Customer Reviews

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I am a Harry Potter freak! I loved all the books, movies, and I enjoyed all the games so far.

This game was, what I felt, the best of the Harry Potter games released on Playstation 2 so far. Although it left out major events, like quidditch (which I'm kinda glad they left out because I was horrible at it!), it was very good.

In order to understand the game, you have to have read the book. At the very beginning, it doesn't tell you anything about the plot, and if you never read the book, then ur left in the dark about everything. The only thing you know (or can infer) at the beginning is that Professer Lupin is the new defense against the dark arts teacher (yes, another weird one that doesnt last longer than one year), Harry faints from dementors, and that a prisoner dude names Sirius Black has escaped from Azkaban Prison, and the dementors are looking for Black (and that Lupin can produce a patronus). Other than that, it tells you nothing about the plot so READ THE BOOK!!!

This game is much different than the other ones. In one part of the game in COS, u had to sneak around at night A LOT and if you got caught by a prefect then you had to restart and they took away housepoints. On the other hand, in POA, u sneak around at night but there arent any prefects (YES!!!) which helps a lot (the only thing is where ur out at night and u have to get past multiple trolls by having Ron throw dungbombs to distract them. That was much easier than getting past the prefects though.). This game focuses mostly on mastering the use of multiple spells and classes. It doesnt follow the book too much, but the graphics are amazing. The Hogwarts castle has been improved A LOT and it looks exactly like the castle in the movie, the characters are also great and resemble the characters from the movie, and of course, there is Buckbeak who looks EXACTLY the same as in the movie. This game gets a 10 out of 10 for graphics. The controlling was a breeze for me but if your not an experienced gamer or are under 10, this game may be difficult in parts (the part where your sneaking around at night and you have to get past the trolls, fighting off the dementors, and when you have to acquire some of the spells) but overall it was pretty easy. I think this game was the best one, but i feel that the plot was rushed and they spent more time perfecting the graphics than the plot. Now, don't get me wrong, the graphics are amazing and I'm glad they spent a lot of time on them, but couldn't they have kept the game a little bit longer and made the game longer and added more of the plot? I guess not. I expected a longer playing time but it was still great. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire would make a great game. I hope they keep the graphics top notch like this one, but they should do more for the plot. I am looking forward to the Harry Potter games and movies to come. Have fun!

I'm going to start off by coming right out and saying that I played the first two titles in this franchise, and enjoyed them both. I've read the books, seen the movies, and have enjoyed (for the most part) the games. So as you read this review, appreciate that I'm not coming down on Harry Potter himself, nor am I slighting the world that Rowling has created in the books, and Warner Bros. have put to the screen. Nor am I even taking undo shots at the great and mighty Electronic Arts, although they deserve a few for getting a little lazy with this most recent addition to the line of Potter gaming titles.

First and foremost, let me air my chief complaint. You don't play Quidditch. Not once. In fact, you never touch a broom. The Quidditch matches are reduced to a static cut scene, where you're simply holding the Quidditch Cup. The cynic in me suspects that EA left it out to help drive sales of their stand-alone Quidditch title. But none of the speculation matters, it's simply not there.

My second issue is this game is exceptionally short. I'm not sure how long it took me to finish each of the first two, but it was longer (in each case) than the 5 hours or so it took me to play this one from start to finish. That's not braggadocio. I mean, for one, we're talking about a game in the Harry Potter franchise that has to be something that can appeal to, and be completed by, a wide age and ability range of gamers. So 'easy' isn't an issue here, particularly since a game like this isn't so much something you get for a challenge, but rather an opportunity to sort of live a little bit of Hogwarts. For another, I enjoy getting off the beaten path a bit in games. So this wasn't a case where I just raced through, I collected the pages, cards and beans (although there was really no point to it -- in the last title you spent beans on trinkets Ron's brothers had for sale, not so here). I played the side games, made sure I had A+ in each of the 3 'minigames', Buckbeak's bat chasing, owl racing, and dueling club. The point is, even if you allow yourself to be sidetracked, there will quickly come a point in the game where Dumbledore tells you to speak to him when you're ready to hear who won the House Cup. Make no mistake, that's the end. With no final cut scene, save a grimacing Snape as confetti falls, and some jumping around by the winning house, the game simply drops you out to the main menu. I'm not sure I've ever seen a more abrupt ending, it's a bit like the developers meant to do more, and simply ran out of time.

To wrap up my gripes, the control is a little wonky in this one, some sloppy camera angles allowing you at times to lose site of everything as you stare into the woodgrain of a bookcase, or a stone wall that has blocked your field of view. Games with this perspective have been around long enough that this should have been much cleaner.

