Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 sees the end of JK Rowling's saga in video game form, but sadly fails to recreate the magic of its rich inspiration, writes Tom Hoggins

As the Harry Potter film saga ends in a magical blaze of glory, JK Rowling's rich, intoxicating vision is seared into our hearts and minds. What a ride it has been, Pottermania weaving itself into cinema and literature's annals.

Disappointingly, that's never been the case for Harry Potter in video games. There has been some success; the lively Hogwarts' playground of Order of the Phoenix offered fans a bustling, interactive facsimile of the school of witchcraft and wizardry. And while this may be stretching the definition of a Potter game, Lego Harry Potter remains the block-headed high point.

Otherwise it's largely been a limp parade of mediocrity, which reached something of a nadir with last year's Deathly Hallows Part 1, which turned Harry Potter into a Gears of War clone. There is some merit in imagining Potter as a pacy third-person action game, but Deathly Hallows Part 1 was buggy, unimaginative and largely incoherent. Part 2 retains the core shooter gameplay but fares marginally better. It's more polished and is, for the most part, competently executed. And the final conflict between Harry and the forces of the Dark Lord is more suited to the combat focus. But Part 2 still lacks any sense of invention, adventure or heart - qualities that the source material has in abundance - and thus does Potter a disservice.

The game barely pauses for breath as it barrels through the events of the film, with nearly every plot point crammed into scrappy, abrupt cutscenes. These are just framing for the action, which has you playing as Harry or one of his pals and fighting waves and waves of death eaters and snatchers. And that's it.