History VideoGame / HarryPotterHogwartsMystery

** The central plot(s) of the game, finding Jacob and solving the [[DrivingQuestion titular mystery]] of the Cursed Vaults. [[spoiler:You find Jacob in year 5 chapter 30, but he leaves to pursue Rakepick and much of him remains unknown. There is a bit of backstory of him with 'R', Duncan, and Olivia, the latter of which we know practically nothing about, it is not all clear yet and half the information we have is from [[{{Troll}} Duncan]]. Year 6, Chapter 1 has Moody revealing he has his own investigation into 'R' worldwide - and apparently not working with Dumbledore, as they do not agree on how to move forward (Year 6, Chapter 21). Year 6, Chapter 35 reveals that even after Rakepick's ousting, 'R' has a mole in Hogwarts. Alanza, an exchange student who arrived in year 6 chapter 22 (who has her ''own'' subplot about MC being her guide in Hogwarts), is one of the prime suspects. There is also the mystery of the quills. The white quill came from a white eagle owl seen with, but not necessarily owned by, Rakepick, but it has yet been revealed where all the black quills came from.]]
** The player character and Jacob's parents, [[spoiler: they have yet to physically appear, and [[AmbiguouslyAbsentParent their father doesn't seem to be mentioned at all]]. The Year 4 side quest "Unleash Your Patronus" and Year 5 Chapter 18 mention their mother and her relationship with her children (she was very strict but gradually became more supportive of MC's crusade over the years, but we don't know how much she knows), yet when found, Jacob refused to let her know he is alive. [[UnreliableNarrator We also don't know whether MC is entirely open/truthful about their parents.]]]]

** [[spoiler:Voldemort's]] appearance is based on his actor in the films starting from his [[spoiler:resurrection in ''Goblet of Fire''.]] However, his [[spoiler:eyes are red]] as they were mentioned to be in the books.

* AlasPoorVillain: In the Frog Choir event, Merula confesses to the player that she's so competitive about joining the frog choir because her mother was a member, and used to sing Merula to sleep before she was arrested and taken to Azkaban. When the player is selected to join the choir, Merula even whispers "I'm sorry, Mom." [[spoiler:She does claim that this story was a manipulative sob story if you choose to give her the spot instead, and MC accuses her of lying, but Tulip claims that this was only deflection to avoid feeling bad about being vulnerable to the player. [[ExactWords Merula never actually said it was a lie.]]]]

* AmbiguouslyBi: Besides the fact that EveryoneIsBi, Rowan and Diego especially come across as this if the player character is male. Rowan gets ''very'' flustered over talking to Bill during the Celestial Ball event, and Diego will flirt with the player within seconds of meeting him, is president of the dance club, and dresses even better than Andre, the self-proclaimed fashion expert.

* AnAssKickingChristmas: While the game has a hazy connection to real-life dates, [[spoiler:year 6 chapter 42, where you open the Sunken Vault and finally defeat Rakepick, was released on Christmas Eve, and Hogwarts was indeed decorated for Christmas.]]

* AnimalMotifs: A small one in Valentine's Day that borders on EasterEgg: [[spoiler:at the end of your date in the Greenhouse, you can see an animal lurking somewhere on the side that changes depend on who you took as a date. For Talbott, there is an owl at the broken window in the ceiling. For Barnaby, there is a Bowtruckle lurking in the plants. For Penny, there is a Puffskein on the tables. For Merula, it is only visible if you scroll all the way to the left, where a Thestral can be seen poking its head in. For André, there are two additional bunches of flowers on the ground instead.]]

** Players can partially restore lost Energy by tapping certain parts of the scenery, such as [[spoiler:tapping a House-Elf in the Dungeons, playing fetch with Fang on the school grounds, or tapping on Peeves in the East Tower]]. While these energy sources have a strict cooldown period, they at least provide an option for those who have run out of Energy and need it fast.

* ArtefactTitle: Harry Potter himself is already born by the time the game begins, but he's still a young child living with the Dursleys at this point and so has no effect on the story. By the time that Harry [[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePhilosophersStone starts attending his first year at Hogwarts]], the player has already graduated the previous year. Though players don't interact with Harry directly, [[TheCameo he can be spotted walking past the player and Penny while in Diagon Alley]].

** Many players made a meme out of the Gryffindor student who sits behind you in Charms who struggles at Wingardium Leviosa even in your fourth year. In a later chapter in Year 4, the player character performs a Wingardium Leviosa so powerful that it impresses Charlie, and says that they got so good at it due to a lot of practice from helping out that student. The student (commonly referred to as Struggling Gryffindor Kid or Leviosa Kid) later made appearances in History of Magic and the seasonal decorating events. Tapping on him in History of Magic will cause the player to ask, "isn't that the kid always practicing Leviosa?" and Jae will comment that he doesn't actually know Leviosa Kid's name, he just calls him "hey" or "you".

** The fandom joking about the sandwiches when leveling friendship in the Great Hall gets some love in Year 5. When you have to serve detention in the kitchen, the first order of business from the house elves is to get you slicing giant loaves of bread, because lead elf Pitts only likes making giant sandwiches.
* BatmanGambit: There are, apparently, '''''five''''' going on in the game: The player has one in opening the vaults; [[spoiler:Pettigrew]] is doing... something; Dumbledore, as usual, knows literally everything; [[spoiler:Rakepick]] is screwing everyone over; and we have no clue what [[spoiler:'R']] and [[spoiler:The 'Cabal']] are up to!
* BeenThereShapedHistory: Downplayed. In the second year, you help Hagrid rescue his puppy from the Devil's Snare. If your knowledge skill is high enough, you can be the one who suggested Hagrid to name the puppy 'Fang'.

* BigDamnHeroes: While looking for Mundungus Fletcher in Year 5, the player and their companion are accosted by a gang of dark witches and wizards in Knockturn Alley, who duel the player and make the player's companion vomit slugs. Even after losing the duel, they threaten to attack the player and companion until [[spoiler:Rakepick arrives, stuns two, and threatens to use the killing curse on the rest if they don't back off.]] Her reputation precedes her, and they relent.

* {{Bowdlerise}}: In the books or films, a werewolf's transformation is more horrific and monstrous. [[spoiler:Fenrir transforms on-screen but is hidden in a black cloud. Chiara's tranformation is entirely avoided with a DiscretionShot.]]

* ButForMeItWasTuesday: This trope gets namechecked when [[spoiler:Gilderoy Lockheart]] brags that "Even my ordinary Tuesdays become bestsellers."

* CanonForeigner: While almost all of the teachers are the same as the ones that Harry has a little over seven years after your first year (save for Kettleburn, who was TheGhost in the series and was replaced by Hagrid when Harry actually began taking Care of Magical Creatures, and [[spoiler:Rakepick]], who Harry never met on behalf of the position being cursed), the students you meet along the way are entirely original except for the five oldest Weasley boys, Nymphadora Tonks, and Cedric Diggory.

* ChekhovsGun: Snape gives you Garroting Gas for spying on Rakepick, which comes in handy when [[spoiler:she turns on you in the last vault.]]

** In "Valentine's Day", [[spoiler:the trinket you receive has a different coloured heart depending on who you got it from: yellow for Penny, green for Merula, red for Barnaby, blue for Talbott, and purple for André.]]

** Charlie saying that he loves his wand and it'd be a shame if anything happened to it. It's the same wand that passed down to Ron and got snapped in the second book.

** Dumbledore told Orion his greatest wish is a pair of socks, same as his claim in the first book.

** In the third Christmas side quest, "The Gift of Gratitude", Hagrid says he brings out the Christmas Feast leftovers outside on Boxing Day which attracts a large crown of Puffskeins which then sing together. This refers to the sixth film where Luna says Pgymy Puffs (miniature Puffskeins) sing on Boxing Day.

* ContinuitySnarl: The entire Quidditch storyline. [[note]]Each season is ''supposed'' to correspond to each in-universe year, but it runs parallel and independently from the main storyline, e.g. it is possible to be a sixth-year student in the first season, or a second-year in the second season, varying from player to player. Main storyline plot points released prior to Quidditch sometimes contradict them, such as in year 4 chapter 2 Madam Hooch indicates MC is not on the Quidditch team yet. Charlie and Andre are often also referred to as the best Quidditch players prior to the release of the storyline, and they are nowhere to be seen on the team. One tiny thing that Quidditch storyline ''is'' affected by is if you dated Penny at any point, one scene where Penny says "Suppose it's just us today!" she would do the lovestruck animation. There is also a HandWave added to the year 4 storyline where you have to find a broom since Skye would have gifted you a broomstick during the Quidditch storyline; it is said to be locked up and not available outside of Quidditch practice and matches.[[/note]]

*** Even if the Player does the Thestral sidequest after [[spoiler:they, Merula, and Ben witness Rowan's murder]], they still act pretty surprised that [[spoiler:Merula had experienced death and Hagrid only references Merula seeing Thestrals even though by that point the Player and Ben had also witnessed death]].

