Popular Games by Level-5
Professor Layton and the Curious Village DS
- 15th Feb 2007 (JPN)
- 10th Feb 2008 (NA)
- 7th Nov 2008 (UK/EU)
Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney 3DS
- 29th Nov 2012 (JPN)
- 28th Mar 2014 (UK/EU)
- 29th Aug 2014 (NA)
Reviews of Level-5 Games
Review Megaton Musashi W: Wired (Switch) - Good Old-Fashioned Mech-Battling Fun
Level-5 is back!
In late 2020, Level-5 shuttered its operations in the West and effectively ended its business outside of Japan, leaving Western fans of franchises such as Yo-Kai Watch and Professor Layton wondering if they would ever see English versions of new entries in their favorite series. Fortunately, the company has since reinvigorated its...
Review Megaton Musashi (Switch) - Level-5's Import-Only Mecha Monster Deserves A Localisation
Domo arigatou, Mr. Roboto
It’s been a while since renowned Japanese developer Level-5 launched an IP that didn’t come complete with accompanying merchandise lines, manga, and anime to complement its latest game property. Professor Layton, Ni No Kuni, Inazuma Eleven, Snack World, and of course,
Review Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom (Switch) - A Sublime Port Of An Awesome Adventure
Ding Dong Delightful
Level-5's Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom originally released on PS4 back in March 2018 to pretty much unanimous critical praise, and playing it now in this latest Switch iteration, it's really not too hard to see why. This is a wonderfully well-crafted adventure that hits the ground running, nails pretty much every single...
Review Snack World: The Dungeon Crawl (Switch) – Gold - Endearing RPG Action With Bags Of Character
It's nacho typical RPG
When you think about it logically, we shouldn’t have been surprised by Snack World. After all, when a game’s developed by the legendary Level-5 and has already enjoyed a hugely popular anime series and toy line in Japan, it really should have been on plenty of gamers’ wishlists. Despite this, it’s fair to say that...
A story about one very curious Kat
The Professor Layton series is one that’s defined puzzling on Nintendo handhelds ever since the early days of the DS. Since 2007, we’ve received two trilogies and two spinoffs starring the eponymous professor, but declining sales and a general sense of stagnation seemed to have scared Level-5 off from...
"It's flippin' finally on the Switch, en't it?"
In 2008, Level-5 was coming up on its tenth anniversary and wanted to produce a project that its staff was passionate about, regardless of how well it would sell, and the world was introduced to Ni No Kuni: The Another World. A two-pronged project, one version of it came to the Nintendo DS as the...
Latest Level-5 News
Friday11th Apr 2025
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Finally Has Release Date, Out On Switch 2 Day One
It's all kicking off
Level-5 has finally shared the release date for Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road, along with a few surprises, including a Nintendo Switch 2 version. The long-awaited soccer game, which has been in development since at least 2016, will be landing on Switch and Switch 2 on 21st August 2025 as a digital-only game. On Switch, it'll be
Tuesday1st Apr 2025
Random Fantasy Life's Animal Crossing Parody Starring 'Tim Crook' Is A Good Laugh
"He's looking more like a hero than a debt collector"
Our favourite day of the year has arrived here on Nintendo Life and developers around the globe are already sharing all sorts of funny jokes... To be fair, Level-5 has published a decent video - transforming the Fantasy Life series into a knock-off version of Animal Crossing called Life...
Monday3rd Mar 2025
News Fantasy Life i Development Was Restructured In 2024 As Keiji Inafune Left Company
"We had to reassess and restructure the project"
Note: This article previously incorrectly stated that Keiji Inafune designed Mega Man. We have corrected the error and apologise for the mistake. A brand new blog post from Level-5 has revealed some of the development woes its upcoming title Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. Namely, the...
Tuesday25th Feb 2025
News 'Fantasy Life i' Commercials Showcase Comfortingly Familiar Gameplay
Sequel is finally launching later this year
It's been a bloomin' long time coming, but Level-5's Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time is finally making its way to the Switch on 22nd May 2025 following multiple delays. To really drive the message that this date is likely final, two new commercials have been released (thanks, Go Nintendo) that...
Saturday15th Feb 2025
News Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Physical Release Confirmed (Japan)
Including English language support
Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time has just locked in a May release date and although the West is reportedly not getting a physical version, Fantasy Life fans aren't completely out of luck. As highlighted by Gematsu, a physical edition of the game for Switch and PS5 will be made available in Japan and it...
