There's a wizard in this game... but I forget his name. I took some screenshots luckily, so hopefully we'll remember his name...

Was it...



No, thats not the right wizard... that's Crabbe... and Goyle... and a cat. Let's try again.



Somehow "Bartholomew Mashingspoon and the Chamber of Secrets" doesn't sound like a good book.



There we are. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. The game is based closely on the book of the same name (unsurprisingly) with some extra here and there, and a lot taken out (obviously) for very good reasons.

Graphics - 8

I'm rating it pretty high, simply because of a few scenes. While the normal gameplay graphics are nothing to boast about, they aren't horrible. It looks like a cookie cutter GBC RPG with Harry Potter as the main character. Overall, there's not much you can really ask for. But the special cutscenes like the ones below were pretty good by Game Boy standards.



Early game shot



Battle with Aragog



CRASHING INTO A TREE NBD



Final boss defeated

In general, the map design is a little mediocre, and the sprites aren't of the best quality (even on a GBC) but in general, there's nothing ugly about them, and the scenes only make the whole look more appealing.

Sound - 7

I'm probably a little biased, because I don't really enjoy most video game music. The music in this game wore on my nerves after a while. Especially given I'm a power leveler. I love getting to high levels and that results in me having to listen to the same battle track over and over and over. In general the sound can get annoying, but it stays true to the series (sounds similar to the music in the movies... but obviously toned down. It's a GBC... not a PS3)

Addictiveness - 4

Again, I may be biased. When I was a kid, I owned this game, and I used to play this game all the time. When I was younger, I beat the game like 7 times over, and got EVERYTHING in the game. I was that into it. I was pretty addicted back then. This time through though... I found myself wanting nothing more than to finish the game as quickly as possible. After I got to a certain level, I ran away from non boss enemies, and tried to finish the game as quickly as possible.

Depth - 8

There is a fair amount to do, not a ton, but more than the average game. Below is a list of ALL the things you can do that are not part of the main game.

1. Collect all the Witches and Wizards cards.

I forget how many of them there are, but collecting all the cards actually gives you something believe it or not. For completing a collection (there are around 10 or 11 collections of 10ish cards each) you go to the Trading Card room (on the 5th floor of Hogwarts, next to the staircase to the 6th floor.) and get to open one of the locked chests in the back. The rewards are varied, and by the time you get them, you will be too strong to use them. However, there are some fun things to be had. I'll leave it to you to find them

2. Beat the Dueling Club

You don't NEED to do this, but I highly recommend it. It's the BEST form of EXP grinding in the game.



Pictured above is the entire dueling club. Clockwise from the left most duelist, you have the 1st year, 2nd year, 3rd year, 4th year, 5th year, 6th year, and 7th year. The 1st is the weakest, and the 7th is the strongest. You can only fight the 2nd after you beat the 1st, the 3rd after you beat the 2nd, and so on. The stronger the enemy the more exp you get. (25 for the 1st, and 350(?) for the 7th. When you unlock the Dueling Club, you should be strong enough to defeat the 3rd or 4th year student depending on how much you train. Beat the strongest opponent you can beat over and over to level up. Once you hit a high enough level, beat the next person. Repeat till you beat the last one. Once you beat him, you will be strong enough to beat the final boss in the game. No joke.

3. Mini-Games

This is the bulk of the depth, and for good reason.

Here are a few



This is gnome tossing. Basically, you press a and b as fast as you can simutaneously, until it's as fast as you can get it. Then you press and hold the up button until it gets to an angle you like. Then you let go of up and let the gnome fly. It's one of my favorites, as I've hit high levels of throwing easily. It's just satisfying to throw gnomes upwards of 1000 feet/yards/meters



This is gnome picking... which isn't as fun. You use the control pad to go to a spot with gnomes... then you press a to pluck them. Whoever plucks the most wins. Pretty simple...



Let's end the mini games on a positive note. This is Headless Bowling a really fun bowling mini game. I played this the most when I was a kid. I once bowled a perfect game of headless bowling, and while it's easy, it can be entertaining at the same time.

There are 9 minigames I think? You get them in various ways, generally through the story, however, there are some you earn in other ways. Look everywhere to get them!

4. The trading mini game

This is the last good one. If you don't use a guide it MIGHT take you some time to find the person you give the item to.

You start it by going to a store in Diagon Alley (the one that sells Quidditch stuff) and you hear Ron whine about wanting a Chudley Cannons jersey (his favorite team), so you get him one (they are cheap, and there's no reason not to... he's a poor kid.), he gives you a football card that you trade to the kid who is at the card store... from there... well it's up to you.

The payoff is actually worth it as you get amazing armor. You can get it early on in the game and there is no reason not to.

Story - 9

It follows the story pretty closely. There are a few... minor plot points missing, but nothing too big. They also add a little of their own story in. Do you remember the Mandrake scene? Now do you remember Harry going into the garden to get them after they escape? Do you remember them fighting a suit of armor (boss battle) underneath Gringotts? How about the part where Harry has to go fetch a book for history of magic class?

Point is, they add a lot of filler... but it's all good. A lot of the time it's enjoyable.

Aside from this though, all the major plot points are there. If you've read the book, you know what to expect... which isn't a bad thing. I actually played this game because I wanted to see Hogwarts. haha

Here are some story related screenshots.












Difficulty - 1

This is customary. As an RPG, it is exactly like almost all of them in that you can powerlevel. When you powerlevel, you really can't be beat. Even without the power leveling, the enemies are really weak enough you can beat the game in a short amount of time. The hardest enemy in the game is purely optional, and doesn't take a ton to beat either.

Overall - 7.8

In general, this is not a bad game. It's fairly pedestrian, but that's not a bad thing either. The game does it's job, telling the story of Harry Potter, and allows the player to have some fun doing it. There isn't much left that can be said. If you like Harry Potter this is for you. If you don't... well you probably won't care, or be reading this review anyway!

To recap...

Best
1. Stays true to Harry Potter story
2. A good amount of things to do
3. Decent, easy to understand battle system.

Worst
1. Sound can be annoying
2. Too easy for experienced gamers
3. Main story is missing a few minor things

In closing, I find this last picture appropriate. I find that I ask myself this question all the time. It reminded me of my dreams when I was a kid... so young. All hopes. Dashed. I am too old now...