The Buzz

Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (PS3)

Developer: Traveler’s Tales Games Publishing
Publisher: Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment
US Release Date: June 29, 2010
Systems: PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, DS, PSP, & PC
ESRB: E10+
Official Site

BOTTOM LINE

Graphics: 2
The detail put into the environment, animations, effects, and cut scenes was adorable and fun to watch, but there were a few glitches. Most of the graphics looked as if they were rendered for the Wii.

Sound: 4
The sounds were timed perfectly and made the actions seem real. The annoying muffled “Hello” given by almost every character you walk pass was a little too much.

Game Play: 3
The game is fun and entertaining with well designed controls that are pretty easy to learn and master. The films/books are followed pretty well with a diversion or two here and there. Too bad that backtracking sometimes gets tedious, the AI is barely ok, there is no online co-op, no playing quidditch, and players could only save at the end of a mission or when an unlockable item is collected.

Replay Value: 5
With 24 missions to complete, a list of achievements to attain, a large amount of unlockable items to collect, and the ability to replay any mission at anytime with any characters gives the game high replay value.

Overall: 3
This is the best of the Lego game series so far. The game is excellent for kids and any Harry Potter or Lego fan, young or old. Unfortunately, some players may find the humor and game play a bit juvenile.

Recommendation: RENT or BUY USED

FULL REVIEW

As a long time fan of the Lego franchise and the Harry Potter series, buying this game was a must for me. I have played a couple other Lego-themed games before, so I was excited to see how this rendering was going to come out. In this fun action-adventure title, players explore the magic and wonder of Hogwarts in the colorful world of Lego. Like other Lego-themed games, the main focus of the game is to play through a generally linear story while destroying any destructible thing in sight to collect tons of Lego studs and various unlockable items. This time, players get to do this with the help of magic spells, potions, various vehicles, and a host of characters straight from the massively popular film/book series.

The game covers the first four years of the Harry Potter series with great precision. Each year has about six fun-filled missions to complete. A number of bonus stages are also available for play. Players start each mission with a team of three characters, who are predetermined based on their importance in that mission and the special skills that they possess. For example, Hermoine and Ron can use their pets to fit into small areas and Hagrid’s strength gives him the ability to pull levers. Players take control of one character while the other two are AI. It is possible to switch control to any of the two AI characters by pressing the triangle button. Later in the game players learn how to create polyjuice potion, which will allow them to transform the character they are controlling into any character that has been unlocked and bought. A second player may chime in or out at anytime for exciting co-op play. That second player will control one of the available two AI characters and will have the same ability to swap and transform characters as necessary. No online co-op is available. If a player ever gets confused as what should be done next, they can follow Nearly-Headless Nick as he floats to the next area that should be explored.

The graphics of the game are a little less than impressive for the PS3 and on par with the Wii. Hogwarts was a bit gloomy looking, but the distant views from outside of the castle walls and the effects of the spells were quite nice. I did not notice too much HD graphics, but the careful attention was placed on detailing Hogwarts. The animations were fluid and the cut scenes were adorable and fun to watch.

From the majestic “Ahhhh” of the expecto patronum to the nerve numbing shriek of the mandrake roots, the sound effects were very well developed. Various sountracks from the original movie playes softly in the background and did not distract me from the actual sound effects of the game play. I did find the greetings of characters walking arounf Hogwarts a bit annoying at times. I simply loved building radios and watching a procession of skeletons and other characters dance around to the music.

The game play is very intuitive. Spells can be easily changed by selecting the spell you want from a spell wheel and the incantation can be implemented with the push of a button. The analog sticks are used for exploring the terrain and maneuvering vehicles. There are mini-bosses, such as the troll in the girl’s restroom and waves of Death Eaters, and epic main bosses, such as the Basilisk and Lord Voldemort himself. Most of the time all a player needs to do is figure out the sequence and frequency of their enemy’s attacks and counter it with a spell or two. Some enemies do require a little more skill and wit to tackle than others. Vehicles were a little clunky at times, but they were pretty easy to control. All animated violence was done so that it was humorous instead of horrific. Instead of leaving a pool of blood after death, players explode into a number of Lego studs. The automatic game saving system could have been better. The only time that the game was saved was when a mission was complete or an unlockable item was collected. The AI friends could be a little more helpful and AI enemies a little more intelligent. I was a little upset that you rode a broom, but did not actually get to play quidditch. Nor did you get to actually ride Buzzbeak.

The replay value of the game is pretty high. Players have the option of replaying any mission that has been completed to find secret areas and items that were missed or previously inaccessible. There are over 100 playable characters and a wide range of spells to unlock. There are over 10 bonus stages that are available and over 30 trophies to collect. With the cut scenes and backtracking, a player wishing to complete the main story may be looking at about 12 hours of total game play. The player determined to play the game to 100% completion may be looking at least 19 hours of play time.

Upon release, this game was stamped with a typical $49.99 price tag. I did expect a little more out of it for the price, but the game is very fun to play and will leave players entertained for hours. Trying to get all of the achievements and items may be a bit draining because of the repetitious gameplay and amount of backtracking that will be involved. Unless you are a diehard fan of the Harry Potter or Lego series, I suggest that this game be rented or bought when it is a bit cheaper or used.