Level 5, the creaters of the hugely popular Professor Layton puzzle game series, are apparently planning to self-publish the series. Up till now, the series has been exclusive to Nintendo and it's DS, and having sold over ten million copies worldwide, losing a franchise like this could hit Nintendo hard. Because Level 5 own the rights to Professor Layton, there is very little Nintendo can do - and while it seems incredibly unlikely that Level 5 would abandon their ready-made fanbase on the DS altogether, could this mean Professor Layton may start to appear on other consoles?
In an interview with Gamesbusiness.jp, Level 5 president Akihiro Hino said that he "eventually wanted to handle the publishing internally for the Professor Layton series, which is currently handled outside of Japan by Nintendo."In the UK, there are currently two Professor Layton games: Professor Layton And The Curious Village and Professor Layton And Pandora's Box. The first game follows Professor Hershel Layton and his assistant Luke as they drive to the town of St. Mystere, to meet with the widow of the late Baron Augustus Reinhold. In the Baron's will, it states that whoever can solve the mystery of the Golden Apple can inherit his fortune - many have tried and failed, and, as events become increasingly suspicious, players must help the Professor and Luke solve the mystery, through the various logic-based puzzles in the game. The second game is then more of the same, with Layton and Luke this time visiting a Dr. Schraderm, after a letter informs them he has come into ownership of Pandora's Box, a legendary box rumored to kill whoever opens it. Dr. Schrader also tells Layton he plans to open the box. When the pair arrive at the Doctor's flat, they find Schrader lifeless on the floor, and the box gone, with only a ticket for the Molentary Express, and a well torn-up photograph for clues. As before, the player must help Luke and the Professor solve the mystery by solving various logic-based puzzles.
Level 5 also have plans to expand their operations, with a studio in North America to come soon, and another in Europe due for 2011. The offices may be too small to actually develop any games, however, well be quite small though, with Level 5 president Akihiro Hino saying that the US office will initially consist of about ten people, presumably to help with marketing and PR in the new territories.
"I'm sure that new American studio is around here somewhere..."
