nerd alert : professor layton & the last specter

// from here

There is a monster in the town of Misthallery and Professor Layton has been sent a suspicious note from an old friend asking for his help in the investigation. Together with his assistant Emmy and apprentice-to-be Luke, Layton leaves London to see what can be done about the Specter. He starts to unearth clues; an ancient flute and an archeological dig to unearth a legendary golden garden.

This is the 4th installment in the Professor Layton series, and it solves the question of how Luke and Layton came to be such a formidable duo. I'm not sure I remember Emmy in the other 3 games, but I like her spunk. This game, like all of the Layton games, is a puzzle game - like, puzzles that are otherwise unlinked to any part of the plot. Let me try to explain...

Professor Layton : "Hello random townsperson of Misthallery"
Randon person : "Why hello, you look pretty smart - think you could help me with this puzzle?"

And then you get a nice puzzle to solve - it could be anything ... even something like "if a train left London at 12:15m traveling 56 meter per hour..."

Get the gist? There is a nice storyline and the characters are well developed - but the puzzles are why I play. Not sure if you'd like it? Play the free demo!

01/ scooter necklace $59.99  //  02/ puzzle workshop $70.40  //  03/ mouse pendant $10.00  //  04/ stove pipe hat $30.00  //  05/ Luke $19.99  //  06/ flute $12.95  //  07/ Vespa paper clips $7.98  //  08/ Hershel Layton $23.11  //  09/ Keats the cat! from the game  //  10/ dino ring $31.00

6/6 Toes // Overall


1 // Graphics
These 2D cartoon games are a cross between french (think triplets of Belville) illustration and anime. They are cute and cool at the same time.

1 // Storyline and Characters
Professor Layton, Assistant Emmy, and apprentice-to-be Luke are quite the trio traipsing around Misthallery looking for the facts on the Specter. There are a lot of secondary characters in this game to interact with as well, and some very frustrating villains to deal with. Find out who is playing the mysterious flute that follows the specters appearances like clockwork, work out what really happened in a mysterious suicide, get to the bottom of a local group called the black ravens, and help out 2 orphans who have more to do with the mystery than they are letting on.

1 // Soundtrack and Sound Effects
I always appreciate when characters are given voices - it makes them more real. The video and straight talking segments are very nicely done and the !! sound when you solve a puzzle is something you will be very glad to hear over and over again.

1 // Length of Game and Price
The game took me around 14 hours to complete. I know this because it logs your time next to your saved game (depressing and convenient). for $30 that's not too shabby (considering that's about 2 weeks of casual gaming for me).

1 // Replay Value
The puzzles arent really going to change, but it will take you a few times of replaying them before you memorize the answers. There is also a great mini game called "little london" where you create a character and try to create a little digital london life for yourself. Its addictive. 

1 // Puzzle Difficulty
Thank goodness for the hint coins in this game - because otherwise I would've been stuck more than once. There are a total of 170 puzzles in this game (if you can find them all!) and each one is great.