I'm not all complaints though. This is, by far, the best visual presentation the franchise has enjoyed so far. There's a level of artistry in this game that really jumps out at you, and there are times when you'll find yourself admiring the composition of different scenes. They clearly went out of their way to make it look good.

So that's the quandary here. The game looks good. It plays adequately, and while brief, it's true to the story. So is it good? I'd have to shrug and say `yes', and I'll give it 3 stars for the sake of this review. It's certainly worth a rental, and while I know some will scoff and flap their Hogwarts robes in outrage at the suggestion that this isn't worth buying -- I think that's an important point to make here, and one that I wish I had considered before plunking down cash for this game. Really, don't buy it unless you're making a point to collect.

I sort of imagine the development team for this game sitting around a table some time ago, in a meeting intended to lay the groundwork for the game. And in my imagination, a lot of great ideas are tossed around, but then someone in a suit with insectile eyes speaks up and says "Look, that's all great, but toss it out. What's important is the cover. As long as it says 'Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban', it will sell. Make it look pretty, but don't spend just a ton of time on this. Create a linear gauntlet of 'Point A' to 'Point B' light puzzle solving, use the voices of at least some of the actors from the movie -- and it will sell, and sell well." I don't know if that's how it happened, but this game falls well short of expectations driven by the first two titles. It's always those people in the suits...

You do play as Harry, Ron and Hermione. There is "new" action, such as flying Buckbeak, and Hedwig. But there's no depth to any of that. Some of the puzzles are clever, the visuals are terrific, the sound is solid. It is, in the end, a Harry Potter title, true to the book and the movie, and for that alone, this game will find its way into people's libraries. I simply hope EA gets its act together and really does something with the next title, so that I don't again feel like the game was merely an afterthought. The first two didn't feel or play like that, there's really no reason the third one should have.

No Quidditch. How could they?

Introduction
This was a pretty good game. Easy, but fun all the same. I actually like this better than the other 2. I think it's more fun to play.

Gameplay 9/10
The way you move, cast spells, and just play in general is so much smoother than the other games. I like the fact that you can switch through people. I think the gameplay was awesome. It takes a long time to load though. It even takes time to load when you pause (not long but still).

Storyline 4/10
Whoa. What ever happened to Harry's Firebolt? No quidditch? WHAT IS THIS? It's leaving out major events and adding complete bullsh**. I mean some of this stuff- Neville in Muggle Studies- go save him! I don't remember that in the book OR movie. The only reason this isn't a zero is because it had the main events in it.

Graphics 9/10
Wow. Compared to the other two, once again this section is much better. The facers are way better. The castle is better. Generally everything is smoother and just much better. The beginning graphics were awesome too.

Sound 6/10
I think the music is cool when it's on and Ron and Harry and Hermione sound older. I like all of the sound effects. Better all around, once again, compared to the other two games. but... it does lack in music and some parts are cheesy.

Play Time 3/10
Look, I suck at video games and I beat this in like 3 days. So, you can probably figure out that this is a quick one.

Replayability 5/10
I might play it again, but I don't know. I'll be waiting, though, when the 4th game comes out. You can also play mini games and use the eye toy, which are cool things to do. It keeps you involved with Harry Potter, but you don't have to play the game.

Overall 8/10
I feel that this game is the best Harry Potter game so far. It has the mini games and stuff. The game was good.

Final Recommendation
Ahhh... well. I think the game is definitely worth renting and if you really love Harry Potter... buy it. I added it to my collection of Harry Potter stuff. I'm an HP nerd. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the game. Alright.

Let me start by saying that I too am a Harry Potter fan. Huge fan. As a late twenty-something female, I don't think I'm in a huge majority here, but I do love the books and the sense of fantasy, mystery, and adventure that they contain. Also, I really enjoyed the Chamber of Secrets PS2 game so I couldn't wait to try this one out.

After getting it home and beginning it however, I began to have second thoughts. Usually when I rent a game from the video store, I go out and buy it because they involve hours and hours of complex game play that cannot be done in less than a week. This game however, can easily be finished in that time.

That is not my main frustration with the game however. The game looks and feels cold and uninviting (for those who love the books and their sense of awe, that's missing here). The characters in this game are given voices, which is cute at first but becomes VERY VERY annoying when they keep saying the same thing over and over. Here's an example: you are trying to collect the "bertie bots every flavored beans" to exchange for goods from Fred and George and you can only do this as Ron...well, as you are doing this, Harry and Hermione KEEP saying "Ok Now, lets go" or "Lets go to Potions now" or "I'm really tired, lets call it a day" over and over and over. I ended up playing most of this game with mute on because I felt like I was being harrassed while trying to do something not directly related to a "mission".

