Using the License: Harry Potter

Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix will be released for most every platform this upcoming week. IGN's review is up early and briefly discusses the map and navigation system used by the game. Hogwarts is apparently enormous and allows for hours of free-roaming, without any loading screens. Navigating most free-roaming games requires a map, and in many a zoomed map and compass tucked into the corner of the screen. EA has taken a really cool approach to navigating Hogwarts castle by really using an element of the Harry Potter license: the marauders map. In the books, the marauders map allows the beholder to see the entire castle grounds and inhabitants therein.

In The Order of the Phoenix game, players can open up the map to see a layout of the whole castle, and then select specific places or people to travel to. After players exit the map screen a trail of footsteps will appear on the ground to lead them to their desired destination. Follow the magical footsteps and what is seemingly a confusing maze of hallways is a linear pathway to where the player needs to be. There are some cool ideas in Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix, but this is probably my favorite. The reason being is that EA really uses the book license and takes a creative and logical approach to navigating a free-roaming world.