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As I can't actually review the "Harry Potter and the Philosipher's Stone" next generation game officially, 'cos SR don't have it, I'm going to post a thourough review right here in the Xbox forum.
__________________________________________________
I was sceptical when it emerged that the playstation game "Harry Potter and the *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" was being resurrected for the Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube.
Despite being interested in owning all of the Harry Potter titles, I wondered what the point in getting an Xbox version was. I already had the playstation version, and I quite liked it as it was. I thought it would be just the same except for the added bonuses of better graphics, and some possible re-animation. I was wrong.
The forementioned original version (which hasn't seen the light of day along with all my other PSX games since I got an Xbox) was good for what it was. At the time, Harry Potter fever swept the nation. You couldn't take two steps without seeing Harry Potter brand t-shirts, calendars, mugs, mouse mats. All of these products were, ofcourse, just ways of cashing in on the newly-released, highly over-rated film which the world and his wife went flocking to see.
And so, to tie-in with it, came the game. I got it free, so it wasn't as if I went out of my way to get it. It loaded up, and I was presented with a basic cloudy screen along with some flashes of lightning and flying owls.
Set to look like a story book (probably to spare having to do fancy-looking cutscenes), the opening clip roled. My adventure began, straight in the entrance of the Hogwarts Castle. Tasks were very simple, spells were far too easy to master, and to kill an enemy (which wasn't a very frequent sight), only involved having to press a couple of buttons in a certain order at the same time.
To put it simply, while enjoyable, the game felt rushed. Perhaps they'd started production on it late, perhaps the playstation quality just wasn't high enough for what they'd intended. Either way, along the line, and after "The Chamber of Secrets" had already come out for next generation consoles, returned "The Philosopher's Stone".
I waited a long time before buying this, and then grabbed it at a bargain price, wondering what I would possibly see. I put it in my Xbox's disc tray and was presented with an opening clip. It wasn't set out like a story, the graphics were top-notch, the cool music from the original was still there, the characters were nicely-rounded and didn't talk out of a narrow gap on the sides of their mouths. Even Stephen Fry narrated it, what more could I ask for?
The action kicked in, a tutorial set in Ollivander's wand shop set the scene a whole lot better than the library one in the previous version. Then I was off to Hogwarts, which had been completely redesigned in itself. I could explore the grand staircase, I could search shelves and desks for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Along my many adventures in Hogwarts, I had to find potion ingredients for Professor Snape, I dared to explore the outer grounds at night only to be attacked by spectral dogs, I learnt how a spongify spell could trick a troll into smashing it's own head in. It so much more than the original.
There are 101 witches and wizards cards to be discovered. You can go back to previous lessons to improve your grades. Enemies are more frequent, varied, and harder to kill. The broom-flying has been drastically improved. Harry actually talks in this one. While it has the distinct feel of the first outing, this is truly a completely different game, and very addictive to play. There are doors to be unlocked, crawlspaces to be explored, side-quests to be completed, fun to be had. You can trade wizard cards with other students, go in Hagrid's garden, sneak past prefects. Puzzles are harder, and don't forget you still have to take on Voldemort in the end.
Graphically, we have much improvement. The environment is bigger, charcaters look better, you can adventure at both day and night. The sound and music is the same as "The *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" which I'm glad about as I like the main theme. I tried to download it, I can't find it anywhere.
Essentially, if you're a Harry Potter fan, this game is for you. If not, I still think you'd enjoy it even if it is a bit too simple. Have fun gaming even if you didn't enjoy the film.
The Hibernator.
I rate this product 9/10
__________________________________________________
I was sceptical when it emerged that the playstation game "Harry Potter and the *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" was being resurrected for the Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube.
Despite being interested in owning all of the Harry Potter titles, I wondered what the point in getting an Xbox version was. I already had the playstation version, and I quite liked it as it was. I thought it would be just the same except for the added bonuses of better graphics, and some possible re-animation. I was wrong.
The forementioned original version (which hasn't seen the light of day along with all my other PSX games since I got an Xbox) was good for what it was. At the time, Harry Potter fever swept the nation. You couldn't take two steps without seeing Harry Potter brand t-shirts, calendars, mugs, mouse mats. All of these products were, ofcourse, just ways of cashing in on the newly-released, highly over-rated film which the world and his wife went flocking to see.
And so, to tie-in with it, came the game. I got it free, so it wasn't as if I went out of my way to get it. It loaded up, and I was presented with a basic cloudy screen along with some flashes of lightning and flying owls.
Set to look like a story book (probably to spare having to do fancy-looking cutscenes), the opening clip roled. My adventure began, straight in the entrance of the Hogwarts Castle. Tasks were very simple, spells were far too easy to master, and to kill an enemy (which wasn't a very frequent sight), only involved having to press a couple of buttons in a certain order at the same time.
