TGS 2024 | "Professor Layton and the New World of Steam"
It’s been a long seven years since Professor Layton’s last adventure — Layton’s Mystery Journey — appeared on the Nintendo 3DS. But mystery is calling, and only he and his apprentice Luke Triton can tackle what’s hiding in the shadows. Professor Layton and the New World of Steam is the series’s first foray on the Nintendo Switch, and after demoing it at the Tokyo Game Show, I’m incredibly happy to see its return!
The thirteen-minute demo had Layton and Luke seeking out the laboratory of Professor Eggmuffin. After chatting it up with some locals, you are tasked to solve puzzles and assist those who can help you find the lab’s location. However, you quickly discover that this steampunk town has got a big mystery to unravel, in the form of as ghostly gunslinger. But knowing the intelligence of both Layton and Luke, they’re bound to figure something’s amuck regarding this new foe.
Moving through the town, you quickly notice just how much character there is throughout the area. The steampunk buildings and the people that reside in it are a joy to look at, bringing to mind some of the classics of Jules Verne in video game form. Where the demo shined is in its puzzles, and while they were simple, they were still very cute for the eyes. Puzzle number one had me helping to rewire a device, whereas another was a visual mind trick involving a rat and the easiest piece of cheese they could get.
Thus far, Level 5’s newest Professor Layton adventure is shaping to be a masterful one. It’s good seeing these two beloved video game characters return, with their journey certainly on the verge of being their biggest yet. Will we figure out the mystery behind the ghost, and does Professor Eggmuffin have something to do with it? We won’t have to wait too long to see what’s hiding around the corner, as Professor Layton and the New World of Steam arrives on the Nintendo Switch sometimes in 2025. Until then, get those thinking caps charged!