Friday14th Feb 2025
News Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Finally Lands New May Release Date
Let's hope it can stick this one
After a handful of delays, Level-5 has today announced the new new release date for Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, which we can now expect to put down roots on Switch on 21st May 2025. This highly anticipated life-sim has felt like a long time coming. Initially announced in the 2023 February Direct
Monday10th Feb 2025
News Level-5 CEO Reveals Fresh 'Fantasy Life i' Screenshots, Teases More Info Coming Soon
Stealing more time
After a handful of delays, we are slowly creeping up on the April 2025 release window for Level-5's much-anticipated Fantasy Life follow-up, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. With the countdown officially on (assuming it isn't pushed again, of course), Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino has taken to Twitter to share a fresh
Tuesday28th Jan 2025
News Level-5's Long-Awaited Fantasy Life Sequel Seems To No Longer Be A Switch Exclusive
The more the merrier
After ongoing delays, we've got another update about the long-awaited Switch release Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, and it might not be what you expect... As highlighted by Gematsu, it seems the sequel may no longer be a Nintendo-only release, with a listing popping up on the PlayStation Store overnight for PS4 and...
Friday29th Nov 2024
Video Latest Professor Layton Trailer Upload Shows Off English In-Game Text
See what the locals of Steam Bison have to say
Remember the new Professor Layton and the New World of Steam trailer that was shared in August? Well, Nintendo UK has now shared a slightly different one. While it's the same footage and gameplay, and the voice work and voiceovers are still in Japanese, the in-game text is now displayed in English. So...
Friday22nd Nov 2024
News Level-5's Mech RPG 'Megaton Musashi W: Wired' Lands Online PvP Mode In Upcoming Update
Here's everything included
Level-5 returned to the West in a big way earlier this year with the release of Megaton Musashi W: Wired. Eight months on, the mech battler is landing a beefy new patch, with the 'Megarobo Batroseum' update scheduled to come to Switch on 26th November. As detailed in the new trailer (above) the headline addition of this...
Tuesday19th Nov 2024
Guide Best Dragon Quest Games Of All Time - Switch And Nintendo Systems
Where does Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake rank?
Update: To celebrate the release of Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, we've completely overhauled our Best Dragon Quest list to include every single Dragon Quest game released on a Nintendo system in the West. Enjoy! Dragon Quest – or maybe you know it better as Dragon Warrior – might be one of the...
Wednesday30th Oct 2024
News Level-5 CEO Reconfirms Three Switch Game Releases For 2025
"Three new titles next year"
Japanese developer Level-5 celebrated its 26th anniversary earlier this week and as part of this, its CEO Akihiro Hino shared a message to fans about the company's game schedule for next year. Hino reconfirmed how the plan is to release "three new titles" in 2025. In case you missed the original announcements, this...
Wednesday2nd Oct 2024
News Level-5 CEO Implies Nintendo Is To Thank For Professor Layton's Comeback
All thanks to "Company N"
Professor Layton and the New World of Steam was one of the biggest surprise announcements of 2023. While the return of Level-5's polite professor might have felt like a no-brainer to some, it appears that the studio was initially hesitant about a comeback. That is until certain big names in the industry started pushing for...
Sunday29th Sep 2024
Poll Box Art Brawl: Professor Layton And The Miracle Mask
I've got it!
Hello folks, and welcome back to another edition of Box Art Brawl! Last week, we checked out the Game Boy Advance version of Donkey Kong Country. It was a classic 3-way battle in which Japan managed to emerge victorious with 42% of the vote. Europe followed very closely with 39%, while North America floundered slightly at 19%. This...
Thursday26th Sep 2024
Hands On Professor Layton & The New World Of Steam - New World, But Feels Like The Old Prof
As puzzling as ever
It has been a while since we’ve seen Professor Layton and his protege Luke. For a while, the mind-bending puzzle series seemed like a Nintendo mainstay - at least on the DS and 3DS. The last game starred Katrielle Layton, the daughter of the titular Professor, and received rather mixed reviews when it came out for 3DS in 2017...
News Level-5's New Yo-Kai Watch 'Holy Horror Mansion' Teaser Supposedly Features AI Artwork
The Japanese dev has been experimenting with generative AI
Earlier this week, Level-5 lifted the lid on its brand-new Yo-Kai Watch concept 'Holy Horror Mansion' and while this "cross-media project" including a "Ghost Craft RPG" looks quite promising at a glance, it's believed something may be going on behind the scenes. Some fans of the Japanese...
