Transfiguring Adoption’s Overview:

If you’ve never tried one of the LEGO video games- you’re missing out. They have versions now for pretty much any popular franchise from Star Wars, to Marvel, to Ninjago to, of course, Harry Potter! In addition to re-telling these familiar stories in a hilarious fashion, the game controls are incredibly easy to pick up, even for a young child or non-gamer. The game also provides many opportunities for cooperative play and could be a fun one for you as parents to jump in on! The best part of this feature? Selecting 1-player or 2-player doesn’t lock you into that mode for the entire game. The 2^nd player can jump in or out as they please (when this happens player 1 just takes over control of all the LEGO characters in play at the time). This means that if a kiddo has started playing the game alone and you want to join them for a level or two, you can, without forcing them to start over.

Technically LEGO Harry Potter is made up of two different games, broken up into Years 1-4 and Years 5-7. However, as it’s been re-released for new consoles like The Switch and PlayStation 4, they’re bundled together as The LEGO Harry Potter Collection, containing both games. Because the games are so similar in gameplay and structure, this review covers both of them together. The game is rated 10+ but given the ease of play and limited violence (they’re cartoon LEGO bricks, the worst that can happen is they break and are put back together) I’d say it’s probably okay for a slightly younger crowd- especially if they’ve already read/watched Harry Potter, provided they’re old enough to work a controller and utilize basic problem-solving skills. That said, however, I would say that the gameplay gets harder and storyline slightly darker as the years progress so 1-4 might be more appropriate for younger children.

While not required, at least some knowledge of the basic story of Harry Potter would be ideal before playing the game. They do provide some story recap scenes, but these are just brief clips of the highlights reenacted by the LEGO characters in mime. As a lifelong fan of Harry Potter personally, I love the way this game has hidden details and…

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About the Author: Jenn Ehlers

Jenn is a central Virginia native who received her BA in Psychology from the University of Virginia in 2012. Since then she has worked for a local mental health agency and the Department of Social Services in various capacities and has been involved in her community’s efforts to create a Trauma Informed Network. Currently Jenn works in vocational rehab and mentors youth in foster care. When she isn’t working, Jenn enjoys writing stories, anything and everything Harry Potter, and spending time with her niece and nephew.

**Transfiguring Adoption is a nonprofit organization seeking to nurture growth in foster and adoptive families by giving a HOOT about their families. Transfiguring Adoption does not intend for its reviewers nor its review to be professional, medical or legal advice. These reviews and discussion guides are intended to help parents to better be able to connect and understand their children who come from traumatic backgrounds.