Video: Professor Layton And The Spectre's Call

The cosy familiarity of another top-notch Professor Layton puzzler is enough to warm any gamer’s heart this winter.

Taking on a prequel storyline, the Spectre’s Call gives you the chance to help top-hatted Hershel Layton solve his very first case, sparked by the receipt of a mysterious letter from an old friend, that leads him to a rural town called Misthallery, which is said to be haunted by a nocturnal phantom.

Cue another delightful combination of logic, slide, picture, number and language puzzles, interspersed with advice from Layton’s brainy assistant, Emmy Altava, and the introduction of his would-be apprentice Luke Triton.

As with all Layton titles, the storyline is tight and the gameplay just as addictive as the previous releases, making the Spectre’s Call a sure-fire Christmas stocking success.

Rating: ****