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Nintendo selling puzzlingly vintage Professor Layton bundle in UK

by JC Fletcher { Jun 16th 2009 at 11:10AM }

That's the first Professor Layton game. And a DS Lite. Despite the current availability of a new DS system, and the impending launch of a new Professor Layton game, Nintendo is planning a UK release of a bundle containing a black DS Lite and the extremely popular first Professor Layton game, due in stores June 19.

MCV suggests that it's being positioned as a Father's Day bundle, but we could see it selling well beyond the gift-giving occasion, due to two factors: first, the enduring hit status of Professor Layton, and second, wow, is that ever a classy-looking box design.

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box: new trailer for the short wait

by JC Fletcher { Jun 3rd 2009 at 11:35AM }

After years of literally hearing nothing from Nintendo about the release of any of the Professor Layton sequels, it's got a release date: August 24. A two-month wait for the North American release of Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box doesn't seem so bad after all that agony. Not that Nintendo actually said anything about releasing the game. It was a bullet point on a list of games on the press site, and nothing more.

Like the last one, Diabolical Box will feature downloadable puzzles every week for 33 weeks. Thanks, Level-5, for the steady drip of Layton puzzles -- let's hope it doesn't run out before at least an announcement for the next one.

Gallery: Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (DS)

Amazon lists Professor Layton 2 for August

by Majed Athab { May 22nd 2009 at 8:00PM }

If you're the type that's inclined to believe retailer release dates, then take a look at what Amazon says about Professor Layton's second outing, The Diabolical Box. The online retailer has the game pegged down for August 24, which is just three months away.

This is a good thing, considering that, for the longest time, we've been feeling like young Luke there, glazed over and stunned, staring into that half-opened glowing box of doom. Just what new adventures lay ahead? It looks like we'll find out soon enough.

[Via GoNintendo]

Level-5's Layton-esque 'Sloane and MacHale's Mysterious Story' launches this week in Japan

by JC Fletcher { May 18th 2009 at 6:15PM }

Last year, in the midst of a pile of news from Level-5, the company quietly announced three DS puzzle games called the Atamania series. The first game in that series comes out on May 21 in Japan, and it looks like something worth getting excited about!

Sloane and MacHale's Mysterious Story is, like Level-5's Professor Layton series, a collection of brain teasers wrapped up in an overarching mystery tale. The puzzle content in this game consists of lateral thinking puzzles from Paul Sloane and Des MacHale, presented as both animated scenarios (in a very cool silhouette style) and text. The puzzles seem to involve moving the text of the puzzle around with the stylus to make connections.

Of course, Level-5 has yet to say anything about localization on Mysterious Story. We'd say it's an obvious choice given the success of Professor Layton, but we have yet to see any of the Layton sequels!

GDC09: Professor Layton 2 planned for North America and Europe this year

by JC Fletcher { Mar 26th 2009 at 6:00AM }

Okay, let's take stock. We got a new Zelda, the Wii "Storage Solution" (which is actually better than Nintendo originally made it out to be), and arcade games and Final Fantasies on Virtual Console. How could this GDC get any better for Nintendo fans?

How about Professor Layton 2?

At Level-5's panel, director Akihiro Hino showed a list of current projects, including Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, an English translation of the name of the second Layton game. Later, during the Q&A, someone asked Hino if the sequel was being localized for North America and Europe. Hino responded that he wants to release all six Laytons (including the new trilogy), and that Diabolical Box is indeed in the midst of localization -- he hopes to have it out in six months.

Professor Layton returns to DS (in Japan)

by JC Fletcher { Mar 11th 2009 at 9:17AM }

You guys are going to be furious about this. Now, instead of two Professor Layton sequels (and one movie) that have yet to appear outside of Japan, there are three. The latest Famitsu has unveiled Professor Layton and the Devil's Flute, a new puzzle adventure from Level-5 starring Luke and the Professor. It appears to be a new game just like the previous ones, and not a DSiWare calculator or anything.

Oh, and it's the beginning of a new trilogy, so two more are coming. Perhaps this continued support for the series in Japan will influence the decision processes of Nintendo's offices worldwide. Or perhaps we should just get used to feeling despondent every time we see a tall hat.

Professor Layton and the Anime Trailers

by JC Fletcher { Mar 9th 2009 at 9:45AM }

In addition to those two Professor Layton DS games that Japan has that we don't, a Layton anime movie, with an original story by Level-5 president Akihiro Hino, is scheduled for release sometime this year. The two short teasers here advertise the movie in true Layton form: with puzzles!

SPOILERS for these thirty-second clips: the first trailer features two animals whose Japanese names together form the word eiga "movie." The animators even drew the DS UI elements on the screen! The second is a riddle: "What is something using light and shadow that many people enjoy?" Movies, of course!

Now here's a quick riddle: what is so much easier than a DS game to add English text to?

[Via Kotaku]

Continued →

UK charts: Wii Fit, Call of Duty still on top, Professor Layton climbing

by JC Fletcher { Feb 3rd 2009 at 11:52AM }

The week ending January 31st saw no movement at all in the top two spots on the UK sales charts. Wii Fit maintains its top spot on the UK sales charts for a third week, followed by previous champ Call of Duty: World at War. Skate 2, which debuted last week at #3, has dropped to #5 behind FIFA '09 and Professor Layton and the Curious Village, which, like Wii Fit, is experiencing increased sales due to long-awaited replenishment of stock.

Mario Kart Wii rose two positions to #6, leading us to wonder if, over the course of 2009, the top half of the charts will steadily fill with Nintendo hits from 2008.

