Professor Layton's BIZARRE Prequel - Last Specter/ Spectre's Call Retrospective 

"World renowned good samaritan and winner of best facial hair in the UK six years in a row, DearestHershel" Gonna be putting that one on the resume.

What's funny is to explain to people how weird this series' plot twists are, i tend to say that the most reasonable plot twist is "no, it's not a specter attacking the town, no, don't be silly... It's actually a dinosaur fighting and excavation machine"

I LOVE this game so much actually, it's maybe even my favorite Layton game. The way I absolutely BAWL out my eyes when Loosha passes... and the whole story with the children being the ravens is sooo amazing imo

Does your back hurt for being one of the RU-vid channels carrying the Professor Layton fanbase?

I love the atmosphere of Misthallery so much. They nailed the dreary 70’s rural engish vibe.

I've always felt like this one was underrated, it was definitely strange jumping into spectres call after unwound future but there's just something about the atmosphere of this game and the fact it's Luke and Layton's origin story that just made it so likeable for me, wouldn't be my number one overall but it's probably my favourite of the prequel series

To this day I'm still surprised they translated this series into Dutch (my first language) after the second game, even to the point of Dutch voice-actors. Even the legend of Zelda tears of the kingdom still has English voices and just uses subtitles. The fact they went this out of their way for a, relatively, niche market makes the Layton-series one of my all-time favourites.

I discovered Specter's Call rather lately (three years ago) and while it isn't quite my favorite, I gotta admit the ambiance and dark themes of death, loneliness survival and disease around children (that be Luke, the Bard siblings or the Black Raven kids) really touched my heart. Also, the backstory side about how did Luke met Layton was really well done and the introduction to Emmy and Descole as well. Although Descole's English VA is nowhere near the charisma and chills that emanes from the French one (I recommend you check it out, he sounds so much more mysterious)

This has always been my favorite game in the series. I enjoy the lower stakes and slightly more fantasy-ish vibes and of course Misthallery has such an incredible atmosphere. More than anything else though the thing that has always felt so wonderful about Last Specter to me is that it's the first time in the series that the main location feels like a real place with real people and even like mundane small town politics (and well, I guess it's essentially the first time that the main location *is* a real place). Also something really charming about the fact that with Luke being our guide around town we mostly get to see the children of the town more than the adults.

Yeah I have to admit this is my favourite Layton game. It almost felt like what if they had the chance to redo curious village with everything they’d learnt from the previous games and honestly it’s really good. Sure, it doesn’t match up to how ambitious the original trilogy was, but that’s what I like about it. It’s simple, yet willing to go pretty far. I respect the hell out of this game to be honest. Also a wonderful review may I add!

Side note, it's likely that they cheaped out and didn't include London Life in the European release to avoid paying for a translation - which is weird, given that all the Layton games have full translations in all the major European language, and starting with Pandora's Box, even localised voice acting (look up Italian Professor Layton, he's pretty good).

I may be biased in saying this, since Last Specter was my introduction to the Layton franchise, but personally it's one of my favorites of the bunch. I got it for Christmas the year it came out and it rewired my brain, let me tell you. I vividly remember getting stuck on a puzzle, and I mean stuck, I had unlocked all the hints and even asked my mom to help me but still couldn't figure it out. And then I'm outside, doing chores, and the answer just comes to me and I just rushed through everything so I could run inside, boot up the game and finally solve the puzzle. I was the best feeling ever, honestly. I then proceeded to play the rest of the games in reverse and went on to buy a 3ds solely because the next game was going to be on it and I HAD to play it. So yeah :) Last Specter is fun and changed me as a person and it's great.

From what I’ve heard of it, this game might have my favorite ost in all the Layton games. The main theme is so catchy and descole’s theme is iconic.

Your critiques are valid, and I would say LS is the weakest of the new trilogy in my opinion (minus graphics, god I hate the 3ds graphics), but the introduction of Emmy and Descole to the series and the clear arc they had throughout the prequel trilogy is truly incredible. Also loved how this gives Luke a somewhat plausible backstory for why he's around.

