Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (PSP)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 2.5 stars OK
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 5.0 (2.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Aaron Thomas
• Reviewed on: 08/03/2007
• Released on: 06/25/2007
• Originally published on GameSpot: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (PSP) Review

The Harry Potter series of books has captured the minds of both children and adults alike. The movies haven't disappointed either group, and are among the highest-grossing films of all time. For some reason, though, the video games that have been released alongside the movies haven't been able to reach the same level of quality that the movies and books have achieved. The latest game, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, continues that trend. There's a faithful re-creation of the Hogwarts campus to explore, but once you've seen the sights, there's not much else to do. Even the most diehard Potter fans will grow tired of seeing the grand staircase as they return from their umpteenth fetch quest.

Order of the Phoenix follows the story of the book and the movie of the same name. After narrowly avoiding expulsion for using magic in front of a muggle, Harry finds that Hogwarts' new defense against the dark arts teacher seems to have it out for him. To make matters worse, Voldemort is threatening to rear his ugly mug again, and Harry fears that the school will be unable to defend itself. With the help of Ron and Hermione, Harry rallies the students together to form Dumbledore's Army in an effort to ready them for a fight against the dark lord. This all makes perfect sense if you've read the book, but the story's exceedingly difficult to follow if you haven't read it because vast segments of the story are told via brief full-motion video cutscenes and newspaper clippings. It's easy to understand how a three-hour movie might have to leave bits and pieces out, but it's puzzling that an eight-hour game can't tell even the most basic aspect of the story.

You'll spend nearly the entire game controlling Harry. Ron and Hermione will be by your side the whole time offering hints on where to go or what to do next. You'll also encounter nearly every recognizable character from the Harry Potter universe along your journey. The game starts off with a tutorial where you'll learn basic spells like wingardium leviosa (levitation), reparo (repair an object), accio (pull an object toward you), and depulso (push an object away) by helping people fix broken dishes, pack their suitcases, and move furniture--not exactly riveting stuff. You cast spells by pressing the right shoulder button to take out your wand and then pressing specific face buttons to cast. This sounds easy, but it's difficult to target specific objects because the game often refuses to let you, even if you're looking right at the object. Some spells also take two button presses to perform and won't work if you don't time them properly, so you're forced to try again or end up casting the wrong spell.

Later in the game, you'll learn combat spells. These are cast in the same way as noncombat spells, but there will be only a few instances where you'll need to perform these combat spells because there's hardly any dueling in the game. This is probably a good thing, because the combat isn't very good; you just cast the same spell over and over again and hope the other person's health runs out before yours.

Once you've learned some basic spells, it's off to Hogwarts, which is faithfully re-created in a game for the first time. The Hogwarts campus is absolutely huge, which is both a blessing and a curse. Fans should really get a kick out of seeing the grand staircase in motion and candles floating above the tables in the great hall, as well as sneaking into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. But traversing back and forth across such a large area quickly becomes tiresome. Once you find the proper passwords, you can use the passages behind paintings as shortcuts, but they don't cut that much time off the journey. Another problem is the in-game navigation system. You're given the marauder's map that lists all of the different areas on campus. Once you've highlighted the place you're looking for, footprints will appear on the ground to lead the way. Unfortunately, either the footprints don't appear far enough in front of you, or they don't appear at all so you're constantly forced to stop and wait for them to appear. The camera will often switch angle midstride, so you don't know which way you're facing. This doesn't help matters much.

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