For fans of the Harry Potter series, 2022 can't come soon enough as the release of the highly anticipated Hogwarts Legacy draws ever closer. The game sees players take control of a Hogwarts student in the 1800s, far before the events of the main Harry Potter series. Not much is currently known about what the gameplay for Hogwarts Legacy will actually be like, however, that hasn't stopped fans from speculating. Based on the limited public knowledge about the game's systems, it's clear that Legacy will have players exploring the halls and grounds of the titular castle, but fans are hoping that there's more to it than simply trying not to be late for potions class.
Recently, fans on the game's official sub-Reddit suggested that Hogwarts Legacy should take inspiration from Persona 5 and include social systems similar to those in the game. No such system has been confirmed by Avalance Software, but that hasn't stopped speculation and desire for a social bond system in the game. After all, friendship and love are at the core of the Harry Potter story, so a social system like Persona 5's wouldn't feel out of place in the upcoming fantasy RPG.
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One element from Persona 5 that seems to be a perfect fit for Hogwarts Legacy is the system that locks players out of bonding with certain confidants if their social skills aren't high enough. Characters like Makoto, Futaba, and Ann all require Joker to be proficient in skills such as charm, kindness, and knowledge to progress their relationships, both platonic and romantic. Once Joker raises his social stats high enough, he's able to meet each character where they're at and engage with them on a more personal level.
With the way that the Harry Potter series handles its personality-defining Houses, barring the player from progressing their relationships with people in opposing Houses until they can master a skill might be an engaging way to bring characters together. The Harry Potter books and films celebrate plenty of characters who all have diverse likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. By forcing players in Hogwarts Legacy to engage with those varying interests before progressing with a relationship, the game could similarly celebrate the differences in everyone just the same as the source material does.
Once a player has the proper social stats to be hanging out with members of opposing Houses, they'd be able to advance their relationships. Like in Persona 5, there should be tangible rewards for getting to know different people in different houses. Once their relationship reaches a high enough level, maybe a Slytherin could teach the player a curse that's not technically allowed on school grounds, or a Ravenclaw could use their book smarts to teach the player how to brew stronger potions. Like Persona 5's confidants, each different character might bring something new to the table, incentivizing the player to meet as many new people as possible.
Because this is simply all speculation, there's nothing that's been said by Avalance Softworks that suggests social systems like these will be included in the game, however, the Harry Potter series is a great franchise to include social links in. A system like that included in the game could help further Hogwarts Legacy's reputation as an RPG. By allowing the player to choose what sorts of friends to make, just like Harry did in the original series, the game could be allowing itself to be full of unique experiences for each individual player. At the end of the day, that seems to be the experience that Hogwarts Legacy is trying to give to its players.
Hogwarts Legacy is currently in development for the PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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