Highlights

  • Hogwarts Legacy experienced unprecedented success, beating out major franchises for the number one bestseller spot in 2023.
  • A sequel could improve narrative and gameplay, but should not forget the whimsical legacy of the classic games, with Bean Bonus Rooms being a good example of this lighthearted fun.
  • Bringing back the fun Bean Bonus Room from the old games could add levity and new rewards to chase in Hogwarts Legacy 2.

Debuting all the way back in 1997, it wasn't long before the Harry Potter franchise received its first video game adaptation, with 2001 bringing with it both the iconic PS1 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone game, along with the rudimentary LEGO Creator: Harry Potter sandbox game. And that was only the beginning. For the next decade and a bit, at least one Harry Potter game would release every year, often tying in with the latest Harry Potter movie release. Though the franchise took a bit of a hiatus from the world of video games, it returned in style last year with Hogwarts Legacy, the best-selling game of 2023.

While it certainly wasn't perfect, Hogwarts Legacy found unprecedented success last year, somehow managing to beat out The Legend of Zelda, Star Wars, Final Fantasy, and even Call of Duty for that number one bestseller spot, and with that extreme level of success, a sequel seems like an inevitability. There are plenty of important narrative and gameplay kinks that should be ironed out in a potential Hogwarts Legacy sequel, but it's important for the game to not lose sight of its predecessors' legacy, and that could mean the implementation of a Bean Bonus Room.

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Why Hogwarts Legacy 2 Should Bring Back the Classic Games' Bean Bonus Room

Harry Potter's Bean Bonus Room Explained

While the original Harry Potter video game adaptations tried to stick within the canon as much as possible, they also weren't too afraid of bending the rules of logic for the sake of a little fun, and the Bean Bonus Room is the perfect example of this. Only present in the PC versions of the Chamber of Secrets and Prisoner of Azkaban video game adaptations, the Bean Bonus Room is unlocked when the player hits certain goals throughout the school year. In Chamber of Secrets, players gain access the Bean Bonus Room when Gryffindor wins the house cup, and in Prisoner of Azkaban, this room becomes available when players have obtained all spell challenge shields.

Once inside the Bean Bonus Room, players are given the simple objective of collecting as many Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans as possible within a time limit. In Chamber of Secrets, this time limit is dictated by how many points they won the house cup with, thus incetivizing players to perform as well as possible. With these beans, players can purchase a range of items at Fred and George's shop, including Wizard Card collectibles.

Hogwarts Legacy 2 Should Double Down on the Series' Lighter Moments

One of the biggest highlights of Hogwarts Legacy was its sense of wonder. Being able to freely explore iconic locations like Hogwarts and Hogsmeade and soak in the magical atmosphere of the area is undeniably one of Hogwarts Legacy's best features, and for the first few hours of gameplay, many players felt just like they did when watching Sorcerer's Stone's Diagon Alley scene for the first time, being overwhelmed with whimsy, wonder, and most prominently, nostalgia.

However, that feeling didn't last for many players. As Hogwarts Legacy continues, that sense of light-hearted wonder begins to fade, instead being replaced by a surprisingly dark main plot, and an even darker set of side missions. Though the game's tone remains fairly light, it quickly moves from Sorcerer's Stone-like wonder to Deathly Hallows-like bleakness within the blink of an eye, and that occasionally felt a little jarring.

In Hogwarts Legacy 2, it might be nice to see a lighter tone stretch across the entire game, and the title fully embrace the series' more joyous aspects. Adding a Bean Bonus Room to Hogwarts Legacy 2 is exactly the kind of levity it would need, not only acting as a nice throwback to the classic Harry Potter games, but also offering some worthwhile rewards for completing side objectives and challenges.