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Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 174.93.164.95 (talk) at 22:23, 26 September 2012 (Small problem while the Western version uses the Nintendo Network the original version did not since the network in question did not even exist when the orgianl game was released.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask
North American cover art
Developer(s)Level-5
Publisher(s)
Designer(s)Akihiro Hino, Akira Tago
SeriesProfessor Layton
Platform(s)Nintendo 3DS
Release
Genre(s)Puzzle, Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask (レイトン教授と奇跡の仮面, Reiton-kyōju to Kiseki no Kamen) (Originally titled Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle) is a puzzle adventure video game developed by Level-5 as a launch title for the Nintendo 3DS handheld game console. The game was produced by Akihiro Hino and composed for by Tomohito Nishiura. Akira Tago provided the game's puzzles, of which there are 150 in addition to 365 made available for download via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. The game's ending theme, "Mysterious Flower", was composed by Yumi Matsutoya.

The game is the fifth in the Professor Layton series,[2] and the second in a prequel trilogy detailing the past of Hershel Layton and his apprentice, Luke Triton. The game is set in a mysterious town called Monte d'Or, taking place a year after the events of the fourth game Professor Layton and the Last Specter, and its accompanying movie Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva. It is the first game in the series to be rendered in 3D.

Miracle Mask was released as a launch title for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan, and was the best-selling game on the day of the system's launch, selling over 117,000 copies. The game will be released in Europe on October 26, 2012, both in retail stores and as a digital download title,[1] and on October 28, 2012 in North America.[3]

Gameplay

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask is a puzzle game presented in the style of an adventure game. The player controls the actions of a group of protagonists as they move about the city of Monte d'Or. While moving about town, players encounter several mysteries that are solved as the main plot progresses.The main plot is split into chapters.

Puzzles

While investigating the town or interacting with non-player characters, the player will often be presented with a puzzle and asked to solve it. Puzzles can be accessed at any time. If at any point a puzzle should become unavailable in the main game, it will be moved to another location to give the player another chance to find it. Completed puzzles can be played again at any time in the puzzle index, a menu available from the title screen.

Players are also capable of connecting to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in order to download additional puzzles. These puzzles are made available weekly for a year following release, with seven puzzles made available each week; in all, 365 puzzles can be downloaded. Puzzle packages are downloaded automatically via the Spotpass function of the Nintendo 3DS.[5]

Plot

Setting

Template:Professor Layton chronology Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask primarily takes place one year following the events of Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva, in the fictional city of Monte d'Or. Monte d'Or, sometimes referred to as the City of Miracles, is a sleepless, European-inspired town in the middle of a carnival commemorating its 18th anniversary as the game begins.[6][7]

Parts of the game are flashbacks to eighteen years before the main story, focusing on an archaeological expedition led by Professor Layton and his friend Randall Ascad while at high school.[7]

Story

Professor Hershel Layton, his apprentice Luke Triton, and his assistant Emmy Altava, are asked to visit Monte d'Or via a letter sent by Angela Ledore, an old high school friend of Layton. She requests his assistance in solving the mystery of a man terrorising the city, the Masked Gentleman. He had prophesied the destruction of the city caused by the power of the mask he wore.

As Professor Layton and Luke watch a celebratory parade, the performers suddenly panic and run off, the crowds joining them. When the street clears, several people have been turned into statues. The Masked Gentleman appears on a rooftop, taunts the remaining people from the crowds, then gains wings and flies off. Professor Layton and company give chase to him on horseback. Eventually, he escapes by vanishing in mid air.


