Over the years, as the Harry Potter IP grew in popularity, the franchise has had its run in all forms of content, including video games. The most recent title Hogwarts Legacy has been a major success since its launch, but the games haven’t always been such smash hits.
There have been game releases for at least every movie released, with some being more enjoyable than others. The games have branched into almost every aspect of the wizarding world, so here are all of the Harry Potter games, ranked.
10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One
While a different take on the series than the other games had been, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One was a darker, more action-based game than what players have experienced. The problem came partially because the series is not necessarily suited to being a third-person shooter, but the theme of this game is nothing but Harry blasting away at everything that moves.
There are certainly some fascinating mechanics introduced like using Polyjuice Potion and the Invisibility Cloak for stealth sections, but the game’s missions don’t follow what happened in the movie or the book. It might be interesting if the game was used as a way to fill in some of the gaps in the movie, but instead, the developers just created some arbitrary missions with characters from the movie to assail with spells.
The game just doesn’t play like a Harry Potter game, other than the fact that the characters shout words like “Horcrux” and Voldemort now and again. Luckily the music is still just as great as it was for the previous few games, but the feeling of exploration and magic was essentially lost. It just makes you want to go back to Hogwarts, but I guess if Harry could talk to us he would be saying the same thing.
9. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two
Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 is equally as uninspired as Part One had turned out to be. The main mechanic of the game is just aiming and blasting, which even still doesn’t carry much emotion because the game does a great deal of auto-locking for you. You just aim your cursor where you want magic to potentially go, and blast as rapidly as you possibly can.
While the story follows the same general tale as the movie, there isn’t much that isn’t wildly distorted and abridged. Cutscenes simply toss information at you, and there’s not much creativity in how they deliver the plot points. You do get to play some part of the game as other characters than Harry, but a lot of it becomes more filler than actual story content.
As far as the rest of the games go, Deathly Hallows Part 2 feels like one of the less polished titles, but that’s likely got a lot to do with how the book was split up into two different movies. There was plenty in the books that could’ve been tapped into, similar to how Peeves was never in the movies but they incorporated him into the earlier games. Whether it was a time issue or just questionable writing, watching the movie will provide a better experience than trying to play through it.
8. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
The fifth game in the series seemed to be the point at which the games started to fall off a little bit. While there were some technological improvements like more accurate facial scans for the characters and a new physics system, these new elements are not the most well-refined. The story got a bit distorted with how they bring the player between plot points, and overall the gameplay experience was a bit lacking. It’s nice that some of the actual film cast like Rupert Grint voiced their characters in the game, making for some pleasant continuity.
The physics system was rather jittery, causing objects and people’s arms to flap wildly depending on how they wound up oriented. The spellcasting was a little hard to handle, with each spell being bound more to gestures than to a given button press. Luckily, the castle is still free to be explored, with plenty of secrets and collectibles hidden around to add some extra depth to the game and the way the world feels.
What could be considered a saving grace for the game was the minigames, which added some fun ways to spend a little extra time other than following the story or exploring the castle. You could play Wizard’s Chess, Gobstones, or exploding snap, which could distract from but not make up for some of the rest of the game’s flaws. Still, something must be said for a game trying to incorporate new elements where there hadn’t been room for them prior.
7. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
When it comes to which of the main Harry Potter games I put the most hours into, the answer is without question Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. This has less to do with how much I enjoyed the game but with both the game’s length and difficulty compared to the prior three. It wasn’t hard in a way that’s unbeatable by any means, but there are some odd features like having card slots for each character that made it a bit tough to get fully into the game.
The fourth entry remained in third-person but pulled the camera back a bit to accommodate more on the screen at once. There was more to explore in the environment, but you could also play with two other people as the main three, which was a technical step up from the other games. In the first three games, to cast spells you only had to press a single button and the game would choose the spell for you, but the fourth game put the spell choice in the players’ hands.
Playing the game required more focus and attention than the other titles had previously, with the players having to make more complicated decisions, solve larger puzzles, and explore more expansive locations in the world. The enemies were harder to beat than ever before, but the feeling of doing so wasn’t as rewarding as you would hope. Unfortunately, the overall gameplay was a bit clunky, the spellcasting wasn’t satisfying and some points were so dry that I just wanted the game to end.
6. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Further continuing with the evolution of the games to that point, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was a much more involved title than the first two, incorporating a form of fast travel, more challenges and more collectibles. The games often tend to stray from the details of the actual books and movies in some regards, but interestingly, they will incorporate characters and details from the books that weren’t brought up in the films.
An example of this is Peeves the Poltergeist, who doesn’t make any appearances in the films but plays a large role in the books and games. He generally has to do with the collectibles or fast travel systems, so it’s one of those extra features added in to flesh the games out a little bit better. The third game incorporates all three of the main characters as being playable to a small extent, but multiplayer capabilities still weren’t in a place where you could play with your friends.
