Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (GameCube) offers a decent adaptation of the beloved book and film, letting players attend classes at Hogwarts, learn spells, and explore iconic locations. The ability to switch between Harry, Ron, and Hermione adds some gameplay variety. However, the experience suffers from uneven pacing, sometimes repetitive mini-games, and a simplified storyline compared to its source material. While enjoyable for younger fans or those seeking a quick burst of Potter nostalgia, it lacks the depth or polish of some other entries in the game series.
I always loved how the games followed the films in more ways than one, even accidentally.
The two first films have the same director and thus the same style, and most of the kids don't really have any obvious changes in between them, neither do the two games. It's the third one when everything becomes different. New director, new style. The game has brand new graphics. It feels like the beginning of a new era.
It no longer just feels like a kids game that some team threw together on the backside of a month (until the end maybe), but it feels like an actual game that they spent some actual time on. It doesn't feel like I'm playing a straight-up kids game.
The opening FMV is absolutely epic. Real time was spent on the storytelling aspect of the game, and it makes it so much more rewarding to play. There's an actual style, and an atmosphere, and an aesthetic to it that feels genuine and unique. It feels like if the Chamber of Secrets game just grew up.
No quidditch this time around, though, which is a bummer.
There are less gaps in the narrative now. Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets were almost laughable when it came to that, but these guys actually try to capture the story told as closely as possible. I know it's just because I've read the book and watched the film, but scenes towards the end actually managed to give me chills. I do feel like there was a lot of stuff cut from this game because of deadlines, which sucks, but that's life, and they made it work anyways.
And they even go beyond that. With the previous games, the game might veer off a bit to tell the story in a way that fits the game, but this game adds segments and story beats that aren't even in the book or the film.
Even if their creativeness in its storytelling, and video game making in general, just kinda dies down towards the end (because of deadlines, I'm guessing).
Plus, the game is just better now because you have Ron and Hermione with you for most of the game, and you can even switch to their characters. You even have them with you into the spell challenges, which is more than cool. However, because they follow you this time around, you can't really rely on following them to places, so you kind of have to figure out which doors you're supposed to enter yourself. But not only do you get to play as the three characters, you also get different specific abilities with each character, like Ron being able to see hidden doors, and Harry being able to jump (cool ability, bruv). But it doesn't stop there; the different characters also have character-specific spells. That's really cool.
Also, I adore the character models and animations.
They reuse a lot of music from previous games, which is actually kind of a positive because Chamber of Secrets has my second favorite video game soundtrack of all time. But it's also sort of a bummer because the original music that is here is really good. I especially love the more melancholic and not super happy tone of some of it. And the more mysterious and majestic, and less fun and adventurous, music.
I will say that the pause menu is frustratingly slow. And I don't like how voice lines are interrupted when you pause, and they don't continue when you unpause. And only being able to equip two spells at a time is a nuisance.
And the last act is way, way too short.
But I love this game. It's a good ol' time.
The two first films have the same director and thus the same style, and most of the kids don't really have any obvious changes in between them, neither do the two games. It's the third one when everything becomes different. New director, new style. The game has brand new graphics. It feels like the beginning of a new era.
It no longer just feels like a kids game that some team threw together on the backside of a month (until the end maybe), but it feels like an actual game that they spent some actual time on. It doesn't feel like I'm playing a straight-up kids game.
The opening FMV is absolutely epic. Real time was spent on the storytelling aspect of the game, and it makes it so much more rewarding to play. There's an actual style, and an atmosphere, and an aesthetic to it that feels genuine and unique. It feels like if the Chamber of Secrets game just grew up.
No quidditch this time around, though, which is a bummer.
There are less gaps in the narrative now. Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets were almost laughable when it came to that, but these guys actually try to capture the story told as closely as possible. I know it's just because I've read the book and watched the film, but scenes towards the end actually managed to give me chills. I do feel like there was a lot of stuff cut from this game because of deadlines, which sucks, but that's life, and they made it work anyways.
And they even go beyond that. With the previous games, the game might veer off a bit to tell the story in a way that fits the game, but this game adds segments and story beats that aren't even in the book or the film.
Even if their creativeness in its storytelling, and video game making in general, just kinda dies down towards the end (because of deadlines, I'm guessing).
Plus, the game is just better now because you have Ron and Hermione with you for most of the game, and you can even switch to their characters. You even have them with you into the spell challenges, which is more than cool. However, because they follow you this time around, you can't really rely on following them to places, so you kind of have to figure out which doors you're supposed to enter yourself. But not only do you get to play as the three characters, you also get different specific abilities with each character, like Ron being able to see hidden doors, and Harry being able to jump (cool ability, bruv). But it doesn't stop there; the different characters also have character-specific spells. That's really cool.
