Armchair detectives have plenty of opportunities to hone their sleuthing skills this season.

Two games for the Nintendo DS and one for the Wii offer puzzles to ponder and crimes to solve, with each tackling the genre from a slightly different angle.

The E-rated "Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box" was developed by Level 5 for the DS. It’s the sequel to the popular "Professor Layton and the Curious Village." If you played "Curious Village," you’ll find the new game very similar. The professor and his young companion, Luke, seek the Elysian Box, a mysterious item that leaves bodies in its wake.

As the pair move from location to location, they find a wide variety of brain-teasers to solve. Most require logic — for example, deducing who’s sitting where based on a few statements and a picture of a group of people. Others require good observational skills — such as scanning a room to determine what’s amiss.

The 150-plus puzzles range in difficulty from "da" to "doh!" — a good mix that’s fun and rewarding.

The story line is complicated and interesting, which is what you want in a good mystery.

The graphics are in a pleasant anime style, but the puzzles can be pretty tricky so the game is definitely good for adults as well as kids.

"Women’s Murder Club: Games of Passion" is based on James Patterson’s mystery novels and PC games. The T-rated game was developed by I-play for THQ.

You play as Lindsay, a detective with the San Francisco Police Department, and her friends. The game begins with a seemingly unrelated string of murders. Of course they really are linked and it’s your job to get to the bottom of the mystery.

"Games of Passion" relies primarily on seek-and-find puzzles, asking you to locate different items in a cluttered area. They then asked how your discoveries relate to one another. There are also some mini-games, such as mah-jongg, to mix things up a bit.

Many of the puzzles and question-and-answer sessions seem a bit simplistic.

In addition, the game doesn’t allow for frequent saves — a serious flaw in a game for the DS, the favorite system of casual games who have only brief snippets of time on their hands.

The graphics feature realistic renderings, which suits the tone — although I don’t know many women who wear the same shirt day after day.

The E-rated "MySims Agents" was developed by Electronic Arts for the Wii. A separate edition is available for the DS.

As a special agent, your job is to discover what the evil Morcubus is up to and put a stop to it.

Instead of seeking objects in pictures or solving puzzles, you actually play detective in "Agents." You ferret out clues for each mini mystery by interviewing witnesses, digging through garbage, picking locks and hacking computers. Although most of the kid-oriented cases aren’t particularly deep or intriguing, the process is very fun and rewarding.

The graphics are very cartoony — sort of like "Sims"-meets-"Animal Crossing."

In creating your character, you’re allowed a decent amount of customization, a features that’s always popular with the kids — and me.

These three detective games offer a wide variety of puzzle types, graphic styles and game play methods. You should probably make your pick based on the type of puzzle you prefer, or the amount of time you can devote to playing.