Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

by Electronic Arts

Product Features

• Control Ron Weasly, Hermione Granger as well as Harry Potter -- Help them survive the dangers of Azkaban, the infamous wizard's prison
• Face off against the dreaded Dementors - these powerful prison guards will test Harry and his friends' magic to their limits
• Use amazing all-new spells - Freeze creatures, control dragons and conjure up a Patronus
• Multiple exciting subquests - Fly on a Hippogriff, reveal the secrets of the Marauder's Map and face wild, magical two-player challenges
• New mini-games like Flying Seahorse Fishing and Dueling Club

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00021HBPE
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches ; 4.5 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: June 3, 2004
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #13,132 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Platform: Xbox

From the Manufacturer

The Dementors are coming and this time Harry needs his friends. From the opening scene on the Hogwarts Express to the climatic finale on the shore of the great lake at Hogwarts, the Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban videogame immerses the player in the world of Harry Potter with captivating gameplay, stunning environments, and graphics that bring to life the magical world familiar to anyone who has seen the films.

Features

• Companion Play - Play as Harry, Ron and Hermione.
• Face the Dementors - Can you overcome the dreaded Azkaban guards?
• Fly Buckbeak - Fly the Hippogriff around the towers of Hogwarts and use his immense strength to help you in your adventure.
• Two-player Mini-Games - Including Flying Seahorse fishing and Dueling Club.
• All-New Spells - Freeze creatures, control flame-breathing dragons and conjure a Patronus.
• Unlock the Marauder's Map - Explore more of Hogwarts than ever before.

Product Description

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban bring Harry Potter's adventures to life, as his third year at Hogwarts brings new trials and dangers! Combine the abilities of Harry Hermione and Ron as they face escaped convict Sirius Black and the Dementors! Explore more of Hogwarts than ever before -- once you unlock the Marauder's Map, almost all of the school is open to you!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good looking, true to the story, but definitely a rental., June 4, 2004

By 

W. C. Bryant (Columbus, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban (Video Game)

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?

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutly Incredible! More than just a game, June 2, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban (Video Game)

The new Harry Potter game just blew me away. The graphics are awsome, and i think its best on x-box, because its like you can visualize exactly what your doing. I wouldnt recomend it if you have a gamecube, because you may run into some trouble with the game in the second half. It gets harder to save, and you wouldnt want to lose all your progress.
In Prisoner of Azkaban you can play as Harry, Ron or Hermione, which makes it more of an open fun game. There are more places in the castle to explore, so have fun with it !

14 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best game ever!!!!, July 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban (Video Game)

This is the most amazing Xbox game ever!!! I just got it yesterday and I beat it in 1 day!!! I couldnt stop!!!

Things that make this game so great...

1. Exploring Hogwarts Grounds and flying on Buckbeak! Also their are 3 different seasons...fall with rain...Winter with beutiful snow and great winter music...and spring! The grounds are huge! Its amazing! You can even run around the two courtyards from the movies! On buckbeak, you can take off, and land anywhere on the grounds!

2. Being Harry Ron and Hermione!

3. The graphics are amazing, much better then the first two games! Harry Ron and Hermione dont look stupid like they did in the first 2 games!

4. The music is great...the same great music from the first 2 plus new great music!

OK...their are many more great things about this game that I could be here all day...get this game! Dont even think about it just get it...you will thank me!

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