Harry Potter Quidditch Champions is a heartfelt love letter to the most iconic sport in the witchcraft and wizarding world. But while soaring above it all should be freeing and spellbinding, the feeling of being trapped on a broom is inescapable and gets old faster than Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans.
It’s as clear as a sunny day on the Quidditch pitch that Unbroken Studios understands the sport and knows how to make it wildly entertaining at first. The problem is that Quidditch Champions‘ novelty wears off quickly when you’re confined to the pitch and can’t explore the world beyond.
Versatile roles lead to confusing chaos
Whatever position you want to play is yours: No tryouts needed! This includes a swift Chaser who scores goals with the Quaffle, a defensive Keeper who protects the goal hoops, a brutal Beater who whacks Bludgers at unsuspecting opponents, and a nimble Seeker working to catch the elusive Snitch. Chaser and Seeker are the most critical (and fun) positions since they actively score points, while Keeper and Beater suffer from being generally unhelpful since they’re more defensive roles you likely won’t prioritize if you want to win.
When playing solo, all four roles are available to swap between during a match, but this means you’re controlling a team of six yourself—with AI overseeing all the other vacant positions. This can be overwhelming since it can be tough to figure out where your focus should lie while managing confusing and clunky controls. Playing with friends or against others online is slightly easier, as the roles are divided up, so you’re managing fewer positions—but then the issue is making sure your team plays cohesively.
Swapping positions is always difficult because the AI players in your team do their own thing, so when you do swap, you’re thrown into a play with no idea what’s happening. I ran into this issue a lot when switching from a Chaser to a Seeker because it’s easy to lose the Snitch immediately and fall behind. You need time to orient yourself so you can figure out where you are and what’s happening, but there’s little time to do so.
Quidditch is supposed to be chaotic, but if you’re playing alone, directing and swapping between a full team of six players—each with their own position and unique controls—is an absolute blast one second and a total nightmare the next. This nightmare is somewhat abated depending on what mode you play, but not much.
More of the same
Quidditch Champions has four different modes, but the gameplay is the same across them all. The only changes are who you’re playing and the pitch you’re playing on.
Campaign Mode focuses on building your Quidditch prowess from the humble Weasley Burrow Garden Cup to the world-famous Quidditch World Cup, Multiplayer Mode allows you to compete in three vs. three matches against other players, Exhibition and Open Practice Mode are relaxed environments to practice in, and there’s even co-op for both Campaign and Exhibition mode so you can play with a friend or two outside of Multiplayer.
Co-op and three vs. three are the best modes to play since they lessen how many positions you have to manage to just two roles, but it’s tough to find enough players to play with, which means you’re generally stuck with bots and managing many roles at once. The novelty wears off quickly with these modes since they offer more of the same: Flying around the pitch until one of the two opposing teams scores 100 points.
All Quidditch Champions modes are different in name only—offering the same repackaged gameplay no matter what you do.
While the gameplay stays the same, the music, dialogue, and overall sound design in Quidditch Champions are brilliant and change with different modes and maps. The commentary during the matches is captivating and usually voiced by notable franchise characters with plenty of clever jokes throughout.
Whether it’s the Weasley twins’ perfectly in-sync jokes, Lee Jordan’s always sassy commentary, or Draco Malfoy’s annoyingly arrogant voice, I often find myself more engrossed in what the characters are saying than what’s actually happening on the pitch. Even when there’s no talking, there’s still a magical musical score I can’t get enough of. The little details in this game are delightful, and this also extends beyond the sound design into the realm of character customization and cosmetics.
Captivating cosmetics
Character creation isn’t a focal point for Quidditch Champions, but it’s one of my favorite features due to the surprising amount of cosmetics available. These items help you personalize each one of your characters with intricate details that make them feel more in-depth.
You can earn currencies to buy cosmetics by completing challenges and collecting XP to rank up on the Season Event page, which acts as a free battle pass. It’s a great system that rewards you for playing and motivates you to engage in more matches to unlock additional goodies. Although the gameplay is repetitive, the unlockable cosmetics kept me consistently returning for more.
I especially love the usable Hero Override Skins featuring iconic characters, the non-binary options for characters, and the small items you can use to personalize your loadouts, like brooms, wands, and outfits.
Flying isn’t freeing enough
Although the Quidditch gameplay is smashing fun, I can’t escape the urge to hop off the broom and explore the world around me. It’s especially frustrating since this is the first time we’ve ever gotten a look at some magical locations like the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic and the Durmstrang Institute.
If you’re a fan of sports-focused games, the repetitiveness of Quidditch might appeal to you as there’s plenty of room to grow as a player. Personally, though, I enjoy the gameplay, but it gets old quickly, and I’m left wanting more. It’s tough to see such a beautiful world ever so slightly out of reach just outside the pitch, with no way to reach it as you’re stuck in an endless Quidditch loop with no real variation.
Overall, Quidditch Champions feels like an incomplete game that should’ve been part of something larger, and maybe that’s because Quidditch is the one key feature Hogwarts Legacy is missing. The latter can stand on its own without it, but I’m unsure whether Quidditch Champions can, too.
I’m hopeful the roadmap updates may change my mind, but for now, I’m already hopping off my broom to set off on another adventure elsewhere.
