Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix

Storyline

The game stays very close to the storyline of the sixth film and book, so there's little we can say really without giving away plot detail across all three medium, but we’ll try and give a spoiler-free overview anyway.

The overall plot is you, as Harry Potter, have to recruit an army of wizards nicknamed Dumbledore’s Army to overthrow an evil teacher named Mrs. Umbridge and prepare to take on the evil Lord Voldermort and his Death Eaters directly.

It’s a classic tale of good versus evil, where undoubtedly, good shall prevail in true Disney-movie fashion.

To assemble Dumbledore’s Army you have to perform various tasks for each of the recruits. These range from sneaking around under Harry’s invisible cloak, which looks distinctively like a greasy smudge on your screen, to burning down some trees that had grown horrendously out of control.


On the whole, the tasks are average game-fare and while some are so mind-numbing that a full-frontal lobotomy is needed to gain any enjoyment, there are others which are undeniably tense and exciting. However, if you do ever find the puzzles too difficult to complete or you are completely flummoxed by the process of using a wand to move a table, then don’t despair! Harry can always ask someone for help.


The ability to ask Ron and Hermione if you’re stuck must not be overlooked and, combined with a hints and tips section, it’s impossible to stay stuck for long.

Overall the storyline wasn’t horrific like some of the gameplay elements and it had some moments of pure joy; however, those other moments sent me spiralling into a state of depression and with some of the more simplistically tedious puzzles removed, I couldn’t help but feel it would have improved the game enormously.