The Prisoner of Azkaban game incorporated some fun new Hippogriff flying minigames, and it also massively improved upon the other games from a technical and graphical perspective. The characters are a bit more lively, the voice actors have more enthusiasm and the music makes the experience feel much more well-rounded and thrilling.
5. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
After the relative disappointment of the Order of the Phoenix game, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was a surprisingly good time. After a while of playing it, there came a point where it felt a bit repetitive, between the dueling and minigames, but the first few times you did them, they were enjoyable and creative.
I played this one on the Wii, and it must’ve been just the right time to do so because it did for a moment capture that feeling of waving a wand. That feeling didn’t always carry through for the rest of the game, but the potion-making minigames were some of the most memorable by far with that control scheme. The Quidditch sections are also a blast, making the game feel thrilling and fast-paced — more than some of the combat.
Another highlight is the music in the game, never giving you a moment to feel like you’re playing anything other than a Harry Potter game. Some of the setpieces are clever and fall right into place with the world, even if they’re not a one-to-one recreation of the films that they’re based on. As always though, it’s nice to have some of the main actors lend their voice to the project, but some of the ones that are fill-ins do leave something to be desired.
4. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s/Philosopher’s Stone
Released in 2001, it’s a bit hard to look back at the first Harry Potter game in the franchise and not see its age immediately. The graphics are blocky, the animations are dated and the sound quality isn’t the most enjoyable, but when you look at the overall gameplay, there’s plenty to be pleased with. You get to learn many different spells, explore a surprisingly in-depth Hogwarts, and even fly on a broomstick.
Looking back at the game flooded me with memories of seeing cutscenes, but more than anything I was struck by the three or so different variations of saying each spell, and boy do they get grating after a while. I can’t imagine how parents must’ve felt listening to screams of “Flipendo!” and “Alohamora!” at all hours of the day, but at least they could sleep well knowing that they got their kids a game that’ll entertain them for hours.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is simple yet rewarding, and while made for kids, it’s a great first step into the realm of gaming given that it came out directly alongside the movie. There was no guarantee it would do well at all, but the game was reasonably well-received and sold enough copies to justify making a game for every single other film release, and plenty more.
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Serving as a technical upgrade from the first game, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets smoothed up some of the textures and refined other quality-of-life matters like sound quality and voice acting. There are more collectibles than the first game, and the overall gameplay experience is more refined than the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Certain aspects of the game became more evolved from the Socerer’s Stone game, like the spellcasting QTEs changing from drawing a symbol to pressing arrows along the path of a symbol. This is likely to quell some of the frustrations the first game instilled, but it also gives the impression that the games are maturing along with the characters.
Because it looked so much better than the first game in the series, Electronic Arts wound up remastering the first game in 2003, with more assets and technical features that were introduced in the second game. Playing through Chamber of Secrets is probably where I developed my compulsion to break and interact with every single item in whatever game I’m playing because I grew so used to earning countless Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans.
2. Hogwarts Legacy
The newest installment in the Harry Potter series of games does what hasn’t been done before, being that it has nothing to do with Harry or the standard cast of characters. The game takes place long before the events of the books and films, meaning that you get to explore the world of Hogwarts without having the pressure of saving the world on your back. Sure, you’ve got some big priorities alongside your classwork, but they pale in comparison to being the Boy Who Lived.
Getting to explore the grounds and the castle is everything that I’ve always wanted to do as a fan, but the previous games were limited. Obviously, in 2003 it simply wasn’t possible for games to be what Hogwarts Legacy is today, but luckily I was able to hold out until 2023 — or rather the year after — to get the experience I always wanted. The map is vast and inclusive, and being able to ride mounts or brooms makes getting around a breeze. That and the floo powder.
Having the freedom of being a student makes the whole world feel like it’s something you can be a part of. You aren’t a first-year, meaning that you have some idea what you’re doing, but you still have so much to explore and so many people to talk to, uncovering some of the secrets of the environment. Even for someone who’s not a Harry Potter fan, there can be a lot to love just exploring the world with fresh eyes.
1. Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup
When it comes down to all of the Harry Potter games, the one that I’ve sunk the most hours into is the one that feels the most replayable: Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup. The main tie to the franchise is that you start in Hogwarts, but once you’ve conquered the school you’ll have the whole world to take on. Weirdly, it plays like a sports game while managing to master the magic of the universe and allow you.
For a game released in 2003, there’s a lot to unpack. The PC controls are certainly not the most intuitive, but a controller can help to steady your broomstick as you soar through the different positions on the Quidditch pitch. You’ll play as a Chaser, Seeker, Beater and Keeper, and each has challenges for you to overcome. Each position is diverse and different, and it gives you a good level of variety that drives the replayability of the game.
Although I played the game at a time before E-Sports rose to popularity, even as a child I found myself drilling the challenges until I got them right. I would play game after game until I beat every team in the school and on the world stage, even though I wasn’t earning achievements for doing so. The game feels dynamic and alive, and after downloading a copy in 2024 to see how it feels, it still holds up over 20 years later which gives it the top spot on the list.
Published: Feb 22, 2024 03:30 pm