To put it simply, while enjoyable, the game felt rushed. Perhaps they'd started production on it late, perhaps the playstation quality just wasn't high enough for what they'd intended. Either way, along the line, and after "The Chamber of Secrets" had already come out for next generation consoles, returned "The Philosopher's Stone".
I waited a long time before buying this, and then grabbed it at a bargain price, wondering what I would possibly see. I put it in my Xbox's disc tray and was presented with an opening clip. It wasn't set out like a story, the graphics were top-notch, the cool music from the original was still there, the characters were nicely-rounded and didn't talk out of a narrow gap on the sides of their mouths. Even Stephen Fry narrated it, what more could I ask for?
The action kicked in, a tutorial set in Ollivander's wand shop set the scene a whole lot better than the library one in the previous version. Then I was off to Hogwarts, which had been completely redesigned in itself. I could explore the grand staircase, I could search shelves and desks for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Along my many adventures in Hogwarts, I had to find potion ingredients for Professor Snape, I dared to explore the outer grounds at night only to be attacked by spectral dogs, I learnt how a spongify spell could trick a troll into smashing it's own head in. It so much more than the original.
There are 101 witches and wizards cards to be discovered. You can go back to previous lessons to improve your grades. Enemies are more frequent, varied, and harder to kill. The broom-flying has been drastically improved. Harry actually talks in this one. While it has the distinct feel of the first outing, this is truly a completely different game, and very addictive to play. There are doors to be unlocked, crawlspaces to be explored, side-quests to be completed, fun to be had. You can trade wizard cards with other students, go in Hagrid's garden, sneak past prefects. Puzzles are harder, and don't forget you still have to take on Voldemort in the end.
Graphically, we have much improvement. The environment is bigger, charcaters look better, you can adventure at both day and night. The sound and music is the same as "The *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" which I'm glad about as I like the main theme. I tried to download it, I can't find it anywhere.
Essentially, if you're a Harry Potter fan, this game is for you. If not, I still think you'd enjoy it even if it is a bit too simple. Have fun gaming even if you didn't enjoy the film.
The Hibernator.
I rate this product 9/10
Ah well, problem when you review something on the forums and not on the official site. You get ripped. Not bothered ofcourse, as most of you are retards. But I know when I'm not wanted - seeya round.
Why do you spend half the review talking about how you got "the sorcerors stone" free?
Tiltawhirl wrote:
> AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
> AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Hibernator, you are the gayest person ever.
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
As I can't actually review the "Harry Potter and the Philosipher's Stone" next generation game officially, 'cos SR don't have it, I'm going to post a thourough review right here in the Xbox forum.
__________________________________________________
I was sceptical when it emerged that the playstation game "Harry Potter and the *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" was being resurrected for the Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube.
Despite being interested in owning all of the Harry Potter titles, I wondered what the point in getting an Xbox version was. I already had the playstation version, and I quite liked it as it was. I thought it would be just the same except for the added bonuses of better graphics, and some possible re-animation. I was wrong.
The forementioned original version (which hasn't seen the light of day along with all my other PSX games since I got an Xbox) was good for what it was. At the time, Harry Potter fever swept the nation. You couldn't take two steps without seeing Harry Potter brand t-shirts, calendars, mugs, mouse mats. All of these products were, ofcourse, just ways of cashing in on the newly-released, highly over-rated film which the world and his wife went flocking to see.
And so, to tie-in with it, came the game. I got it free, so it wasn't as if I went out of my way to get it. It loaded up, and I was presented with a basic cloudy screen along with some flashes of lightning and flying owls.
Set to look like a story book (probably to spare having to do fancy-looking cutscenes), the opening clip roled. My adventure began, straight in the entrance of the Hogwarts Castle. Tasks were very simple, spells were far too easy to master, and to kill an enemy (which wasn't a very frequent sight), only involved having to press a couple of buttons in a certain order at the same time.
To put it simply, while enjoyable, the game felt rushed. Perhaps they'd started production on it late, perhaps the playstation quality just wasn't high enough for what they'd intended. Either way, along the line, and after "The Chamber of Secrets" had already come out for next generation consoles, returned "The Philosopher's Stone".
I waited a long time before buying this, and then grabbed it at a bargain price, wondering what I would possibly see. I put it in my Xbox's disc tray and was presented with an opening clip. It wasn't set out like a story, the graphics were top-notch, the cool music from the original was still there, the characters were nicely-rounded and didn't talk out of a narrow gap on the sides of their mouths. Even Stephen Fry narrated it, what more could I ask for?
