There are few movie licensed games that generally don't suck. The Harry Potter series is one of those licenses that do an adequate job of bringing the tale of Harry and Hogwarts to virtual life. Even though there are a few adults who enjoy the novels and films, the game is geared mainly towards the audience they are written for... the kiddies. This holds true for Harry's latest adventure in Prisoner of Azkaban. It provides a fun romp that follows the movie and book's story, and it's a tad on the easy side, even for younger audiences. If not worse, the game has less Gary Oldman than the film does. (Pity)

You set off as Harry, Ron, and Hermione in their quest to find Sirius Black in the Hogwarts castle. Black is the man thought to have murdered Harry's parents. The adventure is a bit more personal to Harry than the others, especially when it is learned that Black may want to end the bloodline and kill off Harry as well. You'll make your way through the castle and homelands in search of clues, but along the way you encounter many side quests and mini games.

Visually the game looks very good, expressing that EA Games touch. Large colorful levels, unique in design bring the land of Hogwarts to life. Each of the player models look like the book and filmmaker's vision, which makes each character easily recognizable. The levels range from the school's insides, to train cars, to outdoors, and they all look very good in detail without being overly complex. The lack of complexity does come with a price, as one of the cooler effects of the film and books are the live paintings. While there are a few that move about in the game, most are frozen in time, which is sad. You cast spells in the game that look great in both color and design. The more powerful spells are the most hypnotic, while the smaller spells are like giant vibrant embers from your wand. Cut scenes tell the tale in real time graphics which look good, but one may wish for the opening CG when envisioning cut scenes. Overall the game is appealing to the eye and no fan of the books or film will be displeased with the transfer.

Audio is passable, but the lack of the voices of the actual stars is a little disappointing. It's weird to have someone else voice Ron, Harry and Hermione, let alone done without great passion. It's not like the kids from the film won't be type cast after the film series is over anyway, so why not lend your talent to the game as well? Other sounds are brought to you in great Dolby Surround Sound, so the Dementors sound as eerie as they appear. All in all, good, just not great when sound is concerned, especially from EA.

Controls are simplified and easy to pick up whether you're 9 or 90. You move Harry about with the left stick, change camera angles with the right, fire spells with X (on Xbox), target enemies and objects with the right trigger, and swap between the 3 heroes/heroine with B. Easy as pie. What keeps the game from being generic in playability is each character must be used in certain situations. Harry is the agile one, Ron can find secrets and hiding places, and Hermione can fit in to tight places. This break in monotony makes puzzle solving and level completing far more interesting than if it were just one character throughout the entire game. You also most know which spells do what. Whether you need to repel, blast, freeze, etc., knowledge is key. Overall the game plays well and should appeal to most adventure fans.

What keeps this series from being great is the lack of depth involved in them. You don't get to play Quidditch (that's a separate game that you have to buy), or many other cool things you could possibly do in your spare time. The game is very linear and hopefully one day the EA team will expand this title with a bit more freedom. That being said, aside from the various mini games you'll encounter, Harry Potter the game, is not much longer than the movie. Kids on summer vacation may notice that completing this title in a short sitting is upsetting. The lack of real multiplayer is a downer as well, as it would have been nice to have a 3 player option, with each player controlling one of the main 3. Hopefully by the time the next movie is due out, EA will take note and add some additional replay value. Otherwise, the game follows the story quite well, and the interaction between all 3 characters keeps the game fresh for as long as it lasts.

If you are a Harry Potter fan, you've already read the book, seen the movie, and bought all the Any Flavor Jelly Beans you can stomach. Now it's time to be the wizard, and for fans, this game is a worthy purchase. For folks who haven't endured the phenomenon of HP, you'll need to start from the beginning before picking this one up.