History YMMV / ProfessorLayton

** Also the TabletoGame/{{chess}} puzzles. "Here, this is an 8×8 chess board. Jump on every single space, and you can only move as a knight. Also, there is only one known way to solve this puzzle, and only one correct direction to jump for every single jump. [[HintsAreForLosers To top it off, we've replaced your hints with random chess trivia that is no help whatsoever.]] Oh, quit crying, you wuss." There are easier variants but none of them (except for the first one) are that much easier and also suffer from the hints being useless. Luckily, by this point, the game has a memo function, which proves invaluable for planning the Knight moves before you try to put them into action. It actually makes life a bit easier.

** Also the chess puzzles. "Here, this is a 8x8 chess board. Jump on every single space, and you can only move as a knight. Also, there is only one known way to solve this puzzle, and only one correct direction to jump for every single jump. [[HintsAreForLosers To top it off, we've replaced your hints with random chess trivia that is no help whatsoever.]] Oh, quit crying, you wuss." There are easier variants but none of them (except for the first one) are that much easier and also suffer from the hints being useless. Luckily, by this point, the game has a memo function, which proves invaluable for planning the Knight moves before you try to put them into action. It actually makes life a bit easier.

%%** Luke has his moments as well. Like in a cutscene in ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheMiracleMask'', where he wakes up in the morning and yawns. Never has bedhead looked so cute.

* SpoiledByTheFormat: If several mysteries are not yet solved, you likely have a way to go, and you certainly do if not all of the mysteries have been found. Additionally, the number of puzzles for each game gives you some idea of how far you are when the number of a given puzzle appears.

%%** The conversation Barton has with Luke in ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture'' paints him as one.

** Flora falls into this. Her mother died when she was a baby; her doting father died when she was still a child; and she had to wait for an unspecified number of years for someone to come along and solve the riddle that would enable her to have a new life and family. And now she lives with Layton, who clearly loves her but is not the most, shall we say, ''effective'' parent. She comes across as being lonely much of the time.

%%* In ''Spectre's Call'', Luke is very insistent of proving to everyone that Arianna isn't a witch as the townsfolk believe. [[spoiler: In ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonVsPhoenixWrightAceAttorney'', this happens once again when Espella is put on a witch trial, with Layton and Luke along with Phoenix and Maya trying to prove her innocence regarding being a witch.]]

* MemeticHandGesture:
** [[GivingSomeoneTHePointerFinger *points*]]
** The FacePalm done when someone incorrectly answers a puzzle.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Grosky, for being so damned [[RatedMForManly Mantastic]].

** There's something between [[HoYay Melina and Janice]] in ''Anime/ProfessorLaytonAndTheEternalDiva'', as well.

** Future Luke has been dubbed 'Legal!Luke', 'Legal', or - for some reason - 'Tom'.

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: It was revealed in ''VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheAzranLegacy'' that [[spoiler:Layton and Descole are brothers. This makes the [[HoYay Layton and Descole]] pairing ''incestuous'']]. Whoops.

* ParentsAsPeople: Hershel Layton, [[PlayedForLaughs as often joked about in the fan community]]. He's overprotective of Flora to the point of ignoring her on while on a case. It became somewhat of a running gag that Layton's so one-track-minded on his adventures that he often forgets his ''adopted daughter''. [[spoiler:As for his son, Alfendi, he grows up to be a borderline-psycho {{Jerkass}} and NightmareFetishist.]] Luke, on the other hand, is brought along on his life-threatening journeys. It seems only his future daughter Katrielle managed to come out of this unscathed. It's also true, though, that we don't see Layton on his non-adventuring days very often, and Luke has proven himself to be, while absent-minded, extremely competent and capable for his age.

** Jean Descole was most likely created with this trope in mind. He is a MalevolentMaskedMan who combines several clothing tropes and actually ''pulls it off''. And his coolness goes UpToEleven in ''Anime/ProfessorLaytonAndTheEternalDiva''.

** Some perceive Flora as this. While it is justified with her not being there for the beginning of the mysteries, and her character arc in ''Curious Village'' is finished, she still displays a cleverness when trying to follow Layton and Luke on their adventures, and ''[[VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture The Unwound Future]]'' has her solve a handful of puzzles along with the rest of the crew. Beyond that, she's not very utilized at all (especially in ''[[VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheDiabolicalBox The Diabolical Box]]'' where she is [[spoiler: actually Don Paolo in disguise for most of the game]], and spinoffs of the series like ''Mystery Room'' and ''Millionaires' Conspiracy'' try their damnedest not to say where she's gone, especially in comparison with her [[spoiler:adopted siblings, Alfendi and Katrielle]].

** Some perceive Flora as this. While it is justified with her not being there for the beginning of the mysteries, and her character arc in ''Curious Village'' is finished, she still displays a cleverness when trying to follow Layton and Luke on their adventures, and ''[[VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheUnwoundFuture'' The Unwound Future]]'' has her solve a handful of puzzles along with the rest of the crew. Beyond that, she's not very utilized at all (especially in ''[[VideoGame/ProfessorLaytonAndTheDiabolicalBox The Diabolical Box]]'' where she is [[spoiler: actually Don Paolo in disguise for most of the game]], and spinoffs of the series like ''Mystery Room'' and ''Millionaires' Conspiracy'' try their damnedest not to say where she's gone, especially in comparison with her [[spoiler:adopted siblings, Alfendi and Katrielle]].