** Chiara is particularly plagued by this. [[note]][[spoiler:"Howling Hallowe'en" (year 1 sidequest) has Chiara revealing that she is a werewolf and asking for help as she ran out of Wolfsbane Potion and needed Penny to brew more, with Penny mentioning that she had a friend killed by a werewolf and hence her hesitation. "Penny For Your Thoughts" (year 3) was released ''before'' "Howling Hallowe'en", and has Penny explaining her friend was killed by a werewolf ''last summer''. And then we have "Ordinary Wizarding Levels" (year 5 sidequest), where you "meet" Chiara for the first time again. Chiara plays a significant role in year 6 (and the Head Boy/Girl side quest), and is the central character in "Packmates" (year 2 sidequest), but it seems even if you have done either of those but not "Howling Hallowe'en", when "Howling Hallowe'en" reruns again at Halloween you act like you never met her.]][[/note]]
** In Year 4, the Player has to travel to the Forbidden Forest to search for the [[spoiler:the Forest Vault]]. By that point, it's possible that the Player had become an Animagus in Year 3 and one of the choices being an eagle. They could have easily flown to the Forbidden Forest as a bird instead of using a broom, like Talbott (who is also an eagle) often does, but the Player doesn't even consider the option.
** Many side quests were released when the game was already in higher years but can be triggered in lower years and often have characters act like they're in higher years. [[note]]Ben is one notable exception in "Lone Wolf", probably because he has a sudden personality shift between years 5 and 6. "Welcome to the Sphinx Club" can be triggered as early as year 3, chapter 2 - the same chapter where Ismelda and Barnaby were introduced in the main story, but they were supposed to be purely antagonistic at this point. And of course, [[spoiler:Merula doesn't get stuck as a Flobberworm/Puffskein in other parts of the game even if you leave the side quest hanging.]][[/note]]
** The romance sidequests have very limited effect on the main story, even if they are acknowledged a few times. [[note]]Particularly controversial and jarring is [[spoiler:"distraught Penny" and "lovey-dovey Penny" simultaneously existing in year 5's main story and the Valentine's Day sidequest. You can also confess feelings to Penny in year 5, who would be shocked even if you took her to the Celestial Ball and went on the First Date with her (the [[WatsonianVersusDoylist Doylist]] reason is that Celestial Ball and First Date were released ''after'' that moment, even though those two side quests can be triggered in year 4).]][[/note]]

** During the Christmas season, the snowy day background appears in side quests where it would make no sense, like in the very summery Festival Fun, or for the night scenes at the end of First Date, and at the beginning of Head Boys and Girls (the section is even called "A Visitor in the Night"). Particularly jarring is Lone Wolf, [[spoiler:where in this case Chiara would be shown glancing at the ''sun'' before transforming.]]

** An Enchanted Kiss, released when year 7 is already out but triggered in year 5 chapter 13, has Diego play an extensive role, but in the main story year 5 chapter 16, you will meet him for the first time outside classes.

* CutsceneIncompetence: Year 3, Chapter 4 could be completely subverted if your character [[spoiler:had not revealed Jacob's diary in the middle of the Three Broomsticks]].
* DarkerAndEdgier: The story was pretty tame for the first five years. Then the Year 5 finale happened with [[spoiler:Rakepick's betrayal and her using Crucio on Merula]] and then went even ''more'' darker in Year 6 [[spoiler:with [[DeathOfAChild Rowan's murder]]]]. Year 7 lightens up a bit (for now), but shows much more serious undertones [[spoiler:as [[GreaterScopeVillain 'R']], who are arguably more ruthless and dangerous than [[DiscOneFinalBoss Rakepick]] ever was, gets more and more involved in the main plot]].
** The completely [[GoodIsNotNice metal decision]] to [[spoiler:trap Rakepick in the [[PsychologicalTormentZone Sunken Vault]] so she is [[AndIMustScream psychologically]] [[DrivenToMadness tortured]] for the rest of her waking life in revenge for what she did]] is one of the more [[GoodIsNotSoft darker decisions]] the Player is allowed to make.

* DeusExitMachina: The game really does its best to make sure Dumbledore stays out of the main story. This time, it's fully justified as he has previously already stopped the curses unleashed by the Cursed Vaults and the main protagonist is searching for their brother in ways that break many rules, and having him present would negate any reasons the heroes' actions would be tolerated as he can pretty much just do it again and they would have been expelled as it's the fact that Dumbledore ''isn't'' in the school that means they can break the cursed vaults and look for their brother while making sure they have enough credentials to not be thrown out of the school in the process.

** Now upgraded to [[spoiler:fatal as of Year 6. The whole reason Rowan was murdered was that 'R' needed one of your friends to die]]. Several people have gotten cursed and injured because of the Player tampering with the vaults. Most of the plot of Year 7 is happening because [[spoiler:'R' is still targeting you for some reason]].

** The All-Wizard Tournament is meant to be a trial for the Triwizard Tournament and prepare Hogwarts students for it. All of the students chosen would have graduated long before the Triwizard Tournament is held again, which will end in tragedy as seen in the fourth book.

** A very brief one in Valentine's Day, [[spoiler:MC and their friends won't be able to expose Lockhart as a fraud before he wipes their memories.]]

* DramaticDrop: In the Lone Wolf side quest, [[spoiler:the camera follows the fluttering dropped photo Chiara was holding when she transforms.]]

*** During Fifth Year, you can say you think you’re becoming friends with Merula, which irritates Tulip and amuses Merula until you serve her a backhanded compliment.
** During Fourth Year, you get to work on a spy mission for Professor Snape.

* ExpandedUniverse: This game contributes a massive chunk of plot to the Harry Potter Expanded Universe. As of the end of 2020, the game has 124 chapters of varying lengths (which may also depend on how fast you play through it). There are also 30+ side quests, many of which has equivalent of multiple chapters, and entire seasons of Quidditch. A very, very rough estimate would be somewhere in the ballpark of 100 hours of story, dwarfing the films' total length.

* ExposedToTheElements: A mild case, but Penny's Valentine's outfits in particular cover a lot less than most others. A t-shirt and short skirt is not generally advisable in February in the Scottish Highlands. Penny is from London, for the record.

* FantasticDrug: Unfortunately, not the fun kind. [[spoiler:The plot of the "Penny For Your Thoughts" side quest can be summed up as "Penny, a 13-year-old girl and previously CheerfulChild, breaks into the storeroom to steal drugs in desperation to [[HarmfulToMinors cope with crippling PTSD from seeing a friend brutally murdered]]". Penny, being a potions whiz, shows an almost alarming tendency to solve her personal issues with possibly ill-advised potion-taking, much like drug use. In year 5, when Beatrice goes missing, she tries to invent an entirely new and extremely complex potion to find her and drinks it without a second thought. Then, when the stress of Beatrice being trapped became too much, she tries to brew her own Draught of Peace to calm herself down, and if you let her, leads to DissonantSerenity.]]

** A sidequest in Year 5 has the player help Bill to think of alternate careers to curse-breaking. He's working for Gringotts as a curse-breaker when Harry meets him years later, so one can assume going into the quest that he does not choose any of these options.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In year 5, when the Weasleys and Nearly Headless Nick help the player search for the Marauder's Map. A lot of emphasis is put on Percy and the fact that he brought his pet rat Scabbers with him. Anyone who's read [[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban the third book]] knows that Scabbers is an Animagus named Peter Pettigrew who spent 12 years (approximately 10 at the time) as a rat hiding with the Weasleys. Moreover, Pettigrew is one of the Marauders who ''made'' the very map that they're looking for, meaning that Percy inadvertently brought one of the few people who would know what they were looking for. What does all this mean? [[spoiler:You eventually meet Pettigrew later that year.]]
** In the beginning of Quidditch season 1, Skye is worried she would be kicked off the team because she is failing Charms. [[spoiler:At the end of season 1, the short-haired Beater mentions she's been practicing instead of doing her Potions essay. She was suspended in season 2 for this.]]
** In the Weird Sisters side quest, which could be triggered as early as Year 2, has a cryptic message [[spoiler:from 'R' about the Coral Key and "We can’t return to the Sunken Vault without it." You don't hear about the key or the Sunken Vault otherwise till the end of Year 5.]]

** The central plot(s) of the game, finding Jacob and solving the [[DrivingQuestion titular mystery]] of the Cursed Vaults. [[spoiler:You find Jacob in year 5 chapter 30, but he leaves to pursue Rakepick and much of him remains unknown. There is a bit of backstory of him with 'R', Duncan, and Olivia, the latter of which we know practically nothing about, it is not all clear yet and half the information we have is from [[{{Troll}} Duncan]]. Year 6 chapter 1 has Moody revealing he has is own investigation into 'R' worldwide - and apparently not working with Dumbledore, as they do not agree on how to move forward (year 6 chapter 21). Year 6 chapter 35 reveals that even after Rakepick's ousting, 'R' has a mole in Hogwarts. Alanza, an exchange student who arrived in year 6 chapter 22 (who has her ''own'' subplot about MC being her guide in Hogwarts), is one of the prime suspects. There is also the mystery of the quills. The white quill came from a white eagle owl seen with, but not necessarily owned by, Rakepick, but it has yet been revealed where all the black quills came from.]]
** The player character and Jacob's parents, [[spoiler:they have yet to physically appear, and [[AmbiguouslyAbsentParent their father doesn't seem to be mentioned at all]]. In year 4 side quest "Unleash Your Patronus" and year 5 chapter 18 mentions their mother and her relationship with her children (she was very strict but gradually became more supportive of MC's crusade over the years, but we don't know how much she knows), yet when found, Jacob refused to let her know he is alive. [[UnreliableNarrator We also don't know whether MC is entirely open/truthful about their parents.]]]]

** Talbott, [[spoiler:speaking of whom, has a MutualMasquerade with Chiara, who noted he is suspiciously silent when appearing in the forest. In his own side quests, he is facing pressure to register as an Animagus, yet is under threat from being hunted down by Death Eaters. The same applies more or less to the MC.]]
** Penny, [[spoiler:in regards to MC possibly confessing to fancying her in the main story in year 5 chapter 5, to which she said they would discuss after Beatrice is freed (which happened in year 5 chapter 30), but have yet to come to pass. Penny also has an epiphany on love in year 6 chapter 11 which ties into the reconciliation with Beatrice, played out in chapters 19, 20, and 28. Penny also took Rowan's death very hard, possibly the only one worse than MC, and cries a lot, which other characters have pointed out. She seems to have pulled herself together by the end of year 6, helping with finding the vaults and finally celebrating their victory over Rakepick.]]
** Beatrice, [[spoiler:who has the biggest character arc over year 6 with her struggles with identity and trauma, which seem to tend to be resolved towards the middle. Also seemingly has a crush on Jae in year 6 chapter 16.]]

