Hogwarts Legacy | |
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Developer(s) | Avalanche Software[a] |
Publisher(s) | Warner Bros. Games[b] |
Director(s) | Alan Tew |
Producer(s) | James Cabrera |
Artist(s) | Jeff Bunker |
Writer(s) |
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Composer(s) | |
Series | Wizarding World |
Engine | Unreal Engine 4 |
Platform(s) | |
Release |
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Genre(s) | Action role-playing |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Hogwarts Legacy is a 2023 action role-playing game developed by Avalanche Software and published by Warner Bros. Games under its Portkey Games label. The game is set in the Wizarding World universe, based on the Harry Potter novels, and was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X/S in 2023. It is scheduled for release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch later in 2023.
Taking place before the events of the novels, in the late 1800s, the player controls a student at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry who learns to wield different magical abilities and objects, aided by other students and professors. Hogwarts Legacy is Avalanche's first release since their acquisition by Warner Bros. in 2017. Development began in 2018, while pre-release gameplay footage was leaked onto the internet in the same year. Officially announced in 2020, the game was subject to delays, first to 2022 and later to its final release date on 10 February 2023.
Before release, the game attracted controversy due to the views on transgender people held by the Harry Potter creator J. K. Rowling and allegations that the game included antisemitic tropes, leading to calls for a boycott. The early access of the game led to record-breaking concurrent viewers on streaming platform Twitch, making Hogwarts Legacy the most-watched single-player game of all time. The game received generally favourable reviews from critics, with praise for the combat, world design, and characters, and criticism for its side missions and technical problems.
Hogwarts Legacy is an action role-playing game in which players are able to attend classes at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Players can explore locations from the Wizarding World franchise, such as the Forbidden Forest, Diagon Alley, and Hogsmeade.[2] Other areas as yet unseen visually in other media include the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw common rooms.[3] Progressing through the game sees the interior and exterior of the castle change visually to match the seasons.[4]
During character creation, the player can choose their appearance, gender, and one of the four Hogwarts Houses. Players may customise their character's voice and body type, and add accessories such as glasses in character creation.[5][6] Level progression allows the player to access and upgrade different spells, talents, and abilities. Through in-game challenges, the player character gains experience points to gain levels. These challenges come in the form of combat, quests, exploration, field guide pages, and the Room of Requirement. While house points for the four Hogwarts houses play a part in the game's plot, they are not influenced by player actions.[6] The game features environmental customisation elements; players can modify the Room of Requirement as they level up through the game.[7]
The player character learns to cast various magical spells, brew potions and master combat abilities. As players progress, they develop their own special combat style.[8] While attending classes does advance gameplay mechanics, such spell learnings are not a scheduled gameplay element in itself. Classes will be attended as part of plot development milestones.[6] Players can acquire combat items, either through trading or crafting, which may be used to harm enemies or apply buffs to the player. Players will be able to tame, care for, and ride different magical beasts, including hippogriffs and thestrals. Dragons, trolls, acromantulas, graphorns, mooncalves, fwoopers, kneazles, and nifflers are other interactable magical creatures. Some creatures can be used in combat, such as the use of mandrakes to stun enemies.[9]
Player characters can establish friendships with interactable non-player characters. As these relationships grow, schoolmates become companions who can accompany players on their journey, expand their abilities, and offer unique dialogue options as players learn their stories.[10]
Hogwarts Legacy is set in the late 1800s and follows a student (voiced by Sebastian Croft or Amelia Gething) starting at Hogwarts as the protagonist in the fifth year.[11] As the protagonist starts at the school later than other students, the Ministry of Magic provides a wizard field guide. Completing sections of this guide through exploration provides additional information and experience points.[6] The player character, who holds the key to an "ancient secret that threatens to tear the wizarding world apart", is capable of manipulating a mysterious ancient magic, and will need to help uncover why this forgotten magic has suddenly made a resurgence and the ones that are simultaneously trying to harness it.[4]
The new character Professor Eleazar Fig acts as a mentor figure to the protagonist. Other new characters include Hogwarts students Amit Thakkar (Asif Ali), Everett Clopton (Luke Youngblood), Professors Onai (Kandace Caine) Shah (Sohm Kapila) and Phineas Nigellus Black (Simon Pegg) as well as Professor Matilda Weasley (Lesley Nicol). The protagonist is also able to build friendships with fellow students Natsai Onai, Poppy Sweeting and Sebastian Sallow, who take part in the protagonist's journey as companion characters.[12] Antagonists featured in the game include Ranrok, the leader of the Goblin Rebellion, and Victor Rookwood, the leader of a group of Dark Wizards.[13]
The protagonist receives a letter from Professor Weasley, containing the confirmation of attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, while naming Professor Fig as the protagonist's mentor. Fig escorts the protagonist from London to Hogwarts via a flying coach. While discussing an unknown artifact, a dragon attacks them. The dragon rips the coach apart, and Fig and the protagonist drop out of it. Fig uses a spell to reach the key that was inside the artifact and when doing so, it turns out to be a Portkey able to teleport to Gringotts. Using the key to enter an old vault, the protagonist learns they can see ancient magic and is confronted by goblin Ranrok. Fig and the protagonist escape the goblin, and the protagonist begins their term at Hogwarts.
