Are the Layton games good? They seem to have only received positive reception whenever I've heard them referred to (I could just go to the review sites, of course, but I'm too lazy I want the opinions of real people).
Because if so I will need to play them and then get this, for the same reasons Cara cited.
My relationship with the Layton games is the same as almost all Level-5 stuff: It looks charming, it looks great, it looks polished, but the storytelling is woefully predictable and boring. Sometimes this works (Dragon Quest VIII) and sometimes it doesn't (Rogue Galaxy). With Layton... it's pretty much just a bunch of random brain teasers that have nothing to do with anything somehow stringed along a vapid story. Perhaps if this new crossover game can make the brain teasers contain information to make them evidence relevant to the case at hand, then the brain teasers can serve a purpose, which would be quite nice. Like say, someone left a box containing important information, and opening the box itself is a brain teaser. That's probably one of the shallower examples I can think of but right now I don't really feel like thinking of a more in-depth example on how well knit a piece of evidence and a brain teaser can become.
I really like the Layton games, but I definitely prefer it when the puzzles are actually woven into the story of the game. At least the first title had an internal conceit for why everyone in town was constantly asking you to solve random, unrelated puzzles. The others don't even bother with that!
It's best to start in order but all of the Layton fans generally agree that the 3rd game (Unwounded Future) is the best game in all respects. The games do have a small sub plot that continue through the first three though.