Harriet Potter - A game changer?

The success is deserved IMO. It really is a wonderful game, one of my favorite games I have played in recent times. I would say its under-rated when you check the average score on Metacritic. This is coming from someone who has no interest in the Harry Potter universe at all.

The game is full of little surprises. Was roaming a field last night and spotted an archway. So I passed under it and a huge hedge maze spouted out from the ground. Traversed the maze for a hidden treasure chest.

Lots of little attentions to detail and interesting things to stumble across.

I've said it before and I will say it again, but Hogwarts Castle is the most stunningly huge environment that I have ever explored in a video game. The attention to detail in the architecture and how each room is decorated is truly exceptional. I can just walk through it for hours (and I have) taking in the sights.

Son has decided that this is the game he is spending his saved up money on. I explained he has lots of other stuff to play for now like the GoW games or Pokémon that he got for Xmas and that his Game pass sub runs out in a couple of months.

He was adamant that he'll forego the GP sub since he hardly uses it and just get a 3 month gold sub next time to out him on cos he really wants to play this.

It's just downloading now on his series S. Curious to see it for myself because I'm indifferent to Plopper, never cared for it

Not too surprising though. This is actually the first time a Harry Potter game received any amount of hype in the hardcore circles since, uhm, the Lego game maybe?

It helps that it's not just a movie tie-in for once.





Xbox digital share is usually far higher though. Even without counting the S, even Series X owners seem more used to buying digital games than PS5 ones.

I would also imagine the Streisand Effect definitely had an impact on sales.

I've switched off the mini-map just so I can try and learn the layout a bit better. I find I don't quite connect with a game if I just follow the minimap to get around.

Word is Sony have paid for all WB games marketing over the next couple years.

Boycott only "didn't work" if there was some expectation that it would somehow cause the game not to sell, which nobody in their right mind would expect to happen given the number of Harry Potter adults alone who have made the franchise their entire identity and have never read any other book.

Performance on the Series S is weird.

Played it on a 60hz screen and didn't think much of the Performance mode to be honest, rarely ever smooth and struggling even just looking at a walk or the floor at some points, disappointing.

Then I tried the Performance mode on a 120hz/VRR screen elsewhere in the house and the frame-rate jumped north of 60fps and stayed there for the most part.

I thought Performance mode was supposed to be the same whether you're connected to a 60hz or 120hz screen (only the balanced mode should appear as an extra mode with 120hz), but it *definitely* runs faster when connected to a 120hz screen. Can only assume they're dropping settings or resolution further, or something is bugged on a 60hz screen.

If you haven't already, make sure you download the high resolution texture pack to make Hogwarts castle look fucking amazing.  It looks photo realistic at times.

If you press one of the directions on the D pad it gives you a trail like the Fable games did.

It worked from the perspective of raising awareness, which is great. But I think it would have raised more awareness had more publications, streamers etc had the courage to actually talk about it in a grown up way without worrying about what their readers/fans said.


The whole thing leaves a bad taste in the mouth. I just feel it's another example of everything having to be black or white.

All this level of 'discourse' does is push people further to whichever side they started out on.

Absolutely no dildos anywhere though, 1/10