HARRY POTTER INTERACTIVE DVD GAME: Hogwarts Challenge

Awww.... Hufflepuff! This clunky DVD game offers more frustration than magic.

In order to review the new Harry Potter Interactive DVD Game: Hogwarts Challenge, I called upon the assistance of two Harry Potter freaks, one of whom is also an avid gamer. We made mixed drinks (don't worry, we are all adults), assembled chocolate chip cookies, and settled in on the couch.

The look of the game is attractive, and, as it is released by Warner Home Video, it also has the benefit of featuring clips from the actual Harry Potter movies. (The box art actually says that the game is based on the first three movies rather than books.) We had no problem setting it up to Easy level with three players. One to four players can play, and you choose among the four houses to represent: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. I took the HP fans' advice and did not choose Hufflepuff ("they're wimps!"), so my Ravenclaw was ready to face off against Gryffindor and Slytherin.

Almost immediately we got into trouble. We accidentally reset the whole game when we got impatient with the repeating voice-over narration introducing repeated challenges. "OK! OK! We get it!" (click click) "Oooops... what just happened?" (Wrestling ensues. More cookies are consumed.)

Some challenges were obvious, like an "I Spy" game where you try to spot multiple items in an unfolding scene, or matching the head, body, and legs of a mysterious creature that the narrator describes. But then there were other challenges that repeatedly stumped us. Make items on a table levitate, but then click your remote button before the item explodes. What? Select which moving staircase will complete the path (this seemed to only work half the time, and, as far as we could tell, was actually missing the on-screen arrow controls every other time, rendering the scene completely unplayable)—if you screw up, you plummet to your doom. Over and over. We were good at mixing colored potions, and watching a wand trace through the air, then selecting the shape of the wand's movement. But then the freakin' Quidditch Challenge had us tumbling off our broomstick over and over, landing with a hard thud in the dirt. Several of the challenges we were unable to complete even once, and the brief narrative instructions were not helpful, with no other hints in sight. This was extremely frustrating.

Part of the problem, too, is that a DVD remote control is not very sensitive to quick button-pushing. We tried several attempts at different challenges, discussing the options: "Maybe we have to hit the arrow buttons to control where the owl flies... Damn!" (wrestling ensues again) "Here, let me try. I'm going to try hitting the Enter button instead this time... Damn!"

If three tipsy adults with relatively good motor and intellect skills can't figure out how to play a game, I can't imagine that children (whom I assume is the intended audience) will do much better. We made a valiant attempt at the game for about 45 minutes, racking up seemingly random points, and trying many of the different challenges, but never made it past the first level. With no reward or satisfaction, it didn't take long for boredom and restlessness to ensue.

Games like these make me long for simple board games that don't depend on erratic electronics. I can't recommend this DVD game, as it offers more frustration than fun. But here's a novel idea... In the meantime, how about re-reading one of the books instead?