Hogwarts Legacy has been around for a while, but it wasn’t until this week that Hogwarts Legacy: The Official Game Guide was also released. I have loved the magical world of Avalanche Software and have written dozens of guides to it. In fact, I’m flattered to say that millions of you have used my guides and spent more than seven million minutes reading them so far.
As is my practice as a game publisher, I bought the official guide for the game to see if there are any tricks, secrets, or tips that I and the player base haven’t figured out yet. However, I was not prepared for the lack of this particular game guide. This is especially frustrating, as Hogwarts Legacy’s complex puzzles and quests are part of what makes this one of the best PC and Xbox games out there.
I’d be a little more forgiving (though still disappointed) if it was a third-party creation, but here’s the official guide, and as such, it should have all the information people need.
A game guide that doesn’t always guide
Hogwarts Legacy: The Official Game Guide is an incredibly small and slim pocketbook for what you’d expect from an open-world AAA game. It turns out that it manages to be so small because it is missing a lot of useful information. The book is divided into four different parts (much like the game), with chapter headings addressing various main and side quests. Near the end of the book, he provides less than half a page of information about the final boss fight (which should definitely have more detail) and then ends up in a reference library.
While the pages are filled with beautiful screenshots and drawings, there is comparatively little text. This official game guide often serves as more of an illustrated book or booklet that feels like it’s meant to entice people into playing Hogwarts Legacy rather than providing helpful details for players who are in fact playing
Other times, he provides helpful tutorials, but then doesn’t describe things clearly, or skips steps and encourages players to figure things out for themselves. The book tends to get vaguer when it tackles puzzles. I don’t even know how often I read trivial notions that say something like “think smart to succeed”, instead of explaining solutions. Also, many of the images were selected for their aesthetics, but don’t really show the useful details that players need.
Seriously, what good is an official game guide if it doesn’t walk players through a game?
What good is an official game guide if it doesn’t guide players through a game?
Also, certain side quests and puzzles are only lightly mentioned or left out of the official game guide entirely. For example, there are only three small paragraphs about the 16 Daedalian keys. The guide tells you where to find the first key, but it doesn’t say where the remaining 15 keys are hidden inside the maze-like castle. Instead, it simply says, “catch ’em all for a prize,” and doesn’t even bother to mention or show off the cool house-specific robes players can unlock by doing so.
Similarly, the book doesn’t tell you where to find the Demiguise statues to unlock the Alohomora levels and doesn’t even mention Hogwarts’ prominent puzzle doors, which have been confusing for many players.
There are times when the book starts to be useful, but then leaves critical information out. For example, the Herbology Class section has a quick guide on where to find recipe resources, but some ingredients are missing from this page, such as Fluxweed Stem and Shrivelfig Fruit. The facing page explains that you’ll want to “buy Beatrice Green Seeds at Dogweed & Deathcap,” but fails to mention the crucial detail that you’ll find this shop in Hogsmeade Village. On top of that, there’s absolutely no mention of The Magic Neep, another major shop for acquiring magical plants.
To be fair, the official guide handles the quests a bit better. For example, explaining where to find the one-eyed witch statue for the “Sweet Dissension” quest, which many players have had a hard time locating. But overall, the detailed information the book provides is confusing without explaining all the details or skipping steps. If you were expecting a Hogwarts Legacy walkthrough or a book that could give you detailed assistance in solving puzzles, then this official guide will be disappointing.
As I mentioned briefly before, the biggest redeeming quality of the official guide is that it’s packed with interesting images. Some are screenshots, while others are drawings that weren’t in the Hogwarts Legacy base game (as far as I saw). But then why would you buy this official in-game guide to the art when The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy hardcover book is absolutely stunning and there for you to buy? Now, that’s a worthwhile book, as it’s big and full of concept art and explanations for design choices that many Harry Potter fans will find interesting.
The art book is really impressive, but the official guide is not worth the money.
I love the enchanting magical world adventure that Avalanche Software created. There are so many little secrets, Easter eggs, and riddles to discover during a year at wizarding school. However, it is not always easy to solve these quests and puzzles. That’s why I set out to quickly identify the difficult parts of the game and write Hogwarts Legacy guides, so I can help those who need them.
If you’re considering buying Hogwarts Legacy: The Official Game Guide, I don’t recommend it, unless you’re a collector. Doesn’t provide answers to many puzzles and can be lazy with certain quest walkthroughs. Fortunately, there are plenty of in-depth Hogwarts Legacy guides online to help you on your magical journey, like the ones found here on Windows Central.
If you’re interested in Hogwarts Legacy: The Official Game Guide for the artwork, I suggest you consider purchasing The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy instead. This is a hardcover book with large pages that help showcase the game’s digital paintings and concept art. Plus, it’s fun to read about the specific details that the artists incorporated into their designs.