Also, the loading times take very long. Sometimes just walking in or out of a room takes a long time to load, which is incredibly frustrating if you mistakenly go into the wrong room. The dialogue cannot be fast-forwarded or skipped which is a drag if you are re-playing a challenge that you failed the first time, and the game just makes you more annoyed as it goes on.

Another thing is that there is really not much room to build your own characters or their skills. No matter how many enemies you kill or how many challenges you complete, your level of proficiency remains the same.

Additionally, there aren't many places to go "exploring" like one would expect from a Harry Potter game. You really just go to the area that you are supposed to do a challenge in, or hear the constant nagging from your other "friends" about how you are "supposed to go see Hagrid" over and over. Areas that you are not directly exploring at the moment are either locked or inaccesible. Therefore, there is no fun of exploring.

The good parts are that you can save at any point (unless it's the middle of a challenge and you fail, you will have to repeat it from the beginning); and that you can switch between characters.

However, these good points don't make up for the overall fact that this game just doesn't play seamlessly.

This Harry Potter game is the best of all. The other two were ok, but this one is the coolest one of all. There are alot of good things in this game, like flying Buckbeak around the school, exploring more of Hogwarts with the Marauder's Map, using the Folio Bruti (like in the Sorcerer's Stone), exploring Hogwarts in winter, and their graphics. I think the graphics are better because they are brighter and more highly detailed than the other two. I would give it a 10 out of 10! This game didn't let you do some things like the other two games, like playing Quidditch, riding the Firebolt, and exploring the Library. I also like this game because you can explore the grounds in the winter time now. They could have made the game longer because it was a little too short. But they really took time with their graphics (like in the Chamber of Secrets). The spell challenges in this game are pretty good because you find a spellbook somewhere inside and then you use a spell (like Lumos Duo), to beat off Hinkypunks, which are like the Gytrash from the last two games, only they hop on one leg and have a lantern that they use to lure travelers into bogs. Another spell (like Reparo) is cool because you can fix things, like wooden bridges, to continue exploring. Another spell (like Carpe Retractum) is very helpful because you can pull objects towards Harry, or make Harry pull himself to an object (like in the Expecto Patronum spell challenge when you use it, a Dementor comes from the door you entered). I like some of the new Folio Bruti creatures in this game too. Another thing why this game interests me is you get to play as all 3 characters. Each one has a special move. Harry can jump gaps and climb ropes, Ron can search through bookcases, throw Dungbombs, throw Stink Pellets, and push walls to reveal secret areas, and Hermione can go through crawlspaces. Another thing why I like this game is because of the Prefects. The Prefects around Hogwarts are very easy to get around. They don't take House Points away when you get caught and there is not as many Prefects as their used to be. This game is the best of all and I think everybody should get this game because they will be impressed with how much better this game is compared to the other two. Hope you all will enjoy this game! Have fun!

Its so much fun you won't be able to put it down! I know I felt that way when I first rented Harry Potter and the Prisinor of Azkaban! Its a game that is challenging enough that you don't breeze through it in one sitting! Its great...though a little complicated at first...may be a little too dark for younger kids.

As one reviewer mentioned already mentioned, EA's Harry Potter series certainly is not up to par with their LOTR series. Still, if you are a Harry Potter fan, it's a fun game. Here is a list of pros and cons that I have found while play Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Pros:
- The characters' graphics have been redefined so that they look more mature.
- New scenes are added to reflect those in the movie: the clock, the bridge, the courtyard, the hospital wing, outstide the shrieking shack. The Griffindor common room even includes the girls' dormitory where you can go with Hermione.
- Panorama changes from night, day, summer, winter...
- Harry, Ron, and Hermione are always together, which gives a sense that you are not alone.
- You can switch between playing Ron, Hermione, and Harry. The switching mechanism is very well thought out and simple.
- The addition of Buckweat, the hyppogrif, and being able to fly him anytime.
- You can fly Hegwid a little bit during the adventure.
- EA removed the prefects that roam around at night. I found them annoying.
- Followed the story pretty well.
- New spells.
- The dueling hall.
- Fighting the dementors is very well thought out.

Cons:
- No broom flying.
- No quidditch.
- Way too much loading time between scenes.
- A bit short. Some people claim to finish the game in 3 hours. I found that it took me about 10 hours playing time.
- Puzzles a bit too easy. The second game was right on cue. The exception is the last fight with the dementors.
- One scene, in the toy room, seemed way out of place.

Overall, the game has a very fresh feeling to it. The core of the game is a bit easy and short, but a lot of fun. Enjoy it!