** Merula, [[spoiler:had a couple of character regression moments, what with her being proud of learning the Killing Curse at the end of year 5, and Rakepick's betrayal which led her to be consumed by desire of revenge, she remains a volatile wild card. She also indicates she may have a crush on Jacob (year 6 chapter 6), even while acknowledging MC could have dated her in the past; this is brought up again when MC questions her in year 6 chapter 40, which she evades. In chapter 45, Merula is seemingly revealed as the mole.]]
** Tulip, [[spoiler:who sought the Cursed Vaults even before meeting MC. With her hiding all combs that MC needed in year 6 chapter 39, more players are suspecting that she is still plotting behind MC's back. She's also the only romance option dropped after First Date and it was never explained, unlike Ben, Rowan, and Ismelda, who were dropped after Celestial Ball, who did have a scene together explaining that they lost interest.]]

** Barnaby, [[spoiler:who had said he wanted the power of the Cursed Vaults to himself from the beginning. He also has his own "Renaissance Wizard" subplot throughout year 6, although generally PlayedForLaughs.]]

** The piece of parchment in year 5 [[spoiler:that turned out to be Marauder's Map. If they follow book canon, Fred and George found it in Filch's office in their first year, or year 6 in this game. It was last known to be in Rakepick's possession - is it transferred to the Ministry like the rest of the artefacts she left behind? MC also met Peter Pettigrew (but was Obliviated), and found him as Scabbers with the map, but we have yet to know what that is all about. MC spotted someone moving across the map so quickly they can't see their name; Rakepick recognised it but did not reveal it, claiming it is the person who attacked Mundungus, but the Wizard in white robes (at least, that's what Mundungus claimed) shouldn't be able to get into the castle.]]

Though an AllegedlyFreeGame that [[https://www.eurogamer.net/harry-potter-mobile-game-maker-defends-child-choking-scene-which-asks-you-to-wait-or-pay-money infamously isn't shy about gatekeeping your progress with ingame currency]], the narrative the game shapes is expansive, with each year at Hogwarts gaining more and more chapters as the narrative unfolds (along with a multitude of side-quests with extra narrative events). The story doesn't end at graduation either, as with the ''Beyond Hogwarts'' expansion launched in 2023, your character continues their adventures with their friends with professional careers in the Wizarding World at large. On occasion, your work even brings you back to Hogwarts, intersecting with the beginning of a certain Mr. Potter's adventures...

The adventure doesn't end at graduation either, as with the ''Beyond Hogwarts'' expansion launched in 2023, your character continues their adventures with their friends with professional careers in the Wizarding World at large. On occasion, your work will even bring you back to Hogwarts on occasion, intersecting with the beginning of a certain Mr. Potter's adventures...

''Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery'' is a 2018 [[MobilePhoneGame mobile]] point-and-click Adventure game created by Jam City for [[UsefulNotes/IOSGames iOS]] and [[UsefulNotes/AndroidGames Android]], inspired by [[Franchise/HarryPotter J.K. Rowling's Wizarding World]] between [[TheEighties 1984]] and [[TheNineties 1991]]. The game is published by Creator/WarnerBrothers Interactive Entertainment through its subsidiary Creator/PortkeyGames, which is solely dedicated to creating games set in this universe. The game is not considered to be a canon installment of the franchise.

[[PlayerAndProtagonistIntegration Your 11-year-old self]] receives your owl to Hogwarts. There's just one problem - your older brother Jacob is missing and may have gone in search of the mysterious Cursed Vaults rumoured to be deep in Hogwarts. Over the next seven years, you will hone your magical skills, make new friends, and gather clues to find out what has happened to your brother...if he's still alive.

** Feeding a Magical Creature after you've maxed out its level will provide you a choice of rewards on a similar scale of rarity. This always [[JustForPun eats up]] three Creature Feeds.

* You meet Ruby, a friendly American witch who becomes your working partner, in the Beyond chapter. She's likeable, sociable and sticks by you all during your work...so why does she not have a picture in the friendship interface? [[spoiler:Because she's dead by the end of Chapter 10]].

* RunningGag: The fact that all you have to do to break into Filch's office is cast Alohomora.

* TeensAreShort: See NotAllowedToGrowUp above. It's pretty strange seeing a group of seventh-year students who are all a full head shorter than any adult character.

* InterfaceSpoiler:You're given a travel icon for the Prefects' Bathroom, despite it being only for prefects. So it's no wonder that a sidequest opened up the fourth year enabling you to become a prefect starting your fifth year. The Whomping Willow also has an icon that, when tapped, says that it can only be accessed in year 6, prior to year 6's release. Honeydukes similarly says it can only be accessed in year 7, currently unreleased.

* ArtefactTitle: Harry Potter himself is already born by the time the game begins, but he's still a young child living with the Dursleys at this point and so has no effect on the story.

** [[spoiler: Voldemort's]] appearance is based on his actor in the films starting from his [[spoiler: resurrection in ''Goblet of Fire''.]] However, his [[spoiler: eyes are red]] as they were mentioned to be in the books.

* AlasPoorVillain: In the Frog Choir event, Merula confesses to the player that she's so competitive about joining the frog choir because her mother was a member, and used to sing Merula to sleep before she was arrested and taken to Azkaban. When the player is selected to join the choir, Merula even whispers "I'm sorry, Mom." [[spoiler: She does claim that this story was a manipulative sob story if you choose to give her the spot instead, and MC accuses her of lying, but Tulip claims that this was only deflection to avoid feeling bad about being vulnerable to the player. [[ExactWords Merula never actually said it was a lie.]]]]

* AnAssKickingChristmas: While the game has a hazy connection to real-life dates, [[spoiler: year 6 chapter 42, where you open the Sunken Vault and finally defeat Rakepick, was released on Christmas Eve, and Hogwarts was indeed decorated for Christmas.]]

* AnimalMotifs: A small one in Valentine's Day that borders on EasterEgg: [[spoiler: at the end of your date in the Greenhouse, you can see an animal lurking somewhere on the side that changes depend on who you took as a date. For Talbott, there is an owl at the broken window in the ceiling. For Barnaby, there is a Bowtruckle lurking in the plants. For Penny, there is a Puffskein on the tables. For Merula, it is only visible if you scroll all the way to the left, where a Thestral can be seen poking its head in. For André, there are two additional bunches of flowers on the ground instead.]]

** Players can partially restore lost Energy by tapping certain parts of the scenery, such as [[spoiler: tapping a House-Elf in the Dungeons, playing fetch with Fang on the school grounds, or tapping on Peeves in the East Tower]]. While these energy sources have a strict cooldown period, they at least provide an option for those who have run out of Energy and need it fast.

* AscendedExtra: the people who volunteer to help Dumbledore with holiday decorations in a limited-time seasonal mission include the player, Rowan, Bill, Penny, and ... the blonde Gryffindor who sits near you in Charms (see below).

*** Castelobruxo, the Brazillian wizarding school was mentioned in passing, unnamed, in the fourth book. [[spoiler: In the game, Alanza Alves, a major character in year 6, is from Castelobruxo.]]
*** Mahoutokoro, the Japanese wizarding school, was never mentioned in the books or films and only appeared on the Wizarding World site. [[spoiler: In the game, a major antagonist in Year 5 and Year 6 is an expelled student from Mahoutokoro, and the story also goes over some of their customs and tradition.]]
** The blond Gryffindor who sits near you in Charms eventually gets a sidequest all his own. [[spoiler: And a name -- Wilfred Levi Kidd.]]

* BatmanGambit: There are, apparently, '''''five''''' going on in the game: The player has one in opening the vaults, [[spoiler: Pettigrew]] is doing... something... Dumbledore, as usual, knows literally everything, [[spoiler: Rakepick]] is screwing everyone over and we have no clue what [[spoiler: 'R']] and [[spoiler: The 'Cabal']] are up to!

* BigDamnHeroes: While looking for Mundungus Fletcher in Year 5, the player and their companion are accosted by a gang of dark witches and wizards in Knockturn Alley, who duel the player and make the player's companion vomit slugs. Even after losing the duel, they threaten to attack the player and companion until [[spoiler: Rakepick arrives, stuns two, and threatens to use the killing curse on the rest if they don't back off.]] Her reputation precedes her, and they relent.

* {{Bowdlerise}}: In the books or films, a werewolf's transformation is more horrific and monstrous. [[spoiler: Fenrir transforms on-screen but is hidden in a black cloud. Chiara's tranformation is entirely avoided with a DiscretionShot.]]

* ButForMeItWasTuesday: This trope gets namechecked when [[spoiler: Gilderoy Lockheart]] brags that "Even my ordinary Tuesdays become bestsellers."

* CallBack: In year 6, chapter 11, [[spoiler: when Rowan and MC get reacquainted, Rowan calls back to year 1 events like teaching them Rictusempra, and MC befriending Penny.]]

* CanonForeigner: While almost all of the teachers are the same as the ones that Harry has a little over seven years after your first year (save for Kettleburn, who was TheGhost in the series and was replaced by Hagrid when Harry actually began taking Care of Magical Creatures, and [[spoiler: Rakepick]], who Harry never met on behalf of the position being cursed), the students you meet along the way are entirely original except for the five oldest Weasley boys, Nymphadora Tonks, and Cedric Diggory.

* ChekhovsGun: Snape gives you Garroting Gas for spying on Rakepick, which comes in handy when [[spoiler: she turns on you in the last vault.]]

** In "Valentine's Day", [[spoiler: the trinket you receive has a different coloured heart depending on who you got it from: yellow for Penny, green for Merula, red for Barnaby, blue for Talbott, and purple for André.]]

*** Even if the Player does the Thestral sidequest after [[spoiler: they, Merula, and Ben witness Rowan's murder]], they still act pretty surprised that [[spoiler: Merula had experienced death and Hagrid only references Merula seeing Thestrals even though by that point the Player and Ben had also witnessed death]].

