In theNintendo Direct livestreamreleased Wednesday, developerLevel-5has unveiled upcoming titleProfessor LaytonAnd The New World Of Steam for Nintendo Switch. With the announcement coming in the form of an ephemerallybrief teaser trailer, little is currently known about the upcoming game other than what the teaser has revealed.
Short but sweet, the teaser briefly showcases a huge, airy steampunk setting in the iconic cogs-and-beams of the Professor Layton art style. Giving viewers a moment to take in the vast setting, the camera slowly closes in on a very familiar silhouette, who turns around to reveal himself with a tip of his hat and a smile.
Having first carved a name for itself on the Nintendo DS during the mid-to-late aughts, Level-5’sProfessor Layton serieshas since gone on to encompass a feature-length film, a Japan-only trilogy of novels, numerous spin-off games, a spin-off anime season, and — famously — acrossover with Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorneyon the Nintendo 3DS. Despite these years of sequels, spin-offs, and success, however, the series has gone suspiciously quiet since the conclusion of the spin-off anime, with many lamenting Layton’s disappearance and wondering whether the mystery-solving, puzzle-loving English gentleman would ever return to video games, or if he would return at all.
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The most recent game in the Professor Layton series — titledLayton’s Mystery Journey: Katrielle And The Millionaire’s Conspiracy— was released in 2017. While his name certainly featured in the game’s title, Professor Hershel Layton himself was conspicuously absent from the game. While Layton’s Mystery Journey would go on to have decent sales, the game received wavering reviews from critics and fans alike, and no Professor Layton news has so much as been whispered by Level-5 until today.
While not much is known about Professor Layton And The New World Of Steam at the time of writing, fans are beyond ecstatic to see the Professor finally return in full, iconic top hat and all. Already, some are taking to Twitter and other online spaces to speculate where in the sprawling Professor Layton saga this upcoming title might take place — after the events of Unwound Future, prior to the events of Layton’s Mystery Journey, or somewhere in between.
At this stage, the game has only been confirmed for Nintendo Switch, and whether it will eventually launch on other consoles remains to be seen. “A new mystery will begin,” concludes the teaser trailer cryptically, and perhaps the biggest mystery for now will be the game’s release window, which Level-5 has yet to hint at.
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