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Very Amusing

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 22 / 23
Date: June 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I bought the game today at Walmart, and even though I am only 6% complete, I still find the desire to share my experiences with it.

I'll admit it: the graphics are pretty bad BUT there isn't much you can expect for a DS game. So for a DS game, the graphics are pretty good. Final Fantasy III, so far, has the best DS graphics that I've seen.

The game opens up in Little Whinging with Dudley but right after the dementors attack, you find yourself in Grimmauld Place. There, you have to run around and find people [there's a compass in the corner that tells you which direction you need to be going which is very helpful] and fix things like broken furniture. Clearly the game ignored the fact that you can't do magic outside of Hogwarts until you're 17 but all for amusement's sake.

The Hearing is skipped and reasonably so. You eventually find yourself at school and that's where task after task is thrown at you, but again, all for fun.

Also, this game appears to use screenshots from the other HP5 games made for the big consoles. For instance, when 'cinematic' moments take over, like when Harry argues with Umbridge, all they show are dialogue and still screens with much better graphics. I have to assume these are the graphics for the Wii, PS3, 360, PC, etc.

So far in the game, I've really enjoyed it. Basically, at 6% complete, all it has been is objectives like finding Hermione, the library, Potions class, DADA class, etc., beating a kid at Exploding Snaps, going to class [I really enjoy Potions class.] and randomly running into Draco for duels [duels are also very fun]. Anytime you have to use the stylus is where the game is most enjoyable.

I think this game is the most fun on the DS and most likely the Wii. On the DS, to perform certain spells, you have to draw certain kinds of squiggles and shapes with the stylus. On all the other platforms, you'll be button mashing combos to do spells, I'm sure.

In any case, if you like games where you'll be running around [by the way: Hogwarts is HUGE in this game....I never played the games 2-4, so I don't know how big Hogwarts was in those games, but in OOTP, it's ginormous] completing tasks and messing around with the stylus to do magic, then you'll have fun with this game.

Because I feel the need to advise:... When making a potion, if it says blow on the potion, literally blow on it [or really, the mic.] or you'll get a T [for Troll] for sure. I didn't know this the first time around, so I did get a T.... Being the video game perfectionist that I am, I turned my game off and on and got an O the second time.

I should also note the saving system. For the DS version [I don't know about the others] it saves on its own. And if you have it and can't figure out WHEN it saves, like I was confused about for a while, I'll have you know that it saves every time you complete a task, or in simpler words... every time you've gone through and done a few things, and then you suddenly end up back in the Commons Room [usually after a cinematic moment...]...that is where it's safe to turn off the game without worry of lost data. According to the booklet, it also saves each time you find something like a chocolate frog.

All in all, very amusing. It's so far very easy. It seems like one of those games where little-to-no brain effort is needed. You can just relax entirely and play. That might change though when I get closer to the Department of Mysteries chunk of the game.

5/5

was expecting way better

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 16 / 17
Date: June 28, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I'm a little dissapointed with this game. I've enjoyed every Harry Potter game that's come out before, and it seemed the graphics got better each time and funner to play. I was shocked by the bad graphics in this one, and the camera angles are horrible. It's like the screen can't make up it's mind where I'm at most of the time and it's always switching to another screen constantly so I don't know if I'm coming or going. I think that may be why they added the arrow on the bottom left to point me in the right direction. Overall, it's an okay game. However, it's the small details that they could have tweaked just a little to make this game really awesome. Another example, except for a few main characters, all the other kids in Hogwarts looks exactly the same, which maybe isn't a big deal, but I found it annoying when I helped some student find an object a bully stole...and both boys look identical. They shouldn't do a face shot on every kid, if they're all going to be the same face. It just feels weird. They should call this game: Harry Potter and the Hogwart Clone Army". I NEED A LIFE PEOPLE!!, but i can't help it, I'm addicted to Video Games. ALSO this game never tells you how to save, I had to drag out the manual to find out. It says it automatically saves after completing a task. ooookay, so I assumed it saved after a task and turned the game off, and when I go to play again I'm back where I was when I started the game before. They don't tell you which tasks will do it...nice of them,eh? By the way, I'm a huge Harry potter fan, and I'm a huge DS fan, and YES, I have some excellent DS games that have wonderful graphics, including the last Harry Potter game in the series. This one, although okay, just couldv'e been much better. For the price, we deserve better. Atleast I got a free ticket out of it, which even an adult can use(like me) but only during Matinee hours. AND I have the satisfaction of owning the complete set so far. WHOPEEE! (sarcasm)

Expectations not met

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: July 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I expected a whole lot more from this game. I've had it a whole two days and have only played it a few hours and I have the game 95% complete. I was hoping for better quality and a more complex plot. I enjoyed doing the lessons and the mini-games like gobstones and quidditch, but that was about it. I was hoping for some interesting battles and was there was no actual action and it was way to easy to "power up" spells. There is also a pointer at the bottom of the screen that tells you exactly where to go all of the time which takes away the only part of the game that could have been slightly complex (the navigation of the castle). There was just little excitement and a real lack of complexity to this game.

