As 2022 wraps up, events like The Game Awards and even our own internal best of year features celebrate the finest experiences of the year. But it’s equally important to look forward to the next year, and take a look at what exciting games await us on the other side. Avalanche Software’s upcoming Hogwarts Legacy is also one such game – and it’s one that fans of the genre seem to have been craving for so long. So naturally, there are a lot of expectations from this game.
And from what we know about the game and how it’s shaping up, we are confident that it will meet all the expectations – and be a quality experience at the end. But even more than that, we have a strong hunch that Hogwarts Legacy might even turn out to be one of the biggest hits of 2023 – and there are plenty of reasons as to why that could be the case.
Action adventure games were all the rage back in the fifth and sixth generation of consoles. While some are still fondly remembered to this date, others failed to meet expectations in one way or another – but either way, the popularity of games based on this property started to wane down as the movies that inspired them came to a close. Hogwarts Legacy is well, continuing that legacy after a fair few years – and that prospect alone has piqued the attention of hundreds of thousands of fans across the globe to know about what’s in store.
But Avalanche Software isn’t just banking on the popularity of action-adventure games for Hogwarts Legacy for it to be a grand success – Hogwarts Legacy actually features some great gameplay mechanics and ideas that should contribute to an amazing experience. But before jumping into those nitty gritty details, let’s briefly discuss the story. You see, some action-adventure games that came before were tie-in releases for movies – so the story in those games was pretty constrained and predictable which comes with its own set of advantages and disadvantages.
And when it comes to Hogwarts Legacy, it’s an original story that’s not bound to the events of an upcoming movie or TV show. As such, it really gives the developers some legroom to breathe and craft something that really appeals to the kind of gameplay experience that Avalanche is targeting for the final product.
And this is precisely what the developer is doing, and Hogwarts Legacy will be putting players into the shoes of a fifth-year student of this wizarding school as they embark on a larger journey to uncover the many secrets behind an ancient magic power. As you can already tell, this is a pretty simple framework that allows the narrative to be pretty open-ended and players would be incentivized to explore every nook and cranny of this wondrous palace that is Hogwarts as they dive deeper and deeper into the many conspiracies and other hidden secrets of this land. It’s a great setup for an open-world game like this one, and hopefully – it will be utilized to some great effect.
And then coming over to the gameplay, Hogwarts Legacy seems to be everything that one would expect from a game about being a student in the most prestigious school of wizardry. You will have the option to customize your player according to your liking with a character creator, and you will also have the option to select the desired House of your choice before starting with the narrative. Of course, these choices will probably hold some impact on how your starting hours will play out before you flesh out your character with new spells and abilities.
On that note, we should also mention that Hogwarts Legacy will lean more towards RPG elements unlike prior games based on this property. So naturally, progression will be one of the most important parts of the experience. As you get through the story, you will unlock new spells that should add more tools to your arsenal and by extension, expand upon the combat options. The most interesting part of it all is how your progression in your academics in Hogwarts will feed into your character build, so if you befriend a certain NPC or attend classes related to a particular field – you will unlock special spells and abilities that would help you in difficult combat situations. And it’s also worth mentioning that players will have different approaches when it comes to combat – so you could use everything in your might to stop an enemy in its tracks or you could use other creative options like disillusionment charms to stealthily dispatch them.
Hogwarts Legacy is an open-world game, and Avalanche Software seems to have brought their A-game to the field when it comes to crafting virtual spaces that are compelling to explore. The school of Hogwarts will be filled to the brim with interesting side activities and quests to pursue which will make you stronger, and if these side quests retain the same level of quality in writing and content as the main path – Hogwarts Legacy could certainly end up being a great game to really sink your teeth into.
But for an open world to succeed, it should be great in both function and form. And thankfully, Hogwarts Legacy has the latter covered with some astounding attention to detail. The artists over at Avalanche Software have a really deep appreciation for the source material, and it shows in the final product. The developers have previously put out a trailer showcasing a regular hot summer day at various places around the game map, and it looks absolutely wonderful with great lighting and spectacular draw distance being two instant highlights of this visual make-up. Finally, it’s all topped up with some great support for PS5’s DualSense controller and 3D Audio tech – and those who choose to experience Hogwarts Legacy on this platform are sure to have a great time – alongside the added benefit of a platform-exclusive quest in the form of The Haunted Hogsmeade Shop.
All these factors should theoretically come together to make Hogwarts Legacy one hell of a game, but how could it be one of the biggest hits of the year? Its release date could have been a big factor, but as of now – February 2023 is stacked with high-profile releases like Horizon: Call of the Mountain, Atomic Heart, and Like A Dragon: Ishin among others. But if it does right by the fans and delivers a memorable adventure, it will help the game’s case in morphing into a smash hit. So we can bank on the game being targeted towards a larger demographic comprising both gamers and non-gamers alike, and that alone could drive Hogwarts Legacy’s sales figures to new heights. We saw it happen to Stray last year, so if Hogwarts Legacy manages to stand on its promises – it could certainly be one of the biggest hits going forward.
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.
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