Summary
- Hogwarts Legacy received critical acclaim for filling a long-awaited niche in the Wizarding World gaming scene.
- A rumored Director's Cut for the game may include new content, such as spells, missions, and a morality system.
- The Director's Cut could include missing features like dedicated companion NPCs as well.
Hogwarts Legacy was released to critical acclaim and record-breaking sales. The game filled a long-empty niche of games set in the Wizarding World, and players were all too happy to slip back into the setting with what was essentially the premier Hogwarts simulator. The final game lets fans attend classes, interact with fellow students and teachers, learn the most iconic spells from the Harry Potter franchise, and fully explore the castle and its surrounding countryside.
One critique the game did face is that it was on the short side, seemingly stopping just as things were getting good. It’s a good problem to have, since it leaves plenty of room for sequels or post-launch content, but Hogwarts Legacy has been very quiet on that front. However, with some credible rumors emerging in recent days of a Director’s Cut for the title, Potterheads have been speculating what exactly that could mean, and what additional content it could bring to their favorite game.
What Can Fans Expect in a Possible Hogwarts Legacy Director's Cut?
How Will a Director's Cut be Sold?
The main question concerning any potential Director’s Cut for Hogwarts Legacy will inevitably be about how it’s released: will it be an expansion or another version of the standalone game for sale? The short answer is it will probably be both. Avalanche Software has built up a lot of goodwill with the community for its loving recreation of the Hogwarts experience; it would make very little business sense to burn that goodwill by trying to sell longtime fans an update at full price.
The Director’s Cut might arrive as a paid expansion for current owners of the game, while selling the Director’s Cut to newcomers wholesale. In a similar vein, Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2017) released a Celebration Edition that could be purchased as a full game, or a significantly cheaper upgrade for players who’d stuck with the game through its very rocky lifespan.
New Content Possible for a Hogwarts Legacy Director's Cut
In terms of original, new content coming to a possible Director’s Cut, the sky's the limit. Avalanche Software has been incredibly quiet since the launch of Hogwarts Legacy; the studio has had an awfully long time to make something brand new. From new spells, to new missions, to entirely new areas like the Chamber of Secrets, really just about anything is on the table. The smart money is on at least 4-5 new missions in a Director’s Cut, just enough to fill out a worthwhile questline on-par with the others present in the base game.
Like many games these days, Hogwarts Legacy had a lot of content planned for the final release that didn’t quite make the cut. Some evidence of this content can still be found in the game’s files, but others only exist as hearsay or from old, outdated developer interviews. It’s unknown just how much of this cut/unused content could make an appearance in a Director’s Cut, but it’s definitely something to chew on.
Before release, there was a lot of talk about Hogwarts Legacy's companion system. As players made their way through their first playthrough, many of them assumed their fellow students would become followers once their quest lines were complete. That was not the case. For a series focused on the power of friendship, this seemed like an odd choice. A Director’s Cut could remedy this and implement the follower system people were clamoring for at release.
Leaked files indicate that humans weren’t the only followers in the cards for release. Fantastic beasts were planned as possible followers, but the idea was scrapped since the devs couldn’t get all the creatures to work in certain environments. Hopefully, with a little more time in the oven, this feature can return.
Another feature teased in the base game that can (and should) return in a Director’s Cut is a morality system. Found in the files, but nowhere in the finished product, a morality system would put greater weight on using Unforgivable Curses in Hogwarts Legacy and the player generally being a menace. As the game currently stands, there are no in-game penalties for running across the countryside like a magical serial killer. A morality system would help the world feel more real, as NPCs would be less inclined to deal with a player character who’s acting like such a villain.
Hogwarts Legacy
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- February 10, 2023
- ESRB
- T For Teen Due To Blood, Fantasy Violence, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol
- Developer(s)
- Avalanche Software
- Publisher(s)
- Warner Bros. Games
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Cross-Platform Play
- Hogwarts Legacy doesn't have crossplay or crossplatform support
- Cross Save
- you can freely use your saved data between each console as long as you are connected to the internet and signed into the same account where the saved data was created
WHERE TO PLAY
Hogwarts Legacy is an immersive, open-world action RPG set in the world first introduced in the Harry Potter books. For the first time, experience Hogwarts in the 1800s. Your character is a student who holds the key to an ancient secret that threatens to tear the wizarding world apart. Now you can take control of the action and be at the center of your own adventure in the wizarding world. Your legacy is what you make of it.
Explore an Open World
The wizarding world awaits you. Freely roam Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest, and the surrounding Overland area.
Be the Witch or Wizard You Want to be
Learn spells, brew potions, grow plants, and tend to magical beasts along your journey. Get sorted into your house, forge relationships, and master skills to become the witch or wizard you want to be Experience a New Wizarding World Adventure
Experience the wizarding world in an unexplored era to uncover a hidden truth from its past. Battle against trolls, Dark Wizards, goblins, and more as you face a dangerous villain threatening the fate of the wizarding world.
- Franchise
- Harry Potter
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC
- How Long To Beat
- 26 Hours
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