Tuesday24th Sep 2024
News Professor Layton And The New World Of Steam Trailer Shows Off 3D Gameplay
Still slated for 2025
Professor Layton and the New World of Steam was arguably the big announcement of Level-5's return when it was revealed during a Nintendo Direct last year. And while we still have to wait a bit for the game to launch, we have got a brand new trailer to tide us by. Shown off during today's Level-5 Vision Showcase, we got a look...
News Stunning-Looking RPG 'DECAPOLICE' Will Now Launch In 2026
Arrested development
We were hoping to see DECAPOLICE, the upcoming detective RPG from Level-5, at today's To The World's Children showcase. However, what we weren't expecting was a pretty big delay. Originally due out in 2023, then delayed to 2024, Decapolice has now been pushed all the way back to 2026. Woof. That's a long wait — but we're...
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Finally Launches June 2025, DS Game Getting Remake
At last!
Eight years after its official announcement (under a different name too), Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road finally has a release window, and it's a bit further out than you might think. And yes, a release window — not a date. The soccer RPG will be launching in June 2025 on Switch and other consoles, marking what will be a nine-year wait for...
News Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Gets New 2025 Release Window
Get ready for spring
Level-5 has announced a new release window for Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, following the game's delay just last month. Originally due out on 10th October, the game is now due to launch in April 2025. A specific date wasn't given, but we're glad the game has a new window at the very least. During today's Level-5 V
News Yo-Kai Watch Returns With 'Holy Horror Mansion' Teaser
"This town is full of 'pumpkins'"
A brand new Yo-Kai Watch concept has been announced as part of today's Level-5 2024 Vision showcase. Currently titled Holy Horror Mansion, the game is planned to be a "Ghost Craft RPG", and is planned to be the largest cross-media project for Yo-Kai Watch to date. No platforms or release dates were confirmed for...
Friday6th Sep 2024
News Level-5's 'Vision 2024' Showcase To Share Multiple Project Updates And Announce Brand New Title
Update: Another mystery game is being teased
Update [Fri 6th Sep, 2024 00:45 BST]: Level-5's official website for this broadcast has now been updated with a list of featured titles. Apart from the five previously mentioned titles (including a brand new game), there's now a sixth mystery game reveal being teased. Original article [Sun 1st Sep,...
Monday19th Aug 2024
News Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Has Been Delayed Again
"we apologize for any inconvenience caused"
Level-5 has announced that Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time has been delayed again on Switch. Previously planned for launch on 10th October 2024, Level-5 has refrained from attaching a new release date at the time of writing, but pledged to offer up new information during the upcoming “LEVEL5...
Monday20th May 2024
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road's Beta Test Story Mode Kicks Off Today
Following an earlier delay
After getting pushed back from 'early May' to 'late May,' Level-5 has today announced that Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road's story mode will be coming to the worldwide beta test demo today. The story mode will be kicking off today (20th May) at
Saturday11th May 2024
News Level-5 Slightly Delays Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road's Beta Test Story Mode
"We apologize for any inconvenience"
Level-5 has shared a new update on the development of Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road, revealing it's delaying the Story Mode release in the demo. It will now arrive in "late May", instead of earlier this month. Here's the full announcement (via social media): "To further improve the quality, the release of the...
Thursday18th Apr 2024
News Level-5's Next Vision Showcase Delayed To Summer 2024
Layton & co. will have to wait
If you cast your mind back to the Level-5 Vision Showcase November 2023, you might remember that studio director Akihiro Hino wrapped things up with the announcement of another event in April 2024. Well, that event is no more as it has been announced that the expected showcase has been pushed to this summer. The next...
Tuesday2nd Apr 2024
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Worldwide Beta Test Demo Surpasses 500,000 Downloads
Goal!
Level-5's Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Worldwide Beta Test Demo kicked off last week and it's performing quite well. The developer behind the game has announced the total downloads have surpassed 500,000 worldwide in just four days, which is certainly a promising start for this upcoming release, due out at some point in 2024. "The worldwide...
Friday29th Mar 2024
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Worldwide Beta Test Kicks Off
Victory!
