The main thing to keep in mind is that a lot of these mechanics are streamlined. I found myself fighting Hogwarts Legacy at points, but then settling into the sometimes wonky game systems. It also has some bog standard open world concepts, like Detective Vision (cloaked as the Revelio revealing spell), a light stealth system that often doesn’t justify its existence, a map filled to the brim with pins that can be a pain to navigate, and a very strange gear/equipment system that has a limited amount of slots (tying more inventory space to a questline). It’s a really clever choice that pays off. The 1890s time period helps, as they can weave in familiar names like “Weasley,” while creating their own signature stamp on this particular world. The world has a heavy synergy with the films in a good way (chiefly from the refrains of John Williams’ soundtrack), without being too cloying. And of course, Hogwarts, with expansive detail. The music, presentation, and myriad lore bits really make it. It’s wrapped in a flawed open world shell, but that game came all the same, and a lot of people will likely want to experience it. If you’ve been waiting for a Harry Potter game though, this is it. With help, they’ve discovered the secret sauce that helps a lot of open world games stand out above the crowd, but also succumbed to a lot of tropes and backed themselves into a corner that begs for some quality of life patches. Disney Infinity was certainly on the cusp of it, but was mostly a sandbox-driven experience: this is something else.
Although they had a lot of help with the development of Hogwarts Legacy from satellite studios, it’s fascinating to see Avalanche Software in this position, making an expansive open world project.
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