Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Wii) Review
Posted by Ramon Aranda on 08.10.2007
Iron that cape, polish up that wand and get ready to cast some serious spells.
Title: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Type: Action, Adventure
Players: 1
With the next iteration of the Harry Potter movies already out in theatres, EA gives you another opportunity to revisit Hogwarts while letting you don the role of Harry himself. We had a chance to see an early demo of the game a few months back at one of EA's summer showcases and while the press wasn't allowed any hands-on playtime, we were given a preview of the title by one of the game's developers.
What we saw from the short preview was enough to give us a taste of what to expect and it left us wanting more. Now that we've had our own chance to play through the game, we're glad to note that what we saw from the preview hasn't changed much and that's a good thing.
Graphics
The look of the game sports somewhat of a mixed bag. On the one hand you have good attention to detail as it pertains to the design and look of Hogwarts. As with Twilight Princess, the in-game lighting is superb and adds a nice touch to the overall look. The candles and chandeliers gleam through the darkness and the paintings on the wall appear life-like. I was really sold on the look early on as it reminds me of Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (though not with the same graphical quality of course) what with the castles and outdoor environment.
On the other hand you notice that there are a ton of jagged edges. It's a problem with a lot of these games that get ported onto the Wii and I hope that with time more and more titles are built from the ground up for the Nintendo Wii and not ported over from the Xbox or PS2. Fortunately the game IS presented in 16:9 widescreen and runs at 480p so it retains the movie-like experience.
Gameplay
As the game begins you are taught a few simple spells that'll get you started on your quest. Rather than having an all-out tutorial, you will learn techniques as you play along that will tie into the sequence of events. The developers also took a smart route as players won't need to learn a plethora of gestures to pull off the different spells in the game. You learn a few techniques and use them for more than one spell. Sound confusing? Well it's not because you can only perform certain spells in certain situations. For example if you rotate the Wii remote in a clockwise fashion, you can repair an item if it is broken. That same gesture may allow you to shoot off a beam of electricity but only if you are in a battle so you won't inadvertently shoot off a beam on a broken statue. The gameplay is really quite simple but the ability to swing the remote around will make you feel like you're in Harry's shoes.
Moving around is handled by the thumb stick while holding 'A' will enable you to sprint. There is no fatigue meter so you can run around all day if that's what makes you happy. There are numerous routes to each area and though you can go through the main story, there will also be side quests that you can complete for unlockables and hidden items.
Speaking of unlockables, you will receive points for uncovering hidden secrets or fixing broken items throughout the school. These points accumulate and when you have enough points, you will level up so that your spells are stronger and you will also unlock new content such as behind the scene looks at the development of the game to new items that will help you along the way.
Sound
As a movie tie-in you'd half expect that the voice acting to be spot on and that's exactly what we get. There's no need for subtitles here as they characters speak clearly and fluidly in a manner that makes you feel you're watching a movie instead. All the major players in the movie lend their voices and it makes for a better experience to hear them all there.
Playing with surround sound is the only way to go here as you'll hear various conversations in the background and other sound effects such as birds, candles burning and footsteps. It's really all well done here and EA should get credit for taking the time to add these little things.
Lasting Appeal
While the main story can take you quite a few hours to complete, it’s the hidden items, unlockables and side quests that will keep you coming back for more. It takes quite a while to garner enough points to get all the locked content to be available. Hogwarts is a rather large area and you'll want to explore every cravat to speak to all of your friends who will give you tips on what to do and how to find items.
Fun Factor
It just doesn't get any better than this for Harry Potter fans. Waving around the Wii remote to cast spells is as close as you'll get to acting out your fantasy of being the boy himself. That alone should sell any potential buyer into the Wii version of the game.
The 411
Though there are other versions of this game available such as the beautiful Xbox 360 version, on the Nintendo Wii is the only place where you'll get immersed into the experience and world of Harry Potter. This is the definitive version for any fan out there and even for non-fans it’s a world you'll want to visit if you own a Wii.
Graphics
7.9
More or less a PS2 port but with a more polished look.
Gameplay
9.5
You mimic Harry casting spells and the game responds perfectly.
Sound
9.0
Good voice acting by all the major players.
Lasting Appeal
8.2
Decent completion time for the main story but lots of side quests and unlockables.
Fun Factor
8.5
Act out your fantasy of being Harry Potter with this version.
