This year, Warner Bros. Games is releasing the highly anticipated Hogwarts Legacy console game – where you will get to experience Hogwarts like never before. Set in the late 1800s, this immersive, open-world, action RPG is highly detailed and packed with features that will allow you to create your very own adventure within the wizarding world.
From concept art to hints about your character, we’ve been lucky enough to get a glimpse behind the scenes thanks to the game developers at Avalanche Software, who have provided a fantastic insight into what has gone into making this game. Want to take look? Of course you do…
We spotted so many awesome details from that video…
Unseen magical locations
There are loads of cool places featured in this video. While the developers have said that there will be things that fans recognise, it is going to be a whole new world that no one has ever experienced. For example, as Game Director Alan Tew states, we are going to get to go beyond Hogwarts and Hogsmeade and explore landscapes that we haven’t come across before. We saw a glimpse of some of those in the video, like the mysterious location by the sea, and look forward to exploring them further.
Who are you?
We also got to hear a little bit more about who our character will be in the game. According to Narrative Director, Moira Squier, you start your adventure by joining Hogwarts as a fifth-year – which is highly unusual to say the least. Additionally, as fans already know, ancient magic is something that has been around for a long time and Hogwarts is a stronghold for it. And in a cool twist, not only will your character have the ability to sense ancient magic but might even be able to wield it!
The Hufflepuff common room!
While we are very familiar with the Gryffindor common room from the books and films, have seen a glimpse of the Slytherin one in Chamber of Secrets and read about the Ravenclaw’s common room in Deathly Hallows, we’ve never been inside Hufflepuff’s! Now we can. From the warm and sunny atmosphere to all the amazing plants – it feels like the perfect home for Hufflepuff students.
An insight into how Hogwarts was created
This game is wonderfully intricate, and we were certainly interested to learn a little bit more about the level of detail that went into creating Hogwarts. Art Director, Jeff Bunker, talks about how the process really began by rereading the books… many times. Every time they created a new feature they would dig into them, as well as the movies. And while many of the castle’s recognisable features have been recreated, there are also plenty of new elements which we’ve only ever read about in the story.
The developers also talked about how they brought the castle to life. Boston Madsen, Senior Environment Artist, hinted that as the castle is sentient, you need to make sure you’re on the lookout for its little secrets and hidden passageways! It’s easy to see why Narrative Director, Moira Squier believes you can find yourself distracted from a side-quest and wandering the halls of Hogwarts for forty-five minutes while just admiring your surroundings.
The beautiful concept art
The behind the scenes video also featured a load of fantastic concept art. The concept team were drawn to all the minute details and even looked at architecture to get the look and feel of the game right. And with so much put into the creation of these concept pieces, such as the Tundra Gate puzzle, we can’t wait to see how that translates into the actual game.
Developed by Avalanche Software and published by Warner Bros. Games under the Portkey Games label, Hogwarts Legacy will be coming in 2022 for PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One consoles, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
Want to explore Hogwarts Legacy further? Click here and take a look at everything we're excited about from the gameplay reveal.
