With the seventh film (part 1) due out this November, Harry Potter fever, it seems, is starting to ramp up considerably. We have the Harry Potter the game of the movie due out soon, and whilst I'm unsure of his jump to a FPS cover-system, the recent release of Lego Harry Potter caught my eye.
I've always been a fan of the Lego game series, snapping up all three Star Wars games and the Indiana Jones one, (just don't mention the Batman version to me!) clocking up a consider amount of hours unlocking every brick, stud and character available. It's quite an addictive formula, so it came as no surprise that the rules are pretty much the same here. Break and shoot everything in sight, which drop studs (Lego coins) for you to use to buy more characters, spells and extras.
As usual, the game takes it's own view on how the events transpired at Hogwarts, making it a light-hearted adventure.
The controls are pretty simple to use. Right-thumbstick moves, left-thumbstick aims the wand cursor. Tap 'A' to jump,0 'X' to shoot, and 'B' to fire the selected spell from the turn-wheel around your character portrait. Holding down 'X' allows you to cast the most appropriate spell for what your wand cursor is hovering over. This is handy for times when you don't want to be switching spells back and forwards constantly, like when you have swarms of enemies coming at you.
Left and right triggers switch between spells on your spell turn-wheel. Tapping 'Y' allows you to switch characters (there are always two characters available, sometimes three or four) and holding down 'Y' brings up a larger version of the spell turn-wheel. Pressing the left and right bumpers have different uses depending on your game mode. In Free-Play mode (Free-Play being where you used the characters you'd unlocked) they allow you to flick between the available unlocked characters you have, enabling you to solve every puzzle in the chapter. In Story mode and whilst roaming the castle, they act like the left and right triggers, moving you around the spell turnwheel.
Like its predecessors, a lot of the puzzles revolve around you requiring an ability that either only your character can do, or a spell you need to learn.
For instance, there are many spots in the game that need to be "dug up". This is usually done using Hagrid 's enormous Boarhound 'Fang' or later in the game, Hermione's pet Cat 'Crookshanks'.
As for learning new spells, these occur inbetween the main plot chapters, learning a couple each year. For instance, you learn 'Lumos' (bright light at the end of your wand) in the first year, and 'Expecto Patronus' (for beating back Dementors) during Harry's third year.
One of the main differences however is how the levels are laid out. In previous Lego games, each movie in the series is split up into six chapters which are arranged around a central hub. You could move between each portal, selecting Story mode or Free-Play mode as you saw fit.
In this version of the franchise however, each movie plays through much more linearly, with lessons and cut scenes being played out in-between.
Far from being a bad thing though, this does extend the game time from the usual 25-30hrs to about 35-40hrs of gameplay. The castle is quite big, with many of the big locations from the films and books included. There's the Great Hall, Hospital wing, Quidditch field and all four house common rooms to explore just to name a few.
Like the other Lego games, there is quite a fluid co-op mode available too, with its drop-in/drop-out making it quick and simple so play with a mate. No need to save the game and head back to the main screen. Just have them grab a controller and hit start.
All the time you spend collecting every brick, unlocking every character, and picking up every stud however, doesn't even count the amount of time you'll spend in the other little feature they dropped in - the level builder.
Heading into Gringotts Bank, down Daigon Alley, you'll find amongst all the vaults the level builder option. There are a set of tutorials to get you started but once you've gotten through them then the world truly is your oyster. You have the ability to pretty much create whatever you want. You can place vehicles, trees, creatures, and puzzle pieces.. You can build houses, roads and you can even raise and lower the landscape. You get to distribute every last stud too, making it quite an expansive feature.
My only gripe with the game is how hard it is to switch characters when not playing when of the free-play chapters. Whilst roaming the castle searching for the hidden extras, I constantly had to keep heading off to find the nearest Polyjuice Potion Cauldron to switch characters. On one occasion I took my new Dark Magic enabled character down through a new secret area, only to discover I needed a goblin to open one of the vaults I'd found. Two minutes later, after opening said vault, I realised I needed Harry back to get past a 'Parselmouth' puzzle.
Luckily though, these moments were quite rare so it didn't take too much away from the enjoyment of the game.
