Harry Potter Reviews

Even as an obsessed fan I had no intention of buying this video game (and I still haven't), but a friend of mine did and we spent the weekend taking turns on the levels and eventually beating it. I have not played the other two HP games, but I was under the impression that they are more similar to the books than the movies. Well, Azkaban is different, folks. It is even less like the book than the film (which is saying something). The most ridiculous part of the game, I thought, aside from having to beat annoyingly tedius levels in order to learn spells for no reason whatsoever, was the developer's artistic lisence. A scene, for instance, involves "Ron" luring Harry out of the common room and into the dungeons to where he's supposedly found Sirius Black- only it isn't Ron but Draco who then pushes Harry into a trap. Any reader of the books would know that Draco would not be able to enter the common room, etc., but I digress.

The graphics are what I would consider exceptional for the average GameCube game. The game play leaves something to be desired, especially for those who use "loose" joystick controls (this makes it nearly impossible to run). Your best bet is to stick with the traditional controller instead of the specialty ones. Running is a necessity in most of the levels, especially when jumping from bookcase to bookcase in order to reach such and such a lever. Also, it is exceptionally easy to get lost outside on the grounds. The massive outdoor environment makes the indoor one seem rather small, although it was a joy to go inside the Muggle Studies classroom (in another developer's stray from the actual story).

But, despite the lacking similarities between the game and the book, or even the game and the movie, I ended up really enjoying this game. Despite it's lack of point or plot or even mentioning that Sirius Black is a dangerous criminal even, the game grew on me and I can't wait to play it again by myself, collect all the cards, and buy all the special power ups from Fred and George.

Harry Potter Game series are one of the games I'm looking forward to play and of course when PoA gam is out, I thought, what the heck, lets try it. And try I did.

Graphics are the well satisfactory but I like to turn around and see my enviroment more than it can offer me. Storyline is well along the line of the book and I don't have to tell you about that, or I would spoil you from reading the books.

The most let down of this game is that it is too damn short! It's shorter than what they have done to the movie itself, I don't have to tell you how many scenes they cut from that book *winks* There are only a few tasks and not much exploring in this one, as I would compare to the CoS game. It's much more fun playign the last game than this one. But it's quite awesome for kids though, but not for us hardcore fans.

this game is fun to play,but way to short!!!!!!!it's cool when you swap characters.oh and there's NO quidditch...who in their right mind would exculde quidditch from harry potter??quidditch is one of the things that's sets harry potter apart from everything else.when you do a spell the person your playing as doesn't even say the word to do the spell,like flipindo or something.can your wand read your characters mind or something???also there's some parts in the game that isn't in the book or movie.like swap the jinxed quidditch balls or when malfoy makes a pollyjuice potion and makes himself look like ron,and then tell harry that sirius black is in the dungeons.i wish that EA games could make a harry potter game that makes sense and is true to the story line.they'd better make the goblet of fire game a whole lot better,longer,and harder.this game is not that hard to beat.the part where you save sirius black is really short.the ending of the game could have way better to.what were EA thinking?????????????

Prisoner of Azkaban is the newest game in the Harry Potter series, and most likely, the worst.
The graphics of the game are horrible, unless you have a very good video card. They come out slightly blurry.
The spell challenges are very, very short, much like the ones in the first game, the Sorcerer's Stone.
Harry is now accompanied by his friends, who follow him. Everywhere. I couldn't take two steps without running into Ron or Hermione.
Pros:
You get to be a dragon and rabbit in Hermione's challenge.
Instead of the four, normal challenges, you get six. There are three spell challenges, and then three finals.
In Harry's challenge, you get to freeze things. And the ice slide is FUN.
More things to trade, instead of bertie botts beans.

Cons:
Bad graphics.
Ron and Hermione are almost ALWAYS around.
They got rid of Flipendo, which I really liked.
It didn't follow the story line to well.
There was not one trip to Hogsmeade.
The school, in my opinion, was to big. I didn't like the scenery, either. I liked the first two games, much better.

