Can you master the magic?Product InformationHarry Ron and Hermione are back! In the Harry Potter and the Goblet ofFire Harry is mysteriously selected as the fourth contestant in thedangerous Triwizard Tournament. Each competitor in the internationalcompetition must confront a fire-breathing dragon rescue friends from the icydepths of the Black Lake and navigate the twisting mysteries of a vastdangerous maze. Players can experience the thrills of the movie – from theQuidditch World Cup campsite to a heart-stopping duel with Lord Voldemorthimself! Harry Ron and Hermione are all playable characters modeledafter their big-screen counterparts. Product FeaturesAll the Magic of the MovieThe magical world of Harry Potter comes to life with characters modeled aftertheir big-screen counterparts cinematic environments captivating gameplay anda compelling interactive experience.Bigger Better MagicPlayers explore the game’s all-new spell-casting system unleashingpowerful spells to become a master of magic.Co-operative PlayPlayers can join forces with friends to navigate the world of Harry Pottercombining powers and casting spells co-operatively to create more powerfulmagic.Compelling Rewards SystemPlayers can use “Accio” to chase down and capture dynamic living beansas well as increase the power of Harry Ron and Hermione with Collector’s andCreature Cards.Windows Requirements Windows 2000 or XP Pentium III 1.2GHz or faster processor 256MB of RAM or more 8X or faster CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive 1.2 GB or more Free Hard Disk Space DirectX 9.0c compatible Video Card with 32MB or more memory and one of these chipsets is required: ATI Radeon 7500 or greater; NVIDIA GeForce or greater DirectX 9.0c compatible Keyboard or DirectX 9.0c compatible gamepad Single System Multiplayer (2-3 players simultaneous) requires a DirectX 9.0c compatible input device for each player
- Co-operative play for up to 3 players
- Adventure game based on the visual elements of the Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire film
- Game features Harry, Ron, and Hermione as playable characters
- All-new spell-casting system allows multiple players to combine spells
- Confront a fire-breathing dragon, rescue friends from the icy waters, and navigate a vast, dangerous maze
List Price: $ 9.99
Price: $ 11.22
Don’t waste your money,
After playing the first three HP games with my daughter, we both looked forward to #4. What a huge disappointment. Gone are looking for secrets areas. Gone are the amazingly beautiful graphics of the Hogwards interior or the school grounds, the bean bonus room and spongify. No cool games like flying Buckbeak and dueling matches.
What replaced the stuff that made the other three HP games so much fun? An impossible player control system. Playing with the keyboard controls (which can’t be customized) is the definition of frustrating. Even with an external game controller, it isn’t possible to accurately cast a spell or even make a character walk in a straight line. The extremely high view angle (which can’t be changed) often causes walls and other things to completely block the view of your character. There is no control whatsoever of any video or audio settings. In fact, the only customizable item on the “Options” page is toggling subtitles on and off.
The various areas to explore are disjointed and unrelated to each other. There doesn’t seem to be any point in progressing from one area to another. Another change from HP 1-3 is a system of collecting cards which then can be used to augment a character to add stamina, cast better charms/jinxes and to be more effective against certain creatures. But when the final big battles occur in the maze and Voldemort stages, the chance to beef up Harry to prepare for the battle with collector cards is suddenly gone. Really dumb.
One cool feature of GOF is the ability to let multiple players enjoy the games at the same time. Up to three humans can each control either Harry, Hermoine or Ron. External game controllers are required for 2 or 3 player game play. Be aware though that when my daughter and I played with a controller and keyboard, the game lost track of the character controlled by the keyboard whenever the game action got heavy. The keyboard character would just stop reacting. In an area where it takes 3 to levitate a block, an uncontrollable character is a showstopper.
The GOF system of charms and jinxes is a mystery, even after finishing the game. There are about a dozen jinxes available, but except for about two, there doesn’t seem to be any way to intentionally cast any of them. The strange part is that after each stage, the game shows the progress made in developing each jinx…as if it’s important and something a player has any control over. In battle, just pressing “X” as quickly as possible results in random jinxes. Unfortunately, all it takes to win the battles is a quick finger. There isn’t any strategy.
To summarize:
Pros:
- Multi-player control of characters
- Nice graphics
Cons:
- Impossibly frustrating point of view and character control system
- No customization of any game features
- Radical departure from all the things that made the 1st three HP games so much fun
- Pointless succession of game scenes
EA really blew it on this one. Don’t waste your money.
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|Disappointed,
I’m so disappointed with the new Harry Potter game. It was not made to be played on a PC. The controls are terrible. The perspective is confusing. You’re not always behind the character, but when he turns around he starts walking towards you. I can’t even make Harry walk in a straight line. I think he’s a little drunk. And the bertie botts beans actually jump out of your way, so they can be hard to pick up, which is really annoying. I can’t even cast a normal spell, because I’m not sure how to get my character pointed in the right direction. The cut scenes even suck; they’re not even animated. The first level is just running around the campsite at the quidditch world cup button mashing monsters that get in front of you. The second part is the same darn thing but you’re supposed to be in different rooms of a defense against the dark arts classroom. Boo hisss. I was just playing the third game last night and I’ve played that through more than once and it was loads more fun than this one. Really, the GOF game is just a playstation game that they tried to make work on a PC, and it totally doesn’t. All the secrets and fun are gone (at least in the first two parts), so what’s the point? I was already getting bored and frustrated, and I only played for a few minutes. Maybe it gets better??? I can hope.
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|Unlike every other HP game that has been released… saddly..,
Unlike every other HP game that has been released… saddly..
I enjoyed the last 3 HP games, so much so that I would sit and play them until they were complete. They were fun little games, secret areas to explore, colorful graphics and fun side games. This game lacks all aspects of the previous. It’s not fun, the controls are difficult at best,and there is no mouse support.
I can only hope that EA learns from their mistake and takes this back to it’s original charm of the first three.
In a few words, if you want to play a fun Harry Potter game, buy the first three games and enjoy.. avoid this one at all cost.
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