The 10 best Harry Potter games, ranked

The reputation of Harry Potter TV shows and the author’s recent anti-LGBT murmuring left people with bad memories of the books, movies and games they knew and loved. However, the estate still rings true to many fans around the world, and those epic stories have become more important to the author herself. Here are 10 Harry Potter Games that we can enjoy with or without them, from the worst to the best.

Worst of the Best: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Unfortunately, the worst on this list is the mediocre at best Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part 1. It had lousy and repetitive third-person combat and a confusing level design. It reproduces the scenes from the film fairly well, but EA’s overall work on the The Deathly Hallows video game adaptation left us stunned. It can be played on PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and PC.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

What’s more generic than a boring third-person shooter? A top-down, barebones shooter that you can find in Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire. It features some nice co-op elements like picking up items with Wingardium Leviosa and solving easy three-player puzzles. However, much of the gameplay boils down to shooting enemies with Expelliarmus spells, which quickly becomes tiring. Even as a 13 year old kid who loved the Harry Potter games and movies, this adaptation bored and compelled me within the first hour. You can play this game on PS2, Xbox, GameCube, PC and PSP.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Now we get into the realm of good Harry Potter games. The Half-Blood Prince gives us more of an open world for Harry and the gang to explore, allowing us to explore the castle grounds and corridors of Hogwarts. We have actual cutscenes that loosely tell us the narrative of the film. Also, for the first time in the series, we were able to craft potions from scratch. Magic combat is also fun if you plan your attacks accordingly and use Protego at the right moments.

Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup

Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup is an exciting sports game inspired by the fictional pastime of wizards. Much like a recent sports game, Mario Strikers: Battle League, you quickly pass the Quaffle from place to place. Scoring goals after getting the Quaffle right also feels satisfying. There are even special moves. For example, if you’re playing as a Gryfinddor team early in the game, you can set up a special move where the Weasleys pass a bludger together and then use it to knock out the goaltender. After that, a pursuer zooms in and scores. These scenes are actually well animated. Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup is exciting and Portkey Games should reconsider this idea for a modern title.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

After the disappointing Deathly Hallows Part 1 video game, EA has collaborated on the sequel. This time, publishers and developers went all-in with third-person shooting. It almost feels like an on-rail shooter like Time Crisis. I played it on PS3 and had a blast using my Move controller as a wand; You can also play it with your regular controller. It’s certainly a gimmick, but it was a rush to play through at the time. There’s also more strategy with each spell cast, making Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part 2 more fun than its predecessor.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone / Philosopher’s Stone

Most people know the PS1 version of Harry Potter & The Philosopher’s Stone from the memed Hagrid model, but this game is much more than that. It may be nostalgic, but for a PS1 game, it’s impressive as you explore Hogwarts and can go through the story of the original novel. There are puzzles to solve and you must maneuver your way through tricky levels that put Harry in a precarious position. It may have aged pretty badly, but the soundtrack helps the game a lot as it’s written by the composer who later worked on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It’s atmospheric, cheerful and feels nostalgic at the same time.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter & The Chamber of Secrets successfully followed and expanded the formula of the previous game. The Dueling Club was an exciting addition and the mini-games like throwing gnomes into the garden were surprisingly good fun. It follows the story very well and has kept the 2000s kids hooked. I remember playing this several times. I recently tried playing the PS2 version and unfortunately it was barely playable with a poor frame rate. The PS1 copy is the way to go. Hopefully these two games will end up on the PlayStation Plus Premium service, which offers classic titles for a subscription fee.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban for PS2, Xbox and Gamecube takes the greatness of PS1-era games and takes them to another level. Spells are learned by solving puzzles, and there are also some decent stealth sections you’ll encounter. The game follows the story of the film but adds its own twists and turns to make it interesting Harry Potter fans. The graphics also hold up better than other entries on this list as they have a more unique art style.

Lego Harry Potter series

The Lego Harry Potter games take us through the story of the boy who lived in TT Games’ unique slapstick comedy style. The attention to detail is spot on with some nice references to the source material. The puzzles are well crafted and Lego Harry Potter does a great job of enticing you to break it all down and turn it into something else. It also has better graphics than most of the games on this list, with an overhauled PS4 and Xbox One version. The game isn’t as good as Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, but it’s a great option for kids who love it Harry Potter Series. We recommend purchasing the collection on PC (via Steam), Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PS4.

Best of the Best: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Arguably the best game in the series is Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix for the Wii. There was something special about playing this game as you flick and wave your Wii remote. Casting spells with motion controls feels satisfying, and Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix nailed it.

Additionally, the game’s open world lets you explore the halls of Hogwarts and venture into the Room of Requirement. Your goal in this game is to recruit fellow students into Dumbledore’s army so they learn how to actually defend themselves against the Dark Arts instead of against the useless tutorials that Delores Umbridge offers. You will complete quests for each student as you roam the school. It’s an impressively ambitious game for the time, and I have fond memories of playing the Nintendo Wii version in particular. It is also available for PS2, PS3, Xbox One, PC and PSP.

Playing these Harry Potter games is a great way to prepare for Hogwarts Legacy later in 2022. It won’t have the protagonist that we all associate with the wizarding world since the game is set in the 19th century, but you can create your own character. Hogwarts Legacy is expected to be released sometime this holiday season.