Hogwarts Legacyremains a pretty solid open-world RPG and by far the best representation of Hogwarts and its surrounding areas since the movies brought them to life. However, while there are plenty of amazing things to love aboutHogwarts Legacy, it absolutely isn’t without its flaws. From a lackluster story to a poor implementation of the school sim elements so many fans had wanted to see,Hogwarts Legacyhas a myriad of faults that a sequel could and absolutely should address.
A sequel can finallyrightHogwarts Legacy’sbiggest issueand not only give fans what they want, but actually deliver a satisfying experience that can be replayed time and time again. However, while many may expect aHogwarts Legacysequel to resolve these problems by going bigger and offering a bolder experience, I feel like what it needs is to scale down. In fact,Hogwarts Legacy 2will be a far superior experience if it ditches all the apocalyptic dramatics and simply relaxes, even if just a little.
Hogwarts Legacy’s Story Was The Weakest Aspect
It Was Too Generic And Unfocused
By far theworst part of replayingHogwarts Legacyis having to sit through its story all over again. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot I actually like about the game’s core narrative, including a handful of its characters - namely Poppy and Natsai - as well as its strong introduction. However,it feels much like a Netflix film or YouTube video, purposefully designed to be as frontloaded and interesting as possible, before fizzling out towards the endinto a muted, disappointing whimper.
Even despite its insistence that Victor Rookwood and Ranrok are genuinely interesting villains, orHL’sdramatic yet consequence-free ending,I simply cannot find it within me to care about what is happening. That is largely due to the fact that we see Ranrok only a handful of times, and Victor Rookwood even less. It is because, once again, we find ourselves in a world-ending event surrounding Hogwarts, when all I want is to chill out, attend class, and make friends. It’s also because I’m sick of being the chosen one in games that simply don’t need it.
Hogwarts Legacymore or less attempts to ape the ideas and plot structure of theHarry Potterseries without devoting seven entries to building up its cast of charactersor, indeed protagonist. The choice to have a custom protagonist also removes a lot of the connection players have to the experience, especially as, beyond visual customization, there’s little way to actually roleplay as them. No meaningful character development for both the heroes and villains, and a handful of ham-fisted, forced choices, is a recipe for a pretty bad story.
Hogwarts Legacy 2 Needs A Boring Story
It Should Be Focused On Classes And Friends Rather Than World-Ending Events
One would assume, then, that the sequel should throw this lackluster form of storytelling among thefeaturesHL2should abandon. The easy solution would be to go bigger, see characters return, flesh them out more, create a more compelling villain, and raise the stakes. Perhapsit could even make better use ofHogwarts Legacy’sfinal choices, which, thus far, have amounted to nothing. This is, indeed, a good approach and one that would undoubtedly result in an interesting and enjoyable game. However, I believe there is a far better path for Avalanche Software to take.
Hogwarts Legacy 2doesn’t really need a story, at least a traditional one. The best parts ofHogwarts Legacywere attending classes, taming creatures, doing companion quests, and exploring Hogwarts. The sequel should absolutely lean more into those aspects, and less into the overarching narrative. In theory,Hogwarts Legacy 2would actually benefit from being more boring, at least with its narrative. A cozier, more character-driven plot about being a student at Hogwarts has more potential than the world-ending narrative told inHogwarts Legacy.
A story that more reflects Rockstar’s masterpieceBully, wherein you befriend a student who slowly reveals themselves to be more evil than you’d first realized, could be an interesting twist on the formula. Ostensibly, a sequel could deepen the ideas explored inHogwarts Legacy’sbest questlinerevolving around Sebastian to deliver a more personal and meaningful plot. Some may prefer a dramatic and high-stakes story, but frankly,battling a great evil has always been my least favorite part of theHarry Potterseries and its spin-offs, and I’m ready to focus on being a student.
Hogwarts Legacy 2 Should Focus On Gameplay, Not Narrative
It Should Be More About The Roleplaying Experience
I have always asserted thatHogwarts Legacyshould have been, first and foremost, a role-playing-heavy school simin which you get to live out the fantasy of studying at Hogwarts. It always felt bizarre to me that Avalanche Software had put so much effort into creating this incredible version of Hogwarts, but had the player do absolutely nothing in it. ForHogwarts Legacyto succeed, at least in my eyes, it needs tocompletely break its formulaand become more likePersona 5or similar school-based games.
TheAssassin’s Creedformula simply doesn’t work for a game that is centered around a school, which is one of the reasons whyHogwarts Legacy, despite solid reviews, never really stood out. Had it been more experimental or striven for a more role-play-focused experience, then it could have made a greater impact, even had it not quite pulled off every element. But, by playing it safe,Hogwarts Legacyremains just another open-world RPG in a very vast sea of them.
Hogwarts Legacydoesn’t need an epic story in the same way the firstHarry Potterbook didn’t. It should start simple and build to an epic finale in a later game.
By simplifying its narrative and focusing on the students of Hogwarts, Avalanche Software will have greater freedom to explore these role-playing elements. At the very least, it can prioritize improving its core gameplay loop and characters while implementing the features fans had hoped to see, like minigames.Hogwarts Legacydoesn’t need an epic story in the same way the firstHarry Potterbook didn’t. It should start simple and build to an epic finale in a later game. That is the only way to sustain a series, andHogwarts Legacy, despite its faults, has the potential for a lengthy series.
