With the release of Harry Potter wizarding world, and the most immersive way to do so is through its games. The games have been around for almost as long as the movies and were an overall commercial success, with the mainline titles grossing over $1.5 billion in sales despite their relatively low ratings at times. The idea of a playable Harry Potter experience is one that fans of the franchise have been enamored with since reading the books, and the immersive experience of video games allows for just that.
The games themselves vary greatly from each other, with some hidden gems as well as some titles that are rather difficult to get through. Despite the differences, all the games allow their players to experience some of the magic of the Harry Potter wizarding world and its lore before they play Hogwarts Legacy.
#13 Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2010)
Released in 2010, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 1 follows the story of the movie closely as Harry, Ron, and Hermione begin their journey to hunt down and destroy every Horcrux, so they can finally defeat the Dark Lord. The game takes a different approach through its more mature themes and art style, a theme that can be seen in the new Hogwarts Legacy, allowing students to use unforgivable curses.
The game was very poorly received for its unimaginative third-person shooter mechanics, repetitive level design, poor enemy AI, and game-breaking bugs. This is the only part of the Harry Potter story to not take place in Hogwarts, and instead of taking advantage of the new environments, the lack of exploration and magic proved too jarring for hardcore fans and general audiences alike.
#12 Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 (2011)
Released one year after its predecessor, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 picks up immediately after part one. The game features exactly the same gameplay and style with only some minor changes, with its continuation of third-person shooter gameplay. The game is also the conclusion of the series of main title games.
The game was, again, highly criticized and poorly received. Unlike the response to the Hogwarts Legacy gameplay previews, Deathly Hallows Part 2 was received as unimaginative with critique that the general characteristics of shooters like headshots and weapons don't mesh well with the magical world and story of Harry Potter.
#11 LEGO Creator: Harry Potter (2001) & Lego Creator: Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets (2002)
The LEGO Creator series was a pair of sandbox Harry Potter games that recreated the experience of building and playing with LEGO sets from the franchise. LEGO Creator's gameplay involved choosing a location, such as Hogwarts or Diagon Alley, and building out of a preset choice of models. The games were not well received, thanks to their slow and unintuitive controls, as well as their lack of choices in premade models.
#10 Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone (2001)
Released in 2001, merely two weeks after the film launched, Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone follows the story of the first book. The gameplay featured a third-person perspective and a level design akin to that of a 3D platformer, which featured one of Harry Potter's best minigames, the Donkey Kong-esque Gringotts level.
The game was released on multiple platforms with changes ranging from graphics and gameplay changes to the console version to completely different games for handheld consoles (an RPG-style game for GBC and a top-down puzzle game for GBA). In 2003, the game was remade using the resources from Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets for its spells and maps but was unfortunately received as rushed and unimaginative.
#9 Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire (2005)
In 2005, Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire was released, featuring an action-adventure gameplay focus that was split into levels as opposed to free roaming. The games, again, differed slightly depending on the version of the game played, with DS versions being more top-down puzzle-based than the console version. Goblet of Fire featured Hogwarts Legacy, improved graphics, and followed the story of the books closely. It was received with mixed reviews, with many players feeling the game was too short and regretting the departure from the free-roaming style of the previous games.
#8 Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix (2007)
Released in 2007, Harry Potter and The Order of The Phoenix featured sandbox adventure gameplay with a strong focus on Hogwarts exploration. Because of the Wii’s popularity at the time, the game also featured heavy motion control-related gameplay, which was received with mixed reviews.
The biggest feature in this game was Hogwarts itself, as the game developers focused on recreating the location as seen in the film as faithfully as possible. While the exploration and immersive recreation of Hogwarts most iconic locations were praised, the gameplay was classified as repetitive and filled with bugs and glitches, earning it the lowest score on Metacritic of any of the Harry Potter games. Fans still praise the game for its immersive recreation of Hogwarts.
