The first Nintendo Direct of the year, held on February 8, had a few surprises for viewers. One of them was the sheer abundance of titles coming from well-known Japanese developer Level-5, which presented three new games: Deca Police, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, and Professor Layton and The New World of Steam. All of them will launch in 2023, Deca Police for PS4, PS5, and Switch, meanwhile the other two are coming exclusively to Nintendo Switch.
While the studio's support has been steady on Switch, much of its output has been locked to Japan. The company released Layton's Mystery Journey in 2019 and Snack World: The Dungeon Crawl - Gold in 2020, but both games re-releases of 3DS titles. Meanwhile, titles like Yo-Kai Watch 4 (2019), Yo-Kai Watch Jam (2020), and Megaton Musashi (2021) only debuted in Japan, with no indication if they will ever come to America and Europe. That's why the announcements made at the latest Nintendo event are important, as they show attention once again being paid to the Western market.
Deca Police, Level-5’s New IP
Deca Police is a futuristic mystery RPG in which a young detective named Harvard pursues criminals across an open-world city. He travels between the real world and a virtual world known as DECAISM, created to be an exact copy of reality where memories of past crimes are kept active. Clues found in DECASIM help uncover the hidden mysteries of the real world. According to its first trailer, it seems the title will utilize turn-based combat gameplay as well as mystery solving.
Profesor Layton and The New World of Steam is a Huge Revival
One of the most discussed returns from the February 2023 Nintendo Direct has been Professor Layton, with a new adventure called Professor Layton and The New World of Steam. Little is known about this new release beyond a 20-second teaser in which Hershel Layton greets viewers with a tip of his iconic top hat.
This will be the titular character's first new appearance in a decade, following the release of 2013's Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy on 3DS. Layton's Mystery Journey did release for Android, iOS, and 3DS in 2017, followed by an enhanced port for the Nintendo Switch in Japan in 2018 (with a worldwide release in 2019), but this is technically a spin-off starring Hershel Layton's daughter, Katrielle. The release date for this new Professor Layton game is currently unknown, but the title will undoubtedly present new puzzles in an unprecedented scenario for the professor.
Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Is Like a New Animal Crossing
The third game announced by Level-5 during the Nintendo Direct was Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. The title is a long-awaited sequel to the Nintendo 3DS release Fantasy Life from 2014. It looks to expand on what the original did well, mixing life-simulation elements akin to a game like Animal Crossing with action-RPG combat mechanics.
This new installment of the Fantasy Life saga begins when its protagonist, the player character, arrives at a mysterious island where an ancient civilization once existed. Players must develop the island and create their own city by crafting, questing and fighting, all while being able to travel back in time to discover secrets of this ruined place - and even alter history. While no specific release date was given, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time will launch sometime this year exclusively on Nintendo Switch. Hopefully these releases spell a good future for Level-5, encouraging it to continue widely distributing future games.