Overall it's a well made, well polished game. If you're looking for something to chill out to, inbetween Singularity and Crackdown 2, then this is definately the game for you.
9/10
Pro's - Goodly Griffindor!
Easy pick-up and play controls.
Intuitive aiming system.
Plenty of hours gaming.
Co-op mode.
Level-builder for extra fun.
Con's - Evil Slytherin.
Frustrating switching characters outside of Free-Play.
Not always easy to see where you're jumping from the view, can cause annoying deaths.
Collecting every item can get tedious after awhile.
I've always been a fan of the Lego game series, snapping up all three Star Wars games and the Indiana Jones one, (just don't mention the Batman version to me!) clocking up a consider amount of hours unlocking every brick, stud and character available. It's quite an addictive formula, so it came as no surprise that the rules are pretty much the same here. Break and shoot everything in sight, which drop studs (Lego coins) for you to use to buy more characters, spells and extras.
As usual, the game takes it's own view on how the events transpired at Hogwarts, making it a light-hearted adventure.
The controls are pretty simple to use. Right-thumbstick moves, left-thumbstick aims the wand cursor. Tap 'A' to jump,0 'X' to shoot, and 'B' to fire the selected spell from the turn-wheel around your character portrait. Holding down 'X' allows you to cast the most appropriate spell for what your wand cursor is hovering over. This is handy for times when you don't want to be switching spells back and forwards constantly, like when you have swarms of enemies coming at you.Left and right triggers switch between spells on your spell turn-wheel. Tapping 'Y' allows you to switch characters (there are always two characters available, sometimes three or four) and holding down 'Y' brings up a larger version of the spell turn-wheel. Pressing the left and right bumpers have different uses depending on your game mode. In Free-Play mode (Free-Play being where you used the characters you'd unlocked) they allow you to flick between the available unlocked characters you have, enabling you to solve every puzzle in the chapter. In Story mode and whilst roaming the castle, they act like the left and right triggers, moving you around the spell turnwheel.
Like its predecessors, a lot of the puzzles revolve around you requiring an ability that either only your character can do, or a spell you need to learn.
For instance, there are many spots in the game that need to be "dug up". This is usually done using Hagrid 's enormous Boarhound 'Fang' or later in the game, Hermione's pet Cat 'Crookshanks'.
As for learning new spells, these occur inbetween the main plot chapters, learning a couple each year. For instance, you learn 'Lumos' (bright light at the end of your wand) in the first year, and 'Expecto Patronus' (for beating back Dementors) during Harry's third year.
In this version of the franchise however, each movie plays through much more linearly, with lessons and cut scenes being played out in-between.
Far from being a bad thing though, this does extend the game time from the usual 25-30hrs to about 35-40hrs of gameplay. The castle is quite big, with many of the big locations from the films and books included. There's the Great Hall, Hospital wing, Quidditch field and all four house common rooms to explore just to name a few.
Like the other Lego games, there is quite a fluid co-op mode available too, with its drop-in/drop-out making it quick and simple so play with a mate. No need to save the game and head back to the main screen. Just have them grab a controller and hit start.
All the time you spend collecting every brick, unlocking every character, and picking up every stud however, doesn't even count the amount of time you'll spend in the other little feature they dropped in - the level builder.
Heading into Gringotts Bank, down Daigon Alley, you'll find amongst all the vaults the level builder option. There are a set of tutorials to get you started but once you've gotten through them then the world truly is your oyster. You have the ability to pretty much create whatever you want. You can place vehicles, trees, creatures, and puzzle pieces.. You can build houses, roads and you can even raise and lower the landscape. You get to distribute every last stud too, making it quite an expansive feature.
Luckily though, these moments were quite rare so it didn't take too much away from the enjoyment of the game.
Overall it's a well made, well polished game. If you're looking for something to chill out to, inbetween Singularity and Crackdown 2, then this is definately the game for you.
9/10
Pro's - Goodly Griffindor!
Easy pick-up and play controls.
Intuitive aiming system.
Plenty of hours gaming.
Co-op mode.
Level-builder for extra fun.
Con's - Evil Slytherin.
Frustrating switching characters outside of Free-Play.
Not always easy to see where you're jumping from the view, can cause annoying deaths.
Collecting every item can get tedious after awhile.