Per wiki policy, Spoilers Off applies here and all spoilers are unmarked. You Have Been Warned.
General
- Ranrok is a ruthless individual who doesn't seem to care which bodies fall when trying to get what he wants, whether it is Wizardkind, his fellow goblins, or even his own kin. Due to absorbing some of the other repositories, he is practically immune to all regular forms of magic.
- The protagonist themselves is a different type of terrifying. They're only about fifteen years old, yet they're powerful enough that they can walk into camps full of poachers, bandits, and goblin loyalists and take them all out with an assortment of spells, Ancient Magic, and even the Unforgivable Curses, by themselves. The concept of Ancient Magic seems so terrifying that most enemies (including some bosses) will cower the moment the protagonist starts casting it. Tom Riddle doesn't even hold a candle to how terrifying this Hogwarts student really is. If the protagonist decides to absorb the power from the repository, it only makes sense that they will only grow even more powerful than they are now, even more powerful than either Rackham or Isidora ever were. And this time, there's no one to stop them.
- The horrors that the protagonist has the face on their first year of Hogwarts is nothing short of scary either. They have barely begun their classes and a target gets painted on their back by two of the most dangerous people at this time (Ranrok and Rookwood). Not only are they pulled into a plot they can barely understand, they have to constantly look over their shoulder and watch their back because they could get ambushed at any given moment. And these enemies won't hold back just because the protagonist is young student. Dark Wizards and Witches will not hestiate to use arguably painful spells like Diffindo and Incendio in a real attempt to kill them. Loyalists will straight up hack the protagonist in the face with a hatchet or other sharp weapons. One mistake and the protagonist is straight dead. Considering the life or death situations the protagonist is constantly in, its no wonder they'll use any means necessary to defend themselves, whether it be ruthless Ancient Magic or the Unforgivable curses. It's literally kill or be killed.
- The Keepers are forced to send someone pretty young to do their trials they had obviously meant for an adult to go through (particularly, the first and second trial). These trials aren't friendly safe ones either, they are littered with aggressive guardians that won't hesitate to bludgeon the protagonist to death and sheer drops that would surely mean a deadly fall.
World
- When wandering into spider dens, you can sometimes find human bodies hanging from webs or on the ground somewhere. Sometimes, you can even find them wiggling, meaning that someone is still alive (which you can free with a fire spell if you wish).
- The surprisingly high amount of ruins you find make the highlands almost seem post-apocalyptic. Many of these locations have creatures and people that want to attack you. Who knew this was what surrounded Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.
- One place in particular is an estate overlooking the water and includes a garden maze. It probably once looked nice, but it’s now abandoned and in disrepair. This estate is also crawling with Inferi ready to attack anyone who sets foot, looking like something out of a zombie game.
Story
Main Story- The start of the game seems like it would be a fun, whimsical shopping spree trip, similar to how Harry Potter had been introduced to the Wizarding World in the beginning of the series, but the intro sequence goes from zero to one hundred, extremely quickly. The protagonist, Professor Fig, and Ministry Worker George Osric are attacked by a dragon midflight, ripping the carriage straight in half. Osric is unceremoniously crunched and the protagonist turns around to see the Thestrals (beings who can only be seen by those who witness death) materialize right before their eyes. The only reason the protagonist and Professor Fig aren't dead is only by chance. If the protagonist didn't have their affinity for Ancient Magic and subsequently did not open the container with the port key, they and their Professor would have been lunch.
- Niamh Fitzgerald’s trial. All the trials are kind of creepy in their own right, but this one stands out, because it’s a loose, yet surreal retelling of the story of the three brothers, where you get to use the deathly hallows…while also trying to escape and sneak past death. LITERALLY. Also, you don’t have access to your usual arsenal of magic or magical weaponry, and the background becomes creepy and monochrome. And you also get to witness death directly prey on civilians and brutally slaughter them. Have fun!
- There's definitely something terrifying about the way Isidora uses her connections with Ancient Magic. The fact that she uses it to extract, not only pain, but all emotions too. And then she inhales the magic like its some sort of addictive substance is horrifying in its own way. The empty shell it leaves her victims really takes the cake, even worse when you consider the fact that she had used it on students.
- Ranrok's final form after absorbing the repository is a huge magical dragon crackling with the magical manifestation of human pain. And with Professor Fig gone (and possibly already dead) the protagonist is literally the only one who can deal with him.
