The unannounced Hogwarts RPG is still on track for 2021, say insiders
Can we get a Revelio charm?
Ever since a pretty convincing video of apparent development footage leaked two years ago, there's been plenty of speculation about a rumored Harry Potter RPG in development by Avalanche Software. Warner Bros. still haven't officially announced or acknowledged the game's existence, but a new report by Bloomberg based on information from two people working on it claims that it "remains on track for next year."
"The long-rumored project is very real," says Bloomberg's report. Earlier in the year, rumors suggested that Warner Bros. would be hosting their first E3 press conference to announce the Harry Potter RPG, along with a new Batman game. Of course, E3 2020 got cancelled, leaving the Bros. without a stage.
"The new plan is to unveil the Batman game in August at a digital event called DC FanDome, and the Harry Potter game will be revealed later," say Bloomberg.
I had originally speculated that we might see Hogwarts at some point during the Summer Game Fest given Warner Bros. logo on the event page, but a reveal after August will push the announcement past the bounds of SGF.
Regardless of the reveal time, Bloomberg's sources say that the game is still planned for 2021. Take with salt of course, as we don't know how high up in Avalanche's decision-making structure these sources are.
Plans for the Hogwarts RPG announcement have been partially overshadowed by Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling's latest transphobic comments on Twitter. Anxiety within the studio as Avalanche management have not addressed Rowling's statements was the main focus of Bloomberg's report.
"One of the people working on the game stressed that Rowling has very little direct involvement," Bloomberg say. Despite that, Rowling will undoubtedly see financial benefit from the game's success, even if her beliefs don't directly influence it.
Sounds like we may be waiting a few more months to hear the fate of the wizarding world game either way.