Harry Potter isn't a fad, it's an infestation. Children with British accents took over our bookstores, then our movie theaters. Now they've invaded video games. Yes, Harry, Hermione, and Ron are back in Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, the fourth title in Electronic Arts' Harry Potter series. All three characters are playable in this Gauntlet-style game, where hack-and-slash is often the best policy. Casting spells—a simple feat prompted by the AI at opportune moments—also comes in handy, whether there's a fire in your path, a giant salamander you need to levitate, or health-restoring beans that lie just out of reach. The free-roam feature from earlier Harry Potter titles has been passed up this time around for a more level-oriented approach. Though Harry does eventually get separated from his friends, they mostly work together, which means opportunities for multi-player fun.
While the game is visually appealing, it pays the price in load times. In general, it goes heavy on the cinematics and light on actual gameplay, and when you do get to play, objectives are sometimes confusing, or just easy. The total lack of camera control makes precision a challenge, and the AI ranges from tolerable to stupid. How come Harry and Hermione are ready to cross the drawbridge when Ron is still muttering Britishisms on the wrong side of the screen? In spite of the darker content of the Goblet Of Fire novel and its film adaptation, this game's setup implies it was made with younger fans in mind.