Everything We Know About Hogwarts Legacy

Portkey games, Wizarding World, Warner Bros Games, and Avalanche Studios have presumably poured their hearts and souls into crafting Hogwarts Legacy and the first look we got on March 17th, 2022 seems absolutely phenomenal. Especially since the website explicitly says that this is “not a new story from…” the TERF who shall not be named. Here’s everything we know about Hogwarts Legacy.

There will actually be a good deal of role-playing involved. You’ll choose between a young male looking character or a young female looking character. (As exciting as this game looks, the binary mindset is not helping anyone.) The game is set in the late 1800’s, even though everyone has contemporary hair styles and most of the clothes look like they’re from 1970’s Connecticut. In the State of Play we saw customizable skin tone, hair color and style, eye color, and marks like scars, but no indication of changing face shape. What you CAN do is choose your house, which automatically makes this game ripe for replaying. 

The story is YA bread and butter. (Just not as creepy as these YA stories.) You’re the most special kid in the world and the fate of that world rests upon your 15 year old shoulders. The playable character is so special they get to start at Hogwarts late, in their 5th year. You’ll have your own private tract of classes to get you up to speed with your classmates. Which makes us think that wizarding school is really just a holding area for kids teens because if you can learn 4 years worth of magical skills alongside your regular classes in the same term… Hogwarts is either pulling the wool over the eyes of the wizarding world or magical parents just don’t want their kids living with them.

To explore Hogwarts you’ll wander around and complete “puzzles requiring magical skill”, this probably means that while the game is open world, you’ll only be able to access certain areas after learning certain spells aka leveling up aka you can’t go where the devs don’t want you to. You’ll take classes like Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, and Potions, which in turn will help you level up skills and define your play style. You’ll also be able to explore Hogsmeade and the surrounding countryside including little wizarding hamlets with their own NPC’s and side-quests. You can buy clothes and it looks like some villains in top hats will give you a tough time.   

Sounds fun right? DON’T FORGET IT'S DANGEROUS. There’s a rumor of a growing goblin rebellion! You’re working alongside someone called Professor Fig to figure out the truth because, you know, you’re the most special of everyone. Looks like a lot of the baddies you’ll fight are “corrupted by a magical force”, which also happens to be the same magical power you have access to, known as Ancient Magic. How you wield your magic will determine your playstyle; you’ll have access to dozens of spells which you can mix and match. You can break stuff apart, like stone enemies, and it seems you can use the ancient power to actually kill some guys? Familiar spells like Diffindo, Reparo, and even Avada Kedavra are present, but whether there will be a KOTOR style moral barometer is unclear. 

You’ll be able to loot, craft, or buy gear and equipment and despite the very micro-transaction looking merchant UI, there will be no in-game purchases or micro-transactions.

You’ll further customize your playthrough by befriending other Hogwarts students; develop relationships with them and open up new storylines and powers. Friendship really is magic. But those are the only friends you’ll have, as there will be no co-op or multiplayer. Players will have access to the Room of Requirement, a special, customizable closet at Hogwarts. You may not have any IRL friends, but you will have a House Elf named Deek to help you navigate something called the Vivarium. A fancy greenhouse that when entered, is an outdoor space within the Room of Requirement. Rooms within rooms? How deep does this Niffler hole go?! You can customize this space to help your character along their journey and tailor it to your magical and aesthetic needs. 

You’ll be able to fly on a broom and compete in races, but no word on whether you can join your house’s Quidditch team. There will also be modern RPG staples like dynamic seasons and weather, dungeons littered throughout the world, and exploding red barrels. The game will be available on PS5, PS4, PS4 Pro, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. But seemingly not the anticipated PlayStation VR. Hogwarts Legacy will be available Holiday 2022, so now you know what to ask the mightiest wizard of all, Santa, for this year.