And so it has come down to this. Years after the start of the franchise way back when we are nearly done with the whole thing. At the end of June the next to the next to the last game releases, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince… yeah, I’m pretty sure Deathly Hallows will (like it’s movie counterpart) be split into two games… hopefully they picked up some lessons from the PS2 release of the original (dot)hack Quadrilogy when making these games (so you can pick up gameplay wise where you left off with the first half by using your cleared save data from the first game in the second game… probably not, but that’d be nice all the same).

Out on all systems and mobile items (which I never play games on anyway so I’m not covering that… can’t…) Half-Blood Prince promises the following things…

1 - According to Wikipedia it promises “The exploration of Hogwarts” which I take means there’s going to be free roaming in this game (ala Order).

2 - Also Wikipedia says there’ll be “casting spells on objects around the school“ (again like Order, though I wonder if you‘ll get to snipe spells at Slytherin like Order).

3 - There’s a promised multiplayer “games”… that should be interesting though I am beginning to think predictable if Order is any indication.

4 - The return of your edumachashun with you going to classes. Whee. Classes. Will I be getting a Sorcerer’s Stone/Chamber of Secrets or a Prisoner of Azkaban kind of education? (They’re vastly different in teaching styles).

5 - Observe the passage of time, though I don’t know if this’ll be like Prisoner of Azkaban or mean that there’ll be a game clock you have to observe (in order to get to certain classes you have to be somewhere at such and such a time or miss class).

6 - Quidditch… oh, joy. Pardon me while I have bad flashbacks of previous

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Quidditch levels in the first two games… eww… OK, I’m all done.

7 - Wizard Duels. Oh, that’s back again (first time it appeared if memory serves was Chamber of Secrets)… odd, all the images I pulled for this piece are all focused on Wizard Duels… kinda sad really if you think about it.

8 - Potion making… oh, no, not Potions again! I (like a majority of those not in Slytherin) suck at potion making! Dang… I hope the new version of Potion Making is more user friendly than previous attempts at it.

9 - As you probably guessed the Wiimote plays a big role in the Wii version like it did with Order of the Phoenix. That includes brewing potions, wizard duels (wrist strain!) and Quidditch (double wrist strain!)… though since this is a game held over from last year it doesn’t (of course) feature a brand new twist known as WiiMotionPlus technology (which premieres in June… wow, I guess I should write a piece on that the minute I play my first WiiMotionPlus game… hope it’s not more stressful than the stuff I already do with this here Wiimote).

10 - The Nintendo DS version has original mini game content like Gobstones and Exploding Snaps… phew? Also it uses the stylus (ala Order of the Phoenix) for potion mixing, wizard duels and quidditch… wait, didn’t Order for DS feature a first person viewpoint for casting? I wonder if this game will have that as well.

11 - The PS3 version (all these images are next gen images, XBox360 to be precise) uses the Dualshock 3 vibration… so?

12 - Yes, there is going to be a PS2 version… take that last gen tech! The PS2 is still alive and kicking!! Hah!! Otherwise according to Wikipedia the PS2, PC and XBox360 versions will “utilize the same functions as with the previous game”… so it’s more of the same. Got you.

13 - For you spell

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mongers here’s a list of spells from Wikipedia that you’ll have in Half Blood Prince… I forget what does what so only all you really good memory sorts (or any who are now replaying Order of the Phoenix in anticipation of the new game) will remember.

For Attacks Spells you have Petrificus Totalus, Stupefy (yet your still smarter than a FOX NEWS reporter when hit by this spell) and Levicorpus… does that have anything to do with levitating the undead? Yes? No?

On the Defensive Spells side (Defensive Spells? I don’t need no stinkin’ Defensive Spells… no, really, I’m more the run and gun type) we have Expelliarmus and Protego.

On the Charm Offensive side (be charming) we have Glacius… an ice spell… Wingardium Leviosa… make things float… and Lumos… what’s so charming about these spells! Where’s the make Ginny make out with you spell or get Ron and Hermione to kiss early spell… what? Not that kind of charm…? Boring.

14 - As always the game follows the movie which kinda sorta maybe follows the book version as we roll into Game Six. Harry’s not supposed to be having much fun this year (except the game at least will not be so demanding on you as it was Harry in the book version) as Dumbledore prepares you for that big old final battle Showdown at the Hokay Corral type confrontation you’re going to be having with that varmint Voldemort. Voldemort, for his part, is not sitting on his rear end finding new ways to harass you as he has gone on an offensive against both the Human (Muggle) and Wizard world utilizing the Dementors as his own personal Hench thugs (wonder if this means you’ll have to fight a few in this game).

It seems the means to knock Voldemort of his reign of terror trip is to find the key to unlock Voldemort’s defenses… and to do that, if I remember my trailers… you have to unlock Voldemort’s past in order to destroy his future (ain’t that always the case!)

To this end Dumbledore brings in his old friend and colleague “the well-connected and unsuspecting bon vivant Professor Horace Slughorn“… what the hell is a “bon vivant“… is it tasty? Does it taste more like chocolate or puppet master mind control? Anyway he might hold big info on stopping Voldemort… you just have to pry it out of his skull… try a crowbar.

15 - And the last big cherry on top of this version? YES! Somebody is making his return to this game, mainly one of trio of main stars (Rupert Grint) returns as Ron Weasley! Great googly moogly, man! You have returned! SPLENDID… of course that says little of Daniel Radcliffe and Miss “I Need To Expand My Horizons” Emma Watson who have, once again, shirked off the voice acting duties for the SIXTH TIME!! (That means no bitching and whining from you this year about quitting the franchise again, Emma, since you can’t seem to take the couple of hours to dub your own character in the video game version!) No, really. Come on, you two, must Rupert drive you to the voice acting sessions (locked up in the trunk of the car)?!?

Other voices from the movie include Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), and on the cute cuddly oh wowza side (because they showed up for voice acting duties unlike Miss Watson so I think they‘re cool) we have Evanna Lynch as Luna Lovegood and Bonnie Wright as Ginny Weasley!

SEE?!? THEY MADE THE TIME TO BE IN GAME!! What’s your excuses, Harry and Hermione!! WHAT!! (Drag thy arses down at least for the endgame, Deathly Hallows, you two, and stop blowing off your service to the fan base!)

Expect a full review during the summer (nice to see the Summer will have some bright spots of review to look forward to this year.)