New 'Professor Layton' game in production

Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino has revealed through Twitter that work has begun on the sixth game in the Professor Layton series.

No platform was specified for the new instalment, though the series has previously been loyal to Nintendo's handhelds. The first four titles appeared on the Nintendo DS, with the most recent game, Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracles, releasing in Japan as a 3DS launch title.

Professor Layton games tend to take a while to release outside of Japan, with only the first three released so far in Europe and North America. The most recent of those, Professor Layton and the Lost Future, was met with high praise from fans and critics alike.

Although there has not yet been any announcement as to whether the fourth game in the series - Professor Layton and the Specter's Flute - will release outside of Japan, Nintendo revealed at E3 2010 that Mask of Miracles would see an international release.

It is believed that the sixth Layton game mentioned by Hino is separate from the Professor Layton vs Ace Attorney crossover game revealed last year with a trailer.