#7 Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince (2009)
In 2009, the following title, Harry Potter and The Half Blood Prince, was released. The game utilized the map from its previous game, however, with more focus on action-adventure gameplay. The game includes the first instance of potion making as well as a return to Quidditch.
The graphics were widely criticized as unimpressive even for the times, and the reusing of gameplay and maps from its previous Harry Potter game was again perceived as uninspired and unimaginative. However, fans found the combination of an explorable Hogwarts and class-taking mechanics to be positively immersive.
#6 Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup (2003)
Despite Quidditch being described as a flawed sport by some, Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup has overall been considered a fun entry in the Harry Potter video game series. Released in 2003 as a pure action-sport game, it was critiqued for its sluggish controls but overall received generally favorable reviews.
#5 Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban was released in 2004 as an action-adventure game. The game’s primary mechanic was the ability to switch between the main trio, which unlocked spells exclusive to each character, a new feature that was well-received. It also allowed for further exploration of Hogwarts and many side quests, which opened up the world of Harry Potter gaming that had started to be revealed in the first two movie tie-in games. Despite this, it still received some criticism from critics who characterized it as “too easy."
#4 Book Of Spells (2012) & Book Of Potions (2013)
Book of Spells and Book of Potions were two games released in 2012 and 2013 respectively, which featured the PlayStation Move controller, the Sony PS5 VR controller's predecessor. They were different in that they focused purely on utilizing motion controls to make spells and potions in augmented reality. While the games did not feature any story, they allowed players to get a feel for what Harry Potter’s classes might have been like.
#3 Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets (2002)
Released in 2002, Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets follows the plot of the book closely as Hogwarts students are mysteriously petrified. The game was the first to allow for proper exploration of Hogwarts castle, and the use of Harry’s broomstick, outside minigames, which added to the element of exploration.
It was well received, with critics praising the design of the castle. Because of this, the developers chose to remake the first game using this game’s resources as well as base the following game’s castle exploration on this one, which led to audiences receiving the following games poorly. Like with the first game, the gameplay saw some changes depending on the version of the Harry Potter game, with the PC version seeing completely different levels than some of the console versions.
#2 LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 (2011)
In 2011, LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5–7 was released following the previous LEGO game and featured the same gameplay mechanics. This LEGO Harry Potter game focused on the last three books and four movies, following the story closely but with a humorous tilt.
While LEGO games aren't as good as people , LEGO Harry Potter received positive reviews, with the only criticism being its similarity to previous LEGO games The gameplay concentrated on exploration and collection, employing puzzle solving with the added elements of spells and potions as Harry Potter and his friends attended classes at Hogwarts.
#1 LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (2010)
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 was released in 2010, and it provided fans with the best way to experience Hogwarts and the story of Harry Potter. As previously stated, the game centered on puzzle solving and collecting, which fit in perfectly with the Hogwarts themes. The gameplay was fitting with the theme of magic, rewarding players with new spells and benefiting from the wide amount of story to work with, allowing for a completely immersive experience in the Harry Potter world.
The Harry Potter games offer a mixed bag of gameplay styles and unfortunately vary widely in quality. For most fans of the franchise, the ability to delve into the story and explore Hogwarts is enough to enjoy these games and make them worth revisiting to wizarding world lore before Hogwarts Legacy comes out.
Source: Electronic Arts/YouTube
Editor’s Note: Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling has been accused of transphobia by those in the LGBTQ+ community. Although not directly involved in the development of Hogwarts Legacy, Rowling does stand to earn royalties from the game. We would like to reiterate our for trans rights and that trans identities are valid. services are listed below for trans people impacted by discussions of transphobia.
In the USA:
- Trans Lifeline: (877) 565-8860
- The Trevor Project: 1-866-488-7386
In Canada:
- Trans Lifeline: (877) 330-6366
- Youth Line: 1-800-268-9688
In the UK:
- Switchboard: 01273 204050
- Mermaids: 0808 801 0400