The fascinating, dreamy world of Harry Potter has captivated millions upon millions of people since Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was first published in 1997, followed by numerous books and film adaptations, which in turn added the allure and mystique to the Wizarding World even further. Several video game adaptations have also been made based on the movies, but all the past games put us in the shoes of Potter the protagonist as he and his friends fight their way against Lord Voldemort. I didn't play all of them myself, but I am sure they might not be that different from watching the movie on the TV set over and over again.

Hogwarts Legacy, on the other hand, puts you in the role of you, a new fifth-year student attending Hogwarts in the late 19th century. As you are a rare individual capable of some rare sort of magic, you must live as a student in Hogwarts, learn how to control it and fight against a horde of goblins that want to take that type of magic to themselves for a grander plan like dominating the Wizarding World.

Contrary to many Harry Potter games, this is an open-world game based on the Wizarding World lore, with, as a fifth-year student in Hogwarts, a lot of things to do there, like attending classes like all students should do, hanging out in common rooms, discovering secrets, visiting Hogsmeade, fighting monsters, or just simply enjoying the photogenic views of northern Scotland while you are riding your trusty broom. As an open-world game, you can expect a myriad of side quests, and you can also expect to complete some of them before progressing towards the main quest line.

The main storyline of this game is strong enough. I would not say the storyline here is perfect but strong enough for me to be satisfied, and I believe there is some room for improvement story-wise. It leaves us with several questions and what-if situations which could be made further as a DLC or in the next instalment of the game.

Still, with a strong storyline, game mechanics allowing you to be either stealthy or loud, tools like potions and plants to aid you in battle, puzzles that could leave your head spinning for minutes, loads of customisations, and a captivating soundtrack, there is no mistake that this game could have won multiple Game of the Year awards. The environment of this game is meticulously detailed down to the single piece of furniture in a student's common room, making this game one of the most immersive role-playing games I have ever played.

But what is more important than the experience of playing this game is that, for the first time in my life, this game gives me a sense of belonging in the Wizarding World. As I was playing this game as my character, I feel like I belong to one of the four houses in Hogwarts. Instead of putting us in the shoes of Harry Potter who belonged to Gryffindor, this game gives us the freedom to be ourselves by allowing us to choose which house we want to go in. Some people would pick houses based on where they want to be, or if they are a Potterhead, pick it themselves based on the quality that they pride themselves on the most, but I chose my house based on the Wizarding World Sorting Hat quiz on wizardingworld.com.

As the Sorting Hat puts me in Hufflepuff, I feel happy as if I asked the Sorting Hat to be put in Hufflepuff myself. Once I linked my Wizarding World account to the game, the Sorting Hat ceremony becomes seamless to me, as if it remembered me and the fact that I belong in Hufflepuff, and as I progress through the game, the feeling of me being a Hufflepuff student who prides themselves in doing what is right (not touching the unforgivable curses for one) grows in me. No other game, novel, book, manga, or film could leave such a huge impact on my life than this game, not even Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire I read when I was 10, and I am now proud to say that I finally belong in this Wizarding World fan community as a Hufflepuff guy.

Of course, with such a huge game, there are downsides. Since there are a lot of details to this game, I recommend modern hardware with exceptional graphics capability. You may be able to play this game on six-year-old hardware as I do, but the game will be stuttery at best and unplayable at worst. There are also some weird bugs, which I believe the developers are working hard on them, and some weird design decisions like you can't sit on a sofa or lie down on your bed, which I doubt the developers would fix them anytime soon.

Anyways, this game is an absolute banger and worthy of multiple Game of the Year awards. I would strongly recommend you buy it if you are unsure, but if you want to save up some money and buy this game on sale, the next best thing you can do is to listen to the original soundtracks from this game, either on streaming services or on YouTube. They are absolutely beautiful as if it comes out of a Wizarding World film.

The fascinating, dreamy world of Harry Potter has captivated millions upon millions of people since Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was first published in 1997, followed by numerous books and film adaptations, which in turn added the allure and mystique to the Wizarding World even further. Several video game adaptations have also been made based on the movies, but all the past games put us in the shoes of Potter the protagonist as he and his friends fight their way against Lord Voldemort. I didn't play all of them myself, but I am sure they might not be that different from watching the movie on the TV set over and over again. Hogwarts Legacy, on the other hand, puts you in the role of you, a new fifth-year student attending Hogwarts in the late 19th century. As you are a rare individual capable of some rare sort of magic, you must live as a student in Hogwarts, learn how to control it and fight against a horde of goblins that want to take that type of magic to themselves for a grander plan like dominating the Wizarding World. Contrary to many Harry Potter games, this is an open-world game based on the Wizarding World lore, with, as a fifth-year student in Hogwarts, a lot of things to do there, like attending classes like all students should do, hanging out in common rooms, discovering secrets, visiting Hogsmeade, fighting monsters, or just simply enjoying the photogenic views of northern Scotland while you are riding your trusty broom. As an open-world game, you can expect a myriad of side quests, and you can also expect to complete some of them before progressing towards the main quest line. The main storyline of this game is strong enough. I would not say the storyline here is perfect but strong enough for me to be satisfied, and I believe there is some room for improvement story-wise. It leaves us with several questions and what-if situations which could be made further as a DLC or in the next instalment of the game. Still, with a strong storyline, game mechanics allowing you to be either stealthy or loud, tools like potions and plants to aid you in battle, puzzles that could leave your head spinning for minutes, loads of customisations, and a captivating soundtrack, there is no mistake that this game could have won multiple Game of the Year awards. The environment of this game is meticulously detailed down to the single piece of furniture in a student's common room, making this game one of the most immersive role-playing games I have ever played. But what is more important than the experience of playing this game is that, for the first time in my life, this game gives me a sense of belonging in the Wizarding World. As I was playing this game as my character, I feel like I belong to one of the four houses in Hogwarts. Instead of putting us in the shoes of Harry Potter who belonged to Gryffindor, this game gives us the freedom to be ourselves by allowing us to choose which house we want to go in. Some people would pick houses based on where they want to be, or if they are a Potterhead, pick it themselves based on the quality that they pride themselves on the most, but I chose my house based on the Wizarding World Sorting Hat quiz on wizardingworld.com. As the Sorting Hat puts me in Hufflepuff, I feel happy as if I asked the Sorting Hat to be put in Hufflepuff myself. Once I linked my Wizarding World account to the game, the Sorting Hat ceremony becomes seamless to me, as if it remembered me and the fact that I belong in Hufflepuff, and as I progress through the game, the feeling of me being a Hufflepuff student who prides themselves in doing what is right (not touching the unforgivable curses for one) grows in me. No other game, novel, book, manga, or film could leave such a huge impact on my life than this game, not even Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire I read when I was 10, and I am now proud to say that I finally belong in this Wizarding World fan community as a Hufflepuff guy. Of course, with such a huge game, there are downsides. Since there are a lot of details to this game, I recommend modern hardware with exceptional graphics capability. You may be able to play this game on six-year-old hardware as I do, but the game will be stuttery at best and unplayable at worst. There are also some weird bugs, which I believe the developers are working hard on them, and some weird design decisions like you can't sit on a sofa or lie down on your bed, which I doubt the developers would fix them anytime soon. Anyways, this game is an absolute banger and worthy of multiple Game of the Year awards. I would strongly recommend you buy it if you are unsure, but if you want to save up some money and buy this game on sale, the next best thing you can do is to listen to the original soundtracks from this game, either on streaming services or on YouTube. They are absolutely beautiful as if it comes out of a Wizarding World film.