Game review: ‘Lego Harry Potter Collection: Remastered,’ makes a perfect gift for the Potter or Lego fan on your list
"Lego Harry Potter Collection: Remastered." (Warner Home Video Games)
"Lego Harry Potter Collection: Remastered." (Warner Home Video Games)
Parents need to know that the "Lego Harry Potter Collection" is an action game that's a collection of previously released titles and downloadable content. (Common Sense Media/TNS)
Parents need to know that the “Lego Harry Potter Collection” is an action game that’s a collection of previously released titles and downloadable content. Players control characters from the books and movies and can engage in combat against humans, animals and fantasy creatures — mostly using a magic wand to zap enemies into pieces. The violence is frequent but cartoon-like. One cut-scene shows a dragon that gets a sword through its mouth. You can unlock and play as the “bad guys” from “Harry Potter” lore, too. There’s also some toilet humor.
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
“Lego Harry Potter Collection” includes “Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4” and “Lego Harry Potter: Years 5-7,” both remastered to take advantage of the PS4’s power — and available on one disc for added convenience. Both games take “Harry Potter” fans through an interactive version of the seven books and eight movies, but starring Lego versions of the familiar heroes and villains. The gameplay fuses combat, puzzle-solving, exploration, and potion-making, with gamers unraveling the story by themselves with a friend beside them in cooperative (co-op) mode. In addition to the original games, this collection offers enhanced graphics, lighting and visual effects, and all downloadable content (DLC) that gamers had to pay for separately.
IS IT ANY GOOD?
Between the two full games, extra downloadable content packs, and upgraded visuals for the PlayStation 4, there’s a lot of bang for the buck here. Especially for fans of “Harry Potter” books and movies, this bundled collection will appeal to casual players and hardcore gamers alike, for its charming presentation, engaging gameplay with high replayability, and exhaustive line-up of familiar and not-so-familiar characters from all the books and movies. But if you’ve already played one or both games on an older console, you may not need to pick up this disc.
Along with the story mode, it’s great to be able to free play any level you complete, at any time. Plus, with purchases made in Diagon Alley, whatever you’ve acquired can be used in the main solo campaign, such as disguises, studs collected by ghosts who dropped them, and more. Refreshing these old games look great on the PS4, but it’s too bad Warner Bros. couldn’t offer voice acting over the years — whether it was for the original cast from the movies or soundalikes. But overall, “Lego Harry Potter Collection” is great for kids and kids at heart — especially if they haven’t played the originals.
RATING AND CONTENT
Recommended for ages 10 and older
Quality: 5 out of 5
Positive messages: 4 out of 5
Positive role models: 4 out of 5
Ease of play: 5 out of 5
Violence: 2 out of 5
Sex: 0 out of 5
Language: 0 out of 5
Drinking, drugs, and smoking: 0 out of 5
Consumerism: 2 out of 5 (Are products/advertisements embedded? Is the title part of a broader marketing initiative/empire? Is the intent to sell things to kids?)
GAME DETAILS
Platforms: PlayStation 4
Price: $49.99
Developer: Warner Home Video Games
Release date: November 13, 2016
Genre: Action/Adventure
ESRB rating: T for cartoon violence, crude humor