It's a good game to get, in my opinion, but be prepared to be disappointed.

I've really enjoyed the Harry Potter games on the PC -- they're a great combination of adventure and (mild) combat, and bring the Harry Potter universe to life in a fun way.

But I wasn't thrilled with this one. I liked it, but had some reservations and disappointments, especially after the complex and really enjoyable PC version of Chamber of Secrets.

What I liked:

* Overall, the game is a solid effort. It's fun and diverting, and the kids will love it.

* It was great to be able to play all three main characters at different points of play. Unfortunately the voice acting is a lot less solid this time around -- all three kids just don't sound all that convincing (or even very English)

* I loved the Draconifors Challenge -- a really innovative challenge in which Hermione must play enchanted rabbits and dragons through a series of steps. Enchanting and really clever (the rabbit sits and scratches when inactive; the dragon is just as cute. These also involve some of the best graphics in the game.

On the down side:

* Like others who have posted here, I have a near-new, screaming machine, yet could not play the game at the highest resolution either; is this really a driver issue for EA or a bug?

The game ran fine for me, but whether it's the resolution or a change in animation styles (or deadlines), this is a far less beautiful game visually than Chamber of Secrets. There are a lot more closeups, too, and they look terrible, very pixellated and blocky. The characters don't look bad, but they just don't look great, and they should.

* The game is way, way shorter than Chamber of Secrets. Aside from a few relatively easy side games, gone are most of the challenging and time consuming moments from the previous PC versions (I still remember how long it took me to beat Voldemot with that darned Flipendo spell on the mirror). I would have preferred just a little more challenge. So -- no more wizard duels, no more Quiddich (although I admit I have a love/hate thing with Quiddich because I'm horrible at it).

The challenges are far easier here, and (bummer) there are a lot less secrets to find. I loved the sheer numbers of secrets and hideaways and goodies in the first two games, especially COS, but this one, aside from a few really clever brain-teasers, they're very obvious.

* Hogwarts seems a lot smaller, too. We never get to see very much of it, and it doesn't feel like a real place, unlike the COS version, which really felt like you were exploring Hogwarts.

* The game ultimately feels kind of hasty. Why is it that there are so few secrets? So many portraits that have no purpose, so many doors that never open? In the previous games, each time you mastered a new spell, this led to new hidden areas to uncover so that as the game progressed, you were always finding new fun corners of Hogwarts to explore as each spell was mastered. In this one, if you thoroughly explore each floor for secrets in the beginning of the game, with a few exceptions that's pretty much it.

* WARNING: Do everything you need to do BEFORE taking the characters to their final exams! You do not get to go back, you cannot go find missing items, etc -- the game simply ends abruptly.

I hated this part! In COS (in a vast improvement from Sorcerer's Stone), you were informed bluntly that you could "finish up last-minute business (like hunting for those last missing Wizard cards)," and only when you were ready for the end of the game, you could go on to the last assignment (the meeting hall).

So -- it's not a bad game. But COS was so lovely and immersive -- beautiful graphics, great music and sound effects (the growling spiders freaked me out), and just a really big, complex, challenging game for those who enjoy the books. The first two games each took me three or four days minimum: This one is cute, fun, and took me two (short) afternoons to complete. Still worth buying for Potter fans, but still kind of a bummer.

I bought the PC version of Azkaban about 1 week before the movie came out. I had already read the books and played the other 2 Harry Potter games for PC. I just got the HP Prisoner of Azkaban yesterday for PS2 and am thrilled that [once again] EA Games has made it totally different from the PC version. I'm enjoying the PC version and have completed most of the game, but Dumbledore and McGonagal will remind you to check which tasks in this game you have not completed and you must go back and complete them in order to finish the game completely. So, I'm moving along through the game and enjoying the PS2 version as well. This PC version is bit easier than the PS2 and great for my 4 year old to be able to play and enjoy). I love that with each version of these games, you get different play and spells and adventures in the PC vs Playstation 2 Versions. There are 3 versions (each very different) for the Sorcerer's Stone (PC, Playstation, and Playstation 2 are all different spells and adventures).