Also, I adore the character models and animations.
They reuse a lot of music from previous games, which is actually kind of a positive because Chamber of Secrets has my second favorite video game soundtrack of all time. But it's also sort of a bummer because the original music that is here is really good. I especially love the more melancholic and not super happy tone of some of it. And the more mysterious and majestic, and less fun and adventurous, music.
I will say that the pause menu is frustratingly slow. And I don't like how voice lines are interrupted when you pause, and they don't continue when you unpause. And only being able to equip two spells at a time is a nuisance.
And the last act is way, way too short.
But I love this game. It's a good ol' time.
Take note, this is how legends are born
I love how buckbeak fuckin hates ron for no reason
El mejor juego de Harry Potter, con permiso del RPG de Game Boy Color de La Piedra Filosofal
More or less a traditional adventure game with the Harry Potter skin. As the first one I played, I was surprised with how it almost works like a Zelda game, with dungeons where you find a new spell that helps you proceed.
I also like the emphasis on using characters together to solve puzzles. The grounds of Hogwarts might be a bit plain at times, but the architecture of locations like the courtyards, Hagrid's Hut and the Gryffindor Common Room are realized brilliantly.
I also like the emphasis on using characters together to solve puzzles. The grounds of Hogwarts might be a bit plain at times, but the architecture of locations like the courtyards, Hagrid's Hut and the Gryffindor Common Room are realized brilliantly.
Игра детства, самое то пройти на новый год. Но ОЧЕНЬ мало контента, игра на 100% проходится часа за 3.5
Screeches in Hippogriff
This has been the best one so far, yet Dumbledore's voice it's still very underwhelming.
All three main characters are totally playable. Each one has their own skillset, and at times, the game push you towards which one of the trio would have to complete a quest in order to progress in the game.
The castle and graphics are a bit improved with lot's of new details and rooms added. However the way to the Gryffindor tower was very long and lots of rooms to cross. Some of the floors were access-restricted by a Prefect but by the final day of School all parts of the castle were accessible.
This has been the best one so far, yet Dumbledore's voice it's still very underwhelming.
All three main characters are totally playable. Each one has their own skillset, and at times, the game push you towards which one of the trio would have to complete a quest in order to progress in the game.
The castle and graphics are a bit improved with lot's of new details and rooms added. However the way to the Gryffindor tower was very long and lots of rooms to cross. Some of the floors were access-restricted by a Prefect but by the final day of School all parts of the castle were accessible.
OK licenses game from my childhood.
You can fly on Buckbeak.
I'm pretty sure if you could visually project my nightmares, at some point you'd see the ghoul from the Muggle Studies level
This review contains spoilers
This game is good, but not what to expect from the makers of the last 2 games. The Story is the same as the movie, with a few changes added, like Draco somehow knowing that Harry used Polyjuice Potion last year and used Ron's hair somehow to lure Harry to the dungeon to die, the normal changes fit the engine of the last 2 games, but others make it worse. The Voice acting is better than the last still not good, feel normal in most situations and off in others. The Graphics are not bad, the color but a downgrade of appeal and quality from the last 2 games design, but it's finished at least, unless Philosopher's Stone they show a more mature tone, but it's not as good, especially Snape's model. The Gameplay is good, but worse than the last 2. You play Harry, Ron and Hermione, each with their own abilities and spells to use, harry Jumps, Ron finds passages, and only Hermione can crawl under stuff, even though harry could in the last game, Ron doesn't get many spells, well Hermione gets too many compared to the rest, making playing as each one feel uneven during situations and lowering point. You can't always go down to the floor you want to, since their blocked off with a prefect who stands their trapped until they need to be opened for Harry's story, stealth is broken, you now avoid armor that shake to catch you, even though you are too far away from the teachers, and if teachers see you, you lose and can't run to the door, it's not close to being as good as before, you can collect items like the last game, which do have fun to it, but is less interesting due to collecting items either leads to nothing fun, nothing at all, or to buy stuff in Fred and George's shop. Spell challenges are good but not great, lesser versions of the last games, potion ingredient collecting isn't as fun due to looking for them in an emptier exterior of Hogwarts, it's also odd why, Harry and Ron don't follow Hermione in the Girls dormitory, But Hermione can go to the Boys, I DON'T TOLERATE SEXISM TO MEN. The enemies you fight range from fun if not done too many times, to stupid toy robots and instruments, Bosses can be fun though, not attacking books though. The sneaking past trolls with dumb bombs are bad, thanks to being able to run past them to escape for them, makes not interesting guards when that can happen in a stealth section, but the worst stealth section has to be when future Harry and Hermione have to avoid everyone, why? because it NEVER HAPPENS it gets skipped over, from 1 dementor fight to another. These problems in the gameplay lower its quality more. The Music is good, it actually works for this game's older tone and style. Sounds are good to, when collecting stuff, the sound makes a sudden satisfaction when they are gone, not as good as chamber but better than Philosophers, but that's not good enough to make it as good as its predecessors. Prisoner of Azkaban shows that just because you make the series darker, that doesn't mean it should just do the first one you can think of, otherwise you get this style compare the other ones too.
