In other delightful Level-5 news, there's some new footage of Professor Layton and the Devil's Box, courtesy of video recorded from a Level-5 presentation.
[Via GoNintendo]
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Inazuma Eleven and Professor Layton 2 trailers
In other delightful Level-5 news, there's some new footage of Professor Layton and the Devil's Box, courtesy of video recorded from a Level-5 presentation.
[Via GoNintendo]
Professor Layton and the Excellent Screenshots
We haven't even gotten the first Professor Layton adventure yet, and we're already seeing screens of the sequel. Professor Layton and the Devil's Box looks much like the first game, which is to say, gorgeously lush.The game's scope is expanded from that of its predecessor: the professor and his student Luke have access to a train, which acts not only as a vehicle for traveling to multiple towns (or multiple Curious Villages, if you prefer), but is also the venue for its own puzzles.
These screenshots are best coupled with IGN's preview of the game, for the complete screenshot/description package. The Famitsu page has the same information, but in a less convenient language.
At last: Professor Layton coming to U.S., per EGM
Now, this is being reported as a rumor, but the mere mention of Level-5's Professor Layton trilogy gets us too excited for words. Since this game was first revealed, with its beautiful character designs and logic puzzles, we've been hoping against hope for an English translation, and Electronic Gaming Monthly intimates that it is probably going to happen.Now we're going to be chewing our nails down to nubs as we wait for some hint of confirmation. We can't help it. We're adventure junkies, and the Studio Ghibli-esque look of the Professor Layton franchise completely had us at hello. If it all works out, the good Professor may even compete with a certain Ace Attorney for a place in our hearts.
And speaking of hearts -- in that same issue, there are a few other rumors worth mentioning. The first involves whispers of a remade Bonk game for both the DS and the Wii. The other is a little more cryptic: the next Kingdom Hearts will be a spin-off, and it's coming to a "hearty" console. Unless they mean "hearty" as in robust (which would probably indicate the PS3 or the 360), then this could very well refer to the DS, which certainly reaps a hearty profit every month, no matter where you are. And for good measure, it's available in pink. We'll ponder that one once we're done jumping up and down and singing the unofficial "Professor Layton is coming," song, which is really just us chanting that single phrase over and over until someone throws a paperweight at us.
Luckily, we're adept at dodging.
New details to feed your Dragon Quest IX addiction
It seems some people were concerned that in trying to keep Dragon Quest fresh, the upcoming iteration might be heading too far away from the basics of the franchise -- specifically, by moving away from a turn-based combat system in favor of something a little more action-oriented. But don't worry, DQ buffs; the rumors were just that, and according to the latest Shonen Jump, DQIX will in fact retain a turn-based combat system. Also, players will be able to customize the appearance of their characters, from height and weight to hair and face, and even their costumes. There's no word yet on how extensive this system may be, but even a small dose of customization can go a long way.Next month, we hope to see more than a trickle on the upcoming DS exclusive at the Square Enix party.
Details on the second in Professor Layton's trilogy
Just when we thought we had settled the issue of Professor Layton and the Townlike Area of Disputed Size (aka the 'Mysterious Village'), 1UP's preview of the second installment in the trilogy raises questions about the upcoming game's translated title. Thus far we've seen it written Professor Layton and Pandora's Box, but according to 1UP, it's the 'Devil's Box.' By any name, however, the first game looks incredible, and the second may be shaping up to be even better.Some things in this second installment will be the same, such as the logic puzzles created by Akira Tago, and the Professor will again be accompanied by his assistant Luke. The story is where the second title really takes a turn. Instead of exploring -- you guessed it -- a mysterious village, the action in the second adventure revolves around a corpse, a train, and a strange box. Since the game already features a soft, retro look, mixing that with a traditional train-based murder mystery looks like a match made in heaven. Now if only we could get some localization news!
Already, screens from the Professor Layton sequel
They don't believe in wasting time over there at Level-5. The first game was just released in Japan, and not only do we have a sequel in the works for Professor Layton, but we're already seeing more images from the game. Yes, more -- we already saw a few when the sequel was announced!
We expect Professor Layton and Pandora's Box to have a firm release date by next week, and to be on shelves the week after. Okay, not really, but the sarcasm may not be too far off the mark. Check out a few of the pics after the jump. They're from scans, so may not be the best quality, but certainly good enough to see that the visuals are still uniquely gorgeous.
Continue reading Already, screens from the Professor Layton sequel
Professor Layton will rock your socks
Now we feel justified for all those times we were jumping up and down over new details on Professor Layton and the Mysterious Town (that may be a Village). Chris Kohler had nothing but love for this import over at Game|Life; he's praised everything from the animation to the story to the game's logic puzzles. We're expecting his homage to the box art any moment now.If you want a sense of the level of challenge in Professor Layton, Kohler's put up the text of a few of the logic puzzlers that pepper the game, as well as one of the trailers. We've added it here as well, just in case you missed it the first time around. Check it out after the jump, and we're sure you'll join us in keeping our fingers crossed for an English translation.
