Highlights

  • Hogwarts Legacy's success indicates a sequel is likely, with room to grow creatively as well as financially.
  • The game beautifully realizes Hogwarts, but lacks depth in player interactions and extracurricular activities.
  • A sequel could explore student rivalries and moral dilemmas, adding texture and conflict to the Harry Potter fantasy.

It's not clear when, but it's safe to say that Hogwarts Legacy will be getting a sequel at some point. The game was an unmistakable success for Warner Bros., topping sales charts worldwide and attaining a level of commercial and critical relevance not enjoyed by any prior Harry Potter game. A follow-up would be the smart business decision for Warner Bros., but it wouldn't have to be wholly financially motivated, as there is plenty of room for the series to grow on a creative level.

While it's not a perfect game, Hogwarts Legacy gets plenty right. It's crowning achievement may very well be Hogwarts itself, which has been beautifully realized by Avalanche Software's environment artists and level designers, who managed to capture the spirit of the school as it appears in the books and films while still keeping it fresh and original. Stunning though it may be, Hogwarts' intrigue is often only skin-deep, and the fantasy of playing out everyday school life was arguably not realized in the final product; there isn't much to do in Hogwarts, either in the form of extracurricular activities or a more consequential class system ala Bully or Persona. This is one of the chief areas where Hogwarts Legacy 2 can improve.

Hogwarts Legacy 's handling of the House Cup is emblematic of how it approaches school life, in the sense that it is inconsequential and ultimately lacking in interactivity.

Best Places To Take Pictures In Hogwarts Legacy Photo Mode
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Hogwarts Legacy: Best Locations To Take Pictures In Photo Mode

Players have a lot of excellent opportunities to make great use of Hogwarts Legacy's Photo Mode while exploring the Wizarding World.

Hogwarts Legacy 2 Must Tap Into Harry Potter's School Rivalries

Student-to-Student Conflict Is Conspicuously Absent in Hogwarts Legacy

Even those with the most cursory knowledge of Harry Potter know that the series is rife with student-to-student beef, specifically between Gryffindor and Slytherin, the latter of which is often shown to be something of an enemy to the rest of the Hogwarts student body. The most detestable and stereotypical aspects of the Slytherin personality are manifest in Draco Malfoy, who is something of a foil to the series' titular hero: Draco is conniving, dishonest, and arrogant, in contrast to Harry's more honorable and chivalrous persona. This tension exists throughout the series, and is used both for laughs and for more dramatic plot developments, making it one of the most memorable parts of the story.

But for as prominent as Hogwarts rivalries are in Harry Potter, and for as much mileage as the source material gets out of them, they are almost totally missing from Hogwarts Legacy. The player-character is friendly with just about every other student, regardless of house affiliation or personality, which can contribute to the feeling of Hogwarts feeling a bit stale: the in-game school is missing a sense of culture and history that could have been expressed through strife and less-polished interpersonal relationships. Put another way, Hogwarts Legacy 2 shouldn't be afraid to make student life a little bit less wholesome, if it means adding more texture to the overall Harry Potter fantasy.

Hogwarts Legacy 2 May Have the Perfect Path to a Strong Student Rivalry

Sebastian Sallow's quest chain is widely considered Hogwarts Legacy's best, mainly due to its focus on challenging moral dilemmas—something that is underexplored in the game's main narrative. Sallow delves deep into the Dark Arts, and it leads him down an appropriately dark path. The end of his story can be determined by the player themselves, as they can choose to either turn him into the authorities (via Headmaster Black), or allow him a chance to repent on his own.

These outcomes are anticlimactic, though: Sebastian either gets away with his crimes, or he gets put on trial off-screen, both of which undercut some of the tension that his quest chain builds up to that final point. Perhaps Hogwarts Legacy 2 can kill two birds with one stone, reprising Sebastian's story and letting him fully walk the path of evil and corruption while still being a Hogwarts student, and thus injecting the game with some much-needed interpersonal conflict, pitting the player-character against one of their peers.