Highlights

  • Hogwarts Legacy has received praise for its impressive rendition of the iconic wizarding school, but it may be time to explore new settings beyond Hogwarts for future games in the Wizarding World franchise.
  • While Hogwarts is deeply ingrained in the narrative and character of the franchise, other magical schools like Ilvermorny, Castelobruxo, Uagadou, and Mahoutokoro offer unique cultural, geographic, and historical backdrops that could make for a more distinctive game experience.
  • The next Wizarding World game could also break new ground by focusing on adult characters and conflicts, delving into darker and more mature themes that resonate with a broader audience and tell deeper stories. Gaming as a medium offers the potential to explore the fantastical world beyond the scope of scholarship.

Hogwarts Legacy has earned a great deal of praise for various reasons, not the least of which is the game's impressive and creative rendition of the titular wizarding school. While the school is intriguing, the lands beyond Hogwarts contain mysteries of their own, which suggests that a new setting, one that eschews the famous wizarding academy, could be the right choice for the next game.

Despite there being several lore-rich locations referenced in Wizarding World media, it seems that all stories in the broader franchise seem to tie back to Hogwarts. Even the Fantastic Beasts films, which are the least Hogwarts-centric of the series, can't seem to resist popping back into the world-famous school. This makes sense in many ways, as Hogwarts was the setting of all the Harry Potter books and movies, and is in some ways inextricable from the overall narrative and character of the franchise. Even so, as Warner Bros. considers altering elements from Hogwarts Legacy in future Wizarding World titles, a new setting away from Hogwarts may be a good idea.

Despite there being many mentions of several other magical schools in the Wizarding World lore, such as Durmstrang Institute and Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, none have received the same attention as Hogwarts

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Where Future Wizarding World Games Could Go

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It's clear that a major draw of the Wizarding World is its focus on academia; while most readers and movie-goers have been familiar with concepts such as wizards, dragons, and magical creatures, the Harry Potter series was one of the first pieces of popular media to couch them in this more familiar, low-fantasy setting. This decision made the series, alongside spin-offs like Hogwarts Legacy, relatable, charming, and unique, but Hogwarts is well-trodden ground at this point, and a new video game would be the perfect chance to shake things up.

Other Magical Schools

Although there are areas of Hogwarts life that a Hogwarts Legacy sequel could improve upon, it might be best to leave Hogwarts behind entirely, instead focusing on one of the many other schools referenced in Wizarding World media. Ilvermorny, for instance, is the North American center of magical learning and would open the door to new narrative opportunities, allowing players to explore a different continent. Alternatively, Castelobruxo, Uagadou, and Mahoutokoro are settings that would allow players to explore South America, Africa, and Asia, respectively.

A future game could stay in Europe by taking place at Beauxbatons or Durmstrang, although these options are much more similar to Hogwarts and therefore potentially less interesting. All of these schools, however, provide distinct cultural, geographic, and historical backdrops, which would make for a more unique game in many ways.

Wizarding World video games are in a unique position, as Hogwarts Legacy has been better received than the current slate of Fantastic Beasts films, which could make the medium of gaming the future of the franchise for now. Rather than playing things safe and rehashing Hogwarts for the umpteenth time, the next game could be the first piece of Wizarding World media to give a full picture of what these other schools look like, breaking new ground for the broader franchise.

Wizarding World Graduates

A focus on a different magical school would be exciting, but perhaps the next Wizarding World game could move past academia altogether, giving audiences a better look at what this alluring world looks like beyond the scope of scholarship. By focusing on adult characters and conflicts, the next Wizarding World game could be darker and more mature, resonating with a broader audience and telling deeper stories. Again, this would be uncharted territory for the franchise, at least when it comes to video game adaptations, and would thus be worth exploring.

Gaming as a medium offers a great deal of potential when it comes to exploring unique and fantastical locations. For the Wizarding World IP, this potential has been realized in the fantastic adaptation of Hogwarts in Hogwarts Legacy, but there is still much more that can and should be explored.