By the way,
what do you think a HP game would look like if developed by CDPR?
The problem I see with HP as a setting is that books and movies move linearly through the world and story; but how would a game work?
I think that making it open world (too much) would make it feel less intense, less immersive, and more prone to do non-atmospheric things, like:
- casting spells without a target or without a point - that's a very big problem, I believe
- doing quests by trial and error (restart on death or on unwanted consequences) - once again, completely kills the atmosphere
- flying all around on a broomstick - it's too cheap to explore the world like that, and the height doesn't add anything
- customization is ok for clothes, but only decently, e.g. based on story events like a ball,... - classical (english) HP clothes, not really some crazy armours, hats, noble vests, cylinders,...
One possible way to make a player "not die" and restart quests, etc...could be to go on with a failure as a valid path to happen.
E.g. If Harry was about to drown in the Black Lake during the tri-wizard tournament, the screen would black out (the same "faint" effect as in the third movie), and he would wake up on the "construction thingy" with Hermione wrapping him in towels.
Any kind of such atmospheric transition.
Another example could be the "Hedwig" summer-winter flight transition,...
For me, Harry Potter is mostly about:
- romanticism (castle, train, lake, forests, Diagon Alley, sceneries & weather, clothes,...) - the rich magical world
- decency - unspoiled, pashionful characters who care for friends and not for magic! (and power)
- personal responsibility and wisdom - e.g. the "there is a three-headed dog behind the doors, please don't go there or you will die", face dementors if you want to, defeating Voldemort is not about Harry, it's about all of the good people coming together,...
- ...
So, for me, what Hogwarts Legacy mostly fails in are these aspects - I find it not to be decently, atmospherically romantic, and not to the point (as it is an open world) - I find it to be unevenly oscillating between extremes - sometimes too childish, too heroic, too empty, too non-systematic,...
Anyway, what would your dream HP game would look like?