| Introduction
I confess. I have not read any of the Harry Potter
books. For me, time spent on reading
books is somewhat limited as I'm either playing games
or writing reviews. The Harry Potter phenomenon, however,
cannot be ignored and looks set to reach almost manic
proportions with the movie release of 'The Sorcerer's
Stone'. If reading the book and watching the movie isn't
enough, you can now assume the role of Harry himself,
thanks to EA's release of the GameBoy Color game.
GamePlay
The game follows closely the plot of both the book and the
movie, although new characters and locations have been
added by J.K. Rowling herself. Your adventure starts
off in Diagon Alley, a place where you can acquire and
hone various
skills and get acquainted with the controls. After gaining
your wand the game starts to shape up and
it's time to put what you've learned to the test.
While in this
first area you're given a list of school equipment which
you must collect before leaving for Hogwarts. As you
travel from shop to shop you'll talk to various inhabitants
and they'll pass on important information. Every time
you engage in conversation the text appears at the
base of the screen along with a picture of whoever is
talking. It's essential you check everything; doors,
barrels, corners.. as you never know where a bonus may
be lurking.
It's also here that you're introduced to the Wizard
card collecting game. The cards are hidden everywhere
and attempting to find a complete set, of which there
are four, opens up some new sub-games and more importantly
improves your magic ability.
In addition to the exploration there's also a battle
element, mastering this is essential if you are to
complete your quest. This can happen anywhere but it's
up to you to discover which spells work best and the
weak points of your opponents. If you succeed you'll
be given experience points which will aid you in future
battles, fail and your health will slowly deplete.
Fortunately there are various 'healing
stations' which you can use and more than a few people who'll
help you along the way, like Hagrid who occasionally
has a health potion on him. The game also features a wonderful save feature
with an incredible 3 slots. You are, however, required
to save the game manually by using the 'save' option
in the menu so it's recommended you do this frequently.
Control
Harry is remarkably easy to move and control, which
is important for an adventure/RPG game that emphasises
exploration. Despite the fact that all the buttons on
the GBC is utilised (even
'select' and 'start'), nothing ever gets
too complicated and the handy tutorial that's automatically
given to you in the first few levels helps with the
learning curve a great deal. Also. every time a new concept
or option is presented to you, a GameBoy image will
appear at the base of the screen. This tells you exactly
how to use this new item and how to access it.
Graphics
The graphics and animation are wonderful
and it really doesn't get much better than this on the
GBC. Some of the animated cut-scenes
are also stunning and the section where you're travelling
on the Hogwarts Express is superb. The designers have
also put a great deal of thought into the various locations
you'll encounter and when Harry's in a house or cave
you'll actually feel like you're in an enclosed space.
There are also some in-jokes to be found (look out for
the boy on the train trying to achieve a 'hi-score'
on his GameBoy).
Sound & Music
There had to be a weakness in such a wonderful title
and this is it. The music can be described as basic
at best but what's really annoying is that there's absolutely
no option to turn it off. Luckily, you'll be so engrossed
in the game that you'll hardly notice it and if you do,
there's always the volume control.
Final Comments
I'm usually weary of any game that's based on a best
selling book or movie.
A good book or an exciting movie
rarely equals a good and exciting game. This, however,
is not the case with Harry Potter and although it's been hyped for some months now, I'm pleased
to say it lives up to the high standards you'd expect
from EA. 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone' is
a great game, one that both loyal fans and those who
don't know a thing about the book or movie will enjoy.
Get it now!
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