The State of Play for Hogwarts Legacy has just finished its broadcast, and the game is looking as magical as the world it’s based on. Set for launch during the holiday season of 2022, Hogwarts Legacy seeks to tell a new story in the Wizarding World:
In Hogwarts Legacy, players will create their own character through a robust character creator, then enter Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Your character will enter Hogwarts during year 5, which is an oddity in the Harry Potter universe. Why you are able to do this was not really mentioned, but it may have something to do with your character’s ability to wield and manipulate Ancient Magic, an extremely old and mysterious force that works independently of efforts by wizards.
Gameplay in Hogwarts Legacy will mainly involve taking classes to catch up to your peers’ level of knowledge. After being placed in a house during the Sorting Hat ceremony, classes will begin. The standard classes of Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Herbology and Magical Creatures are all present, though with different teachers than you may be used to. However, there will be some familiar faces as well. Some of the ghosts that wander around Hogwarts have been around for hundreds of years, and so players may run into them. Nearly Headless Nick was shown in the gameplay reveal talking once again about joining the Headless Hunt. Many locations will be familiar to fans of the series as well, recreated in loving detail by the development team.
During breaks from your studies, you will be free to explore Hogwarts castle and explore iconic locations. Players will also be able to get their first glimpses of important places that were never really described or shown in the movies such as the Hufflepuff common room. Of course, the castle is filled with secrets too, which will have players solving puzzles to find hidden areas.
One such area is the Room of Requirement, which will be central to the player’s experience in the game. Here, the room senses the needs of the witch or wizard and then provides those needs. Since your character needs to catch up to your peers, the Room of Requirement will provide the player with materials and spaces for making potions, crafting gear, as well as magical aviaries with huge interior spaces for taking care of animals or growing plants. These spaces can even be decorated to your liking with all kinds of different decorations.
Of course Hogwarts isn’t the only place you can explore. Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest and beyond are available to the player to investigate. Players will of course also be able to learn to fly brooms to traverse the open world faster, and footage was also shown of the player character riding a hippogriff as well. These areas will include other villages that have their own quests to do. Seasons will also change throughout the school year as well, with dynamic weather to match. Out in the wilds you can take on corrupted beasts, or save others and nurse them back to health in the Room of Requirement. There are also dungeons to explore with their own secrets to uncover. As you move out into these other areas, players can discover a dangerous alliance between dark wizards and goblins and a plot to harness Ancient Magic which may require your help in order to save the wizarding world.
Since you’ll be coming into contact with dangerous wizards and goblins, you’ll need to know how to defend yourself. Players will be able to use a variety of spells learned in classes to protect themselves and attack their foes. You can use a shield charm to shield yourself from the various blasting curses, stunning spells, enchanted weapons and other abilities of evil witches and wizards, then use your own curses and spells to fight back. Gameplay footage showed the player character picking up barrels and other objects to fling at adversaries, or using accio to grab an enemy and descendo to send them hurtling towards the ground. You can light enemies on fire, freeze them, or harness the Ancient Magic against more powerful foes. It is also hinted that you may be able to go down the dark path yourself by casting the forbidden killing curse.
Spells aren’t the only things you can use to fight either. Potions learned in class can give you an edge in combat, and you can even use plants you grow to help fight your enemies, like a mandrake seedlings which will stun enemies in an area around you. Your spells and skills can also be upgraded through a deep talent system which will allow you to tailor and improve spells to fit your playstyle. You can also loot and craft gear to enhance your chosen magical abilities.
Players won’t have to embark on their journey alone. You’ll also be able to befriend your schoolmates who will then join you on your adventures. Natsai Onai is a brave adventurer that is driven by the justice that she seeks. Poppy Sweeting has a kind heart and gets along better with animals than people. Sebastian Sallow is a charismatic Slytherin with a dark family secret that is always getting into trouble. You can uncover their stories as you spend time and learn about them.
Overall Hogwarts Legacy looks to be an adventure packed with magical moments that you won’t want to miss.
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