Gosh, do I want this book.  Such amazing Capcom character designs, ranging from artists like Edayan, Kumiko Suekane, and Tatsurô Iwamoto.   Sadly, the book looks to be quite hard to come by, at least by way of internet; Amazon Japan seems to be the only place carrying it, though I know of no middleman to nab it for me.  Anybody know anyone -- or anyone here from Japan direct -- who's willing to help a sister out? ;)

Amazon Japan GS Fanbook

Here's a 12 MB zip file, showcasing about 59 scanned samples from the book.  Watch out, there are potential series spoilers here:

Fanbook Sample

I'll see what I can do, but I've never actually seen it before.  I'll be in Akihabara in about 3 hours (gonna stop there on the way to Yokohama for the FF Voices concert), so maybe I can come up with one for you (and one for me... thanks for pointing it out!).

Thanks, Joe, I really appreciate it.  Crossing my fingers!

If no one else can get it, you do know you can order directly from Amazon Japan, even if you're outside Japan, right? At least, if they haven't changed their policies since the last time I ordered from them, which has been some time ago now. And if they *have* changed their policy, please let me konw. ^_~

Yes, you can still order from Amazon JP, even if you're in the USA.  I just ordered and received the Resident Evil 4 OST/Artbook from them last month, and I'm in California.

Wow, thanks for the Amazon Japan heads-up, guys!  I guess I was always getting stuck with registering a shipping address under a "prefecture," and I didn't know there was the option to switch to international addresses.

Joe, any luck with finding the book on your end?  If not, I'll just order straight from Amazon.  Thanks again!

Sorry, didn't manage to find one at all.  I checked a bunch of places and didn't see a single copy.  Grr!  I even found it in the computer at the Kinokuniya in Yokohama, but said they didn't have any copies.  Sorry I couldn't be of any more help, but I'm glad that you did find a source! 

Yay, my order came in today!  The Fanbook itself is quite neat; although most of the really good pictures and art can be found in the uploaded zip file, it's great to finally have them on print - and in such hi-res quality.  The book's also chockful of information on the trilogy, including in-depth character profiles, brief sub-character profiles, case summaries, and producer/developer interviews.  Unfortunately, it doesn't have very much in the way of the DS case five; just a four page spread, which I suppose is understandable, since the book did come out just prior to the game's Japanese release last year.

I'm also currently looking for what I think was a limited edition book that came with preordering Yomigaeru Gyakuten; that apparently has even more in-depth character profiles and sketches, and a much bigger spread on case five.

I also took to ordering the Postcard Book, which is only about 32 pages, but contains some great pieces of art work as well.

Wait....there's a TRILOGY of these games? I never heard of it before PW came out in the U.S.!

Oh yes.  The three GBA titles that already exist can be considered a trilogy, as there are many overarching story threads that continue throughout.  With word that the fourth game's supposedly starting anew, with a new protagonist and cast of characters, more than ever can the previous three games be seen as a trilogy.

Here's two most excellent English sites on the series.  Do be careful, though, as massive spoilers run rampant:

Hardcore Gaming 101
Court Records

Ooooh! My interest is piqued. Can you still get the other 2 games? Are they available with English subtitles and/or dialogue, like this third game apparently was?

Well, the DS version (and the one released as "Phoenix Wright") is based off of the first GBA game in the series -- with the inclusion of a DS-exclusive new case.  It's the second and third games that haven't been released outside of Japan, and therefore don't have official English translations.  Not yet, anyway; if you haven't heard, Capcom is planning to localize the next two games, and release the cases as downloadable content for cell phones. 

The import versions should still be readily available to purchase, if you know where to look.  Gyakuten Saiban 3 is probably more widely available, since it got a "Best Price" re-issue.

Schala, for using "piqued" instead of "peaked," I love you more than 99.9% of the internet, including most people who consider themselves journalists.

As for importing Gyakuten Saiban games, 2 and 3 (and even the first one, last I saw) are really easy to find over here in Japan, but be forewarned that the DS one was the only game whose Japanese version includes an English language option.

"Piqued"? Holy cats! I forgot that word even existed! But I did discover the meaning of the word "merkin" a while back, so that kinda makes up for it . . .