Regretfully, the Azkaban PC version is missing a few things from the book Trelawney, Hogsmeade, a fully functional mauraders map, and Quidditch (which didn't break my heart since they have Buckbeak the Hippogriff to fly). I'm happy with it for me and for my 4 year old son's purposes and there are so many little nooks and cranny's to find things in, you can play longer and over and over.

I'm not finished with this PC version yet (Dumbledore and McGonagal keep telling me to check my tasks), but I wanted to let you all know that so far it is moving right along, with some of the most spectacular graphics for both PC and PS2 and you play as either Ron, Hermione, and Harry (these kids are really cute and have the best facial expressions). Switching between the characters is seemless, swift and easy on the eyes. You have to keep track of what each character's special talents are so that you can achieve your goals in the game, utilizing the right character's abilities. Sometimes the 3 kids will get separated and you have to play as just one, but that's very entertaining too. If you get to wandering around too much (exploring) and get sidetracked from your current "mission", one of the kids will remind you what you need to do to get back on track.

I Highly recommend this game, my little boy didn't want to go to bed the first night we had it and we were fighting over the controls - these games have taught him so much about figuring things out, he uses great vocabulary beyond his years including learning a bit of Latin that's in the names of the spells in this game, etc., and the all important hand-eye coordination is improving in him every day. He loves Harry Potter and has played all the PC games, PS2 Games, listened to the books on tape as well as me reading them to him. What a great Franchise with Loads of entertainment. Just awesome and just in time for the Azkaban Movie which is AMAZING as well.

PS: The Gameboy Advance Harry Potter games are different also, so more adventure in those as well.

This game is bad. You have to do stupid tasks like find the spellbook. Also it's annoying and hard. The only fun thing is hitting other Hogwarts suudents with spells.

Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban is a great game. As a teenager, even I loved playing the game even if I did finish it rather quickly (a week.) Still, it had great puzzles, fun collecting cards and beans, and had lots of new features like switching between characters and flying on Buckbeak, Hagrid's hippogriff. I'd definitely recommend this game even if you didn't read the books. It sticks to the movie plot for the most part and features tons of challenges and secrets. The only reason I gave it a 4 was due to some small difficulties with controls. The characters walks really slowly which can get annoying after a while since walking around the castle takes a while for those a bit impatient like me. It's also a little hard to get characters to jump across ledges which can be a bit annoying, but overall the game's positives far outweigh its tiny downfalls. I highly recommend it.

This game should be awsome.I've played both sorcerer's stone and chamber of secrets and they were great.The best thing i think will be the character changing ability,so instead of just playing as harry you can play as ron,hermionie,and harry!!The game has kind-of good graphics but the gameplay totally makes up for that!! Anyone who loves harry potter will definitly love this game and the other two games that are out too!!!
P.S.: dont forget to try out harry potter quidditch world cup!

This game is just awsome! The magic is great and the environments is just like the game. It has great handling and the button controlling is out of this world fab. I reccomend this game for Wicca game lovers.

The soundtrack on this game is not playing in Dolby Digital...just Dolby Surround/ProLogic. Perhaps this was the way it was meant to play. A number of improvements have been made to this game as far as movements and such compared to the previously released Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. I have only viewed the game while someone else was playing (Christmas gift)and that was when I noticed the display saying it was reproducing sound only in ProLogic.