** Chiara is particularly plagued by this. [[note]][[spoiler: "Howling Hallowe'en" (year 1 sidequest) has Chiara revealing that she is a werewolf and asking for help as she ran out of Wolfsbane Potion and needed Penny to brew more, with Penny mentioning that she had a friend killed by a werewolf and hence her hesitation. "Penny For Your Thoughts" (year 3) was released ''before'' "Howling Hallowe'en", and has Penny explaining her friend was killed by a werewolf ''last summer''. And then we have "Ordinary Wizarding Levels" (year 5 sidequest), where you "meet" Chiara for the first time again. Chiara plays a significant role in year 6 (and the Head Boy/Girl side quest), and is the central character in "Packmates" (year 2 sidequest), but it seems even if you have done either of those but not "Howling Hallowe'en", when "Howling Hallowe'en" reruns again at Halloween you act like you never met her.]][[/note]]
** In Year 4, the Player has to travel to the Forbidden Forest to search for the [[spoiler: the Forest Vault]]. By that point, it's possible that the Player had become an Animagus in Year 3 and one of the choices being an eagle. They could have easily flown to the Forbidden Forest as a bird instead of using a broom, like Talbott (who is also an eagle) often does, but the Player doesn't even consider the option.
** Many side quests were released when the game was already in higher years but can be triggered in lower years and often have characters act like they're in higher years. [[note]]Ben is one notable exception in "Lone Wolf", probably because he has a sudden personality shift between years 5 and 6. "Welcome to the Sphinx Club" can be triggered as early as year 3, chapter 2 - the same chapter where Ismelda and Barnaby were introduced in the main story, but they were supposed to be purely antagonistic at this point. And of course, [[spoiler: Merula doesn't get stuck as a Flobberworm/Puffskein in other parts of the game even if you leave the side quest hanging.]][[/note]]
** The romance sidequests have very limited effect on the main story, even if they are acknowledged a few times. [[note]]Particularly controversial and jarring is [[spoiler: "distraught Penny" and "lovey-dovey Penny" simultaneously existing in year 5's main story and the Valentine's Day sidequest. You can also confess feelings to Penny in year 5, who would be shocked even if you took her to the Celestial Ball and went on the First Date with her (the [[WatsonianVersusDoylist Doylist]] reason is that Celestial Ball and First Date were released ''after'' that moment, even though those two side quests can be triggered in year 4).]][[/note]]

** During the Christmas season, the snowy day background appears in side quests where it would make no sense, like in the very summery Festival Fun, or for the night scenes at the end of First Date, and at the beginning of Head Boys and Girls (the section is even called "A Visitor in the Night"). Particularly jarring is Lone Wolf, [[spoiler: where in this case Chiara would be shown glancing at the ''sun'' before transforming.]]

* CutsceneIncompetence: Year 3, Chapter 4 could be completely subverted if your character [[spoiler: had not revealed Jacob's diary in the middle of the Three Broomsticks]].
* DarkerAndEdgier: The story was pretty tame for the first five years. Then the Year 5 finale happened with [[spoiler: Rakepick's betrayal and her using Crucio on Merula]] and then went even ''more'' darker in Year 6 [[spoiler: with [[DeathOfAChild Rowan's murder]]]]. Year 7 lightens up a bit (for now), but shows much more serious undertones [[spoiler: as [[GreaterScopeVillain 'R']], who are arguably more ruthless and dangerous than [[DiscOneFinalBoss Rakepick]] ever was, gets more and more involved in the main plot]].
** The completely [[GoodIsNotNice metal decision]] to [[spoiler: trap Rakepick in the [[PsychologicalTormentZone Sunken Vault]] so she is [[AndIMustScream psychologically]] [[DrivenToMadness tortured]] for the rest of her waking life in revenge for what she did]] is one of the more [[GoodIsNotSoft darker decisions]] the Player is allowed to make.

** [[spoiler: Rowan does this to Ben, saving him from the Killing Curse and dying in the process.]]

** Now upgraded to [[spoiler: fatal as of Year 6. The whole reason Rowan was murdered was that 'R' needed one of your friends to die]]. Several people have gotten cursed and injured because of the Player tampering with the vaults. Most of the plot of Year 7 is happening because [[spoiler: 'R' is still targeting you for some reason]].

** A very brief one in Valentine's Day, [[spoiler: MC and their friends won't be able to expose Lockhart as a fraud before he wipes their memories.]]

* DramaticDrop: In the Lone Wolf side quest, [[spoiler: the camera follows the fluttering dropped photo Chiara was holding when she transforms.]]

* FantasticDrug: Unfortunately, not the fun kind. [[spoiler: The plot of the "Penny For Your Thoughts" side quest can be summed up as "Penny, a 13-year-old girl and previously CheerfulChild, breaks into the storeroom to steal drugs in desperation to [[HarmfulToMinors cope with crippling PTSD from seeing a friend brutally murdered]]". Penny, being a potions whiz, shows an almost alarming tendency to solve her personal issues with possibly ill-advised potion-taking, much like drug use. In year 5, when Beatrice goes missing, she tries to invent an entirely new and extremely complex potion to find her and drinks it without a second thought. Then, when the stress of Beatrice being trapped became too much, she tries to brew her own Draught of Peace to calm herself down, and if you let her, leads to DissonantSerenity.]]

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In year 5, when the Weasleys and Nearly Headless Nick help the player search for the Marauder's Map. A lot of emphasis is put on Percy and the fact that he brought his pet rat Scabbers with him. Anyone who's read [[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban the third book]] knows that Scabbers is an Animagus named Peter Pettigrew who spent 12 years (approximately 10 at the time) as a rat hiding with the Weasleys. Moreover, Pettigrew is one of the Marauders who ''made'' the very map that they're looking for, meaning that Percy inadvertently brought one of the few people who would know what they were looking for. What does all this mean? [[spoiler: You eventually meet Pettigrew later that year.]]
** In the beginning of Quidditch season 1, Skye is worried she would be kicked off the team because she is failing Charms. [[spoiler: At the end of season 1, the short-haired Beater mentions she's been practicing instead of doing her Potions essay. She was suspended in season 2 for this.]]
** In the Weird Sisters side quest, which could be triggered as early as Year 2, has a cryptic message [[spoiler: from 'R' about the Coral Key and "We can’t return to the Sunken Vault without it." You don't hear about the key or the Sunken Vault otherwise till the end of Year 5.]]

** The central plot(s) of the game, finding Jacob and solving the [[DrivingQuestion titular mystery]] of the Cursed Vaults. [[spoiler: You find Jacob in year 5 chapter 30, but he leaves to pursue Rakepick and much of him remains unknown. There is a bit of backstory of him with 'R', Duncan, and Olivia, the latter of which we know practically nothing about, it is not all clear yet and half the information we have is from [[{{Troll}} Duncan]]. Year 6 chapter 1 has Moody revealing he has is own investigation into 'R' worldwide - and apparently not working with Dumbledore, as they do not agree on how to move forward (year 6 chapter 21). Year 6 chapter 35 reveals that even after Rakepick's ousting, 'R' has a mole in Hogwarts. Alanza, an exchange student who arrived in year 6 chapter 22 (who has her ''own'' subplot about MC being her guide in Hogwarts), is one of the prime suspects. There is also the mystery of the quills. The white quill came from a white eagle owl seen with, but not necessarily owned by, Rakepick, but it has yet been revealed where all the black quills came from.]]
** The player character and Jacob's parents, [[spoiler: they have yet to physically appear, and [[AmbiguouslyAbsentParent their father doesn't seem to be mentioned at all]]. In year 4 side quest "Unleash Your Patronus" and year 5 chapter 18 mentions their mother and her relationship with her children (she was very strict but gradually became more supportive of MC's crusade over the years, but we don't know how much she knows), yet when found, Jacob refused to let her know he is alive. [[UnreliableNarrator We also don't know whether MC is entirely open/truthful about their parents.]]]]
** Rowan [[spoiler: or rather, how they died in year 6 chapter 18, [[NothingIsTheSameAnymore which impacts everything greatly.]] The collective grief over their death remains ongoing, although MC got some closure with the "Head Boys and Girls" side quest. Speaking of which, that is also likely to lead into another side quest on its own, just like the Prefect side quest.]]
** Chiara [[spoiler: being a werewolf, which plays a central role in "Howling Hallowe'en" and "Packmates". This, along with her increased confidence from MC's support, appears to be folding into the main story via ArcWelding in year 6. Ben and Talbott both saw her werewolf form and raised suspicions, while Diego questioned why she is so familiar with the moon phases.]]
** Talbott, [[spoiler: speaking of whom, has a MutualMasquerade with Chiara, who noted he is suspiciously silent when appearing in the forest. In his own side quests, he is facing pressure to register as an Animagus, yet is under threat from being hunted down by Death Eaters. The same applies more or less to the MC.]]
** Penny, [[spoiler: in regards to MC possibly confessing to fancying her in the main story in year 5 chapter 5, to which she said they would discuss after Beatrice is freed (which happened in year 5 chapter 30), but have yet to come to pass. Penny also has an epiphany on love in year 6 chapter 11 which ties into the reconciliation with Beatrice, played out in chapters 19, 20, and 28. Penny also took Rowan's death very hard, possibly the only one worse than MC, and cries a lot, which other characters have pointed out. She seems to have pulled herself together by the end of year 6, helping with finding the vaults and finally celebrating their victory over Rakepick.]]
** Beatrice, [[spoiler: who has the biggest character arc over year 6 with her struggles with identity and trauma, which seem to tend to be resolved towards the middle. Also seemingly has a crush on Jae in year 6 chapter 16.]]
** Jae, [[spoiler: and the shady dealings with Alistair. He got an invisibility cloak from Alistair, originally for a plan to sneak into a Ministry, which seems to have been dropped, and Jae was last seen wearing it in year 6, chapter 35 - what happened to it anyway (it was not used in the lake to avoid the creatures)? Jae was also frequently seen with Chiara, hinting at a possible history between them.]]

