Harry Potter fans around the world are excitedly waiting to return to the wizarding world — this time in a single-player role playing game — after Warner Bros released the first look at the much-anticipated video game on Thursday.
The game, which will be available to play on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, Playstations 4 and 5, and Xboxes One and Series X/S at the end of the year, sounds quite different to other installments in the much-loved franchise, for one you'll be playing as a character in the 1800s.
The game's narrative lead Moira Squier said: "Players will get to experience what it was like for Harry starting at a new wizarding school and knowing no one at all. And, like Harry, the player’s character is a bit of a celebrity from the outset due to the fact that they are starting as a fifth-year"
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The player will then be set on a collision course towards a Goblin rebellion led by a Goblin named Ranrok, who has allied himself with dark wizard Victor Rookwood.
Within the gameplay the player will have the chance to create their own character, becoming the witch or wizard they want to be. You'll be able to walk around Hogwarts as this character and visit the common room of whichever house you are in. In similar locations to that of the books the Ravenclaw common room will be in a high tower, with Hufflepuff in a cosy basemant.
Playstation will release more in-depth looks at the common rooms in coming months.
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You'll also be able to visit Hogsmede and the surrounding areas.
Game Director Alan Tew said: "We wanted you to have new locations to discover; to see what lies around and beyond the Black Lake, to meet new witches and wizards in the dwellings that dot the landscape beyond Hogsmeade and learn what other undiscovered chambers lie within Hogwarts"
As you learn from your professors and classmates, you’ll gain new spells and abilities to use in combat and puzzles throughout the gameplay and as the story progresses the character will come across new characters, locations and places.
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A variety of spells will provide different ways to approach combat, so if you're hotheaded and want to run strange into danger you can, while others may want to take a different approach.
Talking about creating the inspiration behind the game, Tew said:
"Many fans of Harry Potter imagined what it would be like to receive their own Hogwarts letter, be sorted, and attend Hogwarts. More than anything else, we wanted to allow fans, after all these years, to finally tell their story, their way, at the most beloved school of witchcraft and wizardry."
Isobel Pankhurst