Professor Layton and the Last Specter

Professor Layton and the Last Specter
Also known as: Layton Kyouju to Majin no Fue (JP), Professor Layton and the Spectre's Call (EU) Developers: Level-5, Brownie Brown (London Life Mode) Publishers: Level-5 (JP), Nintendo (US/EU) Platform: Nintendo DS Released in JP: November 26, 2009 Released in US: October 17, 2011 Released in EU: November 25, 2011 Released in AU: December 1, 2011 This game has unused graphics. This game has regional differences. This game has anti-piracy features. This game has a prototype article

This game's online features are no longer supported. While this game's online features were once accessible, they are (as of May 20, 2014) no longer officially supported and online-exclusive features may be documented as now-unseen content.

To do: Look for more. The main archive files can be accessed via Kuriimu2. The game appears to have debug elements as well. Can a debug menu or something similar be accessed? Make a prerelease article. There's a couple of official prerelease photos with game elements that are much different than the final product, such as an early version of Misthallery and Emmy introducing herself as the professor's new assistant at Gressenheller instead of in his car. Also maybe document the European kiosk demo?

Released after the original trilogy was concluded, Professor Layton and the Last Specter is instead a prequel, covering the first meeting between Layton and his two new assistants: Luke and Emmy. It included a prototype of Level-5 and Brownie Brown’s life-sim "Fantasy Life", under the name “London Life”, which was cut from the European release, and a few scattered tie-ins to the series' upcoming Eternal Diva movie.

Sub-Page

Prototype Info

Unused Graphics

Question Mark Character Icon

When tapping on specific areas on the bottom screen, the characters will often make comments about it, with an icon to represent who's saying what. This one of a silhouette with a question mark appears alongside the others in lt4_main_en.fa/ani/win_tobj.ca/AP00.lp, and was likely used as a placeholder.

Loosha Sprite

In the Professor Layton series, the player can see which characters are currently in the party by checking the top screen, which displays a map along with small sprites representing each party member. One of these sprites exists in lt4_main_en.fa/ani/en/icn_gmp.ca/AP06.lp for the character Loosha, an ancient creature who joins the party in the final battle. However, her sprite can never actually be seen in-game, because the only point at which she is in the party is during a cutscene that replaces the map and the character list with a background image.

Toy Train Testing Sprites

test_bg.ci and test_obj.ca/AP00.lp in mini are graphics meant for testing the 'Toy Train' minigame.

Test Map

A graphic to test the upper-screen maps in the London Life minigame. This image shows up multiple times within the files.

Regional Differences

To do: Document the many text differences between the US and UK versions (ex. puzzle names being different for the same puzzles). Difference in puzzles between the US and European version can be found here: http://layton.wikia.com/wiki/Professor_Layton_and_the_Last_Specter/List_of_puzzles The Japanese puzzles (along with the weekly puzzles) can be found here: https://layton-majin.g-takumi.com/web/nazo_list.php

London Life Minigame

Fantasy Life is a life-sim game co-developed by Brownie Brown and Level-5. After its DS version, which had sprite art heavily reminiscent of Mother 3, was cancelled (a 3D, polygonal 3DS version was released in December 2012), its assets were reworked as a bonus mode for Last Specter, with completely different gameplay and controls from the usual Layton games. It also featured cameos from other Layton games.

London Life can be accessed from the main menu, from a fourth option, much like the bonus chapter from Diabolical Box's JP version. It was made available from the start in the US and Australian versions, whereas it is unlocked by clearing the main story in the JP version. Its files were completely removed from all European versions, including the UK version, likely to avoid a delayed release from having to translate its text into multiple European languages. The button in the in-game menu to access London Life was dummied out from the EU versions as well.

Japanese Fish Minigame

To do: Get a screenshot or video of the Japanese version of this minigame.

Not unlike the Parrot minigame from the third game, the Fish minigame was completely changed in the localized versions. Granted, the original version of it was untranslatable: it required you to get specific words by feeding other words to fish so that they would “alter” them in different manners.

In the US/EU versions, the fish move diagonally and are reflected by walls and bubbles placed by the player, with the goal being to make them move in a way that crosses all of the coins placed in the level.

Lost in Translation

This page or section needs more images. There's a whole lotta words here, but not enough pictures. Please fix this.

To do: Everything! The US > EU section is complete, though.

Changed for America

Puzzle No. 021: The Japanese puzzle revolves around picking the correct hat based on the months of a year. The US version changed this to a puzzle revolving around finding the correct numeral code based on hints.

Puzzle No. 033: The Japanese puzzle has you writing hiragana letters as an answer that refers to certain types of fruits. The US version keeps the fruits part, but changed it to having you figure out which place on the map a group of people met at.

Changed for Europe

Only Puzzle No. 006 was slightly changed: You still have to reassemble the broken nameplate like in the US version, but instead of forming the word “POST”, you must form the number “1234”.

Of course, there is the fact that most puzzle titles and instructions have been rewritten, on par with the earlier games in the series.

Change in Picarats

The international versions of the game changed the amount of Picarats obtainable for several of the puzzles. The maximum amount of Picarats obtainable remains the same, however.

Puzzle Number	JP	US/Europe		Puzzle Number	JP	US/Europe		Puzzle Number	JP	US/Europe
#16	40	20		#33	20	25		#64	15	25
#19	20	30		#36	30	40		#94	30	40
#21	50	40		#52	40	20		#102	20	25
#31	30	50		#53	30	20		#152	30	20

Anti-Piracy

This needs some investigation. Discuss ideas and findings on the talk page. Specifically: In what way does the game check for legitimacy? What does it look for?

The copy protection system is different from the usual one for the series: instead of resorting to a white screen on boot-up like with the previous games, the game will proceed normally until you get to the first puzzle. When you tap "Submit", you get Luke's animation, and... regardless of whether you are correct or not, the puzzle will restart with no picarats lost, effectively trapping you in an endless loop.