I've played plenty of video games over the last decade and if you asked me to give you an honest appraisal of Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone compared to other current Xbox games, the game probably wouldn't rank that high. But... you're talking to a hardcore Harry Potter fan who read each book at least three times and viewed each movie just as often. In other words, you're talking to a Potter fanatic so it's difficult to give an honest opinion of this game. Truthfully, it's probably an average title with gameplay similar to an easier Tomb Raider, only Hogwarts castle replaces Lara Croft's latest ancient ruin. In the Sorcerer's Stone, you control Harry Potter as he explores Hogwarts in a linear story that allows him to meet all his professors, train in all popular spells from the books and movies, practice plenty of broomstick acrobatics and quidditch heroics, and still follow the course of the original story. It sounds like some of the actors in the movies voice their video game characters, but not many, and all famous Potter characters look like their movie versions although the game does draw a little bit of story and scenery from the books as the movie probably didn't provide enough content. Popular movie franchises such as Star Wars and Star Trek have seen plenty of poor gaming spin-offs so I'm sure Harry Potter will see it's fair share of subpar games. Hopefully, one day we'll get a super Harry Potter game, but this will have to do for all Potter fans until the next book or movie.

I have played the first game, HP&SS on the computer, but I can say, the graphics and the game play cannot even match to this one.
I love flying around Hogwarts! It's really need when you skim the water in the large lake, you can see a trail of water behind you. I also like it how there are minigames you can play when you have nothing to do, and wanting to earn some extra wizard cards.
There is some slight problems. Even though the game was made E for Everyone, and the game play was fairly easy. I would say, there are some problems durring the movie scenes. When Ron, Harry and Hermionie are talking durring some scenes, there bodies rotate, move, or flicker. I found it to be some kind of anyoing glitch, and it happens in my other 3 friends games as well.
Overall, besides the point of it being easy, and the glitch, I gave it a nice 4, because I think Game Cube made a wonderful HP game.

I had high hopes for this game. First of all, this game's storyline and scenery are dissapointing since they are not connected to the movie at all. The only positive thing about the game are the graphics and the quidditch game play. The graphics are pretty realistic and the quidditch controlling is very agile. The worst part about this game is that it is verrry short and takes about 4 to 5 full hours to complete. Dont plan to buy this game, and rent it instead.

It's pretty fun at first, but after a while it's acually kind of boring. I played it for a while, and it was fun until I just got stumped. In my opinion, it is just too hard. Otherwise, the graphics are pretty good, but not the best ever.(In the Prisoner of Azkaban, they look exactly like themselves)I'd give it 3 and a half stars. The sound is AMAZING! Overall, I'd give it three stars, but for now, I'm looking forward to the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Even though I really like the Harry Potter Book's and Movies,I was very dissapointed in this one.I really liked the Sorcerer's Stone.Even though I thought it was pretty simple,I would always go back to play it some more and I have a reason for that-because it was fun.And I waited patientely for this and then finnaly I went downtown to buy it for 20$.Unlike the Sorcerer's Stone this one is extremely boring.You know why?Because every time you wanna select a spell,you gotta open your select a spell and then press 'B' again.On top of that,there are very few enimies and the levels are little more than casting Flipendo at a switch or whatever.You had an incredible amount of health and checkpoints so it wasn't very challenging at that aspect.Maybe the only two cool things are 1.the graphics and 2.you can wear an invisibility cloak.Get the Sorcerer's Stone instead and forget about this.

Although I expected a lot more from this game, I would have to say that the current features are satisfactory for a GBA game. You don't really get to interact or experience that you are in a "wizarding world" as much as the PS2 version, but it should keep you pretty busy for a while. One reason is the limited technology on GBA that the publisher can't make the game as detailed or as long as the PS2 or Game Cube version. However, this should satisfy a lot of people, especially for kids 12 and under and Harry Potter fans. I would have to say that the graphics are excellent. Much better than the Game Boy Color one. The game is not really difficult, but there are still some levels that will challenge your skills, such as your first flying lesson (which took me a while) and the jelly bean challenges. Overall, it's a pretty good Harry Potter game for GBA.