** Tulip, [[spoiler: who sought the Cursed Vaults even before meeting MC. With her hiding all combs that MC needed in year 6 chapter 39, more players are suspecting that she is still plotting behind MC's back. She's also the only romance option dropped after First Date and it was never explained, unlike Ben, Rowan, and Ismelda, who were dropped after Celestial Ball, who did have a scene together explaining that they lost interest.]]
** Ismelda, [[spoiler: speaking of whom, had the year 5 "Crushed" side quest at the end of which she realises she wants someone InLoveWithYourCarnage. It is uncertain how it would go with her adopting Beatrice as her MoralityPet and Ismelda seemingly working towards Circle of Khanna's goals instead.]]
*** Speaking of ''that'', Penny, Beatrice, Merula, and Ismelda in year 6, chapter 22 [[spoiler: were revealed to be brewing Felix Felicis with stolen ingredients to gain an edge over Rakepick, which was witnessed by Alanza. Since Felix Felicis takes six months to brew, it might be finished by the end of the year.]]
** Barnaby, [[spoiler: who had said he wanted the power of the Cursed Vaults to himself from the beginning. He also has his own "Renaissance Wizard" subplot throughout year 6, although generally PlayedForLaughs.]]
** Ben, [[spoiler: something of a Neville counterpart, extremely cowardly from year 1 to 5, but the traumatic experience at the end of year 5 caused him to snap to being an arrogant daredevil. However, throughout year 6 he seems to be undergoing a difficult but gradual transition to a more level-headed leader. On the other hand, he is also a common suspect as the mole from 'R'. He has fought MC while seemingly under some sort of control before in prior years, and so did Rowan, but it has not been explicitly stated what happened there. He wrote a letter to MC before the Buried Vault expressing his admiration, and it is only opened in year 6 chapter 43.]]
** Defence Against the Dark Arts, [[spoiler: where no teacher can hold the post for more than one year; after Rakepick's betrayal, we have yet to meet a new teacher in year 6, and we don't know whether Bill, as de facto teacher, will be affected.]]
** The piece of parchment in year 5 [[spoiler: that turned out to be Marauder's Map. If they follow book canon, Fred and George found it in Filch's office in their first year, or year 6 in this game. It was last known to be in Rakepick's possession - is it transferred to the Ministry like the rest of the artefacts she left behind? MC also met Peter Pettigrew (but was Obliviated), and found him as Scabbers with the map, but we have yet to know what that is all about. MC spotted someone moving across the map so quickly they can't see their name; Rakepick recognised it but did not reveal it, claiming it is the person who attacked Mundungus, but the Wizard in white robes (at least, that's what Mundungus claimed) shouldn't be able to get into the castle.]]
*** The other artefacts [[spoiler: that Rakepick presumably had in her possession, particularly the Gillyweed Key retrieved from Filch in Year 4, Chapter 8. There is also the Coral Key, which Ben and MC found with the help of Sickleworth and presumably still have. They ''look'' the same, but MC did not seem to recognise it and it is unknown whether it is the same.]]
** The lake [[spoiler: is hinted to be the location of the final vault in year 5 chapter 30, someone has been diving into it on a broom many times, and Trelawney and the centaurs also offered helpings of VaguenessIsComing about it. More specifically, its creatures are of interest. Grindylows are agitated, Charlie and Liz are training Murtlaps and other creatures to help, and Firenze told MC to study the constellation Cetus (sea monster).]]
** Side quests take place on a floating point on the timeline, so they can run concurrently with the main plot(s) at any time at or after their trigger chapter. "Packmates" is a year 2 side quest, but its dialogue changes significantly if done in year 6. There are 2 side quests that are definitely in year 6: [[spoiler: "Head Boys and Girls" which ties into Rowan's death plot in the main story, and "The Dragon's Treasure" which ties into Bill being the gang's DADA tutor.]]

* GambitPileup: the player and their friends want to open the vaults to find Jacob, Merula wants to open them and end the curses for the glory that goes along with it (and possibly to spite the player), R, Jacob, Rakepick, and [[spoiler: the Cabal]] each have their own [[spoiler: that may or may not overlap, given their history]], and in the midst of all this, [[spoiler: Peter Pettigrew]] just wants to get the Marauder's Map back. And [[TheChessmaster Dumbledore]] and Snape may have their own plans for the player as well.

** After the events of Year 5, Chapter 30, [[spoiler: DADA class is locked since Rakepick has pulled a double-cross and Apparated to who knows where.]]

** As part of the Quidditch sidequest, you become friends with Murphy [=McNully=]. But, he's never available to play Gobstones...presumably because he uses a wheelchair and can't sit on the ground to play.

** Halfway or so through Year 5, [[spoiler: Rowan accuses the player of never talking to their friends unless they want something]] despite the fact you might have most of them maxed out by this point.

** Year 6, Chapter 45 [[spoiler: sees Merula Apparating away with a dark witch to join with "R". You can naturally see her participating in class just fine right afterwards as if nothing is out of the ordinary.]]

** In year 6, [[spoiler: other than MC, the Circle of Khanna has 14 founding members, exactly 7 males and 7 females. Technically, if MC is male, founding members are still equal as Chiara was invited to be one but did not attend the meeting due to personal issues.]]

* TheGhost: We hear a lot about the mishaps of a student named Billingsley without ever meeting him. We also have yet to meet any DADA teacher [[spoiler: other than Rakepick]], but it is a RunningGag that they are all terrible. Ron and Ginny are also conspicuously absent in a couple of cases: "A Very Weasley Christmas" where you visit the Burrow for Christmas, but they are among the Weasley kids ill with the flu and don't appear. They also do not appear at the end of year 5 when the Weasleys gathered at Hogsmeade to celebrate Bill's graduation, as they've ran off to Zonko's with the twins.

** Barnaby is introduced as the dumb muscle of Merula's gang. Once you befriend him, you learn that he is fascinated by all things magical creatures and loves caring for them more than anything. He also [[spoiler: defeats both Ismelda and Merula in a two-on-one duel to buy the player more time]]. He's still quite dumb, though.

** During the Frog Choir event, Merula confesses to the player that she's so obsessed with joining the Frog Choir because her mother was a member and used to sing Merula to sleep before she was arrested and sent to Azkaban, so she's trying to join as an attempt to make her mother proud. [[spoiler: If you choose to give her the position in the choir, she retracts the whole story, although Tulip thinks that she was telling the truth the first time and only trying to save herself from the embarrassment of being vulnerable to the player.]]
* HopelessBossFight: [[spoiler: Merula challenges you to a wandless duel in year 7, and your spells only do two base damage to her. Even if you massively outlevel her in stats and win thanks to the desparity, the resulting dialogue shows you losing, although she'll compliment you putting up a good fight in that case.]]

* InterfaceSpoiler: You're given a travel icon for the Prefects' Bathroom, despite it being only for prefects. So it's no wonder that a sidequest opened up the fourth year enabling you to become a prefect starting your fifth year. The Whomping Willow also has an icon that, when tapped, says that it can only be accessed in year 6, prior to year 6's release. Honeydukes similarly says it can only be accessed in year 7, currently unreleased.

** The pop-up interface of Lone Wolf/Packmates plainly states you will meet Remus Lupin [[spoiler: even though Chiara spends the whole sidequest avoiding telling you she's been meeting him.]]

* MeaningfulBackgroundEvent: Observant players may notice a blue beetle hanging around during your courtyard chat with Dumbledore in year 4. [[spoiler: It's your first hint that Rita Skeeter has been eavesdropping in her Animagus form]].
* MoodWhiplash: In January 2021, [[spoiler: a TLSQ where Merula is turned into a Puffskein and hijinks ensue is immediately followed by chapter 45 where she turns out to be the mole.]]

* {{Mundangerous}}: In year 6, [[spoiler: while the circumstances of Rowan's death are relatively fantastical, this trope is played straight when Penny found out her little sister Beatrice has snuck out after curfew and ran into a dangerous fugitive.]]
* MutualMasquerade: Between Chiara and Talbott. [[spoiler: They do not know each other as secretly a werewolf and an Animagus. In the year 6 main story, Talbott and MC were in the forest while Chiara, in her in-control werewolf form (thanks to Wolfsbane Potion) watched over them, but when Chiara howled to warn them something is coming, Talbott immediately drew his wand at her. In the Head Boy/Girl side quest, when Chiara and MC were in the forest, Talbott landed behind Chiara in eagle form and transformed back before she turned around and questioned why she did not hear him approaching.]]
* MythologyGag:

* ObviouslyEvil: As soon as the player sees that [[spoiler: Bill's crush]] is dressed head to toe in Umbridge-pink, they can guess how things will turn out.

** In Year 5, Merula says she feels sorry for [[spoiler: Penny's sister Beatrice getting trapped inside a painting]]. She also attends Hagrid's surprise birthday party in a sidequest despite not even getting invited by the player character.

** [[spoiler: Madame Rakepick]] takes more and more drastic actions, including demonstrating ''and teaching'' unforgivable curses and [[spoiler: breaking the player's wand]]. Still, when the player is attacked and oblivated by [[spoiler: Peter Pettigrew]], she does show genuine concern for their safety.

* RedEyesTakeWarning: [[spoiler: Voldemort]], natch. At least it's just a Boggart.

** Tonks's Patronus is mentioned to have changed from something else to a wolf in the sixth book, but it is only revealed to have been a jackrabbit from a single line of text on Pottermore. "Unleash Your Patronus" [[spoiler: shows that Tonks had mastered it by her fourth year, using it to banish a dementor from school grounds and teaches MC to do the same.]]

