Hogwarts Legacy is one of the most anticipated games of the year, promising an open-world setting draped in Harry Potter presentation. Despite coming from a developer largely unproven on the AAA scene, Avalanche Software’s newest title is garnering massive anticipation as it seems to be what swathes of fans of the Wizarding World have desired for years. Its gameplay showcases have been promising, with its character creator and nonlinear level design provoking players to be creative in a part of Hogwarts history that is largely untouched. Phineas Nigellus Black is known to some, and will make an appearance in the game with Simon Pegg as his Hogwarts Legacy voice actor, but much still remains a mystery, showing the impressive depth of the IP.
There are plenty of things, however, that are widely familiar to fans and passive readers or viewers of Harry Potter. Mini-games like Wizard’s Chess or items like the Elder Wand and the Invisibility Cloak all carry their own legacy, but the broomstick competition of Quidditch is perhaps the most well-known, even spawning a real-world sport. It’s a fascinating game and one that has also been the subject of a virtual adaptation in the form of 2003’s Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup. It offered people the closest thing to being on their own Quidditch team, and considering the upcoming Avalanche Software game won’t feature a playable version of the fictional sport, it could be a good time to give the ever-used remake treatment to Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup.
Why Harry Potter's Quidditch is Vital to Hogwarts’ Lore
While it may only seem to many like a school sport at Hogwarts, not unlike football or basketball in the real world, Quidditch has significant connotations for the school and its students. Though Hogwarts Legacy's Quidditch could have been a controversial point, in the movies and books Harry is a prolific seeker, and like his father before him (though James Potter was a chaser), took to the sport like a duck to water. It was one of the reasons Harry was so highly touted at such a young age, and being a mainstay in the Gryffindor Quidditch team only elevated Harry’s stardom on top of being ‘The Boy who Lived’.
Quidditch is woven into the very fabric of Hogwarts, and Hogwarts Legacy opting to forgo its inclusion in a major way runs the risk of the game not capturing the school’s full identity. Giving it a separate title by remaking Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup would do well to show how important it is to the history and students of the school of witchcraft and wizardry, while also taking advantage of the obvious gameplay potential that the 7-vs-7 sport has. Hogwarts would not have as much charm without it, and Quidditch World Cup was well received on launch, enough to justify a substantial makeover and a re-release to modern audiences.
Rocket League Proves That a Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup Remake Could be Successful
Sports games are often burdened with specific expectations, as the genre is typically dominated by EA and 2K, and the format that each company uses for the likes of Madden, FIFA, NBA 2K, and WWE 2K is leaned on most years, save for a few minor tweaks. Each property has built a substantial fanbase, so it’s hard for newcomers to find a place on their servers. However, some games break the mold, and Rocket League is by far the most popular example. It is a team-based, quirky sports title that has far more depth and longevity than even the developer could have expected. Quidditch is a similar game and could take cues from Rocket League to find a place in an otherwise difficult genre to offer innovation in.
Remakes are all the rage in 2023, and Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup could take advantage of remodeled and re-released games being commonplace. It launched in 2003 as a somewhat forgettable experience as films, books, and other games in the Harry Potter IP took precedence. Now it has clean air to finally have a good shot at capturing a sizable audience, and the upcoming release of Hogwarts Legacy means it can logistically connect to a game that is near-universally anticipated.
Hogwarts Legacy releases February 10, on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, on April 4 on PS4 and Xbox One, and on July 25 on Nintendo Switch.