Already, a second round with Professor Layton
It looks like we were totally justified in going nuts for Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village. The game is barely out of the gate in Japan and Level-5 has already announced a second installment in what will apparently be a trilogy. The upcoming sequel, tentatively titled Professor Layton and Pandora's Box, will feature a train -- and that's all we know. If it's anything like what we've seen from the first game, it will be a beautiful, Miyazaki-inspired train rendered in muted colors, and it will probably make us drool.
Right now, all we want for Christmas is an English translation ... or intensive Japanese lessons. We need this game!
Japan set to implode: Dragon's Quest IX is a DS exclusive
You heard it, folks: at Square-Enix's annual Jump Festa event, they let the bomb drop: the next entry in the venerable Dragon's Quest series, entitled Dragon's Quest IX: Defender of the Stars (another silly "DS" subtitle) will be coming exclusively to everyone's favorite little handheld. This is huge news: this franchise is second only to perhaps Final Fantasy in Japan, and still one of the most respected names in gaming worldwide. Having the title being developed exclusively on a Nintendo system is a clear show of faith from SE (they're also releasing a Final Fantasy XII sequel, Revenant Wings, sometime next year), and hopefully, even more Wii and DS support will follow.Development of the game is being passed over to Level 5 (also working on White Knight Story for the PS3), and it'll feature a four-player co-op mode as well. Of course, there's no definite release date, but the team mentioned that they'd like to have it out sometime in 2007.
Let this news wash over your Tuesday, and make it full of glee and joy. Bring on DQIXDS!
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in, and GoNintendo for the pic!]
Scanning Professor Layton
We've seen a flood of scans and screenshots and other media from Level 5's upcoming Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village, but there's a common theme in what we see: it's all the same. We want more! The latest Famitsu and Nintendo Dream scans reveal a few more details (likely more for those lucky enough to be able to translate the Japanese); of particular note are the gameplay screens that give us a look at how it all fits together.As adventure games go, this seems to have a lot of potential, though much will depend on the story, since it seems so driven by the tale. It's nice to see a few more pictures of characters as well, though unfortunately, the two scans feature a lot of the same images.
A deeper look at Professor Layton
Another video (complete with crowd noise) from Nintendo World, and this time it's for our latest obsession, Professor Layton and the Unknown and Sorta Mysterious Town-like Place That We've Seen Called Many Different Things*. Uh, pretty sure that's a working title.So, the truth -- this video is, frankly, a little long. And devoid of sound, part of it is a little repetitive. However, it seems worth a watch since it reveals an interesting cast of characters, as well as some hints of the gameplay. And that's worth sitting through a little of the back-and-forth, though for a minute there, it looked like the sequel: Professor Layton and This Really Angry Woman. It's also somewhat impressive to see such a long clip of storyline, though the whole foreign language thing makes sad pandas of us all. Oh well. This forthcoming adventure/puzzle hybrid has us intrigued. Check out the video after the cut.
*No, really, it's Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village. Probably.
A chat with the real prof. behind Professor Layton
Recently, some folks at Famitsu sat down with Professor Akira Tago, the puzzle-creator working on the upcoming Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village (aka "that game that is either in a town or a village or your backyard, we're not sure"). Akihiro Hino, president of developer Level 5, joined in as well to discuss the game.The interview opens with a recap of the two's first meeting, a story which boasts more than a little "awww" factor. Hino grew up a fan of Tago's puzzle books and they stayed with him over the years, until he got the idea of incorporating the puzzles into a game. Tago lived up to the legend in Hino's mind by performing a magic trick at their first meeting, and after that, it was just a matter of laying the game's foundation. The popularity of brain-training titles served as a guiding star to the pair, but they wanted to make sure there was an engaging story interlaced with the puzzles.
Interestingly, working with the DS presented a challenge to the team. While it seems like a no-brainer when it comes to puzzle games, the stylus actually presented something of an obstacle, forcing them to rethink certain aspects of the game. We're glad they got that worked out!
[Via GoNintendo]
Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village trailer
Just yesterday, we reported on the upcoming Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village (though yesterday, silly us, we thought it was a town), and lo, a trailer has materialized. How convenient! And is it ever eye-poppingly beautiful. Level 5 seems to really have a potential gold mine on their hands with this one. Check out the trailer embedded after the jump -- we promise it will not disappoint! The Japanese website is also open, and after you wipe away the drool that's sure to dribble a little while you're watching the trailer, you'll want to stop by.Continue reading Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village trailer
Professor Layton and Mysterious Town
RPG developer Level 5 is working on an intriguing new title that will hit Japan in February -- Professor Layton and Mysterious Town, a puzzle game. Puzzle game on the DS, you say? That's nothing new. Well, perhaps not, but what's different here (besides the style) is that they game is being co-developed by Akira Tago, the Chiba University professor behind a series of logic puzzle books. It'll be interesting to see what sort of impact that has not only on the puzzles themselves, but on the story. We're obviously big fans of game developers in general (it kinda goes with the fanboy-ism), but it's always nice to see other creative minds working in conjunction with game devs.
