6 Hogwarts Legacy 2 improvements needed to make the sequel even better than the first
Even three years on, Hogwarts Legacy is still the most immersive method in gaming to enjoy the Harry Potter Wizarding World, but there’s plenty that the upcoming Hogwarts Legacy 2 could do to build on the first.
It’s not that Avalanche Software's ambitious 2023 RPG isn’t a good game, mind you. The problem is that, whilst still a fun and memorable magical adventure, some of Hogwarts Legacy’s systems lacked a certain level of depth, and one of the wizarding school's favourite activities was noticeably absent.
Warner Bros. confirmed plans for a second instalment during an earnings report in August 2026; that means, despite the original being the best game in the world, Hogwarts Legacy 2 has the potential to be an even better title if it chooses to add improvements like those below.
Make Hogwarts feel like an actual school
Despite spending much of Hogwarts Legacy playing as a fifth-year student, attending classes was surprisingly limited as a whole, meaning a more dedicated system could make for a more enthralling sequel.
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Sure, the first lessons for subjects involved some very pretty cutscenes and assignments where you came away with new spells for the campaign, but you didn’t have any more classes for those subjects beyond that — making it feel more like one of those taster events prospective university students go to.
The whole of Hogwarts Legacy 2 doesn’t have to be entirely dedicated to you being a good student and passing your OWL exams, but adding in some more regular classes, tests, and extra opportunity to earn or lose House points would definitely make the titular Hogwarts experience more of what you’d expect.
Give player choices actual consequences
While it was nice for Harry Potter fans to get a taste of choice-based gameplay, especially those who’ve not played too many action-adventure titles of its type, it would be nice if decisions made in Hogwarts Legacy 2 held some actual weight this time.
For instance, despite being able to learn Unforgivable Curses, including Avada Kedavra (essentially the spell version of a gun), players could frequently unleash dangerous magic without facing any substantial punishment; your fellow inhabitants in the wizarding world wouldn’t really change the way they interact with you at all.
There are some side quests with some heavier impacts, along with the campaign’s final decision, but you still finish the story and return to exploring the game normally as if nothing happened.
The concept of being a Hogwarts student is ideally all about having a wondrous experience curated to your own unique decisions and the reputation you build with your actions. Therefore, a deeper morality or reputation system, introducing different quest outcomes and even story endings, would definitely make the Hogwarts Legacy sequel feel like just that.
Introduce deeper friendships and House-specific experiences
In the same respect as the first game’s surface-level morality system, Hogwarts Legacy 2 could definitely use a more detailed relationship system, as well.
That doesn’t mean the questlines with the companions you made weren’t enjoyable; Sebastian Sallow, Natsai Onai, and Poppy Sweeting, etc; but any meaningful interactions with them ultimately came down to scripted side missions — not leaving extra opportunity for development that adds to the main storyline.
Granted, Sebastian’s side questline is how you unlock the three Unforgivable Curses, but that felt like an exception. A specific all-round relationship system would for sure enhance the ‘make friends at Hogwarts vibe’, organically opening the way to unlock even more quests and recruit additional companions, too.
One Reddit user even honed in on potential ideas to tie magical abilities to friendships outside of Sebastian, with some examples being: “What if you made friends with the faction of bullies at the school and they teach you how to levitate students?
“What if you unlock all the quests with the prefects faction and they teach you the most powerful Protego spell, or the passwords to open all secret passages?
“What if you befriend the transformation teacher and he teaches you how to turn into animals? Or if the duel club faction unlocks how to customize your patronus... Things like that, more optional for an RPG.”
Perhaps throw in some more quest variety and interactions based on your house (like how you could only visit Azkaban in Hogwarts Legacy if you’re a Hufflepuff), then the sequel would have even more replayability.
Finally introduce playable Quidditch
Perhaps the most obvious missing feature from the first game that Hogwarts Legacy 2 can correct is finally adding Quidditch, which was previously left out for a particular in-game reason, despite said game featuring broomstick flying and a fully realised pitch.
The fictional sport was conveniently cancelled by Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black, preventing students from participating.
Although Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions eventually gave fans a standalone experience, including the sport within the sequel could make Hogwarts feel much more authentic: trying out for your House team, training alongside classmates, and participating in matches throughout the school year.
Plus, whilst Quidditch Champions wasn’t an awful sports game, the visuals and flying mechanics were an absolute downgrade from Hogwarts Legacy. Perhaps now that there’s been a year’s worth of feedback for both games, the wrinkles from Champions have been ironed out to make Hogwarts Legacy 2’s Quidditch the best iteration of the sport ever.
Make exploration more rewarding and less repetitive
The original Hogwarts Legacy undoubtedly succeeded in recreating its beloved castle and Hogsmeade, but the surrounding open world sometimes struggled to be anywhere near as gripping.
The root cause, which will hopefully be addressed in Hogwarts Legacy 2, seems to be down to the first game being torn in two directions: have the player be a student and enjoy life at the castle, or explore the magical open world.
With how said world was populated for the latter, exploration definitely got repetitive the longer you explored the Scottish Highlands, with its not-so-wide scope of enemies, many Merlin Trials, and finding various-yet-samey treasures becoming stale over time.
Perhaps by making the game slightly more linear and adding more to a smaller game world — such as Hidden chambers within Hogwarts, more elaborate dungeons, and additional mysteries to uncover throughout the Forbidden Forest — Hogwarts Legacy 2 can be a classic case of quality over quantity.
Let players become an Auror instead of another student
Now that we’ve played a modern Hogwarts game showing off the student experience, Hogwarts Legacy 2 can offer up a different kind of story set in the iconic castle entirely: such as taking on the role of a witch or wizard at the next stage in their life, but could still have a reason to visit Hogwarts — like an Auror.
Aurors are essentially the Harry Potter franchise’s versions of magical cops, investigating crimes, enforcing the laws of the Wizarding World, and apprehending criminals who break them.
Whilst we would love a more in-depth school-going RPG set in Hogwarts, it would ultimately be an expanded version of a game we’ve already seen.
On the other hand, one Reddit user replying to a thread asking what features they’d like to see in Hogwarts Legacy 2, pitched this idea as a plot:
“Here's an idea for a story — There's something going on at Hogwarts, [seemingly] some dark magic, and more and more students appear to be getting corrupted and joining this dark cult.
“You're an auror who comes in as a teacher trying to solve what's happened.
“Then, you can visit different places to look for clues, etc, so you're not tied to Hogwarts (can visit the Ministry, Diagon/Nocturn Alley, etc.), and your overpowered magic abilities make more sense.”
So, whilst the entire map you’d get to explore in Hogwarts Legacy 2 would be smaller than what you could explore in the first, there would be more fun and interesting things to do — since you’d be allowed to dive into more of the Wizarding World’s key locations.
Plus, Aurors are already well-known across all manner of Harry Potter fans, so the idea of what being one involves compared to a student wouldn’t be too far of a stretch. Whichever way, it’d certainly make Hogwarts Legacy 2 the most unique Wizarding World game yet
Topics: Harry Potter, Hogwarts Legacy, Features