Shrek is one of the most popular animated franchises of all time, with the series subverting the expectations of the fairy tale genre and introducing elements that appealed to both adults and children al

Part of the reason why Bully was so successful upon releasing in 2006 was due to the fact you got to do actual school things. One of the biggest positives was the ability to attend lessons, refining your skills, and ultimately becoming the baddest kid in the playgro

The Wizarding World based on the Harry Potter franchise is receiving a brand new game that will allow players to create their own path at the school of witchcraft and wizardry. Hogwarts Legacy will be arriving on next gen consoles and is trying to incorporate the vital elements that make up a student’s experience at the famous education instituti

Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas is one of the best holiday movies of all time, with the film comfortably working as both a Halloween and a Christmas movie, a niche that is often difficult to fulf

While on the subject of lessons, that brings us onto teachers . Hogwarts, despite being a majestic school, doesn’t get every appointment right; from Severus Snape to Dolores Umbridge, Gilderoy Lockhart to Quirinus Quirrell, Albus Dumbledore’s judgement was definitely askew at ti

Cyberpunk 2077 is easily the biggest game to push a transgender character creator to the forefront, and I’ll be returning to that in time, but first I think there’s a big question to be asked: does Hogwarts Legacy’s trans inclusive character creator make any difference? My answer is a rather blunt ‘no

The Inferi are a group of almost undead beasts which had previously attacked Harry and Dumbledore while they were trying to retrieve one of Voldemort’s Horcruxes. They are completely dead behind the eyes and quite haunt

All this would feel shallow if the Divinity series did not already have such significant lore and a detailed, lived-in world to back it up. In addition to the Original Sin games, they were preceded by Divine Divinity. Beyond Divinity, and Divinity 2 . The series has a lot of lore for players to dive into, and there are a lot of in-game books and items for players to read up

I’m not sure Hogwarts Legacy’s trans character creator makes that big of a difference to the game’s place in the industry, what it represents, or whether it absolves the game of any of JK Rowling’s baked-in guilt. It certainly doesn’t change how I feel about it. Hopefully, though, it can at least be a helpful stepping stone for a triple-A game to one day get trans representation right from start to finish. Until then, yet again the game industry is moving two steps forward, one step b

In the Prisoner of Azkaban movie, Hermione shocks Harry and Ron by taking on far too many subjects. It’s only at the end of the story that she then reveals she’s been using a time-turner to attend multiple classes at once, with Minerva McGonagall approving the idea in secret at the beginning of the school y

While ghosts are usually associated with magical creatures, they are still a phenomena that’s only present in the Wizarding World. Indeed, after death, some wizards and witches may find themselves hanging around as a spirit stuck in the mortal rea

Given its popularity, the team over at Portkey Games simply has to include it. Older Potter games did this, allowing players to become heroes of the castle in the process. The chance to bring home Quidditch Cup glory is simply too good an opportunity to turn d

House elves are an important part of the everyday running of the school. Most importantly, there are hundreds working to create the amazing food that appears in the Great Hall during a feast. The Hogwarts Legacy Potion guide kitchens should be an area players can explore and meet the many work

Time-Turners are special and fascinating objects in the Harry Potter universe, and, even though Hogwarts Legacy is set in the 1800s, it would be awesome to venture even further back in time. After all, there are so many questions about how the community started in the first place. Going back in time may help fill in the blanks, while also providing the foundations for a bold and daring qu

While it could prove difficult to create a perfect representation of the World of Ice and Fire in video game form, an open world game could certainly contain the central areas of both Westeros and Essos, giving players a chance to explore the vast history and geography of Martin’s wo

The report also mentions being able to change body type, but will that mean a standard male or female silhouette, or more in-depth customisations of height and weight too? Where Cyberpunk 2077 included a brilliant trans character in Claire, most of the world felt incredibly binary, and I also fear that in Hogwarts Legacy, the only trans character featured will be you. This way, they get trans inclusion for those that want it, and neatly trim it out for those who don’t, which sits quite firmly on the fe