In 2017, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment started a new publishing label to oversee the development of games set in the Harry Potter universe. To date, that label has mainly produced mobile games to varying degrees of success, and its next project has been revealed to be yet another mobile game. In collaboration with Zynga, the company perhaps best known for FarmVille, Portkey Games has announced Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells for iOS and Android mobile devices.
Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is a match-three game not unlike Bejeweled or Candy Crush Saga, with players matching same-colored gems to progress. As players complete puzzles, they will get to visit a variety of locations from the Wizarding World, including Diagon Alley, Hogwarts, and more, alongside fan favorite characters Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger.
Similarly to Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery and Wizards Unite, players will be able to utilize magic in Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells. How exactly spells will work in the game remains to be seen, but they will let players “levitate and dispel objects” that are blocking their progress. Players will be able to upgrade their spells by using points and taking part in spell upgrade events featuring various Hogwarts professors. There will also be Harry Potter-themed power-ups that players will be able to collect while completing puzzles as well.
Of course, the Hogwarts Houses will also play a role in Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells. Evidently, players will be able to join one of the four Houses - Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin - and start a “Club” with their friends. There will be some exclusive Club events in Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells, but more specific details on those are unavailable at the time of this writing.
Something else that’s not clear about Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is the game’s release date. The trailer on YouTube is described as its “launch trailer,” but no release date has actually been announced by Zynga. The trailer does say that the game is “coming soon,” though, so perhaps fans won’t have to wait too much longer to try it out.
In the meantime, there should be even more new Harry Potter games to look forward to on the horizon, and at least one that is substantially larger than scope than the mobile games that have been released so far. A full-blown Harry Potter RPG was leaked awhile ago, and rumors point to it being announced in just a matter of months. Whether or not that happens is up in the air, but Harry Potter fans should definitely keep an eye out.
Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is in development for iOS and Android mobile devices.
