Luke Atmey


 * "Luke" redirects here. For Hershel Layton's apprentice, see Luke Triton.

"Luke Atmey"

- Zvarri! The truth has once again been elegantly revealed to me!

Luke Atmey was a witness to the theft of the Kurain sacred urn and the murder of Kane Bullard. He was an egotistical character who called himself an "Ace Detective". His archenemy was the notorious thief Mask☆DeMasque.

Early life
Allegedly, as a child, Atmey got the same report card comment every year, namely: "Gets into lots of mischief trying to be the center of attention." As he grew up, Atmey failed to grow out of this personality trait.

Blackmailer
When Mask☆DeMasque stole the Tear of Emanon, Atmey figured out that the thief's real identity was Ron DeLite. He sent a letter to DeLite, telling him to give the Tear to him in exchange for money lest he be caught. Atmey began to blackmail DeLite into stealing three more items for him in exchange for money. Atmey gave DeLite plans and instructions to help him steal the items. On the third planned heist, Atmey "retrieved" the item in question and received a red jewel from the museum in return.

Murder of Kane Bullard
One day, Kane Bullard found out about Atmey's secret and began blackmailing him, threatening to expose the secret to the press. Atmey decided to take matters into his own hands and kill Bullard, using one final blackmail letter to lure DeLite in to take the fall for him. In order to secure an alibi for himself, Atmey faked video evidence of himself dressed as Mask☆DeMasque stealing the Kurain Sacred Urn on the night of the murder. The urn itself was worthless on the black market, but since it was meant to contain the ashes of Ami Fey, the founder of the Kurain channeling technique, it had immense sentimental value to the Fey clan and the rest of Kurain Village.

DeLite turned himself in for the thefts in order to prevent himself from being implicated for the murder. When the trial for DeLite's supposed theft of the urn started, Atmey used the forged evidence to trick DeLite's attorney, Phoenix Wright, into implicating Atmey for the thefts. If Atmey was tried for the crime and declared guilty, he would be determined to be not guilty of the murder by his alibi, thus making it impossible for him to be charged for the murder under the law of double jeopardy. However, during DeLite's subsequent trial for the murder, Wright uncovered this plot and successfully pinned the murder on Atmey before he was formally found guilty for the Mask☆DeMasque crimes.

Personality
Luke Atmey was an eccentric, egotistical and attention-seeking man who considered himself as a master detective. In order to be ready to examine clues all the time, Atmey wore a monocle that doubled as a magnifying glass. He seemed to be proud of his acquisition of the red diamond on his ring, often showing it off. His detective office served as an expression of his narcissism, containing such features as a massive self-portrait, an "unabridged edition" of his autobiography, and an "Atmey vial".

Atmey's ego also reflected in his speech. He tended to use sophisticated or multi-syllabic words, with plenty of alliteration such as, "[m]ight you my merry murderous motive manifest?" His most memorable personality quirk is his habit of exclaiming the word "Zvarri!" similarly to the way in which "Eureka!" is often used. Since Atmey's arrest, Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey have used this word as well, in reference to the case.

Name

 * His Japanese name comes from the phrase "ai ga hoshii dake" meaning "I just want love". This fits in with his egocentric personality and the title of his theme music, "Luke Atmey ~ I Just Want Love".


 * "Luke Atmey" is a pun on "look at me", which suits his strong desire to be famous.


 * The French name, "Matt Moissat", comes from "mates-moi ça" which means "look at this".

Development

 * His Japanese name, "Aiga Hoshiidake" (星威岳 哀牙) was originally intended for Diego Armando, but the director decided that the kanji for "dake" (meaning "mountain") did not fit with Armando's "smug" personality and therefore gave the name to Atmey instead.


 * In the Japanese version, he talks with a lot of very old Japanese words, and often exclaims "Suvari!"


 * Due to his name pun, many Japanese Ace Attorney fans sent him chocolate on Valentine's Day, addressed to Capcom. He received even more than Phoenix Wright or Godot.


 * Atmey has a rather long, Pinocchio-like nose, which raises the question as to how he was able to fit it under the Mask☆DeMasque mask. Unfortunately this is left unanswered in the game.


 * Atmey's flamboyant bow tie somewhat resembles (albeit in a different color) that worn by the primary defence protagonist in very early concept art attire; said character would later be redesigned into Phoenix Wright.
 * His nose, monocle, and tuxedo gives him the appearance of the Batman villiain, the Penguin.