Hogwarts Legacy will be a major game in the Harry Potter universe, but its release is accompanied by controversy surrounding author J.K. Rowling. Despite criticism, the game is currently climbing the bestseller list on Steam.
Hogwarts Legacy will be an open-world role-playing game from developer Avalanche Software. It is set in the world of Harry Potter, but much earlier: Players take on a character in the 19th century, choose their house, learn magic, and can explore Hogwarts freely. There will also be a new story.
Here’s what it currently looks like on Steam: If you look at the current global bestseller list on Steam, Hogwarts Legacy is one of the absolute bestsellers there (via Steam). Only the Steam Deck, CS:GO, Dota 2, and Apex Legends are ahead of it – all of which are free-to-download games, reports the site Forbes.
Hogwarts Legacy is thus a purchasable game, even ahead of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II and FIFA 23. Unlike these games, Hogwarts Legacy has not even been released yet: It will be released on February 10, 2023, in just under a month.
Additionally, the controversy surrounding J.K. Rowling and calls for boycott accompany the game. We will now go into more detail about these issues.
What is the call for a boycott of Hogwarts Legacy about?
The cause of the boycott calls includes, among other things, J.K. Rowling’s stance on “transgender” issues, which some view as transphobic and discriminatory. Boycott calls for Hogwarts Legacy began as early as spring 2021.
The site GameSpot also addressed Rowling’s stance in a detailed article in March 2022 (via gamespot).
Rowling’s statements led to calls for a boycott. As a result, there was a somewhat charged discussion surrounding Hogwarts Legacy. On one side are the boycott calls, and on the other side are players who want to immerse themselves in the world of Harry Potter.
In a FAQ, the developers also addressed Rowling’s role in connection with the game (via hogwartslegacy.com):
J.K. Rowling is not involved in the development of the game, but as the creator of the wizarding world and one of the greatest storytellers in the world, her extraordinary literary work is the foundation for all projects in the Wizarding World. This is not a new story from J.K. Rowling, but we have worked closely with her team on all aspects of the game to ensure that it aligns with the magical experiences that fans expect.
We have already taken a closer look at the boycott calls on MeinMMO here: A German Twitch streamer calls for a boycott against Hogwarts Legacy.
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