When you randomly called Emmy "banana woman" i laughed so hard 😭

Honestly this one holds a special place in my heart. When I played this as a kid I was soooo terrified of the specter that I refused to play the game when it was dark 😂 Also really liked the return to a mysterious village with relatively low stakes, and I really liked that this game was walking the edge between fantasy and believable. The specter being a robot fighting with a dinosaur is incredibly Layton fsr. I will never not cry when Lucia dies. Also layton’s interest is peaked partially because of an archaeological site, the golden garden, which I really like

specter's call is a weird one for me. i wouldn't consider it one of my favorites at all, though there's a charm to it that makes it amazing to play. also, it's one of the games that first introduced me to the series, since my grandma gave it to me after she had finished it. everything from the scenarios, the music and the characters to the storyline itself are SUPER entertaining, and misthallery is my absolute favorite town in the whole saga. i love this game, and i really don't understand why it's not on my top. maybe it's the ending, which is not as memorable as the story itself. however, i recommend everyone to play it. it may get you into the series itself!

Fantasy Life was great ! You made me sad because I played the french version so I wasn't even aware of the existence of London Life

Great video as usual. Spectre's Call (I'm from the UK) is certainly one of the weaker entries in my opinion. I never really got that interested with the plot, partially because as you know the Spectre can't be real due to all the other games having fake/illusion based reveals. You explained it very well with Loosha, as there's something a bit too magical feeling about it. But there are still some great aspects in the game. I like how it covers Layton meeting Luke. The introduction of Emmy is fantastic, a real stand-out character. Finally, a female protagonist with agency and doesn't get abandoned by Layton. I also liked how we got the chapter in London, fleshing out places like Scotland Yard and Gressenheller University that bit more, with fun characters like Grosky and Hannah. The puzzles felt solid, I'm glad you mentioned the AI puzzles like the bottle game, which was a nice addition to puzzle types. (side note, that POST puzzle in the UK actual has you make it show 1234) Other little tweaks and additions like more interactive areas was fun too. Aldus as our new Stachenscarfen is quirky in the right way as well. As a Brit, I'm still a bit salty that we didn't get London Life, as it does look like a fun side game. I'm already looking forward to your Eternal Diva video. It's an excellent film translation of the Layton series that works surprisingly well into the games canon. If we somehow got another Layton film, I'd love them to switch things up and make it motion capture like the Tin-tin film.

i don't care if london life has "nothing to do in it" 13 year old me still played it enough to get all the expensive golden clothes

The Specter's Call and Lost Future are so... Intriguing. Lost Future had me on the edge of my seat, wondering what was around the next corner, trying to unravel the mystery of the time travel aspect. Specter's Call was different in every way, i think it's trying to be an evolved version of Curious Village but falls short. Loosha is great as a supernatural companion, but it never had me like Katya or Clair. Emmy was a nice addition, i liked her character as this person who is so disbelieving in the adventure until it becomes true. This all rings true in Miracle Mask and Azran Legacy, but those games realized they couldn't re-invent older games, and made themselves their own. Ultimately, if people play the sequels (Specter's Call, Miracle Mask, Azran Legacy) when they are first introduced, they wont get the same emotion as us lot who played the originals before hand. I like all the layton games, if we look at them on their own, but if i was to look at them as a series, then nothing compares to the original three.

yo voyan i just wanted to tell you, these professor layton retrospective videos are AMAZING, i have rewatched them multiple times, i cannot wait for the video about the movie but even more so for the miracle mask video, since that is my favourite game in the series

Hey man, just wanted to say that I’ve just finished watching all of your retrospectives so far and I loved all of them. The effort and detail you’ve put in is insane and is so so appreciated by us Layton fans. I can’t wait for the Miracle Mask one! Hope you will cover PLvAA, especially as I know Ace Attorney is how you got lead into the series

I literally beat all the games between Curious Village and Azran Legacy for the first time while waiting for this review...

I loved the prequel trilogy (mostly cos of Descole) Cant wait for the reviews of the movie and 3DS games! I was actually worried you might have missed the movie cos it took me years to realize it existed

Official petition that Voyan should please start a podcast. I'll be honest, I sometimes just listen to these videos here with my headphones without a picture while I'm going to sleep or just going for a walk, there's something so pleasant and satisfying about it. I just love this great, clear voice. So please please start a podcast or something like that. it would be a dream.

