Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright

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Let’s be honest the biggest audience for this game is not children but young to middle aged women.  Ever since my wife received her first Nintendo DS, she has played nothing but games that centre around puzzle solving or unravelling murder mysteries.  So with that in mind this game is perfectly suits the intellectual mind of TiredMummyofTwo.  On the other hand though I have not really sat down and played a Professor Layton game.  I was more of a Phoenix Wright fan because I loved the court room drama.

Set in London, the game’s story opens with a young girl running away from a mysterious evil whilst she tries to locate Professor Layton.  After the girl is captured, Professor Layton follows clues that lead him to a magical book that transports him and his assistant to a strange world called Labyrintha.  Meanwhile, Phoenix Wright and his assistant are also in London on business and come across the same magical book that transports them to the same place.  It’s now the responsibility of Professor Layton to solve the mystery behind this medieval village that houses witches, whilst Phoenix Wright must defend the young girl who has been accussed of being a witch and put on trial.  It becomes very amusing during the witch trial sections when Phoenix Wright realises that the laws of our world are far different from those in Labyrintha.  Prepare yourself though as both heroes quite often don’t see eye to eye on most matters.

The game is split between two different play styles, which derive from the two central characters.  When you’re Professor Layton you play the Adventure side of the story and when you’re in control of Phoenix Wright you play the Witch Trial part.  During the Adventure sections you can interact with characters through conversion and examine the background for clues.  Apparently it’s a very similar feel to the controls of the previous game ‘Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask’.  You may find it good to know that you can find Hint Coins whilst exploring environments, which can be used to unlock hints when solving puzzles.  During the Witch Trials it’s the usual story for Phoenix Wright in that he has to cross-examine witnesses and find evidence that contradicts their story.  Any time a player fails to prove these contradictions results in losing a strike till there are no more left.  Unfortunately evidence doesn’t behave like it does in the real world.  As Phoenix Wright you’ll constantly be referring to the Grand Grimoire, a magical spell book that can highlight any wrong doings by acts of magic.  A new addition to the court room antics is the ability to use Hint Coins found during the Adventure segments, allowing players to gain an insight as to how they should proceed with their questioning.

If you are a fan of either series that you will lap up the delight that it Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney.  Word on the street is that kids have simply abbreviated it now to PLvsPW:AA, so be sure to swat up before talking to your children about this game.  Who would have thought that two of the biggest Nintendo DS characters would team up together to make one great game!