Potter Mania is in full swing. Thousands lined up outside bookstores from Sydney to Seattle Friday night, eager to get their hands on “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”, the seventh and final volume in the boy wizard’s saga. (more…)
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Potter Mania is in full swing. Thousands lined up outside bookstores from Sydney to Seattle Friday night, eager to get their hands on “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”, the seventh and final volume in the boy wizard’s saga. (more…)
(Our KidConfidence Blog is updated daily with articles written by us - Don, Cola and Thomas. However today we could not resist posting this excellent article from AP National Writer Hillel Italie.)
As the Harry Potter series wraps up this summer, we can look back at two remarkable narratives: Potter the boy wizard and Potter the cultural phenomenon.
Potter the wizard’s fate will be known July 21 with the release of “Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows,” Book 7 of J.K. Rowling’s fantasy epic. Worldwide sales of the first six books already top 325 million copies and the first printing for “Deathly Hallows” is 12 million in the United States alone.
Potter the phenomenon doesn’t compare for suspense, but like the wizard’s tale, it is unique and extraordinary and well placed in tradition. Like “Star Wars” and “Star Trek,” it is the story of how a work of popular art becomes a world of its own — imitated, merchandised and analyzed, immortalized not by the marketers, but by the fans.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is the movie-tie in game based on movie/book #5.
This latest installment of the successful Harry Potter video game franchise is without a doubt the best one yet. ElectronicArts UK used the movie set blue-prints to digitally recreate an absolutely amazing Hogwarts experience. Daniel Radcliff, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and the rest of the movie cast provided the voice-over for their characters. The linear game play from earlier Harry Potter games has been replaced with an open- “choose what you want to do next” a.k.a. Sandbox, type game play.
The Motion Sensing Wii Mote makes for a natural Wand and while for the most part the controls work OK, we found that novice Wii players and kids may need some time getting used to the different motions and gestures required to cast the different spells. The game-play is compelling and easy, allowing players to control a variety of characters, aside from Harry Potter, throughout the game. The Wii’s lack of graphical horsepower is apparent, but Hogwarts still looks and feels great.
Overall, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is a fun adventure game that will keep your kids entertained for many hours while they explore the grounds in and around Hogwarts.
Visit our Harry Potter OOTP Review Page for Screenshots, Member Reviews and more.
Harry Potter games have been very popular with children and parents alike. Aside from the highly anticipated final book 7 (to be released: July 21, 2007), the 5th Movie and Game are scheduled for release around the same time in July.
Parents and kids who read or listened to the Audio CD of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will know that the 5th book spends a good amount of time inside the Hogwarts castle. Previous installments had players follow a storyline with optional side quests and left little room to explore. In retrospect, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets provided the most freedom to roam around the castle and grounds, while the most recent Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire offered the least.
Luckily things are about to change…
Publisher and Developer ElectronicArts UK, started working with the movie team to construct a 3D virtual Hogwarts by getting blue prints of the movie sets, going to the exterior locations with tape measurers and high-end digital cameras, and reviewing how these locations have been translated into the movies. The finished game will feature an open world and level with no loading interruptions allowing players more freedom then ever before. To assure high detail and authenticity in all characters, EA went on to scan all faces of the cast. The game will be available on all platforms and gaming consoles starting from the old Gameboy Advanced all the way to the advanced PlayStation 3. Personally, we are looking forward to swinging our Nintendo Wii–mote at the TV. Seriously - what better input device for a magic wand then the motion-sensing Wii-mote… But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, it’s to early to say if EA got the motion sensing right or not.
To help Parents decide if the game is appropriate for their children, KidConfidence will post Screenshots and Gameplay footage before it is available in retail.
JK Rowling announced today: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7) will be published July 21st.
Warner Brother Entertainment will release Movie #5, “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, in theaters July 13th. And Electronic Arts (EA) will release “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” videogame around the same date. It’s going to be great summer for Potter fans – no doubt.
Movie to Game conversions are known for having great potential but usually end up being over-shadowed by unpolished game-play and low production-value. Recent Movie to Game disasters include: Eragon, Over the Hedge and Happy Feet (Wii) –to name a few.
Harry Potter games are not the cream of the crop, but EA manages to provide a decent interactive Hogwarts experience for young gaming Witches and Wizards. We are fortunate to have a young Potter fan as our son and therefore expierence all Books, Audio-Books, Videogames and movies over and over and over.
Besides “Lego Star Wars” and “Lego Star Wars: The original Trilogy”, we cannot think of any other games (more…)