Absolutely loving this series!! You can see the time and effort that goes into your videos - keep up the amazing work!! 🎩💕

Thanks for taking the time to do these. I'm definitely enjoying them. I came for the Layton retrospectives and stayed for the rest of your content haha... Also I paused to read at the end 😉

Last Specter is not quite my favourite game in the series but it's so charming, i always enjoy replaying it. Also it introduced my ultimate favourite character Descole so it has a special place in my heart

I waited for this video for months, a retrospective about my second favourite Layton game (after Lost Future). Very good video bud!

Spectre's Call was my second ever Layton game (First was Miracle Mask). It's one of my favourites of the series, again probably because I didn't have any of the original trilogy to compare it against and because that OST...

34:38 not me being absolutely starstruck by having my video mentioned in a Voyan video!! Thank you! I've very much enjoyed your channel over the last few months, your Layton videos in particular. This video was a great deep dive.

imma need a link to that ending song, also love the videos. This series is so special to me and I love see people not only talk about it but also shine light on everything whether good or bad so I can truly appreciate what a special series Professor Layton is to me.

So glad to see you back on that Layton grind! I love your videos and can’t wait for your review on Eternal Diva and Miracle Mask (my favorite Layton)

So, I randomly find your video on Unwound Future today because I wanted to look for DS games retrospectives from when I was a youngster in high school... and today, you publish a new video.

I JUST rewatched your retrospectives on the first 3 games after going on a spiral through the music of all the games, and started replaying them all. Checked your channel out the other day to keep an eye out for this one so this is fantastic timing on both our parts. Major props for resisting the urge to pull a wink and nudge about certain things in Azran Legacy. Even with the absolute nonsense the prequels get up to, I can't help but love them and the characters they introduced even if I make fun of them, so looking forward to you hopefully finishing this series off and continuing to be enthusiastic in your love for the series and fair in your criticism!

I know I’m late to this but thank you so much for continuing this series. I remember being gifted Miracle Mask as a teenager, having never played the first prequel and being really confused. I had no idea where the series had gone or what I had missed and I felt like I was missing so so much. Having this series here to guide me through the weirder non sequitur additions to the Layton lore is both nostalgic to me and entertaining! Can’t wait for the next update! 💖

Seeing this video pop up in my feed made me finally finish this game. So here I am watching the video now 😎 I'll be patiently waiting for the retrospective on the next one as I finish it 😁

Last Spectre is absolutely my favorite Layton game. Haven't finished Azran Legacy yet so I can't fully say if it is, but the atmosphere of a Layton game is really important to me, and Misthallery nails it. I love the foggy town and the folklore of the spectre. Also I would die for Emmy I love her

I spend so much time watching gaming/speedrunning/retrospective videos. Professor Layton is my favourite series of all yimr, but theres not a huge amount of media about it on youtube. This video was amazing to stumble on 😭 Thank you such a good video

Hey!, I was just checking in on this channel to see if you'd put out anymore Layton content, since I'm really looking forward to seeing either an Eternal Diva or Miracle Mask retrospective at some point! These videos have all been amazing so far.

Great video! Can’t wait for you to cover the movie, the rest of the prequel trilogy and even the crossover with Ace Attorney! Thanks for all the work you clearly put into those videos.

OH MY GOD ITS HAPPENING! Yesssss I’m gonna be watching this for the next few days! Thank you for making these they make the wait for New world of steam

Spectre’s call was the first layton game I’ve played and one of the first games I’ve played in general. I absolutely loved. It’ll forever hold a special place in my heart.

I can't remember if I commented this already but I can't wait for Miracle Mask. It's my second favorite game and these videos are amazing, thank you so much

These are my favorite series to watch!

Its ,my absolute favourite Layton game with the 6th one. Everytime the flute plays i get a shiver its so calming and so beautiful, and the ravens and the story the dark mysterious i love everything about that part.