Update [Fri 29th Mar, 2024 06:30 GMT]: Here's your reminder the 'Beta Test Demo' of Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road is now available for Switch. You can compete against players from all over the world in the game's "competition mode" and also provide feedback, impressions, and bug reports via the official website. There's a survey to fill out...
Wednesday21st Feb 2024
News Fantasy Life i Finally Settles For An October Release On Switch
Worth the wait?
Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, the sequel to the 3DS classic, has finally received a release date for Switch, and it'll be out on 10th October, 2024. The game had been delayed from 2023 at the last moment, but judging from the new trailer, it looks like the wait is going to be worth it, as the game will boast a total of...
Sunday11th Feb 2024
Poll Box Art Brawl - Duel: Inazuma Eleven Strikers
Cover goals
It's the weekend and that can only mean one thing, it's time for another edition of What Are You Pla- wait, no, not that one. It's time for another edition of Box Art Brawl! Before we kick off this week's match-up, let's take it back to last time when we looked at the Virtual Boy's Jack Bros. For such a rare game, this was a pretty...
Friday5th Jan 2024
News Fantasy Life Producer Keiji Inafune Says He Will Do His "Best" To Improve The New Entry
The Level-5 game was delayed last November
Keiji Inafune, best known for his work on the Mega Man as well as other projects like Azure Striker Gunvolt, has shared a minor update about the upcoming Level-5 project, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. Speaking to Famitsu for a New Year's column recently, the producer of the new Fantasy Life...
Wednesday20th Dec 2023
News Level-5 Submits 'Ghost Craft' Trademark In The US
What could it be?
Level-5 is slowly but surely ramping up its game output, with the likes of Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time, Professor Layton and the New World of Steam, and more all quietly cooking in the developer's metaphorical oven. Now, as spotted by X (formerly Twitter) user @DartsEnthusiast
Wednesday29th Nov 2023
News Megaton Musashi: Wired Gets New 2024 Release Date
Coming worldwide 25th April
The newest entry in Level-5's popular multimedia mecha series, Megaton Musashi: Wired will no longer be launching in 2023 — no surprise, really, given that we're almost in December! However, we don't have to wait too long. During today's Level-5 Showcase, the developer announced that the upcoming mecha action RPG will...
News Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Will Bloom Onto Switch In Summer 2024
New trailer shows even more gameplay
Featured in today's Level-5 Vision Showcase, we got another look at Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time and a release window of summer 2024. This long-awaited sequel to the 3DS classic, Fantasy Life, looks to contain all of the same features that we loved so much about the former game — life sim-meets-RPG...
News Level-5's Detective RPG 'Decapolice' Delayed To 2024, Not 2025
Some deduction was needed on the release date
If you were watching today's Level-5 Showcase and were hoping for a lot of news on the incredible-looking detective RPG DECAPOLICE, you may have come away a little bit disappointed. Originally slated for a 2023 release, Level-5 today announced that it will be taking "a bit more time" to work on the...
News Professor Layton And The New World Of Steam Is Now Set To Release In 2025
Hold onto your hats
Despite having been revealed in the February Nintendo Direct earlier this year, it looks like we are going to have to wait a while before we get our hands on Professor Layton and the New World of Steam as Level-5 has today revealed that the title is now scheduled to release in 2025. Featuring in today's Vision Showcase, the...
News Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road Kicks Off Switch Beta Testing In March 2024
He shoots, he scores
After a number of delays and enough title changes to fill an 11-man roster, Level-5 has today finally revealed that Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road will be bringing the football RPG series to Switch in 2024. The game's beta testing phase will kick off in March, with a full release planned for later in the year The release date was...
Monday27th Nov 2023
Talking Point Would You Like To See A Professor Layton Collection On Switch?
A true gentleman never gives up on a dream
Somehow, it has been 15 years since Professor Layton and the Lost Future (or 'the Unwound Future', depending on your region) made its debut in Japan. As with every entry in the mainline series to date, it took another couple of years until the third entry received a Western release, but when it finally did,...
Sunday26th Nov 2023
News Level-5 To Share Release Dates For "Several Titles" Later This Month
Update: "The latest info on Professor Layton" as well
Update [Sun 26th Nov, 2023 02:00 GMT]: It seems there will definitely be an update about the new Professor Layton game at Level-5's upcoming Vision event, with the company sharing the following information in a post on social media earlier this week: "LEVEL5 VISION 2023 II" Streaming 9:00 PM...
