Help Harry and his sidekicks Ron and Herminone complete various
tasks so Harry can compete in the Tri-Wizard tournament. You will find
yourselves in and out of Hogwarts finding items, learning new spells, jinxing
different creatures, and completing various tasks to get Harry to the
tournament. Though during these levels you can actually play any of the three
characters, only Harry can compete in the three tournament tasks.
As you complete tasks and beat up on the bad guys you can earn
cards or collect Bertie Botts Beans. The more Beans you can gather, the more
options you have to purchase cards that give you bonuses to different abilities
like stamina, spells, etc. These extra boosts are great help in the game and are
most certainly a must-have in the later levels. You also go up in wizarding
levels as you defeat creatures, use different spells, and complete level
requirements. In short you become a more powerful wizard as you progress through
the game. This really does give the player a sense of accomplishment. You also
have extra bonus tasks by jinxing statues, mushrooms, etc. My suggestion is cast
jinx spells at just about every statue, potted plants, chests, etc. This is a
great way to earn some bonuses whether it be cards, beans, or points to boost
your level. This is easiest after acquiring jinx styles that cast multiple
jinxes. You will be able to do that once you collect enough beans to purchase
those cards.
The first task in the Tri Wizard tournament will have Harry
flying on his broomstick avoiding the Horn Tail Dragon, meanwhile trying to grab
the protected golden egg. The second task has Harry swimming, exploring the
bottom of lake where danger seems to be waiting for him as he attempts to save
Ron from the murky depths. The final task is racing through a seemingly endless
maze trying to be the first to place his hands on the Tri Wizard Cup. Many
challenges await him and the other competitors so this is no easy challenge.
Visually the game looks pretty good considering you can play it
on most systems, and you do not need a powerhouse PC to run it. It is a shame
that the camera angles leave you screaming at the monitor much of the time, and
without a way to free look, much of the detail is lost. It’s played from a
third-person perspective, so most of the time you are looking down at the
fearless threesome. This leaves the camera to assume where you want to look,
which is only correct about 70% of the time. This could have been somewhat
remedied by playing with a mouse, but unfortunately that is not an option. The
keyboard or gamepad are used for playing, but I have to tell you just go with
the gamepad. The game sounds great with good music and sound effects. The
voice-overs get a little old after a while, but overall a nice job.
There really is not what I would call a multiplayer option. The
only option you have is to have two players playing on the same PC. One uses the
keyboard while the other uses a gamepad. You cannot play on a LAN or the
Internet on separate machines. Can you play with two people? Yes. Does it have
true multiplayer characteristics? Not in my book!
True, Harry Potter fans will find this game fun and exciting and
pretty true to the movie. Many cutscenes and environments resemble the film and
have the player saying "oh yeah, I remember that!" Though the game played quite
quick for me, I’m sure younger players will find the later levels quite
challenging. The final battle with Voldemort was the toughest for me. When I
grabbed the port key and was whisked back to Hogwarts, I felt a great sense of
accomplishment. That is until Order of the Phoenix is released. That should be a
good one too!
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Review Scoring Details for Harry Potter Goblet of Fire |
Gameplay: 7.0
Playing on a keyboard is absolutely terrible. There is no mouse option, but
thankfully at least you can use a gamepad if you have one. Controlling with a
gamepad is so much easier to move and aim spells. I would go as far as saying
that it is a must. I cannot understand why the developers did not go with a
mouse option because the game could have been so much more immersive even from a
third-person perspective.
Graphics: 7.5
The graphics were decent at best. The characters really resemble the actors
from the movies, and the effects were quite good. Many of the environments were
nicely done, its just a shame you really can not enjoy them from the dodgy
camera angles.
Sound: 8.0
Pretty much everything you would expect in the wizard world and a decent
soundtrack to boot.
Difficulty: Easy
You do not have an option to toggle the difficulty settings so the game can
play pretty quick for the hardcore gamer. Younger players will find some of the
tasks challenging as the game progresses.
Concept: 8.0
For a game that is inspired from the books and movie, it follows the
storylines quite well. Die-hard Harry Potter fans will find many similarities
from the movie, which is not a bad thing. It actually does aid you in gameplay
if you have seen the movie.
Multiplayer: 5.0
No LAN or Internet play, but two of you can play if one uses a gamepad and
one uses the keyboard. This makes for an awkward way of playing multiplayer and
by no means can even compare to what most people look for in multiplayer
capability.
Overall: 8.0
This title is worth the $30 price tag and is a must-have for any true Harry
Potter fan.