Spectre's Call has actually always been my favourite Layton game, and I was actually astonished when I first read other Layton fans' opinions on the internet and found out it's one of the, if not the least popular game in the series. I think this is very much the pinnacle of the DS games, as it combines the gameplay, presentation and general polish of Lost Future with the scale and narrative style of the first two games. As you brought up many times in the video, it is similar to Curious Village in a way, but you can see this one was made at a point in time when the developers were very experienced in making Layton games and everything was polished to the maximum. Personally, I don't really like to think of the games as two trilogies, but rather as DS games and 3DS games, because even though this one is clearly part of the second trilogy narratively, in every other regard it feels just like the culmination of the DS era of games. This game has the most beautiful artwork out of all the games. The music has come a long way, as this game has my favourite OST in the series up to this point. The main theme is super jazzy, all of the different Misthallery themes are extremely melancholic and quaint, Descole's theme is extravagant and elegant, the theme of the final battle is an absolute bop. This game has in my opinion the best set of puzzles out of all the games. There's a lot of variety here with lots of different types of puzzles, and the difficulty has just right the level. Except for puzzle 170, that one is the most unhinged thing I have ever seen in a Layton game. The puppet theatre minigame is awful, but I really like the toy train and the fish minigame. The episodes are a great addition for extra lore, and I am a huge fan of the collection as well. It is indeed very rewarding to find everything just for the sake of it! Misthallery is my favourite location in the series. It is eerie and melancholic, but also quaint and beautiful. It feels just like home. As a kid, I was strolling and thinking about which house I would most like to live in. Yet despite how charming the town is, there is always that very sad and frightening feeling in the air. It strikes the perfect balance. Regarding the plot, I really enjoy how down to earth it is. You go to a small countryside town to research a little mystery, and that's what Layton was all about originally before he would end up saving London and then the entire world. This is the most laytonesque game in the series. I don't mind strolling through Misthallery to follow Seamus who's definitely not Tony or to inspect chimneys to find medals for a kid in a raven costume. In fact, that's what I like about it. You take your time to relax, enjoy the atmosphere, talk to the locals and solve some puzzles. All of the elements that I would expect from the series are here, and they are done very well. It doesn't do anything ridiculous, but I honestly prefer it this way. I don't mind the introduction of fantastic elements through Loosha, it's not any more ridiculous than gases that makes everybody have the same hallucinations or a copy of London unterneath the actual city, if anything it's way less crazy. Though there are some plot holes, they don't hinder my enjoyment of the game. For example, we know the police evacuated each area before the spectre appeared there so that no one would see what it actually looked like - but what happened the first time it appeared? Death and destruction to everybody living there? I adore the new characters introduced in this game, mainly Emmy and Descole. Both are some of my favourite characters in the series, Emmy (wife) makes a great addition to the main cast, and I especially adore her and Luke's banter in the entire trilogy. Descole is my probably my favourite video game villain ever. He's mysterious and elegant, yet also very determined filled with regret and revenge. I think Luke in this game is very cute as well, he's still very shy and quiet, and I like to see how throughout the game his entire personality shifts as he slowly opens up to Layton. To say there's no character development possible in a prequel... The final battle is probably the greatest ending sequence out of the series, and although Loosha is a late addition to the game, I had to sob at the end when I first played the game all those years ago. The whole spectre business is a little ridiculous, but her death is executed in a great way. It's tragic, but also bittersweet because she gave everything to save her friend, Arianna. This is everything I want from a Layton game. The series' biggest strenghts - the puzzles, the atmosphere and music, the character dynamics - are at an all time high here. I love this game (Though I have to admit I also have a soft spot for Miracle Mask and the more I replay and think about that game, the more I might have to admit I might actually prefer it over this one, even though it has some more obvious weaknesses).

LOVE THESE VIDEOS, CANT WAIT FOR THE MOVIE REVIEW AND MIRACLE MASK AND AZRANS LEGACY !!!!!

So glad you’re back !

Thr last specter was my first layton game. I just love it and I'm filled with nostalgia. The specter melodie on the flute, or the end battle musics, it juste took me back then when I would replay the whole end sequence juste to ear that music again. The fish puzzle you mentionned at the begining had (and my mom by the way) stuck for quite a long time, even with all the clue.

I'll never get ovre how one of the mysteries is How could Jakes be so good at solving crimes, and the solution is just "he isn't, he just makes shit up. MYSTERY SOLVED"

I feel like Loosha's desperation and eventual sacrifice would've been a bit more impactful if Arianna had actually shown any symptoms of being sick at all.

These videos are the only reason I even know who Professor Layton is, and I love them

While I found this disappointing after starting it almost immediately after UF, I've come round to where I'd put this above CV. The music is absolutely a contender for the best in the series, and I find the puzzles/atmosphere quintessentially cozy. Feels like a reimagining of CV that was done right!