Friday10th Nov 2023
News Level-5's New Fantasy Life Game Has Been Delayed Until 2024
Update: Level-5 wants to deliver a "better quality" game
Update [Fri 10th Nov, 2023 04:45 GMT]: Unfortunately, Level-5 has now officially confirmed the delay of Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time. It will now arrive on the Switch at some point in 2024. Here's an official statement, explaining the developer wants to deliver a "better quality"...
Saturday28th Oct 2023
News Level-5 To Celebrate 25th Anniversary With Release Date Announcements
Scheduled to take place next month
Following on from the premiere of multiple Level-5 game trailers in September, today marks the 25th anniversary of the Japanese publisher and developer known for series like Professor Layton, Yo-kai Watch, and Inazuma Eleven. As part of this celebration, it's apparently planning to reveal "release dates" for...
Sunday15th Oct 2023
Poll Box Art Brawl: Professor Layton And The Unwound Future
What would a true gentleman do?
We are back for yet another edition of Box Art Brawl, are you ready to rank some covers? Before we introduce this week's challengers, let's take a look at what went down last time. We pitted two cover variants for the SNES classic ActRaiser against each other and the results were very close indeed though the...
Saturday16th Sep 2023
News Level-5 Premieres Multiple Trailers For Its Upcoming Switch Games
Inazuma Eleven, Fantasy Life and more
Update [Sat 16th Sep, 2023 12:00 BST]: Level-5 has now released these trailers for the new Fantasy Life game, the new Inazuma Eleven, and also DECAPOLICE. You can see them all below: Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time - 1st Trailer Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time arrives on Switch in 2023...
Tuesday11th Jul 2023
News Level-5 Launches Yo-Kai Watch 10th Anniversary Website
A number of initiatives are planned
Although Level-5 is busy with a new Professor Layton game for the Nintendo Switch, it's also found some time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of its spirit-themed RPG series Yo-kai Watch. The original game made its debut on 3DS in 2013 in Japan and was followed by a local release here in the West in 2015/16...
Friday28th Apr 2023
News More Ace Attorney Characters Are Getting The Nendoroid Treatment This October
Pre-orders are now open
Fans of the Ace Attorney series might just be interested to know that Good Smile Company's range of Nendoroids is soon to expand as Apollo Justice and Maya Fey figures are now available to pre-order (thanks, Nintendo Everything). Joining the Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth collectables that we saw released back in 2021,...
Saturday22nd Apr 2023
News Keiji Inafune Is The Producer Of Level-5's New Fantasy Life Game On Switch
He even created "a whole new life"
Apart from the initial reveal, we don't yet know all that much about Level-5's next Fantasy Life entry coming to the Nintendo Switch at some point this year. However, there's been a surprising discovery made about this new entry in the RPG simulation series. Japanese publication Famitsu has revealed Keiji Inafune...
Sunday16th Apr 2023
Poll Box Art Brawl: Professor Layton And The Curious Village
This reminds me of a puzzle...
It's time for another edition of Box Art Brawl, are you ready to rumblllllllle? Before we introduce today's competitors, let's have a little look at what went down last week. Capcom's Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles was the game on the table for the last brawl, with a tasty three different covers up for...
Thursday23rd Mar 2023
Countdown 3DS eShop Spotlight - Attack Of The Friday Monsters!
#28 - Hold up, it's Thursday
For the month before the 3DS and Wii U eShops close for new purchases on 27th March, each day we're going to highlight a specific eShop game for one of those consoles and give a short pitch as to why we think it deserves your love and attention — before it's too late. The chance to add these to your library will be...
Wednesday15th Mar 2023
Guide Professor Layton And The New World Of Steam: Everything We Know So Far
Gathering all of the clues about the upcoming puzzler
The wait for what many would refer to as another proper Professor Layton title has been a long one. The initial DS trilogy captured (and then broke) our hearts before the prequels came around and kept our love for the series going across a further three games — even if the jump to the 3D art...
Thursday9th Mar 2023
News Megaton Musashi: Wired Sees Level-5's Mech RPG Get Official Worldwide Release
Robo-tastic
Megaton Musashi: Wired — an expanded release based on 2022's Japan-only Megaton Musashi — was announced earlier today during the Level-5 Vision showcase, plus it's getting a worldwide release on Switch sometime in 2023. This surprise announcement confirmed that the action pack mecha RPG will come with crossplay across the Switch,...