Prior to the deciding that I'm going to beat all these games in a row, Prisoner of Azkaban for the PS2 was my favorite Harry Potter video game. It continues to be one of my favorites, but, unfortunately, the format of the first three 6th gen games has its limitations.
The game succeeds primarily as a companion piece. Its aesthetics and soundtrack are excellent, which opens up a whole new approach to the world of Harry Potter. It is the most vivid and unique visual depiction of Hogwarts that isn't based on the movies. There's a fantastic balance of unnerving and weird with the amazing and vibrant, and it manages to fit the more oppressive atmosphere of Prisoner of Azkaban with a very stylized artstyle. The spell challenges are just mind-boggling, there's an underground infestation of creatures which settle near locations where plenty of blood has been spilled (yes, that's the in-game description of the Red Cap enemies) merely few steps outside the Potions classroom, but there's also the wonderful grand staircase, the grounds with different possible weather effects, and Buckbeak flying segments.
Unfortunately the gameplay remains largely the same as its predecessors. While the new spells are cool, and there are few puzzles in the dungeons themselves alongside a few fun bosses, the overworld is largely devoid of any fun secrets, it's all laid out in the open from the very beginning, and only becomes interactable once you obtain the necessary spell or item. The pacing, even that of exploration, is snappy and never overstays its welcome as much as the previous parts, but by following said games this closely it could only ever be fun as a companion piece. There is a necessary level of interest required from the player in order to make them feel like trudging through mediocre gameplay is worth it.
To me, it is. I really enjoyed seeing this reimagining, all the added content, casting spells in real time, but it would be difficult to recommend for someone outside of an already diminishing circle of interest. I've seen and played enough 6th Gen titles to tell that, despite being a genuinely pretty title with a strong aesthetic, there's many games that had it beat in that regard even back when it released.
With that in mind, however, I believe it is once again worth reminding that companion pieces are not any less worthwhile than these experiences. The aforementioned investment required to get into the mood for playing this game isn't difficult to obtain, as the universe is still a strong one, and perhaps Hogwarts Legacy can reignite it for many players out there. The same game may also increase the standards too high for these titles to be worth coming back to, however. Only time will tell.
The game succeeds primarily as a companion piece. Its aesthetics and soundtrack are excellent, which opens up a whole new approach to the world of Harry Potter. It is the most vivid and unique visual depiction of Hogwarts that isn't based on the movies. There's a fantastic balance of unnerving and weird with the amazing and vibrant, and it manages to fit the more oppressive atmosphere of Prisoner of Azkaban with a very stylized artstyle. The spell challenges are just mind-boggling, there's an underground infestation of creatures which settle near locations where plenty of blood has been spilled (yes, that's the in-game description of the Red Cap enemies) merely few steps outside the Potions classroom, but there's also the wonderful grand staircase, the grounds with different possible weather effects, and Buckbeak flying segments.
Unfortunately the gameplay remains largely the same as its predecessors. While the new spells are cool, and there are few puzzles in the dungeons themselves alongside a few fun bosses, the overworld is largely devoid of any fun secrets, it's all laid out in the open from the very beginning, and only becomes interactable once you obtain the necessary spell or item. The pacing, even that of exploration, is snappy and never overstays its welcome as much as the previous parts, but by following said games this closely it could only ever be fun as a companion piece. There is a necessary level of interest required from the player in order to make them feel like trudging through mediocre gameplay is worth it.
To me, it is. I really enjoyed seeing this reimagining, all the added content, casting spells in real time, but it would be difficult to recommend for someone outside of an already diminishing circle of interest. I've seen and played enough 6th Gen titles to tell that, despite being a genuinely pretty title with a strong aesthetic, there's many games that had it beat in that regard even back when it released.
