Mini Review, this is my first so try to be nice
This review is my personal opinion(s) of the game and may not reflect on other's impressions.
I played on the Series X in Performance mode.
My Wizard is level 35 (Max is 40) and sorted into Slytherin
Clocking in at just over 30 hours I have completed the main story and a good lot of side quests, However I still have a good amount of content to go and didn't expect the open world part of the game to be as big as it is.
Hogwarts Legacy is an action role-playing game set in the wizarding world of Harry Potter, and it allows players to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and create their own character.
In the game, players will explore the Hogwarts castle and grounds, as well as other iconic wizarding world locations, and interact with familiar characters and creatures from the franchise. The game also features magic spells, potion-making, and dueling mechanics, allowing players to experience life as a wizard and discover the hidden secrets of Hogwarts
The game has immersive world-building and the chance to experience life at Hogwarts. The graphics and attention to detail in the Hogwarts castle and surrounding areas are impressive, and the opportunity to attend classes and learn spells adds an extra layer of immersion to the game.
What I liked:
The combat is one of my favorite parts of the game, dueling is very enjoyable and you can mix it up with the spells your learn from your teachers, with a lot of them having combinations for very strong attacks. There is a good amount of enemy variety with multiple ways to dealing with them. However there is a negative which I will talk about later.
You also have an additional power called 'ancient magic' which has its own meter, and is drained each time you cast it 'TONS OF DAMAGE'. This is also enhanced to allow you to cast more with challenges in the open world.
Exploration, as I said this game is huge and goes further into the areas around Hogwarts which is never really detailed or shown in the movies or books. The forbidden forest is present but its only a small area compared to the rest.
You will be going through multiple hamlets, visiting the famous town of Hogsmeade, taking out bandit/poacher camps and other little mini games to help your character grow.
You are able to freely travel around on a broom, Flying mount, and eventually land mount.
Transmog, from the get go, everything you collect is immediately available for you to transmog over your currently equipped gear, giving you plenty of freedom to mold your Witch or Wizards look into your liking.
The Wizard field guide, is a book given to you at the beginning of the game, it records all of your progress, the games map, enemy variants (shows what spells can work for extra damage), the map and talent trees. The talent system itself isn't anything to special other than enhancing your existing spells, potions etc.
You are not forced to be good or bad, there are no repercussions of what kind of Wizard or Witch you want to be - if I want to cast dark spells I will.
One cool little addition was where the enemy NPC'S would make subtle nods about my play style, there were multiple times where they would taunt me about using dark magic or a certain spell I used often than others in a fight.
The Room of Requirement, is a nice little hub where you can grow various ingredients to help you make your potions, it also adds smaller rooms where you can house the bests you collect, nurturing these beasts allow you to then use there Feathers or strands of hair to upgrade your gear or lock in extra damage or afflictions from your spells ( I however did not use the upgrades for my gear as I was constantly replacing it and thought it was just a waste of resources).
The in-between:
The story was ok, a nice edition to the wider world but the gameplay was the main joy for me.
However the side missions are a plenty in the open world which is appreciated,
The characters are ok too. I do give props to the Slytherin companions story line, it was excellent from start to finish and the character building for that particular person was well done.
What I didn't like:
The performance can at times be jittery, especially when exploring the castle. Running around the corridors of Hogwarts is very much appreciated in the fidelity or fidelity with ray tracing, its stunning and hopefully a few more patches can help it be a bit more stable.
The exclusive Playstation misson, apparently this is only a year long wait, but without DLC or Expansion, it could become next to useless.
It is also one of the best side missions and you will receive increased sell costs for gear you are no longer using.
The negative side of combat. there are so many spells to choose from, you have to rely on hot swapping them all the time. You can unlock more to add into your rotation ( 4 is the max per bar) but while in the middle of combat this can get a bit daunting and can easily lose a good combo.
Without upgrades, you can only hold about 20 or so pieces of gear before you cant pick up anymore and are forced to sell. You must travel to a vendor to sell, which usually means opening your map to fast travel to a Hamlet or Hogsmeade, breaking your flow of exploration.
No Quidditch
Final Verdict:
Overall, this game is a must play for fans. Even if you aren't a fan of the franchise there is something for everyone here.
I believe this will be a GOTY contender. I praise the developers for creating a world that many have been wanting to experience for nearly 20 years and the controversy surrounding this title has not soured my experience.
I hope we can expect more in terms of DLC, this is a solid foundation to build upon!
I score this a solid 8.5/10!
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