The major publisher and developer EA apparently worked on a large MMO in the Harry Potter universe about 20 years ago, but for unimaginable reasons, it was canceled. We at MeinMMO summarize.
What game was EA trying to make? An MMO in the Harry Potter universe was in discussion. However, the game was also supposed to have offline content and combine it with online content. How this was supposed to look in the game is not explained.
It could involve individual missions played alone or with a group, mixed with certain hub areas where multiple players could meet. But this is speculative at this point.
Where does the information come from? In an interview on the YouTube channel Original Gamer Life, Kim Salzer talks about the game and her disappointment that it did not happen.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Salzer was the Director of Product Marketing at EA from 2000 to 2003. So we can assume that the information about the Harry Potter game is accurate.
How far was the development? Apparently not very far. Salzer mentions in the video that they had already conducted surveys and had a rough plan of how the game could look.
She also mentions that she and her team were convinced that the title could be successful. However, she finds it unfortunate that EA ultimately decided to cancel the project, as she mentioned in the interview.
“We didn’t think the brand would establish itself”
Why were the works canceled? At the time when the MMO was planned, the Harry Potter brand was comparatively new. The first book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” was released in July 1997.
In 2001, the first film adaptation of the books followed and was very successful. However, EA apparently thought that this success would not last long and decided to cancel the MMO.
“We didn’t think the brand would establish itself and be successful for more than a year or two,” Salzer says in the interview. That was probably EA’s reasoning for why the team had to drop work on the MMO.
The most important excerpt from the interview can be seen here:
How did it go internally? According to her statements, Salzer’s team was very disappointed about the cancellation of the title. “We had already conducted surveys and worked with children, which was really fun. […] I was convinced that the game could be a success. “
She only speaks about the game when her interview partner asks her which game she was particularly excited about in her career. Salzer then says that it was supposed to be a Harry Potter MMO and she was really looking forward to it.
“There are many reasons why a Harry Potter MMO could fail, but the longevity of the brand is not one of them”
How does the community react? An excerpt of the interview with Salzer was shared in a thread on reddit, which received 6,729 upvotes and 1,392 comments within 20 hours.
These comments are mixed in nature. Many seem sure that an MMORPG would have failed at that time and that the decision to cancel the MMO was a good one.
Others are glad about EA’s decision, as otherwise, there may not have been a Star Wars: The Old Republic.
The discussions under the post are extensive and cover various topics. They only agree on one thing: the reason for the cancellation of the game. Because today, about two decades later, it is clear that the Harry Potter brand was able to establish itself very well.
What do the fans say? In the mentioned thread on reddit, there is a lively discussion with a lot of input. We want to capture the mood for you.
- question2552 writes: “I think if there had really been a Harry Potter MMO back then, it would have been a terrible disappointment.”
- so2017 still wishes for the game: “Even the children in my daughter’s primary school live and breathe Harry Potter. There is definitely a niche for such a game and it is large.”
- With more humor, PM_ME_CUTE_SM1LE says: “An MMO would never have worked, let’s be honest. What weapons other than wands and more wands would there have been? Besides, there is no level 100 dragon scale armor in the Harry Potter universe.”
In conclusion, it can only be said for sure that there should have been no worries about the longevity of the Harry Potter brand. The first book alone sold over 120 million copies, making it one of the best-selling books of all time.
What do you think? Would you have been excited about a Harry Potter MMO 20 years ago, or do you also believe that it would have backfired? Feel free to let us know in the comments here at MeinMMO.
The fact that a Harry Potter license alone is not enough was recently demonstrated by Pokémon GO developer Niantic, as Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is dying and shutting down its servers.
