Most of the magic from the movie and book isn't captured in this first part to Harry Potter's final harrowing adventure
Contains: Moderate Fantasy Violence, Threat and Peril
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 is a fantasy third-person shooter that is based on the widely popular and famous final Harry Potter literature story.
-------------------------------------------
STORY - 1/5
-------------------------------------------
This first part of Harry's final adventure, that is based on the book and film of the same title, closely follows the series' protagonists Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley as they set out to track down and destroy the seven dark, magical horcruxes which will help prevent Lord Voldemort, the franchise's cruel antagonist, from attaining immortality aswell as help them defeat him for good from the wizarding world.
It's not that the story is bad (it isn't if you've read the book and watched the movie), but the storytelling in the game is poor, and changes what should be a compelling narrative into an uninteresting and confusing, fragmented mess that doesn't make any sense for anyone new to Harry Potter's universe.
-------------------------------------------
CHARACTERS - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
Harry Potter and his friends are some of the most well known and popular characters in the film industry, but barely any of the magic from the wizards and witches characters from the books and movies is replicated in-game, and the desperate trying to captivate some striking resemblance is washed away with ugly character models, mediocre voice acting and the uninteresting plot that surrounds and engulfs all the characteristics that attempt to make them likeable in this video game adaptation. You won't feel involved with all the emotions that are at painful levels of mental endurance for the leading characters, and so cutscenes are just simply watchable at best and nothing more as you await the next gameplay segment.
-------------------------------------------
GAMEPLAY - 3/5
-------------------------------------------
The fantasy open world freedom for adventure within the safety of Hogwart's grounds is no longer part of the series which it had been for so long before, and now you are straying into hostile areas way outside that magical confinement with your friends, seeking out secret, magical objects that may finally relinquish Lord Voldemort from his never-ending evil intentions and reign of terror and paranoia he instigates into defenceless people. And overall this Harry Potter adventure is much more darker and serious than the competitive enjoyment within the grounds of the wizardry castle that was a much more laid back, fantasy adventure, and some of it works, while some of what you see and do falls negatively flat.
Maybe to follow the seriousness of the story or maybe just introduced to show off new ideas brought about in the development studio, this installment plays like your standard third-person "shooter" with a cover and lock-on targeting system, with the exception of magical spells barraging out of a wand rather than bullets from a gun. It's a neatly added element with the over-the-shoulder perspective that works surprisingly well throughout most of the game, with you using your wand to cast a nice variety of spells that stun, render unconscious or immobilize enemies in their tracks, with the other added element of potions to provide physical benefits or offensive disruptions to you, enemies or the surrounding area. Feeble stealth elements are introduced to try and evade the not-before-too-long repetitive spell casting combat, but the sections that attempt at variation fall short on enjoyment because of being either too easy, annoying or just lame. Defeating foes and finding collectibles improves Harry's potential, and levelling up gives you more health, unlocks new spells and increases damage, and doing so is very easy to reach the highest level throughout the game but it doesn't necessarily feel rewarding unless accompanied with a trophy.
At certain points throughout the game, you'll have to prolong your true goal and return to different areas alone to either aid or free muggles (non-magical folk) from the evil hands of Death Eaters. You appear randomly at random locations with basic objectives that just open up before you that apparently require completing despite the very dangerous dilemma developing at hand within the plot that includes the threatening Lord Voldemort and his persistent desire to kill you at every possible moment. Side missions are generally short distractions and completely random and irrelevant to the actual story that quite simply are filler to disguise the game's otherwise short length, but do contain more of the same functional and mildly entertaining gameplay that is the highlight of this rather shallow game.
You are funnelled through all levels because of lots of invisible barriers preventing in-depth exploration or basically because of very linear design courses, but searching for collectibles is still marginally enjoyable if you like reading intel with very brief insights into part of the plot or audio recordings with other relevant information detailing what's going on within the magical world that relate to the fictional universe you're in.
-------------------------------------------
GRAPHICS - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
The wonderfully fictional world of Harry Potter isn't truly realised thanks to ugly character models and bland textures, and you never feel like your emotionally involved with the experience like you would be with the novel or the film. Lacklustre visual and artistic presentation on your linear paths further defuse the Harry Potter video game series on the Playstation 3 which is becoming increasingly unpopular and unspectacular with each new entry, with a host of noticeable visual blemishes and repetitive environments that make you aware of how rushed this movie tie-in was.
-------------------------------------------
SOUND - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
There's some good music scattered throughout Harry's latest adventure, but it's too good for the action it's back-dropping against, and so it doesn't justify the effect it's trying to produce on proceedings and ultimately feels out of place for the intensity in action and emotion that it's trying to create. Deathly Hallows Part 1 is also prone to mediocre voice acting and repetitive and out of sync in-game dialogue that totally dissipates the immersion you might have felt provided everything within the game was solid and functional within the sound department at least.
-------------------------------------------
CONTROLS - 3/5
-------------------------------------------
The control scheme is good, and understanding what it takes to cast a powerful stunning spell or levitation charm with Harry's wand won't take long to feel comfortable. Changing spells is made easy through a side-scrolling tap of a button through the available ones unlocked or via a spell wheel which pauses time to give you the opportunity to select the appropriate spell for the right enemy or obstacle, and potions acquired are relocated to the directional buttons. However good it may sound though, there is an undeniable amount of imprecision felt within the control configurations, the cover system which is largely pointless and unhelpful in most situations, and the targeting system which isn't always cooperative, and some unnecessary infuriation's can arise at intermittent stages of your quest for the horcruxes, especially when you become boxed in by enemies with limited cover provided.