With that in mind, however, I believe it is once again worth reminding that companion pieces are not any less worthwhile than these experiences. The aforementioned investment required to get into the mood for playing this game isn't difficult to obtain, as the universe is still a strong one, and perhaps Hogwarts Legacy can reignite it for many players out there. The same game may also increase the standards too high for these titles to be worth coming back to, however. Only time will tell.
2/4 SMTDR
Mejor que cualquier película de HP. La exploración es lo más parecido a vivir en Hoghwarts en la vida real.
lembro que gostava bastante dos puzzles
mais um jogo da minha infancia que esta completado
a historia segue como do terceiro filme da serie e os puzzle muito divertidos um verdadeiro simbolo de Harry Potter muito booom GOOOD!!! 👍
a historia segue como do terceiro filme da serie e os puzzle muito divertidos um verdadeiro simbolo de Harry Potter muito booom GOOOD!!! 👍
The best Harry Potter game of all, the amount of exploration and puzzles in this game is just absurd.
The Prisoner of Azkaban.
The last Harry Potter game I ever played. Never touched any of the games after HP3 cuz my interests kinda shifted and afterwards I heard those are pretty bad.
The graphic texures have pretty much improved since the last game. I also noticed how characters make pretty funny faces in this game, especially Ron and Hermione. Speaking about those, they have been fleshed out alot as characters in this game, in fact I think you play more often as Ron or Hermione than as Harry in this game, who kinda takes a backseat despite being the titular protagonist.
Every character has their own spells and special abilities, making you value each of them differently when playing as either of those.
Hogwarts however feels a bit less alive than in the 2nd game and the stealth missions are kinda downgrades than compared to its predecessor. Also the game is kinda lagging when free roaming outside of Hogwarts.
The levels and puzzles are still great. What keeps this game down to become superior than its predecessor though is the rushed ending. Storywise this feels the far more like it was made for people that only read the book or watched the movie. The best movie and 2nd best book in the series but only the 3rd best game. Still damn good though.
8/10 sinister Dementors swallowing your soul.
Make sure to check out my review of The Prisoner of Azkaban on letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/xgmanx/film/harry-potter-and-the-prisoner-of-azkaban/
The last Harry Potter game I ever played. Never touched any of the games after HP3 cuz my interests kinda shifted and afterwards I heard those are pretty bad.
The graphic texures have pretty much improved since the last game. I also noticed how characters make pretty funny faces in this game, especially Ron and Hermione. Speaking about those, they have been fleshed out alot as characters in this game, in fact I think you play more often as Ron or Hermione than as Harry in this game, who kinda takes a backseat despite being the titular protagonist.
Every character has their own spells and special abilities, making you value each of them differently when playing as either of those.
Hogwarts however feels a bit less alive than in the 2nd game and the stealth missions are kinda downgrades than compared to its predecessor. Also the game is kinda lagging when free roaming outside of Hogwarts.
The levels and puzzles are still great. What keeps this game down to become superior than its predecessor though is the rushed ending. Storywise this feels the far more like it was made for people that only read the book or watched the movie. The best movie and 2nd best book in the series but only the 3rd best game. Still damn good though.
8/10 sinister Dementors swallowing your soul.
Make sure to check out my review of The Prisoner of Azkaban on letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/xgmanx/film/harry-potter-and-the-prisoner-of-azkaban/
despite the characters looking like they are created in sims 3 and having minor annoyances like a sectioned off world and too many loading screens, it replicates the feeling of being in a magical world wonderfully. the puzzles are just the right difficulty to feel rewarding and fun, and the dementors are genuinely unsettling, just like in the movie. though it feels like they try to pack a lot of the story into cutscenes, so the pacing feels kinda awkward towards the end. Ron feels like a burden, but being able to switch between characters during gameplay gagged me a bit, and probably so did rockstar employees.
Fun switching between the trio made them all feel unique to play. Harry felt familiar and strong, Hermione was key with the range of spells, and Ron was a burden. The recipe collection for classes sucked but the Hogwarts grounds were very cozy.
This game ruins the best part of the last game which was the mappable spell buttons. Because it introduces Ron and Hermione as playable characters, you have to use a button to swap between them. That means you can only map up to 2 buttons instead of 3. It doesn’t sound like a big deal, but it means that pretty early on you’ll have to constantly pause the game to remap spells. Whenever you’re in a level that uses a variety of spells or abilities, you quickly run out of slots because each character can only map 2 spells or items at a time. I know these games are for kids, but would it really have made the controls too complicated for kids if they had to swap characters with the D pad instead of the buttons?
probably one of my favorite entries of the hp franchise just a nice twist on the gameplay and the ability to play as Ron and Hermione with Hermione taking a big center stage here is quite nice also just a different aesthetic to Hogwarts after hp 1 and 2 on the ps2 being basically the same and the seasons also add a lot to it
Solid RPG for Harry Potter fans, decent enough platforming & combat.
