Cinema Lounge Reviews

The highly anticipated RPG video game based on the famous Wizarding World releases this winter (which can’t come quick enough!) and gameplay has already been revealed on the PlayStation State of Play. We’ve been given a 15-minute gameplay video but it’s been a huge insight into what we can expect when the game releases including where we’ll be able to go, who we’ll meet and what adventures we will be going on. So let’s take a look at what exactly this game is all about and what it’s got on offer for us Wizarding World fans.

Before we start talking about the actual gameplay and what we’ll be able to do once the game releases, let’s first take a look at the game’s backstory so we understand what it’s all about. One thing to note is that this is not a Harry Potter video game but is still set inside J.K Rowling’s Wizarding World. The story we all know and love we have nothing to do with Hogwarts Legacy as the game is set in the 1800s years before the Harry Potter name is even mentioned. However, aspects from the Wizarding World will be making an appearance such as familiar locations, magical creatures, spells and more.

Interestingly, our character will be starting Hogwarts late as a fifth-year who has the ability to harness forgotten ancient magic which is the key to stopping a goblin rebellion which threatens to tear apart the Wizarding World. Along our journey, we will be teaming up with Professor Fig whose described as “accomplished yet enigmatic” in the gameplay reveal. From what we saw in the reveal, Professor Fig will be an important companion to our character and will be the one helping us take down the goblin rebellion threat that appears to be led by an evil-looking goblin who is able to use powerful magic of his own.

The Hogwarts Student Experience

Right, let’s get down to the more juicy information that we grasped from the reveal. Before we even set foot inside the famous wizarding school, we get to create the witch or wizard we want to be throughout the game and some theories out suggest that we might also have the power to choose our character’s voice type and dorm placement in our chosen house dormitory. This moves us on perfectly to my next point. During our character’s sorting ceremony, we will have the ability to pick which house we would like to be in whether it’s Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. Hogwarts Legacy will finally be giving us the ultimate Hogwarts student experience we’ve always wanted as we will have to attend classes to learn various spells, recipes and abilities to use during combat and throughout the game. So before you get all Hermoine Grainger and want to take up every class (which I will definitely be doing if possible), the classes that have so far been confirmed to be in the game are Defence Against The Dark Arts, Charms, Potions and Herbology. However, we may see some recognisable faces such as Nearly Headless Nick and Professor Binns teaching what will most likely be History of Magic. Something to note is that because the time era is in the late 1800s this means that most of our professors will not be familiar at all.

Between classes, we are given the freedom to roam the castle and explore all its secrets which will feature hidden puzzles and mysteries to uncover and investigate as well as hidden passageways and dungeons. They will also be additional challenges to complete around the castle grounds to help us catch up to the rest of our class, as we are starting late after all. Though, we will have to be careful what magic we start learning as making the wrong choices could lead us down a darker path. The reason I mention this is that our character was seen performing the infamous killing curse Avada Kedavra.

Talents, Skills and Crafting

The more we complete missions and level up our character, the more talent points we will gain. These points can be used to upgrade or unlock different abilities and skills which we can use throughout our time in the Wizarding World. If you’ve ever played an RPG game before such as Skyrim, Assassins Creed or The Witcher then you might have used something called a skill tree to learn new skills for your character which is what I think this system in Hogwarts Legacy will be like. It’s not confirmed at the moment how our character will learn new skills whether it’s through attending lessons or unlocking them through this talents system. My theory is that we will learn new spells during our Defence Against The Dark Arts and Charms classes but use talent points to upgrade them to be even more powerful.

Like in every other RPG video game on the market, there will also be different types of gear that we can use around the game’s world that we can loot. However, if we can’t find the gear we are looking for then there are always two other options which are either buying them from one of the many stores or merchant stands in the game or crafting it ourselves. To help us through our student life, we have the ability to craft and upgrade our own gear as well as growing and brewing potions and plants to aid us in battle, which even includes a minigame when brewing potions.

The Room of Requirement

A Hogwarts game would not be complete without the famous room of requirement. This unique feature is featured a lot throughout the Harry Potter franchise and acts as a magical room which seems to sense what you need and then provides it for you. This is no different in Hogwarts Legacy as this room will act as a player base which contains crafting benches to craft and upgrade gear, cauldrons to brew potions and potting stations to grow plants. As the player, we can also decide which stands to place in this room to help us progress through our magical studies.

In addition to that, the gameplay reveal shows that a house-elf named Deek is the one who helps us uncover something called vivariums in the room of requirement which allows us to bring out our inner Newt and nurture our own menagerie of magical beasts. If you’re still a little confused about what this space is then imagine Newt’s suitcase but as a greenhouse looking structure. Once inside this space, we are taken to an open land which we are free to customise however we see fit by pacing cottages, plants or other types of outdoor decorations to reflect our personality. When exploring around outside Hogwarts, we may be able to rescue magical beasts which are at risk of poaching and take care of them most likely in our vivarium inside the room of requirement.

Beyond Hogwarts

Outside of our class time, we are able to freely explore the Wizarding World outside Hogwarts which contains many mysteries and secrets waiting to be uncovered. But I know what you’re asking, how are we supposed to travel around this huge open-world? Well, what’s exciting is that there are two forms of transportation which I know all of us will be excited about. The ability to fly broomsticks across the world is confirmed as in the reveal the character is on what appears to be a flying lesson. Although Quidditch, as been hinted at it, is still as of yet not confirmed. As well as that, a shot of the player flying a hippogriff in the skies was shown so maybe we get to have our own Buckbeak to aid us on our travels.

The nearby wizarding village Hogsmeade will also be available to travel to in the game which we will be used to buy all our wizarding supplies from plant seeds, potion ingredients, recipes and more. We can also purchase different outfits to personalise our character. The iconic Wizarding World currency, bronze Knuts, silver Sickles and golden Galleons will be the main form of money for purchasing items at Hogsmeade but it is unclear how we are able to obtain money. One key game mechanic that was shown during the reveal and interested me a lot was that the world around us will be constantly changing with dynamic seasonal weather changes from sun, rain, lightning or snow. The time of day will also change throughout our time so perhaps the world is more dangerous if we adventure out a night (which would be quite cool).