Piece by piece, the protagonist learns various spells during classes, while also exploring Hogwarts, Hogsmeade and outer regions with companions, Sebastian Sallow and Natsai Onai. Meanwhile, Professor Fig is investigating the secrets of ancient magic, supported by the protagonist. They ultimately discover a secret, ancient chamber below Hogwarts, the map chamber, where four Keepers—talking portraits of past Hogwarts staff guard the secrets of ancient magic from the wider world. The protagonist learns that a previous professor, Isidora Morganach, disagreed with the Keepers on hiding ancient magic, leaving a repository of power that Ranrok is attempting to find, as he wishes for goblins to rise up against the wizarding world. A group of dark wizards, led by Victor Rookwood, collaborates with Ranrok to support the latter's rebellion.
In order to reveal the secrets of ancient magic, the protagonist needs to complete four trials, held by the map chamber's keepers. To successfully pass the trials, the protagonist has to overcome dangerous tasks and puzzles. The end of each trial leads to a “pensieve”, a magical device to store and review memories. By using it, the protagonist gains access to the memories of the four keepers, learning about their history regarding ancient magic and connection to Isidora Morganach. Isidora used ancient magic in an attempt to extract negative emotions, particularly from her suffering father. The keepers noticed that Isidora's father not only lost negative emotions but all of them. Once they found out Isidora used this practise on students, all four of the keepers attempted to stop her but fail to do so. With no alternative in sight, one of the keepers ultimately used the killing curse to eliminate Isidora. After that, the keepers decided to keep the repository a secret. As the protagonist completed all trials, they receive one final task: to create a special type of magic wand consisting of the artefacts found at the "pensieves".
Professor Fig sends the protagonist to Ollivander in order to craft the Keeper's wand. As the protagonist leaves Ollivander's, they get ambushed by Victor Rookwood. Rookwood proposes an alliance against the goblins, but the protagonist refuses, which results in a battle, in which the protagonist manages to defeat Rookwood. Shortly after, Ranrok eventually locates Isidora's repository and “frees” the ancient power, then absorbs it to turn himself into a dragon. After a battle between Ranrok and the protagonist, the protagonist ends the goblin rebellion by beating Ranrok, and must decide whether to keep the Keepers' secret or reveal the existence of ancient magic by taking the power. Regardless of the choice made, Fig is mortally wounded during the battle and dies shortly after the battle is won. Professors Black and Weasley hold a eulogy in honour of Fig, with the protagonist being present. Afterwards, the protagonist returns to finish regular school studies, as the end of the school year is leading to the O.W.L. exams. The journey ends with Professor Weasley awarding the protagonist points for the extraordinary adventure, which ultimately leads to a win of the House Cup for their respective House.
