The Harry Potter franchise has long expanded beyond J.K. Rowling’s original seven novels, spanning 11 blockbuster films, audiobooks, a stage play, and video games.
One of the most ambitious games, “Hogwarts Legacy” (2023), gave us a fully open-world wizarding world to explore. However, while Avalanche Software's title offers moments of excitement, critics and fans have frequently noted that its sprawling environment — which includes Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, its grounds, the Dark Forest, and beyond — feels hollow, with non-reactive, zombie-like NPCs undermining the immersion.
In contrast, the new Monopoly GO! Harry Potter seasonal event for mobile devices presents a surprisingly rich and animated interpretation of the wizarding world. Players traverse miniature maps of iconic locations such as Hogwarts Castle, Diagon Alley, and Hogsmeade Village, collecting House Crest Shields and completing magical challenges.
The game also includes animated depictions of Harry, Voldemort, and Severus Snape, shown in a playful, stylized trailer that brings the world to life in ways that highlight the limitations of the major 2023 sandbox title's ambitious, but often lifeless, open world.
Watch the official trailer below:
Related: Netflix Makes Intentions Clear for Taking Over ‘Harry Potter' Reboot : Disney Fanatic
While the mobile game is limited by its format, its ambition underscores how a properly remastered or remade “Hogwarts Legacy” could fully leverage the franchise’s potential. “Hogwarts Legacy” obviously doesn't have the cartoonish quality of the Monopoly title, but what it has in more photorealistic visuals, it lacks in many other major ways.
A more updated version of the 2023 game, or a new open-world Harry Potter title altogether, could offer richer environments, dynamic NPCs, and deeper interactivity.
The Harry Potter TV series
The Harry Potter TV series is deep into production. John Lithgow (Albus Dumbledore), Nick Frost (Rubeus Hagrid), Janet McTeer (Minerva McGonagall), Paul Whitehouse (Argus Filch), Katherine Parkinson (Molly Weasley), Alastair Stout (Ron Weasley), Arabella Stanton (Hermione Granger), and Dominic McLaughlin (Harry Potter) are among its extensive cast. The show will have seven seasons, each based upon one of Rowling's books.
Harry Potter Season 1 is expected to premiere in 2027.
Do you think Hogwarts Legacy needs a remake? Let us know!
