Professor Layton and the Last Specter trademark registered, pre-Christmas release a near-certainty
Fourth DS Layton game localised before first 3DS appearance
Though massively successful in the west, the Professor Layton games are lagging well behind their Japanese counterparts when it comes to release dates.
The lag is so gaping that some suggested the fourth DS title Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Flute might be skipped so Nintendo could publish Japanese 3DS launch title Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle in the west before the end of this year.
Well, it turns out that the game, which explains how Layton and apprentice Luke first met, is set for a western release after all. As spotted by Siliconera, series creator Level-5 has registered Professor Layton and the Last Specter as a trademark in the US.
Nothing has been officially announced yet, but this follows a familiar pattern: a trademark for Professor Layton and the Unwound Future was filed close to last year’s E3 and then the game was unveiled at Nintendo’s press briefing ahead of a late 2010 release.
In which case, a September/October release for Professor Layton and the Last Specter is extremely likely. It may well have an alternative title in Europe – the last game was known over here as Professor Layton and the Lost Future. At the very least, the ‘r’ and the ‘e’ of ‘Specter’ should be reversed for its PAL launch.
Does this mean we’ll have to wait until just before Christmas 2012 for Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle? Perhaps E3 will reveal more about Nintendo’s plans for the puzzling Prof.
