what is the gameplay like?

[Rio Karasuki]

what is the game like to play just want to no your thoughts on the game.

[Erudite]

So basically the lower end of moderate choices in dialogue, and it's pretty binary there as to whether you're "a kind person" or "a confident / brash / sarcastic / suspicious / covetous person", and all that does is alter how the dialogue goes rather than anything meaningful. The actual scripting, VO and audio direction are delightful, really leans into being appropriate for the license, though I will be honest and say that thus far, I frequently forget this is supposed to be late 1800s as opposed to much more recent history with how people in the setting are handled, but the dialogue isn't inundated with modern socio-political posturing or lecturing, thank god. While there is some chemistry with how some characters interact with the MC, there is no romance at all, so plus or minus there, as appropriate.

As for the *combat,* if you enjoy games with a challenge, Hard is the only way to go, as it tightens up attack windows and requires you to deliberately use the appropriate spell to break through magic type barriers with the appropriate cast, rather than lean exclusively on the "parry" (Protego shield spell), which has a very easily follow-up "riposte" that breaks through all barriers on the other difficulties. It is less about frantic positioning, hack and slash action, and more akin to more stationary, "react quickly to pop-ups, tighten ranged attack combos and learn to use spell-casting chains based on what's on cooldown". It's *almost* reminiscent of a combo-based ranged DPS in an action MMO; things can get a bit hairy with lots of enemies, but the pop-ups indicating when you should dodge and Protego are pretty easy to register, and once you get familiar, it can end up looking surprisingly impressive for a more youth-friendly, chill franchise game.

If you're used to blazing through games at breakneck speeds, the first initial chapters might end up feeling a bit stilted, since your initial time in Hogwarts is basically an in-canon tutorial, and it can be tough to just knuckle down and spam out all the introductory quests rather than trying to branch out and explore and treasure hunt everywhere, even though you need to keep progressing to get the tools necessary to fully complete exploration. Stay the course on your missions until you get your broom, and the game ends up feeling a lot more free and in your hands.

There are three endings, and with as little spoilers as possible while still being informative, the world *does not like* the use of Unforgivable Curses. If this worries you, the world lets you know what is and is not an Unforgivable Curse.

And finally, but certainly not least, the $50 USD I paid is almost entirely justified by the original soundtrack -alone-, the composer and orchestra they managed to snag are just beautiful souls, and it's not exclusively nostalgia-bait movie renditions.

God of War beats the pants off this game when it comes to sheer industry spectacle and story investment, and it's by no means an industry-mover like something such as Elden Ring, but if you're in it for a tailored, whimsical, vaguely Victorian Era wizard and witchcraft mystery with a lovingly crafted world and acceptable cast, not to mention any interest in the extended world around the Harry Potter stories, this is a very easy recommendation even at full price. Otherwise, a sale opens it up to just about everyone who won't be bored with non-romance centric young adult mystery stories.

[Rio Karasuki]

ok I have played the batman arkham games

[EXØRCiST]

It's like.. warm apple pie.

[Rio Karasuki]

how many spells are in the game

[Ansgar Odinson]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Rio Karasuki:

how many spells are in the game

There are a lot of spells. I dont know how many exactly, but a lot. Similar to the arkham games, most will open up new areas or can be used to unlock new puzzles. Quite a few can also be used in combat.

[Dondu]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Rio Karasuki:

what is the game like to play just want to no your thoughts on the game.

boi living in an island with internet pls tell him kind folks

[Erudite]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Rio Karasuki:

how many spells are in the game

31 if memory serves, though this number includes all of the little utility spells, such as the light, "hunter vision", etc.

You also learn them very slowly over the course of the story, beyond the initial school-specific ones that are covered in "lessons" or "field trip" missions that send you to do some minor task first, sometimes related to its use, sometimes not.

[Saradin Carm]

The game is a blast once you get far enough into it. The first hour or two can be a bit mediocre gameplay-wise but it gets better the further into it you get. Got about 20 hours logged on my PS5 and I would highly recommend it!

[Nerghal]

Its just like sitting on the bowle and have nice poop

[jack_of_tears]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Kumori:

It's Witcher 3 and Assassin's Creed-esque.

The combat is very satisfying. Spells feel very good to cast and I never get tired of it because of how it feels. But it can be tricky to memorize all your spell load outs even if you eventually organize each load out by color.

You also have to get good at knowing when to block and when to dodge. I've been pretty bad at dodging everything because that's how most games with these combat systems are. So, combat is easy to get into but takes a bit to master compared to Witcher 3 and Assassin's Creed.

There are a lot of puzzles in the game and some of them remind me of BotW.

Hogwarts is gigantic and almost maze-like. You can do side quests that will take you to secret locations you didn't know existed. Open-world exploration is based on flying to get around.

While there are plenty of paths and roads, the activities and crafting materials all feel like they're meant to be sought out from the skies and flown to. It feels pretty fun to fly but it also feels like it's never quite fast enough even with broom upgrades.

Thought I'd clean that up a bit because it is a fair breakdown of the game mechanics.

Combat is easy to initiate but takes some practice to master. At level 13 I am killing lvl 20 dark wizards by using stealth to single out foes, then yank them from their group and kill them before battle really begins. It's a solid opening that sometimes lets you pick enemies off but just as often warns the local group and gets them searching for you. Stealth is your friend, even in combat if you can break line of sight.

I mention all that to give you some idea of what combat is like in the game. It's simple on the surface but gets a lot deeper and more tactical as the game advances. Considering you do a lot of combat in the open world, that's good to see.

Outside of combat, you will spend a lot of time in exploration, puzzles, and conversation. Depending on how you play, you might not see combat but once every couple of hours in the early game.

I'm 9 hours in and would say, so far, the combat and non-combat aspects of the game balance out well. Meanwhile, the world is gorgeous and very interactive - with things you can poke or activate to see effects, everywhere.

I'm not much of an HP fan but I am loving this game.

[jack_of_tears]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Erudite:

If you're used to blazing through games at breakneck speeds ...

While most of this breakdown is pretty good, keep in mind that his criticisms only apply if this first sentence applies to you. I spent my first 7 hours just leisurely exploring Hogwarts, attending classes, doing puzzles, handling some side missions, dueling, etc, and never once felt like I should 'hurry up and knuckle down to get to the good parts'. I'm now nine hours in, haven't got my broom and am in no hurry to do so, and have yet to stop enjoying myself.

This is definitely a game made for people who want to experience the HP world, not just fly around and beat things up (though combat is fun, too).