Modern games allow us to immerse ourselves in popular books, movies, and TV shows we grew up with. If you are a big Harry Potter fan, without a doubt you’ve imagined how it would be to play Quidditch in real life. Well, you still can’t do that (unless some rich inventor invents legit flying brooms and a way for the players to not outright massacre each other while playing this violent sport), but the closest alternative is to play Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions. I’ve taken the broom for a spin, and here are my impressions.
What Is this Bloody and Violent Sport in my Children’s Fantasy Book?
Even if you are not a Harry Potter fan but are a sports game fan, you may find the idea of a 3D Rugby / American Football with brooms quite appealing. I mean, it was, for me, and I was not disappointed at all. Here’s a short rundown if you’ve never touched a Harry Potter book, or taken a glance at the movie:
Quidditch is a sport in which the goal is to put the ball through one of the three rings (goals, so to say) on the opponent’s side of the pitch for 10 points and to, logically, stop the opposing team from doing the same thing to you. There are, however, many sub-layers to this game that make it very interesting and dynamic from start to finish.
- It is possible to beat up other players, injure them, and have them forcefully sidelined until they recover to be able to play again (think hockey!).
- There is a thing called a “Golden Snitch” that appears a few times during the match at random, and you’re supposed to have a designated team member (Seeker) chase it down and grab it. It’s sort of a mini-battle between the two opposing Seekers on the same pitch during the same match. Whoever grabs the Golden Snitch delivers 30 points for their team, so it’s not something you want to ignore. On the contrary, it can either provide you with fuel for a comeback or “seal the deal” if you’re leading. This changes the match dynamics during this “event” because the teams are forced to focus on two important matters.
Keep in mind that the rules in Quidditch Champions differ from the rules in the book.
Gameplay
What I’ve played so far is great from a technical standpoint. The game runs smoothly and I’ve experienced no bugs, but it took me a while to adapt to the mechanics. If you’ve played games with aeroplane dogfights, such as Battlefield, you should be good to go with a short practice session. Various indicators try their best to show you points of interest during the match and help you orient yourself. As for the controls, I found Mouse and Keyboard more accurate than controller for this type of game.
When we compare the final version of the game versus alpha and beta tests, it’s important to note that it is 3v3 rather than 6v6 (three of your team’s characters are bot-controlled until you take over). This is both good and bad. Good because it’s easier to find matches, but bad because you are forced to switch roles to maximize your team’s efficiency constantly, and most of the pitch is… empty. It somewhat gives off a Rocket League vibe.
Character creation works a little differently from what you might be used to. It’s unclear, but you seem to choose the basis of your character by age, and therefore their size, and when it comes to the gender choice of your characters, there is none. You can only choose between 10 different faces. Other than that, customization is weak, bar a lot of different hairstyles to choose from.
There is an obligatory pronoun selection consisting of only three possible options: They/them (default), He/him, and She/her. I’ve went around and tested all of these for the purposes of this review, but I’ve noticed no difference in how the AI match commentator addresses me, and haven’t seen a way to actually display my pronoun to the players on my friends list, for example.
On a positive note, there are no microtransactions, hence the $30 price tag. However, the game requires a lot of grind if you want to purchase all the cool in-game stuff. Some players will still believe that you’ll get your money’s worth for $30, but I am not in that camp. I had my share of fun (despite having to play with bots a few times), but I sadly do not see it taking off like other big multiplayer games.
Speaking of the price and what you get for it, the single-player content is, bluntly putting it, insufficient. You’ve got four cups (Weasley Burrow Garden Cup, Hogwarts House Quidditch Cup, Triwizard Schools Quidditch Cup, and Quidditch World Cup) and… that’s it. You’ll play against bots, but you’ll soon be too much for them.
Graphically, Quidditch Champions looks okay when it comes to player models, as do brooms and core parts of the sport, but the surroundings, or in other words, anything other than the immediate playing area, such as the stadium and woods around the stadium, look awful. Given how hectic the gameplay is, the surroundings won’t be your biggest concern in matches, though.
Summary
If you’re a big fan of Harry Potter and Quidditch, you’ll definitely have some fun with Quidditch Champions. The game has huge potential, but I fear that it may be a multiplayer that doesn’t last long. All in all, it’s worth trying while it’s free for PlayStation Plus members, but maybe not if you need to pay full price.
- Immersive, engaging, and fast-paced gameplay
- No microtransactions
- Huge potential if serious attention is given in future updates
- Lack of single player content to justify the price
- May be short-lived
- Some segments of graphical design are poor
- Incomplete Character Creation
Published: Sep 10, 2024 06:13 am