For Dedicated Franchise Experts Only - A Review of Hogwarts Legacy

Hogwarts Legacy is an action role-playing game inspired by the legendary Harry Potter novel series. It was developed by Avalanche Software and published by Warner Brothers Games throughout the year 2023. This game is now available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.

The story is set in the late nineteenth century and follows a student in fifth year who attends Hogwarts for the very first time. The protagonist attends classes, makes friends, explores locations and solves numerous main and side challenges. The main purpose of the juvenile character is to use an ancient magic to protect the secretive wizarding world from a mysterious danger.

This video game convinces on several levels. The settings have been crafted with detail, patience and precision as they should appeal to fans of the novels and the movie series alike. The different characters have depth and are intriguing to discover. The possibility for players to create their very own protagonist is a wonderful idea. The challenges and quests throughout the video game are initially diversified, entertaining and surprising. The vast game map offers much to discover for patient players dedicated to the franchise. The graphics look stunning, the sounds are realistic and the soundtrack is entertaining as well.

However, this game isn't without several flaws. The different challenges and quests end up being somewhat repetitive after a few hours only, making players travel from one side of the map to another in order to meet a new character or to get access to a new object. Even though it's possible to travel quickly in this game, the aforementioned downside still remains dull and uninspiring. The video game's main story line is also not compelling enough to keep players interested throughout. While the exposition is truly intriguing, the rising action of this game is everything but exciting as the game quickly starts to drag along. This video game also confuses players when matching a setting about one and a half centuries ago with contemporary societal issues. One option or the other would have been interesting but combining both feels like a complete mismatch.

At the end of the day, Hogwarts Legacy is a decent action role-playing game but has overall been overrated by critics and fans alike. I would only recommend this game to dedicated fans of the Harry Potter franchise who are either familiar with all the novels or all the movies or possibly even both. Occasional or new fans won't find much to enjoy after a few hours of playing time. Even dedicated fans should purchase this game at a reduced price rather than spending a lot of money on it. Passionate fans will ultimately appreciate wonderful settings, fascinating characters and numerous challenges. One should however also be aware of the game's significant downsides such as an unimpressive story, quickly repetitive quests and a confusing mismatch of contemporary issues and past settings.

Detailed rating:

Atmosphere: 8 / 10
Challenge level: 6 / 10
Controls: 7 / 10
Game flow: 6 / 10
Graphics: 9 / 10
Length: 9 / 10
Long-term fun factor: 6 / 10
Sound: 8 / 10
Soundtrack: 7 / 10
Story: 5 / 10 

Total score: 71  / 100