The game was developed by Avalanche Software, which was acquired by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment from Disney in January 2017.[14][15] In the same year, Warner Bros. established a new publishing label named Portkey Games, which was dedicated to managing the Wizarding World license.[16] The Harry Potter creator J. K. Rowling was not involved in development.[17] Five years in the making, experts estimate Hogwarts Legacy's budget at $150 million.[18]
The game uses the Unreal Engine.[19] Gameplay footage leaked in 2018.[20] Hogwarts Legacy was announced at a PlayStation 5 event in September 2020, with a planned release for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in 2021.[21] It was delayed twice, first to 2022, and later to 10 February 2023. The primary voice cast for the game was announced on 12 January 2023.[22][23] Its PS4 and Xbox One versions were delayed from its February 2023 launch to April.[24] A Nintendo Switch port is scheduled for release on 25 July 2023.[24] Early access was made available to people who had pre-ordered the game's physical Collector's Edition or Digital Deluxe Edition on console or PC on 7 February 2023.[25]
Hogwarts Legacy features changing music based on the location of the player character, as they move through the open world, with notable differences within specific common rooms that can only be accessed by players who choose each corresponding school house.[6]
By joining the Harry Potter Fan Club and linking the WB Games account, players are able to receive free cosmetic items.[26] PlayStation versions of the game include "The Haunted Hogsmeade Shop" as exclusive content and the recipe for the "Felix Felicis" potion as a pre-order exclusive. The former consists of an additional dungeon, cosmetic set and the feature of owning an in-game shop, while the latter allows you to reveal gear chests on the map.[27] Accompanied by the launch of Hogwarts Legacy, the Dark Arts Pack was released as either a part of the Deluxe and Collector's editions or as downloadable content (DLC) for users of the regular edition. The DLC consists of an exclusive mount, a clothing set and a new battle arena location. The Dark Arts Battle Arena expands the two available battle arenas available in the base game.[28][29] Since the early access release on 7 February 2023 up until 24 February 2023, players are able to receive five free cosmetic items exclusively through Twitch drops.[30][31]
In February 2023, shortly after the release, game director Alan Tew stated that the team focused on the launch only and did not plan to release additional content yet.[32]
Aggregator | Score |
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Metacritic | (PC) 83/100[33] (PS5) 84/100[34] (XSXS) 90/100[35] |
Publication | Score |
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Destructoid | 7/10[36] |
Digital Trends | [37] |
Game Informer | 9/10[38] |
GameRevolution | 6/10[39] |
GamesRadar+ | [40] |
IGN | 9/10[41] |
NME | [42] |
PC Gamer (US) | 83/100[43] |
PCGamesN | 7/10[44] |
Push Square | 8/10[45] |
The Guardian | [46] |
Video Games Chronicle | [47] |
The game made several lists of the most anticipated games of 2023: CNET,[48] CNN,[49] Den of Geek,[50] GameSpot,[51] IGN,[52] PC Games,[53] NPR,[54] Polygon,[55] Time,[56] VentureBeat,[57] and VG247.[58]
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According to review aggregator Metacritic, Hogwarts Legacy received "generally favourable" reviews for its PC and PlayStation 5 versions,[33][34] and "universal acclaim" for its Xbox Series X version.[35]
IGN praised the various student and professor characters as "memorable" and "indispensable", saying that they overcome the weakness of the main storyline and technical performance to provide the "Hogwarts fantasy".[59] Eurogamer lauded the loving attention to detail, as it motivates the player to explore the world. They also highlighted the atmospheric music and noted some quests and puzzles as impressive and entertaining. Among other things, the criticism went towards technical imperfections, noticing shading issues and the character's facial expressions to be stiff.[60] Game Informer named the game a "must play" and highlighted the "uniformly excellent dialogue and voice acting" while describing the musical score as a standout. Combat in Hogwarts Legacy is exciting overall, but the enemy variety is lacking once you progress further in the game.[61] GameSpot positively noted the design and exploration elements of Hogwarts Castle and described the combat and its spells as worked out "with a great sense of power". Criticism was aimed toward the spell-switching, uninteresting enemies, and too many layers of systems.[62]
PC Gamer liked the Legacy's take on Wizard Duels, but wrote that the game could have used some more technical polish, stating: "Most noticeable are the brief, yet frequent pauses at the doors of Hogwarts while the game is loading whatever's on the other side".[43] PCGamesN enjoyed the puzzles and mysteries of Hogwarts, but felt the game fell short when it came to the side quests, describing them as "just simple fetch jobs, with a few enemies to slay on the way".[44]
During its early access, Hogwarts Legacy reached a peak of over 489,000 concurrent players on Steam, becoming the second-highest player count peak for any single-player game, behind only Cyberpunk 2077.[63][64] After its release, the game almost doubled its concurrent player record during release weekend, peaking at over 879,000 players. The game has the eighth-highest concurrent player peak ever.[65][66] Due to Steam's rules on separating pre-orders and official releases, Hogwarts Legacy occupied the first four spots on the platform's sales chart at some point during its first week of release.[67][68][69] On Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, Hogwarts Legacy placed atop of the console's sales charts before its official launch.[70]
