The "self-help" era is upon us, even finding its way into the video game industry as of late. Aside from the obvious fitness awareness game on Nintendo's other system (we mean Wii Fit, of course), there have been quite a few attempts to help gamers improve their lifestyles and habits. Take, for example, the upcoming My Weight Loss Coach and Ubisoft's "Easyway" title to help people quit smoking.

Our favorite approach so far, though, was when DS Fanboy reader Dan used Pokémon to quit smoking. If there's anything we've learned from Dan's inspiring story, it's that the best way to curb an addiction is to replace it with another. We then decided that we wanted to help more of our fine readers that are suffering from such torments day in and day out. Pokémon may cure smoking, but what about other plaguing ailments? We're happy to say that after months of testing on monkeys and small children, we've finally come up with a few perfect video game cures.

So, look no further than Dr. DS Fanboy, and check out our ultimate self-help guide to find the fixes for your addictions.

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		Master that addiction!

After a somewhat stalwart week, DS software recovered nicely and once again dominated the charts. Even though the same amount of games appeared in the top thirty (fifteen in total), they ranked higher on average than they did in the previous week. Good software sales also gave DS hardware a little boost:

• PSP: 64,449 (6,087)
  
• Wii: 49,047 (7,475)
• Nintendo DS: 37,404 (2,499)
• PlayStation 3: 9.071 (1,370)
• PlayStation 2: 7,189 (167)
• Xbox 360: 1,947 (473)

Four new games debuted in the top thirty, including Sega's Let's Make a Pro Baseball Team!, which nabbed the first place spot from Monster Hunter. The other three games were Glory of Herakles, Scarlet Fragment, and Tea Dogs Room 3. Herakles (or Hercules, if you prefer) is the title that sparks our interest the most, as it's an interesting RPG published by Nintendo. Even so, it's first week sales were (unfortunately) subpar, yet good enough to land it in the top ten.

Check out the sales numbers and rankings for yourself after the break.

We love Professor Layton. No, not the game, the man. Actually, we do love the game, too. We just love to love things!

Looks like Japan loves the guy enough to warrant the series extending itself over to cell phones. The first game, Professor Layton and the Curious Village is already available and even comes pre-installed on Panasonic's new DoCoMo handset, the P906i. This port of the first title features new puzzles not found in the DS game.

Also worth noting is that Professor Layton's London Holiday, a brief DS demo that was handed out to folks at last year's Tokyo Game Show, will be available to mobile phone gamers soon.

[Via Game | Life]

The spotlight this week is on Luminous Arc 2: Will, a game that has yet to be confirmed for English language localization. While we're forced to sit and wait jealously, though, forty thousand Japanese gamers ran out and bought the title. Only falling behind the juggernauts Monster Hunter and Mario Kart Wii (and almost squeezing past Nintendo's racer), Image Epoch's SRPG debuted pretty impressively.

In other sales news, the announcement for another Professor Layton game in Japan managed to push the first title in the series back into the top thirty. Aside from that, there weren't any differences in DS software worth mentioning.

In terms of hardware, the numbers for the DS weren't so hot. In fact, we don't remember the sales numbers for Nintendo's handheld ever being this low in Japan. With everyone and their mother already owning a DS in the country, does the system still have room for growth? We won't know for sure until the next big software push, but for now it looks like the dual-screened handheld should get comfy in that third place spot.

• PSP: 70,536 (19,348)
  
• Wii: 41,572 (25,736)
• Nintendo DS: 34,905 (16,323)
• PlayStation 3: 7,701 (353)
• PlayStation 2: 7,022 (442)
• Xbox 360: 1,474 (176)

The software numbers are located after the break, so go on and take a look. They won't bite!*

*DS Fanboy claims no responsibility for those who get bitten by our sales figures.

Everyone who dug Professor Layton and the Curious Village (see: the entire DS Fanboy staff and its readers), then you'll be happy to know the series continues on unabated in Japan, as Professor Layton and the Last Time Travel has been announced for the region. Level 5 has confirmed that the title will release to eager gamers in Japan sometime in the fall of this year. As it stands right now, this is believed to be the last entry in the series of games.

A teaser site has launched, which you can check out here (or by clicking the "Read" link below). Who else is ready for another dose of Layton goodness?

[Via Go Nintendo]

Looking over this week's releases, we're feeling a lot like last week: empty and cold inside. Unless you're in Australia, there pretty much isn't anything worth checking out. We're in kind of a GBA mood, though (after reading JC's Virtually Overlooked last night), so this weekend will probably have us dusting off our copy of Metroid Fusion or something.

What about you all? Have any good GBA games that you could play while waiting for some new DS games to enjoy? Or do you have something else in mind? What are you playing?

Here's a puzzle for you, and we think you'll find it to be an absolute humdinger: if you haven't already purchased Professor Layton and the Curious Village, then why not? There are several different answers to this brainteaser, but you'll have to go past the break to find them.

Anyway, Level 5's gorgeous adventure is now available at Target for $26, a minuscule price to pay for what is easily one of the best DS games of 2008 so far. Also in Target's bargains line-up this week: Brain Age 2 (for $17), Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day (also $17) and, um ... Petz Bunnyz 2 ($26 too much).

Our latest contest ends tomorrow, which means you still have two chances to get your name in the hat. Just head over to the original post and leave a comment for your chance to win Professor Layton and the Curious Village, along with Brain Challenge.