Didn't feel like the movie at all but tbh which of these games even do
There's something about this particular era of games where the developers would make a giant castle/courtyard you can fly around that is completely empty of content. Like maybe 5% of it is interactable. It rules.
There's this balance between player convenience and realism in scale. Like you don't want the player to have to travel a long distance to get from one "fun" to the next "fun" so you abstract the scale and distance between the "funs". In the FF7 overworld, Cloud becomes a big cartoon boy and hypothetically is traveling very large distances with his thundering abstracted steps. The trade-off here being that you lose a little immersion, a little realism not in graphics but in scale. Games as an interactive medium promise worlds you can live in and can get a lot out of that scale if your willing to inconvenience the player a little. You've got to find the right balance.
The castle/courtyard in this game doesn't have much in it but the sheer act of existing on the Hogwarts campus at full scale is fun.
There's this balance between player convenience and realism in scale. Like you don't want the player to have to travel a long distance to get from one "fun" to the next "fun" so you abstract the scale and distance between the "funs". In the FF7 overworld, Cloud becomes a big cartoon boy and hypothetically is traveling very large distances with his thundering abstracted steps. The trade-off here being that you lose a little immersion, a little realism not in graphics but in scale. Games as an interactive medium promise worlds you can live in and can get a lot out of that scale if your willing to inconvenience the player a little. You've got to find the right balance.
The castle/courtyard in this game doesn't have much in it but the sheer act of existing on the Hogwarts campus at full scale is fun.
While it recycles a lot of elements from the previous EA Harry Potter games, Prisoner of Azkaban didn't quite hit the way Chamber of Secrets did for me. What felt so fresh and exciting last time around began to grow a bit tedious in this one, and more importantly the game failed to make very good use of some of the book and movie's best sequences for gameplay.
This time around you get to control Harry, Ron, and Hermione- who stay together as a trio for most of the game. No co-op seems like a missed opportunity but at least it lends some variety to puzzles as you need to have each of them participate in some component of the puzzle.
Really the game is more of Chamber of Secrets. Instead of getting to explore Hogwarts from the sky on your broom, this time you can fly Buckbeak. The sizable puzzle dungeons return as does the spell mapping system.
It's all serviceable enough though I wish it included more of the locations and moments from the movie. There could have been a unique implementation of the time travel elements, for example, or at least an explorable Hogsmeade (Chamber of Secrets had a pretty elaborate Diagon Alley so that doesn't seem like a huge ask).
Prisoner of Azkaban isn't a bad game and is still worth checking out for Harry Potter fans, but it's understandable why they wanted to change things up in the next game for better or worse.
This time around you get to control Harry, Ron, and Hermione- who stay together as a trio for most of the game. No co-op seems like a missed opportunity but at least it lends some variety to puzzles as you need to have each of them participate in some component of the puzzle.
Really the game is more of Chamber of Secrets. Instead of getting to explore Hogwarts from the sky on your broom, this time you can fly Buckbeak. The sizable puzzle dungeons return as does the spell mapping system.
It's all serviceable enough though I wish it included more of the locations and moments from the movie. There could have been a unique implementation of the time travel elements, for example, or at least an explorable Hogsmeade (Chamber of Secrets had a pretty elaborate Diagon Alley so that doesn't seem like a huge ask).
Prisoner of Azkaban isn't a bad game and is still worth checking out for Harry Potter fans, but it's understandable why they wanted to change things up in the next game for better or worse.
Not going to Lie, I was somewhat disappointed by this game. The first and second were pretty good, but this one kinda fell off the cliff a bit. First, the pros. The spell variety is fantastic. Each spell controls different and it’s really satisfying to use them all. Similarly, the enemy variety is pretty great as well. And of course, this game has an incredible soundtrack, a personal favorite of mine. Unfortunately that’s kinda where the positives end? Negatives wise, the game is extremely short, and the ending feels rushed as hell. The visuals ultimately got worse, which hurts a lot. Quidditch is completely gone, now relegated to exclusively a cutscene. Controlling the characters got far worse, they maintain way too much momentum and it makes them feel extremely slippery. Aiming at enemies feels terrible and unpredictable, and ultimately your AI partners end up being both annoying and complete hinderances. The game is just disappointing.
harrison potter in his scariest role to date
Por que no puedo explorar Hogwarts ;-;