** Going hand in hand with Charlie being an AscendedExtra in the game from the books/films where he barely appears, Charlie's affinity with dragons is also greatly expanded upon. In particular, [[spoiler: the "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" sidequest in year 6 largely takes place at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, where Charlie is mentioned to work in the books and is the first time this location is actually seen.]]
** The entire main story of the game can be considered to be this, as it is based on the concept of Curse-Breaking, which is only briefly mentioned a few times in the books. Bill Weasley is mentioned to be a Curse-Breaker, with a couple of lines implying what the job entails, while "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" [[spoiler: actually shows him at his workplace, receiving and completing an assignment.]]

** In Valentine's Day Ball, [[spoiler: a major plot is the relationship between Pince and Filch, which has been hinted at by about two sentences in the books.]]

* ShellShockedVeteran: Since most of the cast is made up of children and teenagers, the constant stress and dangers of the Vaults end up taking a heavy toll on everyone, especially after [[spoiler: Rowan's death]]. The main character, Ben, Merula, Charlie, Penny and Beatrice all shown realistic signs and symptoms of developing PTSD as the story progresses, several chapters are about the characters trying to recognize and deal with their traumas, and the adult staff of Hogwarts express concern multiple times about the mental health of the students and the way everything has affected them.

** Using the Riddikulus-charm on the [[spoiler: Voldemort]]Boggart turns it into a clown and makes it do a jig like Pennywise in ''Film/It2017''.

* TakingTheBullet: MC flies in the way of a Bludger Erika Rath aimed at the Seeker, allowing them to win the match.

** Emily Tyler, Bill's crush in a Year 3 side quest, disappears as soon as the quest is over. [[spoiler: Until she returns as Penny's rival to get elected as head of the Celestial Ball Planning Committee.]] She also makes fun of Ismelda for her crush on Barnaby in a Year 5 side quest.

* TragicKeepsake: [[spoiler: After Rowan's death, during "Head Boys and Girls", Dumbledore would indirectly give you Rowan's hat, scarf, or sweater, depending on what you picked back at the very beginning of the game.]]

* UngratefulBastard: No matter how many house points the player accumulates [[spoiler: and the 100 house points Dumbledore gives you at the end of your first year]] (and the class grinding almost guarantees your player will always be first in the leaderboard), there will always be some snide upperclassman pointing out your loss of house points in the first few chapters, with your prefect asking what you've been doing to help the house.

* VertigoEffect: done when Snape [[spoiler: and the player]] cast Legilimency.

** And now, you get to take care of and adopt magical creatures. It’s purely for entertainment once they’re finished up.
** Gobstones are a strange case, in which to win most easily, you often have to say mean or insensitive things to "distract" them. For example, when playing against Chiara, [[spoiler: the player had to remind her of being a werewolf to get most points. This trope comes into play when some players refuse to pick the easy option, and instead use their high attribute points to win at gobstones anyway while picking the "wrong", nice options.]]

** Wearing the werewolf onesie outfit from its Full Marks event may count as this [[spoiler: especially if your character is a Hufflepuff girl, as she would share a dormitory with Chiara, who is secretly a werewolf dreading her condition, and Penny, who is deathly afraid of werewolves]].

* VomitIndiscretionShot: During an excursion to [[spoiler: Knockturn Alley]], your companion (either Bill, Merula, or Jae) will get hit with a curse that causes them to vomit slugs until you cast Finite Incantatem.

* WaterIsAir: [[spoiler: Going underwater in year 6 chapter 37 and after gets pretty bad about this. You do need the Bubble-Head Charm and it is said to be "dark and murky", but otherwise, you can simply walk on the lake floor, no mention of cold, no flow in hair or clothes, and you can use Incendio underwater despite Merula specifically claiming you can't in chapter 41.]]

** Chapter 39 of Year 7. [[spoiler: After being tricked into reaching a Portkey mirror, the Player has finally a confrontation with the Director and R’s leader, who turn out to be Merula’s abusive aunt and the Player’s father respectively.]]

* OffModel: Faces in loading screens, especially those in the background, tend to look a little off. Not very noticeable on a phone, but doesn't hold up as well on a computer. [[https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/467438557225811979/805097841000448080/unknown.png?width=919&height=613 The Valentine Ball loading screen]], for instance, which also has a problem with the tilt; once corrected, it is very noticeable that Chiara is drawn without regards to it, and is standing at an unnatural angle.

* WhamEpisode: Chapter 18 of Year 6. [[spoiler:Rowan, your loyal best friend who has been with you from the very start of the game, takes the killing curse for Ben and ''dies.'' Almost nobody had seen this coming, and it was a shock considering how few real consequences the player had suffered at this point from never listening to Dumbledore's advice to keep out of danger.]]

* ExpandedUniverse: This game contributes a massive chunk of plot to the Harry Potter Expanded Universe. As of the end of 2020, the game has 124 chapters of varying lengths (which may also depend on how fast you play through it). There are also 30+ side quests, many of which has equivalent of multiple chapters, and entire seasons of Quidditch. A very, very rough estimate would be somewhere in the ballpark of 100 hours of story, dwarfing the films' total length. See also SidenoteFullStory below.

* SidenoteFullStory: Quite a few of them.
** Tonks's Patronus is mentioned to have changed from something else to a wolf in the sixth book, but it is only revealed to have been a jackrabbit from a single line of text on Pottermore. "Unleash Your Patronus" [[spoiler: shows that Tonks had mastered it by her fourth year, using it to banish a dementor from school grounds and teaches MC to do the same.]]
** Tonks's FormerTeenRebel status is mentioned in a single line in the fifth book. Here, practically every other scene she's in, she's getting into some sort of trouble, particularly in year 5.
** Going hand in hand with Charlie being an AscendedExtra in the game from the books/films where he barely appears, Charlie's affinity with dragons is also greatly expanded upon. In particular, [[spoiler: the "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" sidequest in year 6 largely takes place at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, where Charlie is mentioned to work in the books and is the first time this location is actually seen.]]
** The entire main story of the game can be considered to be this, as it is based on the concept of Curse-Breaking, which is only briefly mentioned a few times in the books. Bill Weasley is mentioned to be a Curse-Breaker, with a couple of lines implying what the job entails, while "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" [[spoiler: actually shows him at his workplace, receiving and completing an assignment.]]
** In the 3rd anniversary livestream, it is revealed that the entire Cursed Vault storyline is based on ''a single line'' in Chamber of Secrets where Ron offhandedly said that Bill may have mentioned hidden rooms in Hogwarts before.
** A minor one, but the cursed barrier spell - [[spoiler:used in the sixth book to prevent anyone without a Dark Mark from going up the Astronomy Tower - appeared to only be named in this game, and Bill reverse-engineered it to create a spell that blocks anyone with a Dark Mark instead, and teaches that in a DADA class.]]
** Several species of magical creatures that are only mentioned very briefly in the books each have side quests dedicated to them.
** A cross between this and AdaptationExpansion are the classes in general, but especially Flying class, which only appeared a single time in the first book/film. Here, there are multiple Flying classes every year showing students gradually learning an array of increasingly difficult aerial manoeuvres. Astronomy classes were mostly passing mentions of homework in the books, Professor Sinistra did not have any lines, and Astronomy itself was never plot-relevant. Here, there are multiple Astronomy lessons in year 6 that goes over a variety of cosmic phenomena with surprising scientific accuracy (and occasionally [[ViewersAreGeniuses obscurity]]), Sinistra has dialogue and a personality, and [[spoiler:MC was asked by the centaurs to study the constellation of Cetus in one of the lessons, strongly implied it will be important later.]] Muggle Studies is also a fully playable subject in year 7, when it was only briefly mentioned in the books.
** In Valentine's Day Ball, [[spoiler: a major plot is the relationship between Pince and Filch, which has been hinted at by about two sentences in the books.]]

[[PlayerAndProtagonistIntegration Your 11-year-old self]] receives your owl to Hogwarts. There's just one problem - your older brother Jacob is missing, and may have gone in search of the mysterious Cursed Vaults rumoured to be deep in Hogwarts. Over the next seven years, you will hone your magical skills, make new friends, and gather clues to find out what has happened to your brother...if he's still alive.

** Dumbledore's appearance matches more closely to Creator/RichardHarris (who played Dumbledore in the first two movies) than Creator/MichaelGambon (who took over the role after Harris's death), but Flitwick's appearance is based off of his ''[[Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerofAzkaban Prisoner of Azkaban]]''-on design.

** [[spoiler: Voldemort's]] appearance is based on his actor in the films starting from his [[spoiler:resurrection in ''Goblet of Fire''.]] However, his [[spoiler:eyes are red]] as they were mentioned to be in the books.

* AnimalMotifs: A small one in Valentine's Day that borders on EasterEgg: [[spoiler: at the end of your date in the Greenhouse, you can see an animal lurking somewhere on the side that changes depend on who you took as a date. For Talbott, there is an owl at the broken window in the ceiling. For Barnaby, there is a bowtruckle lurking in the plants. For Penny, there is a Puffskein on the tables. For Merula, it is only visible if you scroll all the way to the left, where a Thestral can be seen poking its head in. For Andre, there are two additional bunches of flowers on the ground instead.]]

** Players can partially restore lost Energy by tapping certain parts of the scenery, such as [[spoiler: tapping a house-elf in the Dungeons, playing fetch with Fang on the school grounds, or tapping on Peeves in the East Tower]]. While these energy sources have a strict cooldown period, they at least provide an option for those who have run out of Energy and need it fast.

** Later updates make gathering energy easier. Rewards for leveling up friendships via lunches, Gobstones, and drinking butterbeer include various amounts of energy, and when the duelling club was added, participating in it and winning a given number of times awards you energy as well as unique items. Playing with your pets in your dormitory also adds energy.

*** Mahoutokoro, the Japanese wizarding school, was never mentioned in the books or films and only appeared on the Wizarding World site. [[spoiler: In the game, a major antagonist in year 5 and 6 is an expelled student from Mahoutokoro, and the story also goes over some of their customs and tradition.]]