Yea hi. I'm 13 and a girl, your probubly thinking that I have better things to do with myself then write reviews on games that I probubly don't even have, well guess what, its 10:10PM and I don't (now your probulby thinking "Go play with your dolls"). Well I do infact have the Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets PC Game. And I think that it is outstanding, the plot is a little iffy but the graphics, spells, character voices are outstanding. Plus it follows the book/movie (whichever you perfer) rather well. Some things have changed from the first PC Game, for example, when he waves his wand it is followed by a blue entracing of sparkles, and when you are learning a spell instead of dragging your "wand" along the line like a drug test, you press the up, down, right, and/or left keyboard arrows, you get many chances even if you screw up once. I have beaten the game but am currently stuck at when you have to escape the Slytherin Common Room without getting noticed, if it was me, I would just put a spell on them. So I give this game an overall rating of 5 stars (only because i can't do 4 1/2 and it deserves more then 4) and am giving my reccomendation to buy (or rent, you can buy later) Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on PC, PS2, Gameboy, etc.

well i thought it was pretty easy. I finished it in like 4 days(only cause i rented it). But in bits of it you keep dying so you have to do that bit over and over again. like when your trying to save sirius. The two player sucks and you dont play quidditch in this one. But buckbeack is cool to fly.

P.S.
Watch out for those pixies

I'm incredibly bad at video games. No denying it. And I got about halfway through the game in five hours. No cheet sheets, no game hacks, no nothing. It's not a very difficult game. Each puzzle has at least some quirk to it that's right under your nose, and you pick up on the switches really easily. My complaints are the loading times, the camera angles, and the motions of the characters, particularly Harry. Jumps are especially annoying, because if you're a millimeter off, you'll fall and die. The puzzles took me at most about 10 minutes to work my way through. Some of them are really annoying, and if you die, you have to do them over.

However, the artistry is simply breathtaking. Flying Buckbeak over an icy landscape with the lake below you, the mountains ahead of you, and the Hogwarts castle behind you is beautiful. Many of the dungeons have a rotting, sort of sickening feel to them, which is absolutely perfect. I also enjoyed how you can swap between Harry, Ron, and Hermione, each with individual weaknesses and strengths. I loved the dementors, but I had the hardest time trying to figure out how to control my Patronus.

If you're a gamer, rent it. If not, this game is probably challenging enough for a beginner.

This game is alright it consist of finding spell books and such it also has no quidditch plus you can probably beat the game in one day so if were you i'd rent it but if you are a harry potter fan all the way buy it.

This is an awsome game. The graphics are almost the same as Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for PS2 (they look nothing like on the cover). This is a little bit challenging for the first game released, but with a little bit of strategy and logic...all the tasks come together. I loved how well it followed the movie. I gave this game 5 stars because it is VERY addictive and EXTREMELY fun. Hope this review helped.

Ww all played this game on the PS1 and it was the worst game EVER! But we got this on the PS2?!WHY? Here's why I hate this game.
Story:it's the same as the book and movie.
GamePlay:same as COS.
Graphics:it's messey and chessey.
SoundWork:good and bad,because the voice work is really bad and muisc is bad.
Overall:Harry Potter A.T.S.S is the worst game on the PS2 EVER!Did I meton that it's to easy!
I give it a 1 out of 5!

I give it a 1 out of 5.

If you are a true Harry Potter fan, then i would not hesitate to buy this...however...the game has lots of bugs and problems. I am always restarting the game...For example, you can not control Harry's view very well. A lot of times, I have had to re start the game because Harry got "stuck" in between things in the game and you couldn't move him or the camera. Also, I have had to restart the game many times because the voice overs sometimes just repeat the same word, over and over again and don't stop....The music is usually off somewhere and the words don't go along with the character's mouths.

But, the game's graphics are good, the game play is just like the previous HP game. In a nutshell, this game is nowhere as good as Chamber of Secerets , but is still a good additive to your PS2 collection. I can't wait till November when Prisoner of Azkaban comes out on ps2!

Well, This is surely a mattel toy! The figures feet not all the time fit in the pegs why would they stand while riding on the knight bus? Second there are no decals like the one in the movie.. like All Destinations Except Underwater. ell I wouldnt buy this at all if I were you! Take my word for it!