Need a couple of new games to play? DS Fanboy is here for you with another awesome prize pack. This time, we've got Professor Layton and the Curious Village ($29.99), along with Brain Challenge ($19.99). Could two games be any more similar, and yet different? You'll have to try to win them and find out! All you have to do is leave a comment below telling us about your favorite puzzle game of all time.

We've got some good news with this contest as well -- DS Fanboy giveaways are now open to Canadian readers (except for Quebec, sadly)! So if you're 18 or older, and a legal resident of the United States or Canada (minus Quebec), you're cleared to enter once per day between now and March 23. The giveaway will end that evening at 11:59 PM Eastern. We'll select one winner in a random drawing and announce the name of the lucky reader on Monday, March 24. Have questions? Check the official rules.

When you think about puzzle games, titles that involve abstract geometrical shapes (like Tetris) are probably the first things that come to mind. Professor Layton, though, is a different breed of puzzle game, one that you might not be used to. This charming title makes you solve actual brainteasers -- the kind that make you want to laugh and cry at the same time.

It's hard to imagine a game being completely devoted to puzzle solving. Usually, games will include puzzle-solving elements, but they won't revolve around the whole concept. Yet, Professor Layton manages to do this in a way that's enticing, entertaining, and addicting, showing us that even the simplest ideas can become the best of games if handled properly.

This week's releases had some high-profile games on offer for those of us in North America, most notably Professor Layton and the Curious Village and Barnyard Blast: Swine of the Night. Now, we don't have to tell you the appeal of these games (actually, we already have), so we'll just get down to the nitty-gritty: any of these games on your weekend agenda? If not, what will you be playing?

Whatever your opinion about social networking sites, one thing's for sure: they're hella popular. Somebody at Nintendo has clearly clocked onto this, because Professor Layton and the Curious Village now has its own Facebook page, along with screenshots, wallpapers, a trailer, and 220 friends at the time of writing (more than double the number acquired by this blogger in eight months). That's right: you can now have a game as a friend. And if we were going to cyberstalk befriend a game, we'd totally choose to be friends with a mysterious and clever one like Professor Layton.

See also: 2008's Biggest Blips -- Professor Layton and the Curious Village


[Via Go Nintendo]

We've been excited about Professor Layton and the Curious Village for some time now. With every new screenshot and video released, that excitement quickly grew into obsession, and then infatuation. Last Saturday night, we were barely able to sleep, scrunching our eyes tight shut whenever our mums would come and check on us, and bouncing on the bed in excitement when she left. But now -- joy! -- it's here! And it's really good! We know because these people told us so!

1UP -- 85%: 1UP reviewer Jeremy Parish felt that the game was more than the sum of its parts: "Admittedly, the game's puzzle and story elements likely wouldn't stand well on their own -- the puzzles are excellent but often rely on certain tricks of language that, once spotted, become transparent in subsequent iterations; the adventure game is unrepentantly simple and linear. The genius of Layton is that they don't stand alone. Instead, the two game types work together harmoniously, resulting in something altogether more entertaining than its base components."

GamePro -- 75%: GamePro's assessment, meanwhile, was slightly less glowing, criticizing the puzzles for being anywhere between laughably easy and horrendously hard. In the end though, they rather liked it: "For all its frustrations, Professor Layton does have its merits. The overall vibe of the game is charming and immensely likeable and the basic game mechanic is solid. There is also a ton of things to do: aside from the puzzles, there are other neat extras that I'll let you discover on your own. Even if the uneven difficulty robs the game of some of its fun and the slow, methodical pacing might lull some gamers to sleep, for puzzle lovers and brainy gamers, Professor Layton definitely has a lot to offer."

GameSpy -- 90%: GameSpy simply adored Level 5's game, praising the developer for going the extra mile with the storyline and game world: "Professor Layton and the Curious Village is an incredibly original and thoroughly entertaining addition to the Nintendo DS library. Level-5 could have easily packaged the puzzles into a barebones daily format and have ended up with a game that's as entertaining as the Brain Training series. Instead, Level-5 went the extra mile and wrapped these puzzles into a beautifully presented world inhabited by endearing characters amid a compelling murder mystery. The effort paid off."

It's a sad day for the DS in Japan. As Media Create's hardware figures from last week were released, we found out that not only the Wii topped the DS (like the week before), but also the PSP managed to overtake the dual-screened handheld.

Hardware:

• Wii: 94,473
• PSP: 72,528
• Nintendo DS: 67,472
• PlayStation 3: 41,796
• PlayStation 2: 12,115
• Xbox 360: 6,060

According to Media Create, the DS only had one game in the top ten (Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games). That's not surprising, since there were many new releases on other systems, but it's far from the DS dominance that we're used to. Still, it was nice to see some low-key games like After-School Boy, Taiko Drum Master, and Doraemon Baseball getting love in Japan.

Check after the break to see the full list of software rankings from last week.

Once the preserve of circus masters, Lord Snooty from The Beano, and Mandrake the Magician, the trusty top hat has now been adopted by another group: Nintendo DS game reviewers. This glitzy top hat, modeled after Professor Layton's own, was a freebie that came with Kombo's review copy of Professor Layton and the Curious Village.

Needless to say, we are burning with envy. Our lives would be significantly improved with a plain top hat, never mind one emblazoned with the good Professor's name. Go past the break for a shot of this fine item being shown off by smug Kombo editor Phillip Levin.

See also: 2008's Biggest Blips -- Professor Layton and the Curious Village