** A House's total points is capped at 9999. Your personal points are not capped though.

** In year 4, the Player has to travel to the Forbidden Forest to search for the [[spoiler: the Forest Vault]]. By that point, it's possible that the Player had become an Animagus in year 3 and one of the choices being an eagle. They could have easily flown to the Forbidden Forest as a bird instead of using a broom, like Talbott (who is also an eagle) often does, but the Player doesn't even consider the option.

** During Celestial Ball, Emily will reference that time when Bill had a crush on her even if you didn't do that side quest.
** During Christmas season, the snowy day background appears in side quests where it would make no sense, like in the very summery Festival Fun, or for the night scenes at the end of First Date, and at the beginning of Head Boys and Girls (the section is even called "A Visitor in the Night"). Particularly jarring is Lone Wolf, [[spoiler: where in this case Chiara would be shown glancing at the ''sun'' before transforming.]]

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In year 5, when the Weasleys and Nearly Headless Nick help the player search for the Marauder's Map. A lot of emphasis is put on Percy and the fact that he brought his pet rat Scabbers with him. Anyone who's read [[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban the third book]] knows that Scabbers is an animagus named Peter Pettigrew who spent 12 years (approximately 10 at the time) as a rat hiding with the Weasleys. Moreover, Pettigrew is one of the Marauders who ''made'' the very map that they're looking for, meaning that Percy inadvertently brought one of the few people who would know what they were looking for. What does all this mean? [[spoiler: You eventually meet Pettigrew later that year.]]

** Talbott, [[spoiler:speaking of whom, has a MutualMasquerade with Chiara, who noted he is suspiciously silent when appearing in the forest. In his own side quests, he is facing pressure to register as an Animagus, yet is under threat from being hunted down by Death Eaters. The same applies more or less to the MC.]]
** Penny, [[spoiler:in regards to MC possibly confessing to fancying her in the main story in year 5 chapter 5, to which she said they would discuss after Beatrice is freed (which happened in year 5 chapter 30), but have yet to come to pass. Penny also has an epiphany on love in year 6 chapter 11 which ties into the reconciliation with Beatrice, played out in chapters 19, 20, and 28. Penny also took Rowan's death very hard, possibly the only one worse than MC, and cries a lot, which other characters have pointed out. She seems to be have pulled herself together by the end of year 6, helping with finding the vaults and finally celebrating their victory over Rakepick.]]
** Beatrice, [[spoiler:who has the biggest character arc over year 6 with her struggles with identity and trauma, which seem to tend to be resolved towards the middle. Also seemingly has a crush on Jae in year 6 chapter 16.]]
** Jae, [[spoiler:and the shady dealings with Alistair. He got an invisibility cloak from Alistair, originally for a plan to sneak into a Ministry, which seems to have been dropped, and Jae was last seen wearing it in year 6, chapter 35 - what happened to it anyway (it was not used in the lake to avoid the creatures)? Jae was also frequently seen with Chiara, hinting at a possible history between them.]]

** Tulip, [[spoiler:who sought the Cursed Vaults even before meeting MC. With her hiding all combs that MC needed in year 6 chapter 39, more players are suspecting that she is still plotting behind's MC's back. She's also the only romance option dropped after First Date and it was never explained, unlike Ben, Rowan, and Ismelda who were dropped after Celestial Ball, who did have a scene together explaining that they lost interest.]]
** Ismelda, [[spoiler:speaking of whom, had the year 5 "Crushed" side quest at the end of which she realises she wants someone InLoveWithYourCarnage. It is uncertain how it would go with her adopting Beatrice as her MoralityPet and Ismelda seemingly working towards Circle of Khanna's goals instead.]]

** Barnaby, [[spoiler:who had said he wanted the power of the Cursed Vaults to himself from the beginning. He also has his own "Renaissance Wizard" subplot throughout year 6, although generally PlayedForLaughs.]]

** After the events of Year 5, Chapter 30, [[spoiler: DADA class is locked, since Rakepick has pulled a double-cross and Apparated to who knows where.]]
** When you unlock Fred and George Weasley and Cedric Diggory as friends in Year 6, you can't take them to Hogsmeade for butterbeer friendship events, since only third-years or later are permitted.

** Halfway or so through Year 5, [[spoiler: Rowan accuses the player of never talking to their friends unless they want something]], despite the fact you might have most of them maxed out by this point.

** Year 6, Chapter 45 [[spoiler: sees Merula Apparating away with a dark witch to join with "R". You can naturally see her participating in class just fine right afterwards, as if nothing is out of the ordinary.]]

** In year 6, [[spoiler:other than MC, the Circle of Khanna has 14 founding members, exactly 7 males and 7 females. Technically, if MC is male, founding members are still equal as Chiara was invited to be one but did not attend the meeting due to personal issues.]]

** Barnaby is introduced as the dumb muscle of Merula's gang. Once you befriend him, you learn that he is fascinated by all things magical creatures, and loves caring for them more than anything. He also [[spoiler: defeats both Ismelda and Merula in a two-on-one duel to buy the player more time]]. He's still quite dumb, though.

** During the Frog Choir event, Merula confesses to the player that she's so obsessed with joining the Frog Choir because her mother was a member, and used to sing Merula to sleep before she was arrested and sent to Azkaban, so she's trying to join as an attempt to make her mother proud. [[spoiler:If you choose to give her the position in the choir, she retracts the whole story, although Tulip thinks that she was telling the truth the first time and only trying to save herself from the embarrassment of being vulnerable to the player.]]

** Every single character that can be befriended (25 of them) show up in the friendship interface, even though you only meet 5 of them in year 1. Another 5 of them (Tonks, Tulup, Barnaby, André, and Charlie) has a description that tells you when you will meet them.
** The pop-up interface of Lone Wolf/Packmates plainly states you will meet Remus Lupin, [[spoiler: even though Chiara spends the whole sidequest avoiding telling you she's been meeting him.]]

* MeaningfulBackgroundEvent: Observant players may notice a blue beetle hanging around during your courtyard chat with Dumbledore in year 4. [[spoiler:It's your first hint that Rita Skeeter has been eavesdropping in her Animagus form]].
* MoodWhiplash: In January 2021, [[spoiler:a TLSQ where Merula is turned into a Puffskein and hijinks ensue is immediately followed by chapter 45 where she turns out to be the mole.]]

* MundaneSolution: Your team is stumped trying to get a painted door to open, after ''Alohomora'' doesn't work. Ben manages by knocking on it.
* {{Mundangerous}}: In year 6, [[spoiler:while the circumstances of Rowan's death is relatively fantastical, this trope is played straight when Penny found out her little sister Beatrice has snuck out after curfew and ran into a dangerous fugitive.]]
* MutualMasquerade: Between Chiara and Talbott. [[spoiler:They do not know each other as secretly a werewolf and an Animagus. In the year 6 main story, Talbott and MC were in the forest while Chiara, in her in-control werewolf form (thanks to Wolfsbane Potion) watched over them, but when Chiara howled to warn them something is coming, Talbott immediately drew his wand at her. In the Head Boy/Girl side quest, when Chiara and MC were in the forest, Talbott landed behind Chiara in eagle form and transformed back before she turned around and questioned why she did not hear him approaching.]]

** In Year 5, Merula says she feels sorry for [[spoiler:Penny's sister Beatrice getting trapped inside a painting]]. She also attends Hagrid's surprise birthday party in a sidequest despite not even getting invited by the player character.

** [[spoiler:Madame Rakepick]] takes more and more drastic actions, including demonstrating ''and teaching'' unforgivable curses and [[spoiler:breaking the player's wand]]. Still, when the player is attacked and oblivated by [[spoiler:Peter Pettigrew]], she does show genuine concern for their safety.

* RelationshipValues: You could already make friends with other students via sharing lunch, gobstones and mugs of butterbeer, but a later update added romance options bolstered by dating in Hagrid's garden or the school courtyard. Nothing locks you in to having a single romantic partner, though it has been announced that later updates would feature content related to exclusive relationships.

** Using the Riddikulus-charm on the [[spoiler:Voldemort]]Boggart turns it into a clown and makes it do a jig like Pennywise in ''Film/It2017''.

** Tonks' patronus is mentioned to have changed from something else to a wolf in the sixth book, but it is only revealed to have been a jack rabbit from a single line of text on Pottermore. "Unleash Your Patronus" [[spoiler:shows that Tonks had mastered it by her fourth year, using it to banish a dementor from school grounds and teaches MC to do the same.]]
** Tonks' FormerTeenRebel status is mentioned in a single line in the fifth book. Here, practically every other scene she's in, she's getting into some sort of trouble, particularly in year 5.
** Going hand in hand with Charlie being an AscendedExtra in the game from the books/films where he barely appears, Charlie's affinity with dragons is also greatly expanded upon. In particular, [[spoiler:the "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" sidequest in year 6 largely takes place at the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, where Charlie is mentioned to work at in the books, and is the first time this location is actually seen.]]
** The entire main story of the game can be considered to be this, as it is based on the concept of Curse-Breaking, which is only briefly mentioned a few times in the books. Bill Weasley is mentioned to be a Curse-Breaker, with a couple lines implying what the job entails, while "Adventures in Curse-Breaking" [[spoiler: actually shows him at his workplace, receiving and completing an assignment.]]

** In Valentine's Day Ball, [[spoiler:a major plot is the relationship between Pince and Filch, which has been hinted at by about two sentences in the books.]]

* StatusEffects: Some dueling spells are capable of causing them. There's Stun, which prevents a successful action from the affected character for a turn; and there's DamageOverTime, which includes nausea, bleeding and burning.

* TacticalRockPaperScissors: The StanceSystem for dueling works this way. Sneaky defeats Defensive, Aggressive defeats Sneaky and Defensive defeats Aggressive.

