Gaming - News
This Recent Overhyped Harry Potter Game Was A Total Flop
By MARY OSBORNE
Gamers were initially excited when “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite” was released in 2019, but unfortunately, the game didn’t soar into the sunset on a broomstick — it was a flop instead. Created by Niantic, the developer behind the beloved “Pokémon GO,” “Wizards Unite” offered the same sort of gameplay, but with a "Harry Potter" twist.
Not only were the two titles similar, but “Wizards Unite” came out when players seemed to be losing interest in AR games. Even years after its release, the game had only made just under $40 million, in comparison “Pokémon GO” made over $900 million in 2020 alone. In light of the game’s required maintenance, it made financial sense for Niantic to pull the plug in 2022.
On top of poor sales, “Wizards Unite” also had performance issues, which many players found unacceptable given Niantic’s years of experience making AR games. As one Redditor wrote, “Such a brilliant IP and beautiful graphics sadly ruined by bug after bug after bug.” Other players argued that the game didn't offer enough incentive for people to continue opening up the app.
