Hogwarts Legacyis one of the most financially successful and popular breakout releases of the past few years, outselling heavy-hitters likeCall of DutyandZeldain the year of its launch. In light of this, and considering the breadth of itsHarry Pottersource material,aHogwarts Legacysequelseems all but confirmed, offering developer Avalanche Software the chance to right some of its wrongs from the first game.
What exactly these “wrongs” are depends on who’s asked, of course, but there have been a few common complaints, such as those about the game’s shallow open-world design and the bland, uninspired main character. But zooming out a bit, it’s fair to say thatHogwarts Legacy’s broader mishandling of its RPG elements serves as a mark against the entire experience, as both its narrative choices and gameplay lack real weight: the player’s actions don’t have meaningful consequences, even though it often seems like they should. This has led some to suggest a morality system, similar to those found in the likes ofMass EffectandFable, for the sequel. While there’s merit to such suggestions, there’s also a case to be made thatHogwarts Legacy 2would be better off with a different strategy.
Why a Morality System Isn’t the Right Choice for Hogwarts Legacy 2
Hogwarts Legacy 2 Could Struggle to Introduce a Nuanced Morality Binary
The concept of an in-game morality system is a complicated one, as the term is generally used to encompass all manner of different narrative and gameplay features. For example, making “evil” decisions inInfamouschanges the player-character’s appearance and unlocks different abilities, whereas making suchchoices inMass Effectjust unlocks new dialog options while having a more significant impact on the plot. This direct influence on gameplay and narrative is what makes morality systems so compelling, but they can also be needlessly restrictive, rote, and coarse, posing potential issues for a similar system inHogwarts Legacy 2.
In essence, a morality system tells a player how to think, and establishes an objective “right” and “wrong” inside the game world. This isn’t to say that a game shouldn’t make moral judgments in some cases—most people can agree that killing innocent civilians, for example, is wrong and should be punished—but morality systems nevertheless water down what could be more ethically complex dilemmas.Mass Effect’s Paragon and Renegade systemis a good example of this, offering the player red-colored Renegade dialog options and blue-colored Paragon ones, making assertions about right and wrong instead of letting the player come to those conclusions themselves. Linking tertiary features like cosmetics and special abilities to moral alignment further muddies the waters: is a player making a morally gray choice because that’s what they truly believe is the right call, or because they want a specific piece of gear or upgrade?
While traditional morality systems have a tendency to, for lack of a better term, dumb down a gameplay or narrative experience, that doesn’t mean that their core premise is faulty. On the contrary, morality systems exist to drive home a sense of consequence for the player’s actions, communicating that if they make X decision, then Y will inevitably happen. This is something thatHogwarts Legacy2’s RPG designdesperately needs.
Instead of coloring specific choices as explicitly good or bad,Hogwarts Legacy 2should let the playermake such moral classifications themselves, but there should still be consequences. For example, perhaps the player can make a choice during a side quest that is deemed unpopular by their allies, but this worsening of friendly NPC opinion wouldn’t need to be defined as a result of an evil deed; rather, the deed itself could be interpreted in a number of ways, and the impact that it has on in-game relationships would simply be a cause to the decision’s effect—not an ethical judgment passed upon the player-character. Consequence should be the focus, not objective moral judgment.
Hogwarts Legacy
WHERE TO PLAY
Hogwarts Legacy is an immersive, open-world action RPG set in the world first introduced in the Harry Potter books. For the first time, experience Hogwarts in the 1800s. Your character is a student who holds the key to an ancient secret that threatens to tear the wizarding world apart. Now you may take control of the action and be at the center of your own adventure in the wizarding world. Your legacy is what you make of it.Explore an Open WorldThe wizarding world awaits you. Freely roam Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest, and the surrounding Overland area.Be the Witch or Wizard You Want to beLearn spells, brew potions, grow plants, and tend to magical beasts along your journey. Get sorted into your house, forge relationships, and master skills to become the witch or wizard you want to be Experience a New Wizarding World AdventureExperience the wizarding world in an unexplored era to uncover a hidden truth from its past. Battle against trolls, Dark Wizards, goblins, and more as you face a dangerous villain threatening the fate of the wizarding world.
