Following its recent release on February 10,Hogwarts Legacyhas been well received by fans, with the ambition and scale of the title offering a deep gaming experience within the famous IP. As players embody the role of a powerful fifth-year student, they are given the freedom to hone specific skills and different elements of magical culture, with spells of course being a core aspect of this.
With this in mind, many fans were pleasantly surprised to learn thatHogwarts Legacyincludes the three unforgivable curses, which were made famous within the mainline narrative of theHarry Potterfranchise. Of these three curses, it can be said that Avada Kedavra is the most famous, with the spell having a very tangible link to one ofHarry Potter’s main story elements - something that many fans may be unaware of.
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Avada Kedarva in Hogwarts Legacy
Of the three unforgivable curses, it can be said that Avada Kedavra is the most famous due to the severity of the spell, with it instantly killing any living creature that it is cast upon. Due to the morbid finality of the curse, it is seen as one of the darkest examples of theHarry Potterfranchise’s more sinister use of magic. Given the young age of the player character and the more relaxed tone thatHarry Pottergames usually take, many assumed that the spell would not appear withinLegacy, but they were ultimately proven wrong.
Players can learn Avada Kedavra inHogwarts Legacythrough theSlytherin student Sebastian Sallow, with the quest for this being late on into the game due to how powerful the spell is. Turning magic into a truly deadly and malicious affair, it is clear to see why Avada Kedavra is one of the most popular and well-known spells within theHarry Pottercommunity, although some fans may not know of its direct links to important elements of the core narrative of the IP.
Avada Kedavra’s Links to Harry Potter
It is no secret that, likeHogwarts Legacy, the events of the mainlineHarry Potterstory often possess huge stakes, ultimately necessitating the use of intense force and actions beyond the whimsical fun that the franchise otherwise portrays. Because of this, theuse of dark magic and lethal spellsare commonplace throughout the climax of the IP’s mainline narrative, with Avada Kedavra being a staple of this.
A huge element of Harry Potter’s character is that his parents were bothmurdered by Lord Voldemortwhen he was a young child, leaving the IP’s main character cut off from the wizarding world until he came of age to attend Hogwarts School. Perhaps predictably, Voldemort used Avada Kedavra to kill both James and Lily Potter, and used this same spell in an attempt to kill the infant Harry.
The curse ultimately failed due to the sacrificial protection cast by Harry’s dying mother, giving the character his famous title of “the boy who lived.” The only lasting physical remnant of this attempt on Harry’s life came with his famous forehead scar, which is often thought to take the shape of a lightning bolt. In actuality, the shape of Harry Potter’s scar is a representation of the movement that must be performed to cast Avada Kedavra, with the failed spell taking a permanent form on Harry’s body. Of course, this same movement is thenused inHogwarts Legacywhenever the player casts Avada Kedavra, giving a small but interesting nod to some of the most defining events and character traits of the franchise’s core story.
Hogwarts Legacyis available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, with PS4 and Xbox One versions launching May 5 and a Switch port releasing July 25.
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