The action kicked in, a tutorial set in Ollivander's wand shop set the scene a whole lot better than the library one in the previous version. Then I was off to Hogwarts, which had been completely redesigned in itself. I could explore the grand staircase, I could search shelves and desks for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Along my many adventures in Hogwarts, I had to find potion ingredients for Professor Snape, I dared to explore the outer grounds at night only to be attacked by spectral dogs, I learnt how a spongify spell could trick a troll into smashing it's own head in. It so much more than the original.
There are 101 witches and wizards cards to be discovered. You can go back to previous lessons to improve your grades. Enemies are more frequent, varied, and harder to kill. The broom-flying has been drastically improved. Harry actually talks in this one. While it has the distinct feel of the first outing, this is truly a completely different game, and very addictive to play. There are doors to be unlocked, crawlspaces to be explored, side-quests to be completed, fun to be had. You can trade wizard cards with other students, go in Hagrid's garden, sneak past prefects. Puzzles are harder, and don't forget you still have to take on Voldemort in the end.
Graphically, we have much improvement. The environment is bigger, charcaters look better, you can adventure at both day and night. The sound and music is the same as "The *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" which I'm glad about as I like the main theme. I tried to download it, I can't find it anywhere.
Essentially, if you're a Harry Potter fan, this game is for you. If not, I still think you'd enjoy it even if it is a bit too simple. Have fun gaming even if you didn't enjoy the film.
The Hibernator.
I rate this product 9/10
__________________________________________________
I was sceptical when it emerged that the playstation game "Harry Potter and the *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" was being resurrected for the Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube.
Despite being interested in owning all of the Harry Potter titles, I wondered what the point in getting an Xbox version was. I already had the playstation version, and I quite liked it as it was. I thought it would be just the same except for the added bonuses of better graphics, and some possible re-animation. I was wrong.
The forementioned original version (which hasn't seen the light of day along with all my other PSX games since I got an Xbox) was good for what it was. At the time, Harry Potter fever swept the nation. You couldn't take two steps without seeing Harry Potter brand t-shirts, calendars, mugs, mouse mats. All of these products were, ofcourse, just ways of cashing in on the newly-released, highly over-rated film which the world and his wife went flocking to see.
And so, to tie-in with it, came the game. I got it free, so it wasn't as if I went out of my way to get it. It loaded up, and I was presented with a basic cloudy screen along with some flashes of lightning and flying owls.
Set to look like a story book (probably to spare having to do fancy-looking cutscenes), the opening clip roled. My adventure began, straight in the entrance of the Hogwarts Castle. Tasks were very simple, spells were far too easy to master, and to kill an enemy (which wasn't a very frequent sight), only involved having to press a couple of buttons in a certain order at the same time.
To put it simply, while enjoyable, the game felt rushed. Perhaps they'd started production on it late, perhaps the playstation quality just wasn't high enough for what they'd intended. Either way, along the line, and after "The Chamber of Secrets" had already come out for next generation consoles, returned "The Philosopher's Stone".
I waited a long time before buying this, and then grabbed it at a bargain price, wondering what I would possibly see. I put it in my Xbox's disc tray and was presented with an opening clip. It wasn't set out like a story, the graphics were top-notch, the cool music from the original was still there, the characters were nicely-rounded and didn't talk out of a narrow gap on the sides of their mouths. Even Stephen Fry narrated it, what more could I ask for?
The action kicked in, a tutorial set in Ollivander's wand shop set the scene a whole lot better than the library one in the previous version. Then I was off to Hogwarts, which had been completely redesigned in itself. I could explore the grand staircase, I could search shelves and desks for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Along my many adventures in Hogwarts, I had to find potion ingredients for Professor Snape, I dared to explore the outer grounds at night only to be attacked by spectral dogs, I learnt how a spongify spell could trick a troll into smashing it's own head in. It so much more than the original.
There are 101 witches and wizards cards to be discovered. You can go back to previous lessons to improve your grades. Enemies are more frequent, varied, and harder to kill. The broom-flying has been drastically improved. Harry actually talks in this one. While it has the distinct feel of the first outing, this is truly a completely different game, and very addictive to play. There are doors to be unlocked, crawlspaces to be explored, side-quests to be completed, fun to be had. You can trade wizard cards with other students, go in Hagrid's garden, sneak past prefects. Puzzles are harder, and don't forget you still have to take on Voldemort in the end.
Graphically, we have much improvement. The environment is bigger, charcaters look better, you can adventure at both day and night. The sound and music is the same as "The *shudder* Sorcerer's Stone" which I'm glad about as I like the main theme. I tried to download it, I can't find it anywhere.
Essentially, if you're a Harry Potter fan, this game is for you. If not, I still think you'd enjoy it even if it is a bit too simple. Have fun gaming even if you didn't enjoy the film.
The Hibernator.
I rate this product 9/10