I hope this is an unnecessary warning, but better safe than sorry: THIS THREAD IS TO TALK ABOUT THE GAME, NOT ANY OF THE CONTROVERSIES SURROUNDING IT OR JK ROWLING.
This was my only Must Play game this year (that I can think of, anyway) so I picked it up on Friday and have clocked in about 10 hours of playtime. So far, it's been a very mixed bag.
First off, the gameplay is fine. Not outstanding, but perfectly functional. I do think the combat is a little too hectic, especially when you have to fight multiple enemies at once. Hogwarts itself is both surprisingly small and really hard to navigate. The castle is full of twisting hallways and staircases and even after playing for ten hours I can't navigate without using the spell that draws a line between you and your objective. But I guess that's more or less on brand. The game tries to make up for the school being so small by giving you the entire countryside to run around in. While it admittedly is cool to explore Hogsmeade and the Forbidden Forest, can anyone truthfully say they bought this game to NOT be at Hogwarts?
Speaking of which, the game really got off on the wrong foot by not letting you go to Diagon Alley for school supplies or ride the Hogwarts Express. This game is supposed to be pure nostalgia fuel for people who grew up with Harry Potter (like me) so why would you go out of your way to cut out two of the most iconic experiences? And what twisted sociopath decided to make a game about the Hogwarts experience AND NOT LET YOU PLAY QUIDDITCH?!
Bottom line, it's a decent game so far, but I really think they could have done more to make Hogwarts feel more like Hogwarts.