This speculation is based on job postings made by Warner Bros. Most of the information comes from the posting for the "Senior Game Writer" position, here's the more relevant stuff:

http://www.warnerbroscareers.com/search-jobs/?157583BR They are also looking for a Senior Environment Artist:

http://www.warnerbroscareers.com/search-jobs/?157376BR and a Lead Animator for Unreal 4:

http://www.warnerbroscareers.com/search-jobs/?157322BR A bit of extra information on the players involved:

- Warner Bros. Interactive seems mostly interested in publishing games based on their own franchises (Batman, Shadow of Mordor, Mad Max, etc.) and this game is listed as having "franchise representatives".
- Disney closed down Avalanche last year, Warner bought it from them and recently re-opened the studio.
- Avalanche Software, unless you're one of the people who played the Tak games back on PS2, is known mostly for the licensed games they made while they were owned by Disney, particularly the Disney Infinity games.
- Not to be confused with Avalanche Studios, which is another developer owned by Warner Bros. responsible for the Just Cause games.

The "Harry Potter" part is pure speculation, however the need for "British authenticity" makes it very likely it's Harry Potter. Unless it's because Tolkien was British and they think that's an integral aspect of making a Lord of the Rings game, although I'm pretty certain this concern would be a first for them. What we do know for sure though is that they mean for this to be a AAA RPG based on an existing franchise.




What are your thoughts on this? Do you have an interest on a RPG based on Harry Potter? If so, what should they do with it? If not, is there any other Warner Bros. franchise you wish this RPG was based on?




I have dreamed of an open-world RPG based on the Harry Potter universe for a long time.

Imagine a huge map, but instead of spreading it out in a huge open field you take smaller sections of that map and stack them on top of each other. Make the castle feel really huge and alive, and focus on the exploration element. Stairways move of their own volition, maybe you're trying to go back to the common room and the stairway you're in moves and you end up in a place you've never seen before.

The game could start with a flashback to your first day in Hogwarts, the sorting hat asks you a bunch of questions and assigns you to one of the houses. That could influence your starting party and the location and characteristics of your home base. Maybe you're a Slytherin and your common room is in the dungeons, or perhaps you're a Ravenclaw with your common room in the towers.

EDIT: I'm playing through Persona 5 right now and I wanna add how awesome it would be if the game I proposed followed the same template for a school RPG as that, having you go to class and learn new spells, and also have their calendar based system with exams and vacations and school trips, to really give the feeling of going to a magic school, as opposed to just be farting about someplace.

I do not want a game based directly on Harry Potter, but one on that universe could be awesome IF done right. It would have to be open world for sure, something like Skyrim or Witcher 3 in a Hogwarts setting as well the ability to travel to other places in the HP world. Has the potential to be one of the best games ever made if handled correctly, something EA was never smart enough to do...

Yeah I sort of agree.

My one big reservation would be gameplay and combat. How would it be done? I felt it was the worst part of the books and movies because it usually devolved into hurling pewpewpew lasers back and forth. I really don't want this to end up as a cover-based shooter. Maybe a puzzle game would actually be better. Having to solve a variety of different problems combining all the spells in your arsenal.

Wouldn't it make more sense that it would be based on that fantastical creatures movie?
That is recent after all.
And running around defeating and capturing creatures would fit in better with that movie.

I always thought the GBC / GBA harry potter games were more fun than the console/pc versions. They were very RPG. Maybe something like those? It that version when walking around you would randomly have enemy battles which were turn based, think old school final fantasy. A system like that could work even in an open world game, allowing for something like a party system to happen. Possibly but let's hope not, movie tie in's are always low budget and suck... this is why we have never had a good harry potter game. The worst thing they could do is a movie tie in.

why is the OP low rated?

WTF, did the Christian Coalition take over in here?

I for one LOVE the idea. Maybe do a KOTOR thing with a different timeline and different characters.

The thing is that the "sequels" that movie is getting won't feature much beasts at all and would likely have a whole different protagonist, or even multiple protagonists, with the protagonist from the first relegated to supporting role or cameo. The game is likely starting pre-production now, who knows what the movies will be doing exactly when it comes out. Probably in the middle of Dumbledore fighting wizard Hitler. It'd be hard to coordinate these two very different projects to match exactly so long in advance. With Hogwarts I guess they could set it in any time period and not affect much of the world at large or have it impact canon, plus it'd let us create our character.

It could conceivably take place anywhere in the wizarding world, it's just that Hogwarts is the largest area with the most to draw from in the source material, but there's nothing stopping them from creating things from scratch of course. They are trying to stop me from reaching 1000 rep and fulfilling the dark prophecy.

Surprised no one's interested in a RPG based on the Harry Potter world. Then again, there was some donwvoting shenanigans going on so maybe people didn't see the thread at all. I'll bump it just once to see if there's any interest.

Worst case scenario people will have another post to downvote to take out their frustrations on XD.

I am crazy interested.

Then again, I play and enjoy a lot of crap. :P

There is shit load of British thing and not just Potter world.
So may be it's a "Gentlemen's Tea Simulator"

Who owns the rights to James Bond games, is it still EA?

I would love another golden eye game or classic EA jamesbond game. Those ones that came out on the ps2 and gamecube was AMAZING back then.

Sure, but this is going to be a RPG based on an existing Warner Bros. franchise, that at very least narrows the possibilities somewhat.


No one, as far as I can see. Activision had the license for several years after EA, but they decided to move away from licensed games and let go of the license in 2013. EA themselves probably aren't interested in any license that isn't Star Wars. Since then there was a lone Android/iOS game in 2015 by a company called Glu Mobile, but that's all.

EA and Bond.

Each bullet will be DLC. :D

I really thought the whole "Harry Potter" thing would be dead by now. It's really not a franchise worth re-animating.