His Review with Ian
Welcome to the final official Harry Potter video game (although I know there’s another Lego Potter in the pipes which should be with us by Christmas 2011).
As the world of little wizards slowly crumbles into chaos in this, the final episode, it’s up to our old chums: Barry, Tom and Ermintrude (I’ve renamed them due to the appalling voice acting) to raze Lord Voldemort and his horcruxes to the ground with a big ole battle at the end at Hogwarts to determine who wins.
The game, if you can call a glorified shooting gallery a game, sees you take control of an array of characters like Prof McGonagall or tiny Ginny Weasley as well as Barry himself (though they all fire the same spells – lazy design alert) as you sift your way through the final sites of the film (Gringots, Room of Requirement and Hogsmeade etc.) shooting, shooting, ducking a little bit and shooting some more during this marathon 180 minute experience.
If we look back over the history of video games in one hundred and twenty five years, there is not a chance that this will get a look in, a mention or even a passing micro thought because it is quite possibly the most boring title I’ve ever played and took me less than THREE hours to complete.
Developed by EA Brightlight, it’s been eight months since Barry Pooter and the Deathly Video Game – Part 1, so it was never going to be up for game of the year, but then the gap between Assassin’s Creed 2 and Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood was only 12 months and there’s light years of quality between the two franchises on every level.
The visuals look like a last generation console, the gameplay and variation are almost non-existent, though there are a couple of “levels” where you run away from some smoke and fire and do a little bit of behind shooting which give a little bit of excit…oh no, no, wait - it doesn’t at all.
It feels distinctly like ying and yang gaming for me this month; the terrifying highs of Shadows of the Damned have been followed by the crashing lows of Barry and the un-hallowed Video Game.
I derived no joy, no pleasure only copious amounts of negative satisfaction during my time with Barry. Please do not do the same.
Her Review with Tracey
It’s over. I’ve spent the past couple of weeks pouring over the old films and the books, rekindling my love of all things Hogwarts as the latest and final Harry Potter game came close to destroying every happy thought I ever had about J.K. Rowling’s magical series. After waiting for years to learn the fate of Harry and his magic pals, like an icy dementor, EA Brightlight thought they’d save dragging out one of the most eagerly anticipated and poignant endings to the worlds most loved series by wrapping the whole affair up in a paltry three hours.
Playing this game made me incredibly sad – not due to any emotional connection or even that feeling you get in your soul when something good, that you’ve really enjoyed comes to an end but because as finales go, this is the lamest, cheapest and most un-engaging effort ever made. It’s like the team at EA Brightlight really couldn’t care less any more about presenting any of the enchantment, tension and threat that makes Harry’s final showdown with his life long nemesis Voldemort so compelling. Every element of this game seems basic and leaves you feeling stupefied. Whilst audiences have grown with Harry over the years, EA Brightlight have made a game that lacks maturity, depth, scope and overall fun that will leave fans feeling short changed and insulted. Harry’s charm, bravery and daring ambition to overcome insurmountable evil against all odds plus the intimate and complex relationships that we’ve followed to the end are almost ignored as the whole game boils down to just plodding through and getting the job done.
The film locations appear to be accurate on the surface as you plough through a snowy Hogsmeade Village or run down the stone staircases of Hogwarts but ultimately feel bland as small but beautiful attention to detail is sadly missing. The characters are a bit clunky and although they look and sound vaguely like their film counterparts, they are simultaneously spooky and unnatural with over white teeth and funny lines around their nostrils. Hermione has a squiffy shaped head like her face has been wrapped around a traffic cone whilst poor ole Danny Radcliffe still has that problem of looking like his arms belong to someone else. The actual gameplay is a boring, uninventive and repetitive exercise in ducking behind rocks/barrels/fences, peeking out to shoot off some spells at some deatheaters then hiding in cover again. Potential highlights from the story/film like riding a giant fire breathing dragon or riding broomsticks in the Room of Requirement are overlooked rather than incorporated in order to break up the monotonous shooting. Even the short scenes where you have to flee for your life are dull and unchallenging. Elsewhere there’s no hint of pleasure to be had from the cut scenes either where the slow pace and clunky dialogue totally kills what should be Harry’s powerfully moving final farewell to his loved ones.
So perhaps we’re all dying of not surprise here as movie tie in games are notorious for being rushed affairs resulting in badly designed, mediocre gaming experiences but this one should have mattered – love or hate Harry Potter, the impact the series has had on the world is immense. Simply making it so it exists is not enough and fans will be bitterly disappointed regarding the quality and lack of magic.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 – the Video Game is out now for Playstation3, Xbox360, Wii, DS, Mac and PC.