Characters

Main article: List of Professor Layton characters
  • Professor Hershel Layton – His skill in mastering puzzles and solving mysteries has earned the professor popularity all around the world. He is a professor of archeology in London at Gressenheller University. This professor didn't always have an interest in archaeology.
  • Luke Triton – Layton's apprentice and son of Layton's good friend, Clark Triton. He accompanies Layton throughout his adventures. He is 11 years old, and is more than a help when it comes to solving puzzles.
  • Emmy Altava – This 26 year old assistant to Professor Layton has quite the fighting spirit. She is able to defend the party, and is described as a heroine.
  • Randall Ascad – This rich young man was the professor's best friend. He sparked Layton's interest in archaeology.
  • Mrs Ascad - She was Randall's mother. She lives with Angela and Henry at Ledore mansion.
  • Angela Ledore – Writes a letter to Professor Layton asking for his assistance. Her true age of 35 is masked by her beauty. She married one of Monte d'Or's millionaires, Henry Ledore.
  • Broneph Reinel – This man is shrouded in mystery. He knows the relationship between Layton and Jean Descole.
  • Jean Descole – This scientist's true motives are unknown. He knows Layton, but how?
  • Henry Ledore – The 35 year old man helped create the Monte d'Or it is today. Through the town's success, he is now a millionaire, though when he was younger, he was a servant for the Ascad family.
  • Alford Dalston – Another millionaire resident of Monte d'Or, and somewhat of a rival to Henry Ledore. He attended high school with Hershel, Angela, and Randall.
  • Clamp Grosky – Inspector from Scotland Yard. He is very strong and energetic, though he lacks many proper reasoning skills. He is the inspector that appears in the games before Inspector Chelmey-who appears in the games later in the series.
  • Shibarof – Monte d'Or's chief of police. He has a lot of respect, despite not being a native to the city. He lacks the many qualities of a detective.
  • Ronald Bluemile – One of Scotland Yard's most prominent and experienced inspectors. He was sent to Monte d'Or along with Grosky to investigate the supernatural events. He has the ability to see through criminal's tricks and deception.

Development

Miracle Mask was overseen by Akihiro Hino, the CEO of Level-5, and directed by Jun Suzuki.[8] The game's puzzles were created by Akira Tago, author of the Atama no Taisō (頭の体操, Mental Gymnastics) series of puzzle books, who had also created the puzzles for the previous games in the series.[8]

The game was first announced as a Nintendo DS title at the official launch event for Professor Layton and the Last Specter, where it was scheduled for Japanese release during Q3 2010.[9] Hino promised that Miracle Mask would bring major changes to the series' gameplay systems, and said that the trilogy was imagined with a second movie to take place after Miracle Mask.[9] Although artwork, a logo, and the setting of the game's story were given, the game was not demonstrated at the event.[9]

After seeing the Nintendo 3DS, Hino systematically shifted projects from other systems to it, in hopes that Level-5 would be recognized as a firm part of the image of the Nintendo 3DS system.[10] Miracle Mask was one of these projects. Though the game was originally built in 2D, it was made to look "psuedo-3D"[10] for Nintendo's E3 2010 presentation. After seeing what other publishers had produced for the system, however, Hino decided to completely remake the game in order to use the systems's unique qualities.[10] He expressed his belief that the game would be the "best in the series so far", and that the game felt like "something completely new, something no one's ever seen before".[11]

At a Nintendo press event later in 2010, the first trailer for Miracle Mask was released along with screenshots, demonstrating the graphical and gameplay overhauls that had taken place over the system's switch to Nintendo 3DS; the previous games' hand-drawn 2D sprites had been replaced by 3D models, areas of the game could now be examined in a 3D perspective, and several puzzles took advantage of the 3DS' features, including its motion sensor.[12] Despite the game's new visual style, the appearance of the series' animated cutscenes remained intact, albeit rendered in 3D.[12][13] Another trailer was released at Level-5's 2010 "Vision" event, revealing the Japanese voice actors, the game's ending theme, the plans for the game's puzzle downloading service, and the game's second timeline, following a younger Professor Layton in high school.[8]

Release and reception

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask was first released in 2011 as a launch title for the Nintendo 3DS within Japan. It sold 117,000 copies in its first weekend, making it the system's best-selling title upon its release.[7][14] Ultimately, the title would be outsold by other Nintendo 3DS games, such as Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7, to become the sixth best-selling Nintendo 3DS game in the region during 2012 at 360,000 copies.[15] It was also the second best-selling third party title for the system, behind Monster Hunter Tri G, and the twenty-sixth best-selling game of the year overall.[15]