The THICK joke got me so hard😂 I was eating soup my dude please be careful

Jo the fish minigame is a straight up banger

One thing i love about the final battle is how Luke's puzzle reflects how he was tracking the specter's attacks throughout the story, and then again in his puzzle, just felt right you know

I liked this video so much, your voice is very pleasant to listen to and you obviously love the game so I really enjoy your videos about Layton, also the ranking was soo good. The only thing that bothers me is that there was no spoiler warning for the first three games. Obviously there are spoilers for the game itself but now I already know the big mysteries for 1 and 3 which I wanted to play next :( Still I like the video a lot and I will watch the others as well, this just made me a bit sad

thank u so much for blessing my day with ur video

this video is amazing!! it's so lovely to be able to find other layton fans as well who are as talented as you. i really enjoyed the whole video!! and as an irish person hearing you say Seamus is so funny, it's pronounced shay-mus if anyone is wondering lol

I’ve never had any interest in the professor Layton games but all of your videos are making me want to play them lol

Always love a good Layton vid

The UFO sliding puzzle. That was my Vietnam, thanks for taking me back there

WHAT OMG I WATCHED THIS SERIES YESTERDAY PERFECT TIMING

What the heck? I was just rewatching a livestream of the game and then this appears? It's funny that you mention the ufo puzzle since the streamer that I watched was stuck on that puzzle for 2 hours I always wanted to try out London Life because Mother 3 is love, Mother 3 is life but I have never gotten the chance. I'm actually quite fond of Miracle Mask (or at least I was when I played it back in the day) so i'm excited to see that video but Eternal Diva is also such a good time. Can't wait for that video

This game boils down to, “The fog is coming”

i genuinely had to backtrack at the pronunciation of minor character legend seamus

Great video! I generally agree, though my opinion is definitely clouded by nostalgia more than yours, I think. I played the games as they released in America and loved Layton and Luke's friendship, so I was very happy to see their origin story. I was also discovering more of the PL fandom around the same time so the fan content/memes from the time have me remembering LS's release even more fondly. Also I paused to read the end message. As a Sony Vegas Movie 16 editor using an 8 year old computer, I feel your pain, bruh.

such a weird game to look back on, because there are so many elements that i really think they nailed. it might have the most technically impressive soundtrack of the series (i would understand if someone preferred the quirkier, simpler style of the first two soundtracks, but this just feels like they fully unlocked everything they could do with the ds), having the most robust fast travel system of the series is really nice, the setting is a nice mix of pleasant and eerie, and even if the prequel format may have limited how much they can do with them, i think the cast is generally pretty strong! but i couldn't rate this any higher than like fourth(?) best in the series because the story and tone just can't seem to find its footing, and it does even less setup with descole than it ever did with don paolo (at least for this game). i want to like this one way more than i do because it has the structure to be special, just didn't quite stick the landing to get above good.

Loved the background music from Rain Code in the beginning

Now we really need to know what you think of miracle mask. Since quite a few people still adore this game even though it has some flaws. still love your content man

I CANNOT WAIT for the Miracle Mask retrospective. I remember loving the flashback moments and finding the city just "eh" but I've heard some people hate the flashbacks and love the city! Also those 3D models are just... Kinda horrendous. Professor layton VS phoenix wright solved the 3D model issues imo but poor old Miracle Mask did not do the transition well!

I was just needing this

I actually love the Water Temple. It is the only dungeon in Zelda that truly activates my adult puzzle-solving, environment-exploring, direction-telling brain. Zelda dungeons can be annoying some times, but none but the Water Temple have ever gone so far as being properly difficult to navigate, explore, and solve.

As a kid i remember doing the puppet show and deliberately putting the wrong words in and finding it the most hilarious thing ever. I remember one where it was like "i kept slicing this and that. Eventually the chef took the knife off me."

