Nintendo Reveals Launch Dates For Professor Layton & More 3DS Games

By Paul Hunter

Much like how every puzzle has an answer, every video game has a release date, and for Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask for the Nintendo 3DS, that date has now officially been set by Nintendo for October 28.  What's more, the company has revealed the release schedule their 3D portable gaming system for the remainder of 2012.  With a line-up that includes Professor Layton, Skylanders, Paper Mario, Rayman, Epic Mickey, and much, much more, the Nintendo 3DS truly has something for everyone.

With the August 19 launch of the Nintendo 3DS XL, Nintendo is ushering in a whole new era of 3D portable gaming with screens that are 90 percent larger than the regular Nintendo 3DS.  Many of Nintendo's fall line-up will take advantage of the Nintendo 3DS XL's larger screens, including Art Academy: Lessons for Everyone! which lets players draw with more detail on a more spacious touchscreen, and Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask with puzzles that are much bigger and easier to see, and more room to draw notes.

Regardless of whether you have a Nintendo 3DS or a 3DS XL, there's plenty of great gaming options coming from Nintendo and third-party publishers this fall, let's have a look at what is coming out:

(official game descriptions from Nintendo)


Art Academy: Lessons for Everyone!
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Oct. 1
Users of any artistic skill level can learn painting and drawing techniques that can be applied to real-life art projects, with optional, additional lessons available for purchase. The game also lets users share and download certain game content via SpotPass.



Crosswords Plus
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Oct. 1
More than 1,000 professionally designed crossword puzzles will challenge players at any skill level. They can also receive and share bonus puzzles via StreetPass or connect their Nintendo 3DS to the Internet to receive free additional puzzles via SpotPass. The game also includes other game play modes such as Wordsearch, Anagrams and the new Word of the Day.



Skylanders Giants
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 21
Fans can look forward to more than 20 new inter-action figures to collect, including Giants that are twice the size of regular Skylanders and new LightCore Skylanders that light up both in the game and in real life when they are placed on the Portal of Power.



Style Savvy: Trendsetters
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Oct. 22
Players can run their very own full-scale fashion shop and spark a fashion revolution by helping customers keep up with current trends, buying new clothes for their customizable store and sharing their creations with their friends online.



Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Oct. 28
Experienced fans and newcomers to the Professor Layton series can solve dozens of fascinating puzzles as they work their way through a new mystery storyline. Players can even download one additional puzzle per day for 365 days, starting on game launch day, at no additional charge.



Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive!
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Nov. 5
Players can create their own creatures and use them to explore a planet that they customize. Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive! contains new features not found in the original downloadable title, such as dungeons to explore, enhanced creating capabilities with more parts to choose from and new special powers that can be used to further personalize the creatures. The game also features Download Play, which allows players to share the creative experience with friends who do not have a copy of the game.



Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: Nov. 11
Nintendo's classic Paper Mario franchise gets a fresh 3D look in its hand-held debut. Stickers are the backbone of Mario's newest adventure in which players use stickers found in the game to not only win battles, but to solve puzzles as well.



Disney Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion
Publisher: Disney Interactive
Release Date: Nov. 18
Inspired by the classic Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse, this game features new ways for Mickey Mouse to interact with a 3D game world using paint and paint thinner.


In addition to the above mentioned titles, Nintendo also wants to remind fans that Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 will launch on October 7 for Nintendo DS (also playable on Nintendo 3DS in 2D).  The previously announced Pokémon Dream Radar and Pokédex 3D Pro arrive in the Nintendo eShop on Oct. 7 and Nov. 8, respectively.

The full list of Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, and Nintendo eShop game releases this fall can be found on Nintendo's website here.

[This article originally appeared on the Future Shop Tech Blog]