Harry vs. The Dementors in Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban for Playstation 2!

When Harry Potter goes to Hogwarts this year he doesn’t know who he is about to come face to face with. Harry, Ron and Hermione must go on many perilous adventures this year. Each student must learn new spells and potions to survive.




Controls

Now we can’t start you off on this game when you have no idea which button is which can we? Your main buttons on the controller are the x, circle, triangle, and square. Each button has a different value. X would be known as the action button, this means that with the X button you do most everything. Opening doors, unlocking chests, pushing buttons, and more.

With circle you are able to switch between characters( Ron, Harry, and Hermione). This button is quite important as well. Square and Triangle are the most important buttons of all. These buttons are your spell buttons, that you equip your newly learned spells to, your potions to, and dung bombs. You can equip these spells by pressing select and going to the inventory menu.

You equip spells by shifting the cursor ( with the joystick) over to the spell you wish to equip and pressing square or triangle to equip the spell to either button. Then press select again and press the button to which you equipped the spell to and Harry, Ron , or Hermione will do the rest.

Items in your Spell Inventory

You might have noticed that next to your spell list there might have been a small item in there. Well that my friend is where you can equip potion vials and dungbombs. Now I think I should start with dungbombs because I’m pretty sure you know what potions are. Ron is the only person who has dungbombs. In the game you can equip them to triangle or square and get ready. You have to use these items to sneak past the dreadful security trolls. By throwing them near or next to the trolls it will instantly spread a thick layer of smelly fog that astonishes the troll and makes it bend over. This is your time to run past the troll, but after about thirty seconds the dungbomb explodes so be very swift about getting past the troll.

Potions are very simple. You make potions in Prof. Snape’s class. By finding the correct ingredients before class you will make your own. There are two potions that are very important in this game that you will use later. The first is a Wiggenweld potion. This potion heals you when your health ( a large meter around your current character’s picture near the bottom of the screen) is critically low. The second is the cure to uncommon poisons potion. When your character has been bitten by a Doxy ( a small winged creature that must be confronted a lot, and is poisonous) your health bar will grow smaller and smaller by the second. You must equip the potion and press the button you equipped it to.


Usually only one character gets potions in the inventory, so (as example) if Hermione has the potions equipped on triangle and Harry is poisoned, but he doesn’t have potions for that and Hermione does, then Hermione only has to stand next to Harry and press triangle and the potion will be given to Harry.

Characters

Each character that you can play has a different quality. Such as Hermione, she is the smallest of the three ( Harry, Ron, and Hermione) and she is able to crawl under gates and into small gaps.

Being the Ron is stealth- like he is able to open secret passages in odd-looking walls, and can search book shelves for dungbombs, potions, and bertie botts every flavor beans.

Harry is able to do a number of important things. He can jump across very far distances which is a very important quality. Harry will find owl treats so that he can conduct Hedwig to get important things for him, like the marauder’s map. Harry also has the most important spell . Expecto Patronum is a peculiar spell because instead of just firing the spell at dementors like the other spells you must control the spell with the analog , and conduct it to the dementor.
Buckbeak

Buckbeak is a hippogriff a hippogriff is part bird part horse. In this game you ride this creature many times. For retrieving potion ingredients, getting an “A” in magical creatures class, and saving Sirius Black himself.

In order to ride Buckbeak you must get him to trust you. You slowly approach the creature and look down at the four on screen direction buttons. On the “x” button it will say “bow” and by pressing x you will slowly climb on Buckbeak after bowing.


I guess your saying to yourself “ well then how do I fly on Buckbeak?” Well it is a very simple operation. All you must do is get a running start by moving the analog stick and controlling Buckbeak. Then after a few seconds press and hold the circle button and Buckbeak will soar. You must remember one important detail, when flying Buckbeak the analog controls are funny. When shifting the analog down Buckbeak will fly up and when you move the analog stick up Buckbeak will fly down. To land Buckbeak you must press the x button for a second and then release. When on the ground find an open place and press x to dismount.

SPELLS

Spells are very important and each student gets a different inventory of them. Harry’s spells are basic Flipendo, an attacking spell Harry,Ron and Hermione all have it. Expelliaumis, protection, Ron, Harry and Hermione all have it, Carpe Retractum, long fire – like grappling hook Harry only, and the never forgotten Expecto Patronum, for fending off dementors.

Ron is only equipped with three spells. Flipendo, Expelliaumis, and lumous duo, a spell that provides a large ray of light, very important!

Hermione has a lot of spells. Flipendo, Expelliaumis , Glacious, a spell that freezes large bodies of water and creatures, Reparo, fixes broken bridges and staircases used quite often, and Draconiforous, a spell that changes dragon statues into real fire breathing dragons.

Spells are needed for the many puzzles you must complete in classes and adventures

What I thought of the game

I enjoyed this video game very much. It doesn’t only have adventure, but action as well and puzzles. My favorite part of the game was flying Buckbeak because you could go up above the castle and peer down and the beauty. You can fly over the lake over the hills over the mountains, and during the day you can roam the entire castle.

What I disliked about this game was I think it was too short, and it was way too easy to beat. Oh and I did not like the sneaking past prefects, it wasn’t as hard as the sneaking in the Chamber of Secrets ( if you have ever played it of course), but I don’t like getting past trolls and knights and prefects.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is rated E with fantasy violence. It is a one player game with an Eye Toy expansion. You can get it now for $19.99 because it is a Greatest Hit.