J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series quickly grew to become the best-selling children’s novels in the history of modern fiction. In addition to a massively successful film franchise, the Harry Potter series inevitably seeped into the gaming industry.
For those who can’t get enough of the magic of Hogwarts, here’s our ranked list of the best Harry Potter games of all time.
11. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
| Release Date | November 16, 2010 |
| Developer | EA Bright Light |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 3 – Xbox 360 – Nintendo Wii – Nintendo DS |
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 plays like a generic third-person shooter that strayed heavily from the tone of the previous, more superior entries in the series. Still, Harry gets access to several entertaining spells, and the game is best when it caters to important moments from the book.
Sadly, it includes excessive filler content that has no meaning and feels as though it was designed to simply extend the average playtime.
10. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
| Release Date | July 12, 2011 |
| Developer | EA Bright Light |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 3 – Xbox 360 – Nintendo Wii – Nintendo DS |
In response to the complaints of the repetitive combat and poor level design of the first game, the developers of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 improved this entry over its predecessor in several ways.
For one, the combat is far more exciting, with proper spell balancing such that players have variety in their arsenal rather than sticking to a handful of the best spells. The final battle acts as the perfect climax, easily compensating for the filler content that this title includes.
9. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
| Release Date | November 8, 2005 |
| Developer | EA UK |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 2 – Xbox – Nintendo GameCube |
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire replaced free roaming seen in previous entries with action-based levels. While this initially divided fans, the game is still appreciated for what it did manage to offer, in particular, its couch-based cooperative multiplayer.
8. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
| Release Date | June 25, 2007 |
| Developer | EA UK |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 3 – Xbox 360 – Nintendo Wii – PlayStation 2 – PlayStation Portable |
After a well-received change in direction with the Goblet of Fire, the exploration of Hogwarts present in previous games made a return with Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. It implements discovery points and sidequests to reward players who attempt to navigate the entire school.
The game also introduced a dueling system that offered greater complexity to the series’ combat.
7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
| Release Date | June 30, 2009 |
| Developer | EA Bright Light |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 3 – Xbox 360 – Nintendo Wii – PlayStation 2 – PlayStation Portable |
The dueling and exploration features introduced in the Order of the Phoenix were expanded upon in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. What’s more, the game’s use of the Marauder’s Map and numerous spells are fondly remembered.
6. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
| Release Date | November 16, 2001 |
| Developer | KnowWonder |
| Platform(s) | – PC – Mac – PlayStation 1 – Gameboy Advance – Gameboy Color |
If you’ve never gotten into the Harry Potter series of video games before, it may be best to start with the first that was ever released.
From tons of puzzles to new spells, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone feels like a marriage between J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World and The Legend of Zelda. However, beware of the cringy voice acting and avoid the console versions of the game as the PC version offers the definitive experience.
5. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
| Release Date | November 15, 2002 |
| Developer | EA UK |
| Platform(s) | – PlayStation 1 – Nintendo GameCube – PlayStation 2 – Xbox – PC |
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is the sequel to the original game set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World that took everything you loved about the original and expanded upon it in many ways.
With puzzles in every corridor of the castle to engaging in combat with Aragog the spider, you’ll have a great time with Chamber of Secrets.
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
| Release Date | May 25, 2004 |
| Developer | EA UK |
| Platform(s) | – Nintendo GameCube – PlayStation 2 – Xbox – PC |
Unlike the preceding games based on the movies, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban allows players to control Harry, Ron, and Hermione. This opens the window for even more puzzle-solving, as the different characters have their own traits and spells.
In comparison to all other Harry Potter movie games, the Prisoner of Azkaban has the most expansive map for Hogwarts. There are more collectibles, you get to ride Buckbeak, and the main missions are incredibly fun.
3. Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup
| Release Date | October 28, 2003 |
| Developer | EA UK |
| Platform(s) | – Nintendo GameCube – PlayStation 2 – Xbox – PC |
If you’re looking for the best way to play Quidditch without getting people together in a LARP tournament IRL, you need not look further than Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup. Despite releasing way back in 2003, the game still holds up as a fantastic wizard sporting experience.
The game of Quidditch, pitting witches and wizards on brooms as they attempt to score in one of three hoops with a team complete with chasers, beaters, keepers, and seekers, translates masterfully into video game form.
Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup has incredibly intuitive controls and a splendid art style that looks great even to this day. It even includes commentary for specific matches and a story mode that allows you to pick your own house to champion for the local tournament modes as well as various nations for the World Cup.
It gets more challenging as you progress and unlock more cards, but it’s best played with friends.
2. LEGO Harry Potter Collection (Years 1-4 / 5-7)
| Release Date | October 18, 2016 |
| Developer | Traveler’s Tales |
| Platform(s) | – Nintendo Switch – PlayStation 4 – Xbox One |
What used to be separated into two different games is now combined in a complete package with the LEGO Harry Potter Collection. Like all other LEGO games, there are tons of collectibles, exciting missions, and bright shiny studs.
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It faithfully recreates key scenes from all seven years of Harry’s time as a student at Hogwarts, allowing you the ability to unlock and play as nearly every single character from the iconic franchise, with access to more spells than any other game in the series to date. You can also go into Free Roam to explore every nook and cranny of Hogwarts Castle and Diagon Alley.
We recommend the Nintendo Switch version of the LEGO Harry Potter Collection as it’s the easiest way to enjoy local cooperative multiplayer with friends or family. However, both Years 1-4 and Years 5-7 can be purchased separately on Steam.
1. Hogwarts Legacy
| Release Date | February 10, 2023 |
| Developer | Avalanche Software |
| Platform(s) | – PC – PlayStation 5 – Xbox Series X/S – PlayStation 4 (April 4, 2023) – Xbox One (April 4, 2023) – Nintendo Switch (November 14 2023) |
No other game set in J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World has been built from the ground up to deliver the ultimate Harry Potter experience quite like Hogwarts Legacy.
In true AAA fashion, the game offers a fully open-world action RPG with the ability to be sorted into your own house, customize your character from the ground up, pick your own wand, fly your own broom, brew potions, grow herbs, design a living space in the Room of Requirement, and navigate every inch of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The combat system focuses on spellcasting that evolves as your character learns more abilities. In addition to being able to cast nearly every magic incantation in the Harry Potter franchise, including all three Unforgivable curses, players can further customize the combat with up to 16 spell slots and a dedicated talent system to improve their favorite abilities.
Set in the 1890s, the game tells a completely original story long before the days of Harry and Voldemort. Moreover, all dialogue is fully voiced with fantastic original characters that fit well into the larger universe.
After laying the groundwork for the perfect foundation, topping Steam sales charts, and becoming one of the most streamed single-player titles in the history of Twitch, the game still fails to offer Quidditch and heavily-requested multiplayer features. What’s more, there has yet to be any confirmation from developer Avalanche Software of DLC for this incredible experience.