Fun, but easy & boring

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: July 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game had a lot of hype surrounding it. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan so I decided to buy one of the few remaining copies at a local Target store. While the came is fun, it has a few problems. I find moving Harry around in the world while trying to find a class or person or item difficult. Half the time I end up getting him stuck against a wall or piece of furniture, the other half I end up making him go back to a previous area because the screen keeps changing, thereby changing how the controls direct his movements. Instead of having the D-pad move the character around, they probably should have allowed for the use of the stylus to direct Harry's movement through the castle and grounds. I also found all the cut still scenes to be a bit too much. There were too many of them in the game. It seemed as if every few minutes of play was interrupted by a group of stills & captioned words. There needed to be more game play. I was also disappointed that I didn't get to fight the Dementor at the start of the game like I expected to. I did like the way they integrated the DS's microphone into the game however, at least there is a use for it.

An ok game

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 10 / 10
Date: July 07, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I am disappointed with this game. I don't like the arrow that points the way for one thing. Then it is easy to get Harry trapped in a wall or door and takes awhile to get him moving the right way. I am an adult woman gamer and I love the DS. This game probably young kids would like maybe. I will finish it most likely because I paid $29.99 for it.

Not the best

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: July 15, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The only good thing about this game is that it will entertain you. Other than that the graphics are the worst I've seen out of all my games and the camera angles at times are pretty bad. Looks like a rushed job to get this game out. Could of had so much more potential.

Too many stairs!

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: July 19, 2007
Author: Amazon User

The thing that bothered me the most about this game was having to constantly run up and down those eight million stairs to get to places, some of which I had just been to. Each time Hermione said "we have to find so and so", I thought "oh no, more stairs!" The arrow was a huge help when it came to navigation, but I felt most of the game was just spent running from place to place. Also, having Hermione and Ron trail you was a problem because most of the time they wound up blocking the way, so I had to make Harry try to run around them, which sometimes took several tries.

The tasks themselves were fun. The constant DA meetings started to wear on my nerves though. They only let you do two spells per person each time, so in order to get all your spells ready, there were DA meetings after almost every task.

The best part of the game involved playing Gobstones...a fun little minigame. I enjoyed the story because I love Harry Potter.

Overall I'm glad I got it because I enjoyed my free movie ticket and the game kept me entertained for several hours. It just is nowhere near my favorite DS game.

Eh?..

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: August 13, 2007
Author: Amazon User

This game was.. Not so good I didn't like how there was this hand pointing where you go. And when you try to move your friends are in the way and you have to keep walking in front of them so they could move because they act like bricks. You fight the same enemie (Draco) over and over again till the end. The camera angles were horrid I liked the goblet of fire which i didnt think wasn't that fun but at least it wasnt as bad as this. And whatever happened to getting house points? I miss the ps one versions they should have ported that in here.. I passed the game with 46%.. I was so mad but you can use the stylus yay! there are mini games .. most of the game is trying to get people to join dumbledore's army which isn't much fun.

The developers and everyone else should have made this better. I played the psp one it's better then this but not that much. I think the only fun thing about this game is... um...eh.,. The mini games just rent this first before buying this or borrow it from a friend. I made the mistake from buying it without trying it out first but just check it out..

Expected better, but still okay

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: August 14, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Very simple, very short game. The many mini-games are nice, but they don't quite make up for the games deficiencies. Not very exciting, but worth it for dedicated Harry Potter fans.

I hate the duels!!!

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: September 10, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have found this game enjoyable- up to a certain extent. I just recently purchased the nintendo ds and am still getting used to it. There are a lot of things- such as some of the mini-games that I enjoy. HOWEVER, I simply detest the duels!!! Why? you may ask-simply because I cannot seem to cast a spell worth a flip. I think I am doing it right-but then I get a "dreadful" or "very poor"- and then Harry, Ron and Hermione drop to the floor- I just cannot seem to grasp the art of dueling via stylus- I think if I am able to master that- I may have a higher opinion of this game in general. By the way, If anyone out there has some pointers-feel free to pass them on to me on the discussion forum. Thanks. Charlotte R.

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