.

Court

houtei 法廷
Court. Where people are judged.
nyuutei 入廷
To enter the court.
taitei 退廷
To leave the court.
shinri 審理
Trial.
saiban 裁判
Judgement.
bengo 弁護
The (judicial) defense of someone.
bengo suru 弁護する
To defend someone in court.
seishuku ni 静粛に
Silence. Orderly. Order in court. (saibanchou says this after striking his mallet)

tsumi 罪
Crime. Sin. Guilt.
muzai 無罪
No crime. No sin. No guilt. Innocence.
yuuzai 有罪
To be guilty. To have crime, sin, or guilt.

Murder and Death

jiken 事件
Case. Situation. Justice case.
satsujin 殺人
Murderer. Killer.
satsujin jiken 殺人事件
Murder case.
satsugai shita 殺害した
To murder someone.
satsugai sareta 殺害された
To be murdered. (passive conjugation)
koroshita 殺した
To have murdered (someone).
korosareta 殺された
To have been murdered (by someone)

nakunaru 亡くなる
To die.
nakunatta 亡くなった
To have died.
shindeiru 死んでいる
To be dead.
shibou 死亡
Death. (of someone)
sokushi 即死
Sudden death. To have died instantaneously without time to scream or write a will.