A tentative English title for the game, Professor Layton and the Mask Miracle, was provided along with an early demo at E3 2010; however, no other information was provided about it's international release. In late 2011, a European trailer for Professor Layton and the Spectre's Call alluded to a fifth entry in the series being released for Nintendo 3DS in 2012; this was later confirmed in a press release, where the game received its second tentative title of Professor Layton 5.[4][16] In May 2012, a trademark titled "Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask" was filed by Level 5, hinting at an eventual U.S. release. The game will be released in Europe on the 26th October. The release date has been given by Nintendo.co.uk. The date is not for certain but is all we have for now.[17] Despite this, no announcements were made at E3 2012.[18] On August 13, 2012, the game was confirmed for a North American release in October 28, 2012.

The game scored 32/40 in Famitsu, who praised the game's investigation mechanics but said that the puzzles did not make enough use of 3D.[19][20] IGN said that the game was "perfect for a portable system"[7] and said that the game's puzzles remained surprising and well-designed despite being the fifth entry in the series; however, they expressed disappointment at the long wait for the game's localization.[7] Andriasang states that, despite the changes made to it, the game still feels like a Professor Layton game.[13]

Soundtrack

"Mysterious Flower"
Sample of "Mysterious Flower", the game's ending theme sung by Yumi Matsutoya.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The game's soundtrack was composed by Tomohito Nishura. Unlike the other titles in the series, no official soundtrack has been released for Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask.

The game's ending theme, entitled "Mysterious Flower", was composed by Yumi Matsutoya.[21] Her 2011 album Road Show features a music video for the song animated in the style of Professor Layton, adding her into cutscenes from the game.[21]

References

  1. ^ a b http://gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=184409 Cite error: The named reference "eurelease" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask". Level-5 International America. October 28, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Sal Romano. "Paper Mario 3DS dated, Luigi's Mansion delayed". Gematsu. Retrieved 2012-8-13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  4. ^ a b "Get ready for a busy 2012". Nintendo of Europe. 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  5. ^ Gantayat, Anoop (2011). "Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask is Buggy". Andriasang. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  6. ^ Newton, James (2010). "E3 2010: Two New Professor Layton Mysteries ON the Way". NintendoLife. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  7. ^ a b c d e MacDonald, Keza (2011). "Professor Layton: Looking Behind the Miracle Mask". IGN Entertainment. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c Gantayat, Anoop (2010). "Level-5 Vision 2010 Live Blog". Andriasang. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  9. ^ a b c Gantayat, Anoop (2009). "Level-5 Details Professor Layton Plans". Andriasang. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  10. ^ a b c "Iwata Asks Nintendo 3DS: Volume 1: Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask". Nintendo of America. 2010. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  11. ^ East, Thomas (2010). "Professor Layton 3D is the best Layton game yet - Level 5". Official Nintendo Magazine. Future plc. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  12. ^ a b "Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask 3DS trailer marches into action". Joystiq. Retrieved September 30, 2010.
  13. ^ a b Gantayat, Anoop (2011). "Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask Playtest". Andriasang. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
  14. ^ East, Thomas (2011). "3DS News: The best selling 3DS game is..." Official Nintendo Magazine. Future plc. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  15. ^ a b Gantayat, Anoop (2012). "2011 Game Sales Chart and Sales Trends". Andriasang. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
  16. ^ Clegg, Aaron (2011). "News: Professor Layton 3DS Confirmed for Europe". N-Europe. Retrieved December 17,Nin 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  17. ^ Jackson, Mike. "Prof. Layton and the Miracle Mask US launch news at E3". computerandvideogames.com. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  18. ^ Thomas, Lucas M. "The 10 Conspicuously Absent Nintendo Games of E3". IGN.com. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  19. ^ "Layton-kyouju to Kiseki no Kamen review". Famitsu. 1156. 2011.
  20. ^ East, Thomas (2011). "Professor Layton and The Miracle Mask review - 32/40". Official Nintendo Magazine. Future plc. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
  21. ^ a b Ashcraft, Brian (2011). "Old Pop Singers Look Great When They're In Professor Layton". Kotaku. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
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