Harry Potter open-world video game Hogwarts Legacy revealed in first trailer

In 2018, footage of a new Harry Potter console game began circulating online with stunning imagery of what seemed to be at the time an adventure for next-gen consoles. Two years later, Hogwarts Legacy gets an official unveiling.

Sony’s Playstation 5 showcase on Wednesday came with the news that this new open-world, single-player role-playing game will arrive in 2021 on PS5, PS4, PS4 Pro, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One consoles, and PC.

The new game is set at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the late 1800s. Players will take the role of a student and carve out a new story that is said to involve “a dangerous journey to uncover a hidden truth of the wizarding world,” according to a press release.

Users will also be able to cast charms, duel with offensive spells, grow their character and their abilities, embark on what appears to be choice-driven missions that will influence what the characters stand for, and select companions to help them face enemies. Locations outside of Hogwarts are also available in this story; Hogsmeade Village and the Forbidden Forest are confirmed.

Warner Bros. Games

Ultimately, the story in Hogwarts Legacy will traverse “an expansive world filled with perilous dangers tied to the wizarding world’s long-forgotten past” and what’s described as “an unusual ability” that only the player possesses.

Word of the game arrives at a time when Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling remains under scrutiny for transphobic remarks she continues to make.

The PS5, retailing at $499.99, will arrive this Nov. 12 in the U.S., Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea. The console will then hit the rest of the world on Nov. 19. The PS5 Digital Edition will have the same rollout but retail for $399.99.

As announced last week, Microsoft will launch the Xbox Series X ($499.99) and Xbox Series S ($299.99) on Nov. 10.

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