Re: Games Beaten 2018
Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2018 5:49 pm
Games Beaten 2018
1. Letter Quest Remastered Switch eShop
2. Batman NES
3. Little Nemo: The Dream Master NES
4. Mickey's Wild Adventure PS1
5. Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros. 3DS
6. Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy 3DS *NEW*
Layton’s Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy
Layton’s Mystery Journey is the latest game in the long-running series for 3DS. In actuality, it originally came out on iOS, so this is actually a port rather than an entirely new entry. As a long-time fan of the series, I was super excited to have another game to play, but the iOS origins have meant that there are some changes to the format, and whether those are for the better is a matter of opinion.
Layton’s Mystery Journey stars Katrielle Layton, daughter of the eponymous Professor Layton, the main character of the series. She has just started up her own detective agencyin London alongside her assistant Earnest when her first client appears – a talking dog. The game is divided up into 12 chapters, each of which require you to solve puzzles in the classic Layton way whilst finding ‘clues’ to solve the mystery.
Unfortunately, the actual solving of the mystery is automatic – once all the clues are found, Katrielle solves it herself, and it’s a little unsatisfying. The payoff is let down even further because the actual solution to the mystery is clearly discernable for most cases way before the end of the game.
Also a little weak are the puzzles themselves – they’re easier than previous games in the series, and there more of them that you can’t get ‘wrong’ – you can just keep playing around until you stumble across the solution.
The 12 stories mostly revolve the Millionaires referred to by the title. Obviously we know something is up by the games title, but actually the conspiracy of note doesn’t even appear until the final chapter of the game – previous Layton titles built the mystery up throughout, but unfortunately here most cases are entirely unrelated to the others. The game does have some satisfying moments though – a late game murder case is surprisingly dark for the series, and the final chapter of the game seems to take more than a few cues from Spike Chunsoft’s Zero Escape series – albeit less grisly. The final twist of the game is thankfully on a par with previous Layton titles, and although it was clued in a bit heavily right before the big reveal, it still caught me by surprise when I caught on, even if it was before the game announced it. Mild spoilers though - the game however does end with many mysteries unsolved, suggesting a sequel is in the works.
Layton’s Mystery Journey is by far the weakest of the traditional Layton games, but it’s still an enjoyable little romp in it’s own right. It’s worth a shot for fans of the series, but if you’re new to the franchise, start from the beginning for the best experience.
Required Listening:
This is a new feature I’m going to start including in my reviews.
Click the image below to listen to one of my favourite tracks from the game!
1. Letter Quest Remastered Switch eShop
2. Batman NES
3. Little Nemo: The Dream Master NES
4. Mickey's Wild Adventure PS1
5. Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros. 3DS
6. Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy 3DS *NEW*
Layton’s Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires' Conspiracy
Layton’s Mystery Journey is the latest game in the long-running series for 3DS. In actuality, it originally came out on iOS, so this is actually a port rather than an entirely new entry. As a long-time fan of the series, I was super excited to have another game to play, but the iOS origins have meant that there are some changes to the format, and whether those are for the better is a matter of opinion.
Layton’s Mystery Journey stars Katrielle Layton, daughter of the eponymous Professor Layton, the main character of the series. She has just started up her own detective agencyin London alongside her assistant Earnest when her first client appears – a talking dog. The game is divided up into 12 chapters, each of which require you to solve puzzles in the classic Layton way whilst finding ‘clues’ to solve the mystery.
Unfortunately, the actual solving of the mystery is automatic – once all the clues are found, Katrielle solves it herself, and it’s a little unsatisfying. The payoff is let down even further because the actual solution to the mystery is clearly discernable for most cases way before the end of the game.
Also a little weak are the puzzles themselves – they’re easier than previous games in the series, and there more of them that you can’t get ‘wrong’ – you can just keep playing around until you stumble across the solution.
The 12 stories mostly revolve the Millionaires referred to by the title. Obviously we know something is up by the games title, but actually the conspiracy of note doesn’t even appear until the final chapter of the game – previous Layton titles built the mystery up throughout, but unfortunately here most cases are entirely unrelated to the others. The game does have some satisfying moments though – a late game murder case is surprisingly dark for the series, and the final chapter of the game seems to take more than a few cues from Spike Chunsoft’s Zero Escape series – albeit less grisly. The final twist of the game is thankfully on a par with previous Layton titles, and although it was clued in a bit heavily right before the big reveal, it still caught me by surprise when I caught on, even if it was before the game announced it. Mild spoilers though - the game however does end with many mysteries unsolved, suggesting a sequel is in the works.
Layton’s Mystery Journey is by far the weakest of the traditional Layton games, but it’s still an enjoyable little romp in it’s own right. It’s worth a shot for fans of the series, but if you’re new to the franchise, start from the beginning for the best experience.
Required Listening:
This is a new feature I’m going to start including in my reviews.
Click the image below to listen to one of my favourite tracks from the game!