2023 has been a huge year for theHarry Potterfranchise, especially in the gaming world, and there’s even more for fans to look forward to in the weeks and months ahead.Harry Potteris easily one of the world’s largest and most successful media franchises. Its reputation was built with the best-selling book series and the acclaimed film adaptations, but the lack of interest in some of the more recent movies seemed to indicate a waning interest in the franchise.
After the massive success of theHarry Potterfilm franchise, Warner Bros. wanted to keep the momentum going with a spin-off series. The firstFantastic Beastsmovie was a big success, earning positive reviews from critics and pulling in decent numbers at the box office. The sequel,Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, earned negative reviews and didn’t perform as well in theaters. Thefinal nail in the coffin came withFantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, which was poorly-received and a big box office disappointment.
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Things turned around big for theHarry Potterseries in 2023, mainly thinks to video games. The highly-anticipatedHogwarts Legacyreleased at the beginning of 2023 to rave reviews and record-breaking sales. And whileHogwarts Legacy’s incredible successalone would be enough to make 2023 one to remember for fans of theHarry Potterfranchise, there’s even more on the way.
New Harry Potter Games in 2023
Hogwarts Legacyinitially launched in February for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X, but the game has remained in the spotlight thanks to some helpful updates from the developers and high-quality ports that brought it to other platforms.Hogwarts Legacymade its way to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One back in May, and that’s not even the end of its story. AHogwarts LegacySwitch port is also in development, with Warner Bros. looking to release it in November.
Hogwarts Legacy’s massive open world and plethoa of gameplay features has some fans worried that the Switch port will struggle to keep up with its counterparts on other consoles. That could very well be the case, but developer Avalanche Software went above and beyond with the PS4 and Xbox One ports, so perhaps the Switch version will be a nice surprise as well. In the meantime,Harry Potterfans been keeping their fingers crossed for news on aHogwarts LegacyDLC expansion or sequel, but nothing to that effect has been announced at the time of this writing.
Those that have already earned 100% completion inHogwarts Legacyand are hungry for a newHarry Pottervideo game experience don’t have to wait all that much longer. June 27 will see thelaunch ofHarry Potter: Magic Awakenedon iOS and Android mobile devices.Harry Potter: Magic Awakenedis an RPG with collectible card game elements that was previously released in China to a mostly positive reception. Time will tell ifHarry Potterfans elsewhere take toMagic Awakenedas much as they have otherHarry Pottergames, but we’ll have a clearer picture in a matter of days.
And finally, there’s alsoHarry Potter: Quidditch Championsto look forward to, though the game is currently without a release date. The announcement ofHarry Potter: Quidditch Championscame as a nice surprise for fans of the series, with the new game offering an online multiplayer version of the classicHarry Pottersport. Many fans were upset whenHogwarts Legacydidn’t include Quidditch, so perhapsQuidditch Championscan help fill that void, assuming it releases before the year is out.
NewHarry Pottergame releases are especially exciting, but fans have also been treated to new content for existing games.Harry Potter:Hogwarts MysteryandHarry Potter: Puzzles & Spellscontinue to receive new updates, so there’s been shortage ofHarry Pottergaming experiences this year.
Harry Potter TV Series
Even thoughHarry Potter: Quidditch Championsmay not necessarily launch this year, the fact that it was announced in 2023 still means it adds to theHarry Potterfranchise’s big year. The same logic can apply to the recently-announcedHarry PotterTV series that’s in development for the Max streaming platform. ThenewHarry PotterTV serieswill be again be adapting the books, but with a brand-new cast. With theHarry Pottermovies and their cast so beloved by fans, theHarry PotterTV series has quite a lot to live up to, but it will be interesting to see the classic story retold in a new format.
Hogwarts Legacy,the variousHarry Pottermobile games, and the upcomingHarry PotterTV series have made 2023 one to remember for fans of the Wizarding World franchise. Time will tell if there are even moreHarry Pottersurprises in store for this year, but even if not, 2023 has solidified itself as one of the best years forHarry Pottersince the books and movies were coming out.
