Hogwarts Legacy

Hogwarts Legacy delivers a detail-rich world steeped in Harry Potter lore with satisfying spells, exploration, and combat, though it plays better on consoles than on PC.

Though the game does capture the magic in terms of its look and feel, elements like learning spells, potion making and side quests come off as too formulaic and somewhat compromise the feeling the setting aims to portray. Hogwarts, though, is an absolute triumph, one that will easily keep players exploring to find every secret. Hogwarts Legacy isn’t perfect, but it’s successful in capturing the magic of the franchise and setting a solid foundation for any future games set in the Wizarding World. Hogwarts Legacy thankfully follows in the footsteps of Harry Potter, not Fantastic Beasts.

What could've been a pure moment of celebration for a series that's overdue for a great videogame is complicated by the fact that its success is a win for JK Rowling, and all the bad feelings associated with the desire to play the cool new wizard RPG.

There’s a direct correlation between how open Rowling becomes about her bigotry, and how flat and heartless Wizarding World media becomes. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. I think it’s because LGBTQIA+ people and genuine allies are some of the best creative minds in the world, and these films and this game were made largely without them.

And some of the game systems are more successful than others; a flood of useless low-quality gear rewards is one notable, if minor problem that sometimes stalls the fun. But for those who have long wished for a rich interactive playground to live out your own Harry Potter fantasy, Hogwarts Legacy casts an incredibly mesmerizing spell.

Hogwarts Legacy is a sometimes unremarkable open world game that’s severely uplifted by its dedication to the best parts of the source material. It’s one of the most atmospheric IP-based games I’ve ever played, which makes it all the stranger that a lot of the mechanical foundation feels like it’s from the late 2000s.

Hogwarts Legacy is filled with so many mechanics that nothing feels arbitrary, with so much joy to be found within its story and spell books.

In nearly every way, Hogwarts Legacy is the Harry Potter RPG I’ve always wanted to play. Its open-world adventure captures all the excitement and wonder of the Wizarding World with its memorable new characters, challenging and nuanced combat, and a wonderfully executed Hogwarts student fantasy that kept me glued to my controller for dozens of hours.