While fans wait for Professor Layton and the New World of Steam to release, a long-lost title from the beloved puzzle game series has been unearthed - after 16 years.
Professor Layton and the Mansion of the Deathly Mirror was first released as a Japan exclusive for mobile devices in 2008. It received a re-release just a year later, but it never made it overseas, and entire chapters have since been lost to time - until now, that is. A self-described "game preservationist" known online as Yuvi discovered the full game on an old cell phone "that looked like it survived a house fire."
Fellow game preservation enthusiast RockmanCosmo describes the mind-boggling discovery, explaining that "all six chapters were found on a junk F906i." Prior to Yuvi's one-in-a-million find, fans only had access to Mansion of the Deathly Mirror's first three chapters. Believe it or not, that's not even the most exciting part - for the first time, global fans will finally get to play the gem in full, as an English translation is in the works.
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In an amazing turn of events, @YuviApp has preserved the ENTIRETY of Professor Layton and the Mansion of the Deathly Mirror! All six chapters were found on a junk F906i. Previously, we only had the first three chapters. An English translation will happen in due time! (1/3) pic.twitter.com/L9xailrmf7September 13, 2024
RockmanCosmo reveals as much, saying "An English translation will happen in due time!" It isn't the only seemingly forsaken Japan-exclusive mobile game coming to light now, either. Yuvi has also successfully preserved other applications on the near-destroyed phone such as "Mr. Driller Aqua, a keitai-exclusive spinoff of the Mr. Driller series." Considering the state of the rescued cell as shown in photos, I'd say it's a miracle.
For impatient fans like myself, the original Japanese version of the full Professor Layton and the Mansion of the Deathly Mirror game is already accessible. A linked wiki contains all the information needed - as well as countless pages dedicated to other rediscovered titles. It's a welcome haven of once-forgotten mobile games, and I personally can't wait to explore them for a blast into the past.
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