- The 'Harness' ending has the protagonist inhale some of the corrupted evil pain magic that Isidora had been collecting and their eyes start glowing red with power. Isidora was never able to reach the full potential with this new form of magic, as she was killed just as she was getting started. Now that the protagonist has full control of the repository, they won't likely face the same pushback Isidora had. The fact that they can declare the power for themselves, well, let's hope being a dark lord isn't on their bucket list.
Companions
- Any of Sebastian's questlines end up turning this way due to it's tie-in with the Dark Arts:
- Salazar Slytherin's Scriptorium turns out to be a sadistic trap. There is a door that literally needs torture to open (via the Crucio spell). The protagonist, Sebastian, and Ominis now have to decide which one of them needs to take the hit to open the door. Ominis immediately backs out because of his morals, leaving the protagonist and Sebastian to decide who casts and who will withstand the torture. No matter who it is, someone is writhing on the ground screaming in agony. If the protagonist decides to take the hit, the experience is so painful that they come out the other side with a single health point left, suggesting that they might have been close to death.
- When trying to find the relic at the Feldcroft Tomb, the protagonist has to essentially use skeletal human remains to open up the tomb. Even Sebastian's bone puns doesn't really hide the morbidity of this puzzle.
- At the end of one of his quests, Sebastian uses the Imperius Curse to stop a goblin from killing Anne. However, rather than stopping there, he then forces the the goblin to cut his own throat, right in front of Anne. No wonder his uncle has a Freak Out afterwards.
Sidequests
- The Aranshire spider infestation quest, which involves the protagonist going into Mary's house to check on her for a friend. Ever since the spider infestation, she has gone radio silent and upon entering her house, you can see why. Her home has been completely overtaken by spiders and silk, the only thing left of Mary is her body hanging in the threads. Going underneath her house is just as awful, finding a whole cave system of spiders and their eggs. No wonder the protagonist says they're going to have nightmares for weeks afterwards.
- There’s also Deek’s request to find his friend Tobbs. From the foreboding notes, to the spiders seeming to actually lead you towards a deeper part of cave…”creepy” doesn’t even begin to describe it. Then you discover the "leader" of the spiders, and well…let’s just say we now know how Hagrid found Aragog a wife.
- The fate of Bardolph Beaumont, who had the unfortunate and horrific fate of being turned into an Inferus, the Wizarding world equivalent of being a zombie. There's really no way to help him now, the only mercy is death. The fifteen year old protagonist forced to put down the poor man and now has the responsibility of telling his loving sister the truth or or a lie to protect her feelings. Either way, it's a Downer Ending for the sister, no matter what the protagonist does.
- Pilfering the notes in the Hospital Wing you can get the medical files of the alleged Tasmina McLaggen, age 13. "Alleged" because she was taken in for a bad case of "Disapparating Nausea". In her case her whole head was splinched (a wizarding term describing the fact she tried Apparating, the magical version of teleportation, and she appeared headless but still alive near the nursery). The poor girl was described wandering around deaf, blind and mute, having to rely to her sense of touch only and had to be brought to St. Mungo, unaware of her surrounding and unable to communicate her plight by any means: even her name had to be guessed by looking at the students' records for any missing student.
- "Minding Your Own Business", Merlin's beard! What starts off as a simple quest to purchase a shop from a suspicious witch quickly devolves into a truly haunting nightmare. You open a chest and discover a ladder leading into a hidden room; once you climb down, you find yourself at the mercy of the sadistic poltergeist Fastidio, who traps you in what is essentially a Haunted House. There are trippy, ever-changing rooms, Fastidio suddenly tosses furniture at you, and who could forget those godforsaken mannequins that sneak up on you behind your back? As you make your way through an empty hall near the library, you suddenly get spooked by a huge Thornback waiting at the doorway. If that wasn't frightening enough, you then find yourself in a tiny room with no doors. The only way to progress is to turn off Lumos; cast Lumos again, and a small horde of mannequins will appear right in front of you.
Gameplay
- There's always something pretty creepy about wandering around in the Forbidden Forest or other spots of wilderness at night. There's often not much around except just you. The same goes for Hogwarts, which is eerily quiet and empty at night.
- Hitting anyone with the Killing Curse is practically like a Wave-Motion Gun, and does Exactly What It Says on the Tin in dropping any enemy out in the game world dead in an instant with nothing able to repel it. Now you know why Voldemort was so terrifying with such a spell to be used as he pleased.
