I love me some Harry Potter. I’ve read all the books at least a dozen times each, I have seen the movies, I’ve attended some of the midnight dress parties, and I even played the PC games that came out right as the first two movies were being released. Although, when it comes to the games, I wish I hadn’t. Let’s face it, Harry Potter is one of the biggest media franchises in the world, but the video games suck. Bad. The games produced, so far, are all just poor carbon copies of the movies, without any real thought or substance, and while you could sit down and play them*, watching the movies, reading the books, or even reading the Wikipedia articles would be more entertaining than playing those games. Until now…
*not recommended
To put all the cards on the table, this game looks awesome. Taking the Lego formula and mixing it with the easy-to-get-lost-in, very enjoyable, and super-well-known “Harry Potter World” just makes sense. Usually at this point a brief plot synopsis would catch you up on what stands to take place in this game, but chances are you already know the story, so let’s skip the BS shall we? Here’s what matters;
- Of course you play as Harry Potter! It’s named after him for cryin’ out loud, but what if playing as the title character isn’t good enough for you? Do adding Ron and Hermione to the equation help? No? Ok… how do over 100 playable characters sound? Not bad right? Everyone, from the aforementioned ‘Big Three’ to Scabbers the rat, is reportedly available for you to commit some magical mayhem with. (Quite a few of which have some character unique ability to help solve the myriad of puzzles in store).
- The main setting of the game is at the castle Hogwarts, and does it look extensive. In a world of magic, damn near everything should be moving, and in ‘Lego HP’ it looks like damn near everything does. Furniture, walls, and of course the magical moving paintings. It’s all interactive, and can be manipulated, destroyed, or built by you. The castle is going to be your main area of residence in this game, but there is also Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade which you will be able to run around and destroy all look like they have many secrets just waiting to be revealed as well.
If you’ve played any previous Lego title before this next point isn’t going to come as a surprise…
- The developers have made it a point in every game so far to make it not only fun, but funny. And it looks like they’ve succeeded in this one as well. The semi-parody format that worked so well in Star Wars, Batman, and Indie is back in full force in this game too. Everyone should be able to find something to laugh at in this game; whether you read “The New Yorker” or still rock “Ren and Stimpy” every now and then. There is humor for everyone, even the dudes out there that are still giggling because I said the word “semi”.
From what I can see, this game has all the right ingredients thrown together. The essence of Harry Potter, the skin of Lego, and a pinch of humor all brewing together in a potion that I hope will be one hell of a good time.
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Glad to know there are so many characters in the game!