I was astonished when I saw the advertisement of the sequel to Professor Layton and The Curious Village DS game appeared on TV. I completely forgot that the next installment is out in September! I was a fan of the first game and Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box was in my must-have DS game. I’ve finished the game last week and this was what I think of the game:

Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box tells about the search for the mysterious Elysian Box. It has been said that anyone who opens the box will meet instant death. That was what happened to Professor Layton’s teacher, Doctor Schroeder, which prompted Professor Layton and his apprentice Luke to investigate further about the missing Elysian box and its mystery. This time the adventure took them to a ritzy train, stopping by the enchanting Dropstone village, and finally halting at the dark and mysterious Folsense village.

Just like the previous game, this sequel is a series of answering questions to puzzles that Professor Layton and Luke pick up along the way. In my opinion, the puzzles are relatively easier to solve maybe because my solving skills were honed already from the previous game. The player needs to click on all characters and items to reveal the puzzles. Sometimes you need to go back to all the characters and click on them again because new puzzles will pop out. The difference this time around is that the adventure is not contained in one place. Professor Layton and Luke travel to different places to unravel the mystery of the Elysian box.  I find myself addicted and hooked into the suspense of all the mystery enveloping the story. There are also additional mini-games in this sequel: the tea set, camera part, and hamster mini-game. It’s fun to collect all the necessary items to complete these games and after completing it will unlock bonus puzzles.

The graphics are still entertaining and well-drawn. The movie animation is well-played and colorful although a bit long if you ask me (because I’m always excited to learn what will happen next asap!) There are characters from the previous game appearing in this story and their inclusion is one of the mysteries the Professor and Luke need to figure out. Even though I have said that the puzzles here are pretty easy, I still have to rely on walkthroughs and cheats to solve those frustrating puzzles and I got them from this site.

So fans of Professor Layton, gear up for this installment and prepare to re-challenge your puzzle solving skills! I give this game 4.5 out of 5.

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