[Via Edge]

DS Daily: Most recommended?

by Alisha Karabinus { Dec 19th 2008 at 9:00AM }

Today, over on Wii Fanboy, we thought we'd discuss the worst games of the year. Here? We want to hear about some of the best, but with a twist: we want to know what games you recommended most often. Did you tell all your friends that the paddle controller made Space Invaders Extreme the business? Did you sing the praises of N+, despite its free counterparts? What did you recommend?

This blogger's most recommended, of course, was the extremely excellent Professor Layton. If I passed you on the street, I might have told you to play it.

UK's Telegraph names Fable II best game of 2008

by Jason Dobson { Dec 16th 2008 at 7:00PM }

The Daily Telegraph has thrown two pence in with its own "best of" video game round up, naming its top 50 games of 2008. Like X-Play before it, the conservative UK newspaper named Lionhead's Fable 2 as the best game to come along in the last 12 months, romancing the crown out from under near-winners, Fallout 3 and LittleBigPlanet.

Other games sitting atop the heap included Rock Band 2, Gears of War 2, Spore, Grand Theft Auto IV and No More Heroes, with Left 4 Dead and Professor Layton rounding the publication's top ten. Check out the rather comprehensive list and let us know if your favorites made the cut.

Layton leads Japanese software charts

by Ross Miller { Dec 4th 2008 at 6:00PM }

No. 042

20 Picarats

Coins: 10

"Luke, why don't you solve this one? Correctly order the following games in terms of their sales in Japan this week."

"Okay professor. I think I've got it!"

Professor Layton and The Final Time Journey (DS): 347K
World Soccer Winning Eleven 2009 (PS3): 168K
Machi e Ikouyo: Doubutsu no Mori (Wii): 109K
Chrono Trigger (DS): 80K
Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters GX (PSP): 64K
Kideo Senshi Gundam: Gundam vs. Gundam (PSP): 57K
Hoshi no Kirby: Ultra Super Deluxe (DS): 56K
Kenka Banchou 3: Zenkoku Seiha (PSP): 54K
Musou Orochi: Maou Sairin (PSP): 46K
Higurashi Daybreak Portable (PSP): 33K

"Good job, Luke! My, that's a lot of PSP. However did you figure it out so quickly?"

"I used two hints: M-Create and Gamasutra."

"My boy, I'm so disappointed with you. To the corner with you!"

"Aww, Professor! For how long do I stay there?"

"Well, I've got three riddles for you ..."

Professor Layton animated film coming to Japan in 2010

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 29th 2008 at 1:30PM }

News related to our favorite top-hat-sporting riddle solver, Professor Layton, has been quite scarce as of late (we'd like that release date for Pandora's Box, and soon) -- that's why our attention was immediately drawn to a recent announcement for the good Professor's box office debut. Yes, Level 5 recently began promoting Professor Layton: The First Movie, an animated feature-length film which is currently set for a tentative February 2010 release in Japan.

Details on the film's plot are non-existent, but our hopes are high, as the animation featured in the brainteasing DS series is already gorgeous. Unfortunately, we're not sure we could enjoy the film should it make its way to the states -- we'd likely spend most of the movie scouring the silver screen for glimpses of precious hint coins.

Professor Layton heads for the silver screen

by Chris Greenhough { Nov 28th 2008 at 7:00PM }

Not many DS games could be adapted into watchable films. Can you imagine Spielberg Presents Meteos, a sentimental tale of three little colored rocks who dream only about visiting space one day? Or Nintendogs: The Movie, a three-hour epic of going for walks, finding a new collar, going for walks, chucking a frisbee, and going for walks? See what we mean? Rubbish.

Then again, the Professor Layton series has the potential to be a very fine movie. Level 5 thinks so, anyway, because it plans to release Professor Layton The First Movie. For now, only a Japanese version is planned, with January 2010 being mooted as a possible release window. This makes perfect sense, obviously, because the games themselves are already full of beautifully-animated, Studio Ghibli-esque cut-scenes. And who is currently working with Level 5 on a forthcoming DS game? Exactly.

Plus, this might be the ideal time to get rid of the stomach-churning pipsqueak that is Luke, preferably through very violent means. Maybe he's not even in the movie, and they've axed the little git once and for -- ah, dammit.

Gallery: Professor Layton and the Last Time Travel

Gaming to Go: Professor Layton and the Curious Village

by Matthew Madeiro { Nov 18th 2008 at 2:47PM }

A game revolving solely around time-consuming, tear-inducing brain teasers likely isn't anyone's first guess for the kind of quick gaming the DS so clearly excels at. Layton might be an unusual choice for this week's edition of Gaming to Go, but it's most certainly not a bad one, as the unique hybrid of puzzling and adventuring makes a number of concessions that'll help even someone who is pressed for time advance through the game unhindered.

Skipping freely through the game's myriad puzzles is hardly ideal, of course, but what can you do? Some of Layton's 135 brain-destroyers can make even a grown puzzle-solver cry, so it's a testament to the solid game design that you can still feel the satisfaction of completing the game even without experiencing all of the content it has to offer. In the mood for a fantastic puzzle game but not so keen on spending hours just to slog through every challenge? Click that big button down there and see why Professor Layton and the Curious Village might be exactly what you've been searching for.

Gallery: Professor Layton and the Curious Village

NEXT >>

DS releases for the week of November 3rd

by Alisha Karabinus { Nov 3rd 2008 at 3:00PM }

If you need a game, this week's for you. While we can't vouch for the quality of all the releases (or even, uh, half), but we can say one thing: there's a lot of 'em. And by a lot, we mean dozens. Well, if you add up all the regions, anyway. Look, don't get technical. It's a lot. See for yourself.

As an aside, after seeing this week's releases, we should stop crying about not having any more Professor Layton -- the first title is only just now being released in Europe! And what's up with Korg DS-10? It's been turning up on releases for a while. Maybe we'll actually see it this week.