Innovative, imaginative and thoroughly engaging, Book Of Spells will allow the pre-teen would-be wizard or witch to really feel like they’re part of the Potter-verse.
Wonderbook: Book Of Spells is like nothing you have ever played before. Utilising Sony’s PlayStation Move technology, combined with the latest developments in augmented reality, the game puts you at the heart of the action, right in the centre of both the screen and the Harry Potter universe, as you bid to learn a whole heap of spells, some of which will be extremely familiar to fans of JK Rowling’s boy wizard.
There’s even some new writing from Ms Rowling, created specially for the game, which is the first project from the partnership between Sony and Pottermore, Rowling’s on-line Potter-world.
The basic premise of Book Of Spells involves a camera, a book and a PS Move controller, but then the magic happens, as the PS camera turns the two-tone book in your lap into a full-coloured tome, none other than Miranda Goshawk’s ‘Book Of Spells’ from the restricted section of the Hogwarts library. The book literally comes to life, with pop-up stories, glowing instructions and even notes in the margins from a previous reader. You access all of these sections with your PS Move controller, which has been transformed into a wonderful wizard’s or witch’s wand (with three quality magical options to choose from).
The aim of the game is to learn how to cast a series of ever-more complicated spells, which involves an incantation (say ‘Wingardium Leviosa’ for example) and a wand movement. You then get to test your skills in a series of mini-games set in some familiar Hogwarts environments like the herbology lab and the library, before you can move on to the next chapter. There are ten chapters in all, each teaching you four different spells.
The game looks beautiful, with faithfully recreated characters and sections from the world of Harry Potter, as well as delightfully animated mini-stories explaining the origins of each spell. The sound is superb, from the softly spoken Scottish narrator to the various effects as you cast your incantations. But it's the skilful and seamless transition that turns your living room into Hogwarts and sees you become the latest magical trainee that really makes this game come alive.
Book Of Spells will be something of a dream come true for younger players (I’m reliably informed that under-12's are their target market), although even this 30-something reviewer had some problems when a greenhouse of plants tried to attack our spell-book.
Innovative, imaginative and thoroughly engaging, Book Of Spells will allow the pre-teen would-be wizard or witch in your life to really feel like they’re part of the Potter-verse.
Platform: PS3
Publisher: SCEE
Cert: 7
Score: 4/5
John Walshe
