“Although we wanted to present a new interpretation of the wizarding world for gamers and prioritized a fun game before book or film authenticity, describing it this way can never capture how exhaustively we strived for authenticity and immediate recognition in everything we did.” Live the Unwritten “There were hundreds of choices that had to be made between lore and gameplay and even some of the differences between each film and book,” Alan said. “Having felt like a student in these halls myself through the development of this game, I can honestly say there are still areas I come across that I didn’t know about before.”Īs game developers, we’ve labored over maintaining authenticity while making sure the game is still a fun experience. “There are familiar haunts like the Great Hall, clocktower and hospital wing, but also completely new places like the bustling kitchens,” Boston said. “I think anyone who has read the books, whether they are an artist or not, has built a version of Hogwarts in their heads.”ĭespite this being our version of Hogwarts, it’s a world you’ll instantly recognize. “We built the Hogwarts we as fans ourselves wanted to explore,” Boston said. She knows the books inside and out, a crucial resource when it comes to designing a Hogwarts that can embrace feelings of both familiarity and discovery.
Hogwarts Environmental Lead Boston Madsen has lived the life of a huge Harry Potter fan. To learn more about our version of Hogwarts, I had to go to an expert. But just as important are the opportunities to experience hundreds of memorable moments, small and large, that fans grew up with and know by heart: from being Sorted in the Great Hall, exploring a new secret chamber in Hogwarts, or impersonating others with Polyjuice Potion to protecting innocents from a dangerous troll, dodging fireballs from a Hungarian Horntail, or soaring into the sky on the back of a friendly Hippogriff.”Īll of these elements are imperative to the experience, but at the center of it all is a fully explorable Hogwarts replete with secrets to discover and mysteries to unravel. Our resulting conversations could fill tomes, but when I asked him to settle it into two sentences, he told me, “The most ever-present part of the Wizarding World is its magic, and the playful nature and ‘realness’ of its distinct rules should fuel a surprising, dark mystery that tests the combined resources of those who discover it. One of the first things I did was ask Game Director Alan Tew what fans love and expect from the Wizarding World.
As Community Manager, it’s my pleasure to introduce you to a development team full of fans making an authentic wizarding world adventure. I’m still reeling that I get to work on a project that captures the magic, spells, beasts, people, stories, and wonder of the wizarding world. However, the studio's lofty goals are concerning, and the recent delay does not inspire confidence.I joined Avalanche in late 2021, but the team had already been hard at work for many years. If executed well, it could be the best Harry Potter game to date. Furthermore, like Cyberpunk 2077, Hogwarts Legacy makes a lot of ambitious promises, and players have been led to believe that they will be able to live the life of a Hogwarts student by attending classes, making friends, joining a house, taming magical creatures, and visiting Hogsmeade. Hogwarts Legacy's delay is worrying, as Cyberpunk 2077 also faced several delays before its release, as developers recognized that there were still a few flaws present. However, many gamers, especially those playing on last-generation consoles, found the game to be glitchy and lacking many features that were promised, leading to a rather catastrophic launch for the game. This was seen with CD Projekt Red's Cyberpunk 2077, which the gaming world was excited to play after the studio's success with The Witcher.
Open-world games are notoriously difficult to develop, and even large, experienced studios have had trouble delivering experiences that are free of bugs and are immersive enough to satisfy gamers.