When it comes to the magical world of witches and wizards, I’m a bit of a novice when it comes to knowing all the ins and outs of potions, spells, and who’s who in the house of Hogwarts. When Portkey Games did an absolutely stellar port of Hogwarts Legacy on the Nintendo Switch, I must have played the game for weeks, being totally absorbed by the fantastic game world and plot that they created and it seemed to have everything a witch or wizard could want… except Quidditch, which fans jokes it would come along as a DLC or standalone game to fill the void and well… here we are with Quidditch Champions. What’s it Like? Get on your broomstick, select your position, and snitches get witches as we review Quidditch Champions for Nintendo Switch.
Harry Potter Quidditch Champions doesn’t really follow a narrative. Instead, it gets straight into it by practising Quidditch in the Weasleys’ backyard before progressing to Hogwarts, the Tri-Wizard Cup, and then the Quidditch World Championships. The initiation into the World of Quidditch is a gentle one, slowly introducing roles and rules allowing you to understand the game. Honestly, it’s a game that shouldn’t really work on paper as it seems like a mess of elements thrown together, but in execution, it’s an incredibly fun time full of high-octane thrills that will have you chasing balls, dodging balls, and catching little balls. Now while you didn’t come here for a breakdown of the sport of Quidditch we have to break down the roles as each one has its own gameplay element.
During solo play, you will be able to play as every member of the team. There are your chasers, who have to shoot the ball through hoops (otherwise known as a quaffle.) You have Beaters, who can summon lead balls called Bludgers which knock your opponents out of action and open up avenues of attack. Keepers protect the hoops to stop opponents from scoring while also using their playmaker ability to lay out speed burst hoops, and finally you have your Seekers, who are the fastest riders that are tasked with catching the infamous Golden Snitch. In every match, you will most likely switch between all of these roles in order to win, and that also keeps you engaged as the gameplay and the overall match of Quidditch are constantly evolving. There’s something so thrilling about playing as a Chaser and tackling and intercepting the Quaffle as you fly at breakneck speeds. It’s tactical and exciting and feels impactful, especially when you get a goal past the keeper. Once or twice a match, a Golden Snitch will appear so you can then switch to your keeper and aim to catch it. The Golden Switch is worth 30 points so not a game-ender, but can turn the tide of battle. To catch the Snitch, you need to fly through golden rings at high speeds to fill up your meter before finally catching it. This is where you can also play another tactic by switching to your beater to knock the enemy seeker out of action for 20 seconds to give you an advantage in the race to capture it.
It’s this dynamic gameplay that kept me hooked on Quidditch Champions, allowing me to play the positions I wanted to, and seamlessly switch between them on the fly to keep everything exciting. And that’s the best way I can sum up Quidditch Champions… It’s just a very exciting game and it keeps you constantly engaged in order to win. While there are only 4 specific cups, you will need to complete them on varying difficulties to unlock cosmetic items like uniforms, brooms, and stat upgrades as well. Each position will have unlockable skill points, but there’s only a maximum amount of points you can allot in each one, meaning you have to balance between the tech trees. You can also upgrade your broom by enhancing its speed and durability, and you can also dress your team in different clothing options to help them stand out. The management off-field may not have a lot of depth, but it does add a sense of pride and ownership over your team, and there’s a constant stream of unlocks thanks to the game’s internal FREE season passes that offer themed rewards.
The game is presented in a stylized manner, with a nice art style that isn’t as serious as Hogwarts Legacy and fits the tone of the game which is a more light-hearted affair. Effects like the wind rushing by your character help illustrate a sense of speed and excitement and it’s all a rather grand affair. Arenas revolve around iconic locations like Hogwarts, and the World Cup Stadium as well as a glimpse at things we haven’t seen in the books or movies like the Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang home pitches. Up close, the animations look great but unfortunately, at a distance, the game can tend to show a more bland side of things like players not being animated, or simply floating in the air and suddenly appearing on the ground when knocked out. While in the game, the framerate stays rather smooth in both handheld and docked, and minor slowdown is negligible at best, but there were a few instances of models and glitches blocking the view and bugs that hindered progress. There’s also an inexplicable slowdown in both the cutscenes at the start of matches, and some celebration animations brought the game to a halt, thankfully, this didn’t affect the gameplay but needs to be mentioned as it may not make the best first impression. All of this is backed up by fantastic sound design which is accompanied by a good lot of commentary that doesn’t overstay its welcome.
The biggest problem I found was the game requires an always online connection even for single-player content, and as most of my time was spent playing tethered to a mobile phone in a hospital, there was nothing more frustrating than getting disconnected playing single-player, than having to reconnect, wait for an unskippable epilepsy warning, before getting back into the game.
As mentioned, there’s a robust online mode, which allows for casual 3V3 with bots mode, and a hardcore 6v6 mode. Online play was smooth despite my subpar connection, and each player was assigned a chaser and then a second position being keeper, beater, or seeker. This meant that the game was dynamic, without players having to jostle for positions, making it a smoother experience. Be warned, as co-op play doesn’t seem to unlock your progress in challenges and achievements. For those who prefer offline like me, there is plenty of solo replayability thanks to the fantastic difficulty curve. I played for around 15 hours with 90% being solo, and I never found myself bored, and as I upped the difficulty, I found it an exciting challenge rather than getting steamrolled. It’s all rather well done.
For my witches and wizards looking into accessibility options, I’m pleased to report there’s a library of accessibility options that you can toggle including colourblind mode, auto levelling out your broom, text to speech, screen readers, outline thickness, font size and colours, and many more. It’s great to see more accessibility options in a title like this. As always though, I recommend doing further research to find out if Quidditch Champions is for you.
At just $50 AUD, Harry Potter Quidditch Champions is a fantastic game and would be an essential purchase for fans of the Harry Potter Series. For a more casual movie watcher like myself, the gameplay managed to keep me hooked regardless of the source material with its incredibly rewarding and engaging gameplay mechanics. Its fast, action-packed style of play will make you feel like you’re a quidditch pro with lightning-fast reflexes, and its top-notch sound production quality will have you immersed in the wizarding world. Harry Potter Quidditch Champions is yet another outstanding port on Nintendo Switch, and may just need a small repairo charm to take it to the next level.
So, What’s it Like? Harry Potter Quidditch Champions is like Rocket League crossed with Fifa.
