For a first outing in the Wizarding World, Avalanche Software did a pretty great job with Hogwarts Legacy. A stunning recreation of one of the most iconic locations in all of pop-culture, plenty of side missions and activities to complete, some surprisingly complex RPG mechanics, and a solid fantasy story are all present in Hogwarts Legacy. But while these features are more than enough to keep fans entertained for a while, it's Hogwarts Legacy's combat system that really keeps players coming back time and time again.
Spell-casting is not an easy mechanic to get right in a video game, especially when those spells are fired out of a wand. Previous Harry Potter games have handled spell-casting in a number of ways, ranging from simple one-button casts in LEGO Harry Potter, to gun-like casting in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, to slow and methodical casting in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, requiring players to draw a shape to fire the spell. Hogwarts Legacy takes a new approach to combat, giving players a basic cast assigned to the trigger, a block and parry button, and a set of four spells that can be swapped out and used as special moves. And while Hogwarts Legacy's combat system is incredibly satisfying, there's still room for improvement, and Star Wars Outlaws has one mechanic worth borrowing.
Hogwarts Legacy Should Borrow Star Wars Outlaws' Quickdraw Mechanic
First tentatively announced back in January 2021, Ubisoft Massive's open-world Star Wars game received its proper unveiling during the recent Xbox Showcase back in June. Officially titled Star Wars Outlaws, this open-world game sees players take control of a new smuggler named Kay Vess as she tries to con and connive her way through the galaxy, putting together a galactic heist to end all galactic heists.
Just a day after its initial reveal, Star Wars Outlaws received a gameplay trailer that showcased some pretty exciting features, the vast majority of which have never been seen in a Star Wars game before. Star Wars Outlaws' gameplay demo showed off an intense speeder bike chase, some ship combat, ground-to-space transitions, a GTA-like Wanted mechanic, and some classic third-person cover-based shooting. While in cover, players can also call upon their little furry space companion Nix to grab weapons from fallen foes or activate environmental hazards to take down enemies.
Right at the beginning of Star Wars Outlaws' gameplay trailer, Kay Vess is sneaking through an enemy camp. After successfully stealthing her way past some goons with the help of Nix, Vess is spotted by a guard near the camp's exit. In this moment, the game enters slow-motion, and a button prompt appears at the side of the screen, pointing in the direction of the enemy. If the player presses the prompt, then the camera will center on the enemy. Kay will hold up her arms as if surrendering, but at the tap of the trigger, she'll reach for her blaster and blow away the enemy in slow-motion. Though this action then alerts nearby enemies, it's an incredibly stylish way to enter combat, and it's a mechanic that Hogwarts Legacy can definitely learn from.
Hogwarts Legacy had a fairly rudimentary stealth system, desperately in need of balancing. On some occasions, Hogwarts Legacy's stealth could be incredibly overpowered, allowing players to instantly take down entire arenas of enemies without anyone noticing. On other occasions, players would be spotted almost immediately. A mechanic like Star Wars Outlaws' quickdraw could help to balance things out a little, giving players some wiggle room when they're first spotted and letting them get some free hits on the enemy before the whole camp is alerted.
Hogwarts Legacy is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, with a Switch release scheduled for November 14, 2023.
