It debuted on February 15, 2007 with Reiton-kyōju to Fushigi na Machi (レイトン教授と不思議な町, Professor Layton and the Mysterious Village),[1] eventually localized as Professor Layton and the Curious Village in the North American and PAL regions.
The series focuses on Professor Hershel Layton, an archaeologist, and his apprentice, Luke Triton, and their investigations into various mysterious towns.
Often, they encounter people who require the player to solve puzzles or brain teasers in exchange for small trinkets or picarats, which is the score system used within the games.
Additionally, there have been three novels as well as an animated movie, Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva.
[3] The idea for the franchise was conceived by Akihiro Hino, and was originally intended to be a successor to Nintendo's Brain Age series.