I came for the layton deep dives and stayed for the good videogame content :)

"We're going to McDonalds" took me out. I love your content man

dang, professor layton content, subbed

i JUST finished watching the lost future retrospective video this is SPECTACULAR timing

An Elite Beat Agents reference… you sir are a man of taste

As an european fan of the series, I had NO IDEA about the existence of London Life until I watched your video. I agree it's an odd choice to take it out of PAL copies considering these games were quite popular around here, along with Inazuma Eleven. That aside, I've been following your retrospective series since the start, Layton games are a huge piece of my teenage years, and you've done a great job at covering them so far. I'll be looking forward to the next video! Spectre's Call was one of the first games that I got to very close to its release (bought it in January 2012, iirc), and I remember having a great time walking around Misthallery. The ambiance is the strongest aspect of the game, in my opinion. The big twist about the Specter's identity felt perfect to me until Loosha was thrown in, but still, pretty great game I'd say. (Huge comment, oops!)

Played this game again for the first time since 2011 a few months ago, and I had COMPLETELY forgotten about Loosha. 😂 You bet I was bawling when she died, though. 😭

Now that I think about it, I still have a DSI somewhere in my attic with this exact game probably in it. I lost the box a long time ago, but I guess it's time for me to go rummage through my attic again.

The Time Hollow osts oooh I didn't expect them

My hero is back 😭❤️

I don't remember I asked for Last Specter when your UF vid came out, but I'm always looking forward to your Layton content! Great video! Personally I wouldn't revisit LS again just because nothing about it makes me want to. The puzzles do feel harder and if I wanted to experience the music, I'll just listen to the soundtrack. (I did pause to read your last message.) Side note, sometimes I get distracted by your choice of music. Not in a bad way, but in a "hey I know this tune, but where is it from" kind of way, and was wondering if you would ever list the tracks you used. (Is the track in 16:03 from a Pokemon game?)

i love this game personally, maybe i'm a bit clouded by nostalgia but i just think the atmosphere is so quaint and nice and story is beautiful. also i love london life :) i'm replaying it right now actually and i love it just as much as i remember

this series is my absolute favourite on youtube!!! thank you so much for making another in-depth and high quality video!!! spectre's call is not my favourite of the prof layton games (must admit i am a sucker for miracle mask when replaying the prequels) but this has been such a fun reminder of things i did love from it - mainly the characters it introduced (sucker for crow and the rest of the black raven kids + descole's introduction) and STILL getting emotional during the ending (": idk if anyone else felt this way when they first played it through as a kid but spectre's call did a great job at making me genuinely nervous about the villains with the atmosphere it created, which is still so memorable in 2023

The puzzle theme in this game and Eternal Diva is a banger

I really like this game ! The introduction of Emmy and Descole is cool, the atmosphere of the town is amazing and the music in the Loosha cutscene gets me every time. I don't mind the stakes being lower than in Unwound Future, I think it's nice (in fact I'm more upset at Azran Legacy for its stupidly high stakes). My only complaint would be that, as you said, the introduction of a "supernatural" element is probably not something Layton games needed, but overall it's okay, they could have messed things up really easily with that and they didn't I'm a bit scared to see your review of Miracle Mask because it's my favourite, and even if I know the critics for this game are valid they still make me a bit sad. But I'm really excited to see you talk about the movie, it's great !

Can't wait for the movie

Nice use of the Master Detective Archive music

Nice video, can't wait for the movie (and the other games) so I can hear your thoughts on them. Speaking of are you going to make a video on the ace attorney crossover too? I hope you are, because, for all that the plot is a complete mess I've always loved the atmosphere of it.

Please make more professor Layton content I love this so much 😢😢 can't wait for the azran legacy and ace attorney cross over!!!

cannot wait for miracle mask it's my favourite in the series

Thanks for reminding me how emotionally wrecked I was when Loosha died

one of my favorite things to do to people is by explaining the ending without context. yeah. there's a giant 50 foot seal that fights a mecha spider.

It's been so long since I've played Spectre's Call, and is definitely the one I remember least. And yet I still have vague memories of that finale, it's that peak. And learning about London Life and how we got snubbed of it. That's twice Europe got done out of a game by Brownie Brown :( Also praise for the music choices here (I am only slightly obsessed with Raincode and Xenoblade) Now begins the wait for Eternal Diva, one that I only watched this year, and it certainly helps with the ending of Miracle Mask and Azran Legacy's entire thing. (And side question, will you be covering the crossover and Katrielle at some point?)

8:50 Huh, imagine that. I was just thinking of Henry Hatsworth earlier today.