Harry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixElectronic Arts (Multi-Platform)
Finally! The folks over at Electronic Arts have apparently done the impossible: Created a quality movie-inspired videogame. With countless amounts of gaming garbage being dumped onto every major system from companies getting a quick buck for a franchise game it's very refreshing to see one that not only works well within its framework, but also expands on the film's original idea. Hurrah! What a concept!
The game takes place with Potter fronting the newly-conceived "Dumbledore's Army," which Potter himself started when the staff at Hogwarts casted aside his story of Voldemort returning. (Still taking precautions, the school appoints a new teacher of Defense Against the Dark Arts.) Most of the game is spent recruiting for Potter's upstart army by means of duels, missions, minigames like chess or just plain old talking. In this aspect, the game is similar to the cult-favorite Suikoden, where building your battalion is as fun as it is necessary.
I'll admit that out of every franchise-series-based-upon-a-movie (phew) the Harry Potter titles have always been the best of the bunch - but that's not to say that they didn't have room for improvement. Now, with Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Hogwarts has become the stunning locale seen in the films, with an atmosphere rivaling the movies themselves.