I recently played through the PS2 version of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" for PS2. I very much enjoyed playing through the game's various challenges, but because so much of the actual story is edited out of the game (usually only shown in short animations), the game goes far more quickly than its predecessor, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets". The best aspect of the game (which was not part of either of its predecessors) is that you play all three of the primary characters: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Each character starts the game with the same two spells (Flipendo and Expelliarmus, which were part of the previous game), but as the game progresses, each character obtains his/her own unique spells/abilities that in previous games only Harry had:

Ron's Unique Spells/Abilities:
1. Lumos Duo Spell (light producing spell)
2. Finds hidden passages
3. Can search bookcases for Jellybeans, dung bombs & potions

Hermione's Unique Spells/Abilities:
1. Glacius Spell (freezes water, extinguishes fires)
2. Reparo Spell (repairs broken objects)
3. Draconifors Spell (causes dragon statues to come to life, usually spitting fire)
4. Snuffifors Spell (turns books into mice)
5. Can crawl through tight spaces

Harry's Unique Spells/Abilities:
1. Carpe Retractum Spell (pulls objects or can pull Harry himself towards something)
2. Expecto Patronum Spell (wards off dementors)
3. Has the Marauder's Map

All but one of the spells are obtained through unusual challenges. One spell is obtained by purchasing it from Fred and George's joke shop for a certain number of jellybeans. Like the previous game, trunks with various items are hidden throughout Hogwarts that contain either spell book pages, collector wizard & witches cards or chocolate frogs. In the previous "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" game, obtaining collector cards was just for fun and had no real impact on the game's outcome. However, in this game, the collector's cards do impact the game; so collecting them is a very good idea as you will see. A variety of sometimes-menacing creatures wander through Hogwarts and its grounds. Some of these creatures are very important for obtaining potion class ingredients (another better-integrated aspect of the game). One creature in particular will be used quite often: Buckbeak the hippogryph. Any character can fly on Buckbeak and using him is sometimes mandatory for obtaining much-needed things. One important thing to remember is that since you are required to play all three characters, they must occasionally work together to overcome particular challenges.

One thing that will surely be missed by many players familiar with the previous games is that in the "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" game, you never get to play quidditch. This I found to be rather surprising, but it is possible that there simply was not enough room on the disk to support playing it with everything else that the game offers. Similarly, several scenes that could have been played are instead reduced to animations making the game far more edited than its predecessor. There are, however, several encounters with Drako and his minions, Crab and Doyle, that are entertaining, as well as side-challenges that can be fun. For me, Hermione was the interesting character since she obtains the most abilities throughout the game, but it's up to Harry and his Expecto Patronus spell to save the day.

Overall, I rate the PS2 version of "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" with 4 out of 5 stars. Certainly the game could have been better. In some aspects, it is more challenging than its predecessor; but in other aspects, its predecessor was more challenging. Still, it is very entertaining and fun to play. I look forward to the game version of "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", to which, the ghost of Peeves warns that he will be a menace.

this review is in addition to my one titled "the best one yet!". I forgot to mention something.

I enjoyed playing as Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but whenever you obtain spells, most of the time, you are Ron or Hermione, which means that only that person that obtains it gets it. Here is a list of the spells they each have or obtain.

Harry
- Flipendo (knockback jinx)
- Expelliarmus (blocks spells)
- Patronus (repels dementors)
- Carpe Retractum (hook that pulls you across certain gaps too big to jump)

Ron
- Flipendo (knockback jinx)
- Expelliarmus (blocks spells)
- Lumos (spell that produces light)
- i think theres another but i forget

Hermione
- Flipendo (knockback jinx)
- Expelliarmus (blocks spells)
- Glacius (freezing spell)
- Reparo (repairs stuff)
- Draconifors (turns dragon statues to life)

The only things I didnt like about this game was that it was too short, and Ron and Hermione got most of the spells. Isnt this game HARRY POTTER and the Prisoner of Azkaban? I hope the creators spend more time on the plot for the 4th game (Goblet of Fire). I really hope they go up to #7 for games and movies but I highly doubt it.

In all i would give this game a 10 out of 10 because although it is short, it is sometimes challenging, but the controls are easy, you get a lot of spells, you can play as Harry, Ron, and Hermione, the graphics are breathtaking, Buckbeak is fun to ride on, and i didnt even miss quidditch because I liked it but it always took me a long time to beat it because I was horrible at it! Those are the pros and cons about this game. I hoped that both of my reviews helped you and you enjoy this game as much as I did.

I thought this game was very fun. I beat it in a week but only because I couldn't stop playing. It was very easy for me as an experienced player. But I would recommend to any Harry Potter fan.

I really liked the fact that you play as a team of Harry, Ron, and Hermione and they all have different skills useful in playing the game, as they might have done in real life.

As for the joker who wrote about the Lord of the Rings, ignore it. He just doesn't know about writing a review for the game he is actually talking about.

Buy it...I love it!!!!!