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Preview  Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets
- By Lander Clinton


EA is excersizing its Harry Potter license with its latest game, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, based off the second book and the forthcoming movie.

The game is visually impressive and shows off GameCube's capabilities well. The game still has months before release and is already one of the prettier third party titles. The game uses excellent lighting effects, reflections, and flowing cloth.

The game follows the events of the book on which it's based, such as a duel with an enchanted washing machine (I can only assume that's from the book since I never read it. Look, I never learned to read, okay? It's not nice to make someone cry...).

The opening levels serve as a tutorial to familiarize the player with the controls, which are basically the same as the N64 Zelda games'. The game has no difficulty setting, but rather gets naturally harder as the game progresses. I hear the last half of the book is Harry just relaxing on a beach, so it seems EA took some creative license...

David Lee, one of the makers of the game, said it is being designed for older players and younger players, as well as people who aren't crazy for Harry and those disgusting jelly beans (probably the name of the next book).

If a task is too difficult for a younger player, they can leave Harry to stand around for a while until he grows impatient. Then he will offer clues of what he should do next. "It's important to us that Harry's... a living, breathing person," said Lee, who explained how Harry will react to his environment.

If you try to make Harry run off a steep cliff, he'll slow down and try to save himself before reaching the edge. If he enters a scary room, he'll act afraid.

Harry Potter for GameCube will be able to link to a GBA version to find extra levels in both games. If you don't have the GBA version, you can still connect to a blank cart and download some portable puzzle games from the GameCube game. "GameCube is a really important platform for us," said Lee, about supporting Nintendo's peripherals.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is expected to be released on Nov. 15, the same day as the movie. If you want to know what the big secrets of the chamber are, think along the lines of "The Crying Game."

- 5.26.2002