Do you know what's the first rule of writing time travel stories? Don't do it.
This one is honestly very weird. In some areas it's FAR superior to the previous 2 games. The puzzle solving is better than ever with the upgraded note screen. The story is by far the most emotional one in the series (which was not an easy bar to raise). It also gives some insight on Layton's past which is really great - you can finally feel like he's an actual character and not just a puzzle-addicted NPC obsessed with being a gentleman.
The setting for the story is initially interesting, but the further into the game, the more the story crashes down with weird Danganronpa-esque plot-twists and half-assed foreshadowing.
In-depth look with spoilers below
The Clive reveal is honestly just pathetic, with Layton mentioning a kid who lost his parents in the blast moments before it, and only after being like "tHaT WAs YoU???". It really made me miss out on the emotional aspect of Clive's motivation, which was only enhanced by the fact that the prime minister wasn't arrested along with him. And to be honest the entire future London is just too far-fetched of an idea that isn't even original (I mean just think about the first game - this is just like it, only sinister and dumber - like how did they even build it underground?). After the second game it's pretty much given that no "supernatural" things can happen in this world, so you kind of just wait for the twist to happen, which undermines the entire experience. And then of course it turns out that time travel actually is possible, which made me disappointed even more, but it's part of what made me emotional, so I can sort of excuse it.
Don Paolo's arc makes zero sense (how did he get his machine underground? how did he even get to future London?) and the way they connect him to Layton's past is pathetic, but at least he's finally a likable character. And even despite this, Flora still gets captured to raise the stakes in the most uninspiring and nonsensical way possible, while also being shit on by Luke for half the game. Not sure if I just don't remember the previous games enough, but it seems like the NPCs in this one are a bit more memorable, so that's nice.
All in all I'm not that surprised this is the highest rated game in the series, but unfortunately it didn't click with me well enough. Still hoping to see something better further down the line, but the games I've played were by no means bad - not even this one.
This one is honestly very weird. In some areas it's FAR superior to the previous 2 games. The puzzle solving is better than ever with the upgraded note screen. The story is by far the most emotional one in the series (which was not an easy bar to raise). It also gives some insight on Layton's past which is really great - you can finally feel like he's an actual character and not just a puzzle-addicted NPC obsessed with being a gentleman.
The setting for the story is initially interesting, but the further into the game, the more the story crashes down with weird Danganronpa-esque plot-twists and half-assed foreshadowing.
In-depth look with spoilers below
The Clive reveal is honestly just pathetic, with Layton mentioning a kid who lost his parents in the blast moments before it, and only after being like "tHaT WAs YoU???". It really made me miss out on the emotional aspect of Clive's motivation, which was only enhanced by the fact that the prime minister wasn't arrested along with him. And to be honest the entire future London is just too far-fetched of an idea that isn't even original (I mean just think about the first game - this is just like it, only sinister and dumber - like how did they even build it underground?). After the second game it's pretty much given that no "supernatural" things can happen in this world, so you kind of just wait for the twist to happen, which undermines the entire experience. And then of course it turns out that time travel actually is possible, which made me disappointed even more, but it's part of what made me emotional, so I can sort of excuse it.
Don Paolo's arc makes zero sense (how did he get his machine underground? how did he even get to future London?) and the way they connect him to Layton's past is pathetic, but at least he's finally a likable character. And even despite this, Flora still gets captured to raise the stakes in the most uninspiring and nonsensical way possible, while also being shit on by Luke for half the game. Not sure if I just don't remember the previous games enough, but it seems like the NPCs in this one are a bit more memorable, so that's nice.
All in all I'm not that surprised this is the highest rated game in the series, but unfortunately it didn't click with me well enough. Still hoping to see something better further down the line, but the games I've played were by no means bad - not even this one.