-------------------------------------------
ATMOSPHERE - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
Within Harry Potter's universe you expect some mild scary moments because of the fantasy involving around horrifying enlarged creepy crawlies and other mystical creatures, but the opportunities in the game that look like they could possibly pose fear are drowned out by lacklustre graphics and level design. A trip in the dark forests could be the perfect base for a creepy level, especially with giant arachnids threatening you with venom to try to get you away from disturbing their lair, but sadly no atmosphere is generated to make an effect that the premise keenly suggests.
There is a nice effect that is produced when wearing the invisibility cloak which disguises you and the screen with a blurry sheet to prove you are in fact invisible to everyone and everything around you, and the effect is further enhanced with Harry's breathing which reverberates under the cloak as quietly as possible, but unquenchably loud in your ears. But again, this effect isn't fully justified because no tension arises during stealth sections which are generally underdeveloped and weak to experience.
-------------------------------------------
ENEMY AI - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
The seemingly straight, unprovoked line to your objectives will soon enough be impeded by a few different types of enemies, usually minions of the dark lord himself, or from creatures in the area you're in because of you provoking their solitude and trespassing their lair. Human foes entrance and exit in the same puff of black smoke that identifies them as Death Eaters, but this characteristic wears thin soon enough as it happens so frequently and tragically identical. Equally identical in a negative infringement on believability is the fact that enemies are basic clones of each other, proving very little effort went into creating diverse character models that vary considerably. Voldemort's minions will occasionally attempt to find cover, and will try to prolong their defeat by conjuring blocking spells to fend off some of your powerful abilities, but only a minor effect to delay the inevitable before they suffer the same fate as their allies. They use various spells against you, with the different colour magic projected from their wands that really shows the difference in spell type, and many knock back spells prove annoying when your attacks get interrupted and you're forced to the floor in a stupid, tumble animation that takes ages to complete before getting back up and getting struck again, only to find yourself caught within a vortex of frustration that further develops when the colour drains from the screen and 'mission failed' is printed in sharp letters to let you know you must try again from the last checkpoint.
Enemy spawn points are largely bad, with many happening out of view whilst you are in cover, while many more constantly respawn until you move on to the next area and initiate a checkpoint. Other enemy types include the menacing Dementors, whose presence can be recognised when the sides of the screen turn icy to give you awareness that they are in the immediate area. They can't be challenged by any spell but one, and that's when some aggravation can augment as they attempt to suck the life out of you while you are combating other enemies, meaning you are forced to stop to face them with a powerful knock back spell to repel them briefly away from you so you can gather some cohesion. Another example of annoying and repetitive-looking enemies are Inferi which cannot be defeated, only stunned. And when in staggering groups, they can surround you and lunge on you, putting you in greater peril as you are still vulnerable to attack from elsewhere. The enemies show mostly unintelligent traits, as do your friends who merely copy your actions, and it's generally the large numbers of enemies that present a challenge, as a lone enemy is extremely simple to defeat while taking little or no damage to your physical strength.
-------------------------------------------
LENGTH - 2/5
-------------------------------------------
Completing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 is an easy task that will take roughly an afternoon of tedious efforts of about 6 hours, which would be even less if there weren't any side missions to act as filler to make the game last longer.
-------------------------------------------
REPLAY VALUE - 1/5
-------------------------------------------
You'll likely be fed up with this unfortunately disappointing game just after the halfway point, as of which time the combat would have got extremely repetitive and the enjoyment factor dropped considerably because of a brutally challenging and patience-demanding boss fight. While the gameplay does start off promising, the mechanics and camera view which offer a new way to experience Harry Potter's adventure wear through thin soon enough, and you'll probably be pleased that the game is short and doesn't drag on any longer. It lacks in many departments that were crucial to get the support of fans, such as graphics, voice acting, level design and atmosphere, and is a disappointment to say the least that this first part doesn't live up to the namesake, and you can only mull over that the last part of the franchise will follow in a similar, disappointing fashion.
You may like to play through this inconsistent adventure if you enjoyed other games of the series, stepping into Harry's shoes to fight against Death Eaters and Dementor's, or to get you amped up for the final movie, but otherwise this fantasy game lacks the injection of magical substance and stability that causes the books and movies to be a well deserved worldwide success, and is overall a run-of-the-mill shooter that merely brushes the surface to the fantasy universe that just feels forced into the gaming market like many other movie tie-ins that fail to emulate and fuse the core subject matter it's desperate to replicate.
==========================
OVERALL SUMMARY - 6/10
==========================
Good Points: Spell casting third-person gameplay works and is fun for a short while, Lots of spells and potions to mix up the fantasy action, Hidden collectibles to explore for within environments.
Bad Points: Lacklustre story and characters despite the book and movie they're based upon, Extremely repetitive enemy types and character models, Unconvincing voice acting, Imprecise controls, Mediocre graphics, Getting knocked down in combat is very annoying, Gameplay soon becomes monotonous, Short lengthed game with no replay value.