In a summer
filled with drab and uninspired movies like Pirates of the Caribbean and
Spiderman, everyone is looking forward to the release of the latest Harry
Potter movie. Of course, to coincide with the movie, there are the requisite
video games being released. There is a version for every console, but the
Wii version is unique because of the controller
that can be used as a wand. This review is of the Wii
version.
While the
Harry Potter games have all been pretty fun for fans of the series, they
haven’t exactly been the best games out there. Not bad games, but not
wonderful, either. With Order of the Phoenix, though, fans finally have a
fitting game to enhance their book and movie experience. I’m happy to report
that this is by and far the best Harry Potter game yet, “wands” down. Fans,
rejoice!
It’s Harry
Potter’s fifth year at Hogwarts, but his fame has become notorious. Whereas
people in the past wanted to be seen with the “boy who lived,” now most are
avoiding him. No one wants to believe that Voldemort
is alive and that the Death Eaters are active again. However,
Voldemort is alive and the threat to Harry and all
other wizards who oppose Voldemort,
is real.
As a result
of this blind opposition to the truth, there have been some changes at
Hogwarts. The Ministry of Magic has taken the official stance that
Voldemort isn’t back, and that Harry is lying. To
control matters at Hogwarts, a new staff member has been installed. Ms.
Umbridge is there to make sure that the students
and staff don’t organize against the perceived threat of the
Death Eaters, and therefore Harry and his fellow
students are left defenseless, as it were. To make matters worse, Ms.
Umbridge is also the new Defense
Against the Dark Arts teacher, and is determined
that no student will actually learn and practice any defensive spells.
But, you
can’t keep a good wizard down, and Harry and the other students join together
in secret to practice their defensive spells.
Order of the
Phoenix is a splendid presentation of the world of Harry Potter. If there was
any one thing missing in previous installments, it was the lack of complete
immersion in this world. Order of the Phoenix faithfully recreates Hogwarts in
the environments. Inside the school, the staircases move above the characters’
heads while they pause on the stairs below, and candles float above everyone’s
heads. The people inside the paintings move around and speak, and lots and
lots of students make remarks as they pass by. The grounds outside appear
enormous in scope; kudos to the graphic designers for the illusion of space
and depth.
And, players
will really get to explore Hogwarts this time around, as they’ll be carrying
out any number of quests and tasks all around the school. Thankfully, there
is that handy Marauder’s Map which will locate people of interest. Players can
select a person from the task list on the map, and when they exit the map,
footprints will magically appear showing the correct direction. I heartily
recommend using this feature, as there will be quite a bit of running around
this huge place.
The main
plot centers on the gathering up of interested students for the secret
defensive spells club. In order to get these students to come to the initial
meeting, Harry will have to play messenger boy. This is the one area of the
game that can become tedious. Fortunately, besides all the fun areas to
explore, there are many other things to do to take a break from the constant
errand running, like practicing spells on anything and everything, and
searching every nook and cranny for hidden places and items, some of which
require interaction. These actions will garner the player special discovery
points that can be used to view “behind the scene” clips about the movie. I
have to say, this is the largest collection of award videos I’ve ever seen in
a game, and they are all very interesting and fun to watch. And if these
things weren’t enough to do, there are also several fun games to play like
Wizard Chess (battle chess), Gobstones (marbles)
and Exploding Snap (memory).
While the
game is the same across the board for the console versions, the
Wii is the best system on which to play the game,
solely because of the Wii controller, as the
Wii version isn’t as good-looking as the other
console versions. The remote is used as a wand, and it is implemented
perfectly in the game. Learning and mastering the spells is difficult at
first, but with practice comes success. Also, Harry becomes more powerful as
the game progresses. The first area of the game is a tutorial of sorts, where
Harry learns how to cast spells around Grimmauld
Place and Hogwarts, but the tutorial isn’t very helpful. The instructions
given are confusing, as the in-game text is short on explanation and the
accompanying visual demonstration of the movement of the controller isn’t
clear, either. The first spell demonstrated is Accio,
and the explanation leaves out a lot of additional movement to actually get
the spell to fire. But, with trial and error, the spells can be figured out.
It’s pretty
funny to watch Harry as you try to learn each spell; his arm and wrist waggle
around almost like spaghetti! We also appreciated the dual nature of some of
these spell casting moments, as often the other characters would stand next to
Harry and cast spells as well.
Spell-casting is mostly limited to accomplishing the various tasks, although
there is limited combat in the form of duels here and there. This is the
weakest part of the game, and isn’t much fun. It’s difficult to see if Harry
is making contact with his spells, and equally hard to dodge incoming spells.
As the difficulty level in these duels is almost nil,
Harry will still win most of the time, but it isn’t very fun or challenging.
Chamber of Secrets had a much tighter combat system that allowed players to
lock on to their targets, and also presented more challenge and better visuals
during the fights.
While Order
of the Phoenix is definitely better on the whole than any previous Harry
Potter game, there are still many areas that could be improved. The types of
quests could be more varied, other than the constant running around and
fetching. The combat needs juicing up, and the entire game could hold more
challenge, like having puzzles incorporated somehow for players to solve in
order to advance. Some type of collection challenge would have been fun, as in
one Harry Potter game that had players finding wizard cards and beans.
However,
despite the easy play level and lack of exciting combat, this is one fun romp
through Hogwarts, which is really all a true fan of Harry Potter requires. If
a player isn’t acquainted with the movie or book, then this game will not be
much fun or interesting, as the game assumes that players already know the
story and don’t need much plot direction. Our family really enjoys all things
Potter, and we actually just saw the movie today, the first day of release. We
all loved the movie (the actress playing Ms. Umbridge
is too rich!), which is mostly faithful to the book. So, we of course are
thoroughly enjoying the game.
I absolutely
recommend this game to any Harry Potter fan; they won’t be disappointed.
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Gameplay: 8.0
The
gameplay is fun at first, with lots of things to
accomplish. The huge world of Hogwarts really adds to the sense of actually
being inside the famous school. But, these mundane tasks will sooner or later
become a bit boring. Other activities like games and interaction with objects
liven things up a bit, but not enough. However,
true fans of Harry Potter will love all the exploration!
Graphics: 8.0
The
school inside and out is wonderfully drawn, but the Wii
version isn’t as good as the other consoles. Still, these graphics hold their
own when compared to other Wii games.
Sound: 7.0
The
music is good and reflective of the movie, but there isn’t enough of it. There could also be more sound effects.
Difficulty: Easy/Medium
The
gameplay is easy, which is good for young players.
It may be a little too easy for adults, but the game as a Hogwarts experience
is still way fun.
Concept: 8.0
The
game does a superb job of recreating the world of Hogwarts. Players will get
an enormous kick out of experiencing the school.
Overall: 8.0
We’re
very happy with this game. We’re No. 1 fans, and if we’re happy, you will
be, too. If you’re not a fan, why are you reading this review, anyway? Joking
aside, this is the Harry Potter game. If you have multiple systems, the
Wii is the version to get. Young and old will
enjoy. I’m looking forward to the next time my mom visits, as she’s never
played the Wii before, but
loves computer games and Harry Potter. It is going to be very amusing
to watch her cast spells with the remote.