Overall, experts estimate the game to sell at least 10 million copies, while also speculating that Hogwarts Legacy will be an opportunity to re-brand the franchise.[71] In the UK, the game became the biggest launch of any Harry Potter video game.[72] In Japan, Hogwarts Legacy debuted atop the software sales chart, with the PlayStation 5 version selling 67,196 physical copies.[73]
Following the release of the first gameplay trailer in March 2022, the game received criticism for basing it in the Goblin Rebellion era of the Wizarding World history with the game's storyline focusing on the player suppressing a goblin rebellion. The Wizarding World lore surrounding goblins has often been accused of being based on antisemitic tropes.[74] The criticism stemmed from the belief that the game's core message was that the minority goblin group should be considered the enemy for rebelling against their oppressor and fighting for freedom and equal rights.[75][76] According to The Mary Sue, the central plot-line was compared by some social media users to the antisemitic blood libel myth, in which Jews steal and murder children to use their blood in rituals.[77]
However, the portrayal of goblins in both the game and the larger Harry Potter universe has been defended by some, including the non-governmental organisation Campaign Against Antisemitism, which released a statement saying that "the portrayal of the goblins in the Harry Potter series is of a piece with their portrayal in Western literature as a whole and is a testament more to centuries of Christendom's antisemitism than it is to malice by contemporary artists. So it is with JK Rowling, who has proven herself over recent years to be a tireless defender of the Jewish community." Travis Northup, writing for IGN, disagreed that the game involved antisemitic tropes, writing on Twitter: "The story does not depict a cabal of bank-controlling goblins trying to take over the world. It's about one particular goblin rebelling against the Wizarding World's insistence on keeping magic out of the hands of their kind."[78] Comedian and political commentator Jon Stewart, who previously gave the impression to some he was supporting the accusations, clarified that he is "not accusing J. K. Rowling of being antisemitic".[79]
Hogwarts Legacy became a subject of contention in response to Rowling's controversial views on transgender people.[80][81] Many in opposition to Rowling called for a boycott of the game as a means of showing solidarity with the transgender community,[82] and to impede the financial benefits she would receive from its release in the form of royalty payments.[83][84][85] Others, including some within the LGBT community, felt that Hogwarts Legacy could be separated from the views of its universe's creator.[82][84] As a result of the controversy, some publications chose not to cover or review Hogwarts Legacy,[84][85] while forum website ResetEra banned any discussion of it.[86][87] In response to the controversy as well as the alleged antisemitic tropes, Wired reviewed the game but gave it a 1/10 score, stating that it was "mid at best, and its real-world harms are impossible to ignore".[88] Several weeks before launch, actor Sebastian Croft, who voices a character in the game, distanced himself from Rowling's views.[82][84] Transgender YouTuber Jessie Earl wrote that those on both sides of the debate should examine its complexities and come to their own conclusions. She felt that while it was not wrong to want to play Hogwarts Legacy, those who did should not claim to be supportive of the trans community.[89]
Avalanche and Warner Bros. denied Rowling's involvement in the game's development. The team also introduced a trans-inclusive character creator and the franchise's first transgender character, Sirona Ryan. Responding to the controversy, the studio added that "the team felt that it was very important to create a game that is representative of the rich and diverse world of Harry Potter as well as the groups of people who play games, which includes the LGBTQIA+ community."[90] Ryan's inclusion in the game was dismissed by some gamers and observers as being insincere. Developers associated with Hogwarts Legacy also reportedly stated that Ryan was "performative nothingness made to muddy the waters and deflect criticism".[91]
Prior to the game's release, a page was set up specifically targeting Twitch streamers who play Hogwarts Legacy. The web tool filtered accounts streaming the game and encouraged people to invade those livestreams, resulting in the harassment of some. The page was taken down shortly after.[92][93] Following Hogwarts Legacy's early access release on 7 February 2023, some content creators and streamers were criticised and harassed by others opposed to Rowling's views for promoting and broadcasting the game.[85][94] Despite the efforts to boycott the game, its viewership on live-streaming service Twitch peaked at a record-breaking 1.27 million concurrent viewers on 7 February. This made Hogwarts Legacy the most-watched single-player game of all time by peak viewers on the platform.[95][96]
In February 2021, a series of social media posts and videos published by Avalanche Software and Hogwarts Legacy lead designer Troy Leavitt, which included expressing support for cultural appropriation and Gamergate, received widespread criticism.[97] Following the controversy surrounding his social media activity, Leavitt left Avalanche Software and the Hogwarts Legacy project; he said that this was unrelated to the controversy. Warner Bros. declined to comment.[97][98][99]
Hogwarts Legacy was nominated for "Most Anticipated Game" at the Game Awards 2022 and for "Most Wanted Game" at the Golden Joystick Awards 2022 but both times lost to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.[100][101]
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