The chamber of secrets has been opened...
INTRODUCTION
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Harry and Ron find out their late to catch the train to the Wizard and Witch's School called Hogwarts. So Ron takes his dads car without his permission.
Unfortunately they crash into the Whomping Willow, a large tree outside of Hogwarts. Harry gets out but Rons stuck in the tree firstly you have to get him out of there by casting spells on the tree by aiming you wand on a specific symbol on each side of the tree. The Whomping Willow lets Ron go then you head to Hogwarts and that is when things get interesting. Hogwarts is a pretty large school, the school is pretty much a large castle. The rest of the area is the school grounds which is all green, lots of plants, etc. There are lots of secrets in the school as well. Lots of students there like to trade things like potions or wizard cards. The main currency is Jelly Beans which you use to buy things from other students around the school. The main thing that makes this game enjoyable is the sense of wonder and the imagination and trying to find secrets. It is a game that draws you in and makes you keep on playing which makes it quite addictive....
IN COMPARISON
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As this is the second game in the Harry Potter game series, there are a lot of
things that make this game better than the first. One is in the first one there were limits to where you could go, and it was just level by level. Sure it was fun but there was no way you could go back to find all the secrets you missed which really sucked. In this one the game is free roam, that means you go wherever you want which is good and doesn't annoy the heck out of you if you missed something because you can always go back. Also the dialog is a lot better. Harry talks a lot more then the last one, in the last one it was only a few lines and that was it. It also feels a lot more aimed at a larger audience, likes the writing written in blood on a wall and ghosts can be heard in the background sometimes which can scare the crap out of you. Overall its a game that beats the first on a large scale, which doesn't mean you shouldn't play the first one. Although the first ones not bad, this one is actually good...
GRAPHICS & PRESENTATION
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Probably the only thing that let the game down was the graphics. The graphics are the same as the first game with some slight improvements.
Sometimes the graphics also look outdated and not really up to what they could really achieve. Secret areas are sometimes obvious because of the graphics which is one point why the graphics should of been improved. There are also some glitches that aren't really worth mentioning. But the one thing I like is that the graphics stayed true to the first game and didn't make a more realistic Harry. The graphics are one thing that make the game feel as if it isn't a movie to game adaption and that it focuses on being just a game which is good. The cartoon Harry Potter look is awesome and should of been kept to avoid the movie game feel of the recent Harry Potter games that failed big time.
SOUND
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The sound is one of the really great things about HP:COS. The background music is good and has a medieval tone to it. Some background music from the first game has been remixed which makes it feel more like a sequel. There are some instances where the game can become intense and the music helps to bring in that could kind of tone. I wouldn't say anything is wrong with the music, its all pretty much fine. The actors sound good and realistic.
GAMEPLAY
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Gameplay truly makes Chamber of Secrets awesome. The game takes a while to finish and even longer if you want to collect everything. Here are some good and bad points
Good -
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- Plenty of stuff to do around Hogwarts
- Never really frustrating or stressful pretty well paced.
- Story pulls you into the game and makes it interesting.
- Lots of imagination and wonder, etc.
Bad -
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- Sometimes a bit unbelievable but it isn't supposed to be.
- A bit repetitive when harry casts a spell (eg. each time
harry casts a spell with his wand he'll say something like
Flipendo!. Get used to it he'll be saying the name of the
spell every time you cast it and it gets annoying after
a while.
- Controls can get a bit annoying sometimes.
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OVERALL
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Comparison - 9
G & P - 7
Sound - 9
Gameplay - 8
Overall Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for PC is a good game and shows that not every game has to have amazing graphics to shine.
8.5/10
reviewed by starfox321
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