* TerribleTrio: Merula, Barnaby and Ismelda.

** Emily Tyler, Bill's crush in a Year 3 side quest, disappears as soon as the quest is over. [[spoiler:Until she returns as Penny's rival to get elected as head of the Celestial Ball Planning Committee.]] She also makes fun of Ismelda for her crush on Barnaby in a Year 5 side quest.
** Talbott, the student who helps you become an animagus, returns in Year 5 when you talk to the Grey Lady.

* TragicKeepsake: [[spoiler:After Rowan's death, during "Head Boys and Girls", Dumbledore would indirectly give you Rowan's hat, scarf, or sweater, depending on what you picked back at the very beginning of the game.]]

* UngratefulBastard: No matter how many house points the player accumulates [[spoiler:and the 100 house points Dumbledore gives you at the end of your first year]] (and the class grinding almost guarantees your player will always be first in the leaderboard), there will always be some snide upperclassman pointing out your loss of house points in the first few chapters, with your prefect asking what you've been doing to help the house.

** Wearing the werewolf onesie outfit from its Full Marks event may count as this [[spoiler:especially if your character is a Hufflepuff girl, as she would share a dormitory with Chiara, who is secretly a werewolf dreading her condition, and Penny, who is deathly afraid of werewolves]].

* VomitIndiscretionShot: During an excursion to [[spoiler:Knockturn Alley]], your companion (either Bill, Merula, or Jae) will get hit with a curse that causes them to vomit slugs until you cast finite incantatem.

* WardrobeMalfunction: Averted and discussed when Myron congratulates the player character for singing to Snape "without freezing up, messing up your lyrics or ripping a hole in your trousers!"

** [[spoiler:Voldemort's]] appearance is based on his actor in the films starting from his [[spoiler:resurrection in ''Goblet of Fire''.]] However, his [[spoiler:eyes are red]] as they were mentioned to be in the books.
** Hermione's dress as a reward customisation item is based on the fourth film, but is blue like in the books.
* AdvertisedExtra: Andre in the page image, despite the fairly minor role he plays. He is also in front of Penny who plays a much bigger part.

* AlasPoorVillain: In the Frog Choir event, Merula confesses to the player that she's so competitive about joining the frog choir because her mother was a member, and used to sing Merula to sleep before she was arrested and taken to Azkaban. When the player is selected to join the choir, Merula even whispers "I'm sorry, Mom." [[spoiler:She does claim that this story was a manipulative sob story if you choose to give her the spot instead, and MC accuses her of lying, but Tulip claims that this was only deflection to avoid feeling bad about being vulnerable to the player. [[ExactWords Merula never actually said it was a lie.]]]]

* AmbiguouslyBi: Besides the fact that EveryoneIsBi, Rowan and Diego especially come across as this if the player character is male. Rowan gets ''very'' flustered over talking to Bill during the Celestial Ball event, and Deigo will flirt with the player within seconds of meeting him, is president of the dance club, and dresses even better than Andre, the self-proclaimed fashion expert.

* AnAssKickingChristmas: While the game has a hazy connection to real-life dates, [[spoiler:year 6 chapter 42, where you open the Sunken Vault and finally defeat Rakepick, was released on Christmas Eve, and Hogwarts was indeed decorated for Christmas.]]

* AnimalMotifs: A small one in Valentine's Day that borders on EasterEgg: [[spoiler:at the end of your date in the Greenhouse, you can see an animal lurking somewhere on the side that changes depend on who you took as a date. For Talbott, there is an owl at the broken window in the ceiling. For Barnaby, there is a bowtruckle lurking in the plants. For Penny, there is a Puffskein on the tables. For Merula, it is only visible if you scroll all the way to the left, where a Thestral can be seen poking its head in. For Andre, there are two additional bunches of flowers on the ground instead.]]

** Players can partially restore lost Energy by tapping certain parts of the scenery, such as [[spoiler:tapping a house-elf in the Dungeons, playing fetch with Fang on the school grounds or tapping on Peeves in the East Tower]]. While these energy sources have a strict cooldown period, they at least provide an option for those who have run out of Energy and need it fast.

** Later updates make gathering energy easier. Rewards for leveling up friendships via lunches, Gobstones and drinking butterbeer include various amounts of energy, and when the duelling club was added, participating in it and winning a given number of times awards you energy as well as unique items. Playing with your pets in your dormitory also adds energy.
** Any time you encounter a situation where, in canon, characters have no control over an outcome, you are instead allowed to influence it to you liking. It started from the very moment you pick your house instead of being properly sorted, and it also affects your Animagus and Patronus forms.[[note]]The latter has subtler variations decided by your stats and past conversations, but since you likely want your stats to be as high as possible across the board, it takes more work to exert exact influence on your Patronus, but it's still possible.[[/note]]

*** Castelobruxo, the Brazillian wizarding school was mentioned in passing, unnamed, in the fourth book. [[spoiler:In the game, Alanza Alves, a major character in year 6, is from Castelobruxo.]]
*** Mahoutokoro, the Japanese wizarding school, was never mentioned in the books or films and only appeared on the Wizarding World site. [[spoiler:In the game, a major antagonist in year 5 and 6 is an expelled student from Mahoutokoro, and the story also goes over some of their customs and tradition.]]

* BatmanGambit: There are, apparently, '''''five''''' going on in the game: The player has one in opening the vaults, [[spoiler:Pettigrew]] is doing... something... Dumbledore, as usual, knows literally everything, [[spoiler:Rakepick]] is screwing everyone over and we have no clue what [[spoiler:'R']] and [[spoiler:The 'Cabal']] are up too!

* BigDamnHeroes: While looking for Mundungus Fletcher in Year 5, the player and their companion are accosted by a gang of dark witches and wizards in Knockturn Alley, who duel the player and make the player's companion vomit slugs. Even after losing the duel, they threaten to attack the player and companion until [[spoiler:Rakepick arrives, stuns two, and threatens to use the killing curse on the rest if they don't back off.]] Her reputation precedes her, and they relent.

* {{Bowdlerise}}: In the books or films, a werewolf's transformation is more horrific and monstrous. [[spoiler:Fenrir transforms on-screen, but hidden in a black cloud. Chiara's tranformation is entirely avoided with a DiscretionShot.]]

** One of the game's most heavily criticized features is the "energy" function, which requires you to suffer through constant waiting periods just to make progress. Players looking for uninterrupted game play will either have to pay up with real-world money or look elsewhere. It gets very egregious once you get about an hour into the game where your character is getting strangled to death by a Devil's Snare. The encounter is specifically designed that it will sap ALL of your energy, EVEN IF YOU START WITH MAX. In order to break free you must either wait for enough energy to replenish, or cough up the dough.

* ButForMeItWasTuesday: This trope gets namechecked when [[spoiler:Gilderoy Lockheart]] brags that "Even my ordinary Tuesdays become bestsellers."

* CallBack: In year 6, chapter 11, [[spoiler:when Rowan and MC gets reacquainted, Rowan calls back to year 1 events like teaching them Rictusempra, and MC befriending Penny.]]

* CanonForeigner: While almost all of the teachers are the same as the ones that Harry has a little over seven years after your first year (save for Kettleburn, who was TheGhost in the series and replaced by Hagrid when Harry actually began taking Care of Magical Creatures, and [[spoiler:Rakepick]], who Harry never met on behalf of the position being cursed), the students you meet along the way are entirely original except for the five oldest Weasley boys, Nymphadora Tonks, and Cedric Diggory.

* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: Everyone wears their school robes while in class, which allows you to tell which house they are in. In later years, some character are introduced outside of school, like Chiara, who took a while to be identified as a Hufflepuff.
** In "Valentine's Day", [[spoiler:the trinket you receive has a different coloured heart depending on who you got it from: yellow for Penny, green for Merula, red for Barnaby, blue for Talbott, and purple for Andre.]]

** One of the random questions in Herbology class is Tonks asking how to check if a door has the Imperturbable Charm cast on it. In the fifth book Ginny reveals Tonks told her how (throw stuff at it).

** Lots of nods in the teacher appreciation side quest. [[spoiler:[=McGonagall=]'s past work in the ministry again, her Muggle father and witch mother, and she also indirectly refers to herself being recently widowed (the side quest is triggered in early year 2, or late 1985, same year as her husband's death), all which are on the Wizarding World site only. She also hinted at creating the giant chessboard in the first book. Half of Quirrell's dialogue is foreshadowing his role in the first book.]]
** The All-Wizard Tournament sidequest mentions doxy eggs being an ingredient in Girding Potion, which is only from the video games for book 2, 3, and 6.

* ContinuitySnarl: The entire Quidditch storyline. [[note]]Each season is ''supposed'' to correspond to each in-universe year, but it runs parallel and independently from the main storyline, e.g. it is possible to be a sixth-year student in the first season, or a second-year in the second season, varying from player to player. Main storyline plot points released prior to Quidditch sometimes contradict them, such as in year 4 chapter 2 Madam Hooch indicates MC is not on the Quidditch team yet. Charlie and Andre are often also referred to as a the best Quidditch players prior to the release of the storyline, and they are nowhere to be seen on the team. One tiny thing that Quidditch storyline ''is'' affected by is if you dated Penny at any point, one scene where Penny says "Suppose it's just us today!" she would do the lovestruck animation. There is also a HandWave added to the year 4 storyline where you have to find a broom, since Skye would have gifted you a broomstick during the Quidditch storyline; it is said to be locked up and not available outside of Quidditch practice and matches.[[/note]]
** Similarly, working with magical creatures in the reserve is separate from the main story, and in the latter MC will generally not indicate they had extensive experience with the creatures.
*** Even if the Player does the Thestral sidequest after [[spoiler:they, Merula, and Ben witness Rowan's murder]], they still act pretty surprised that [[spoiler:Merula had experienced death and Hagrid only references Merula seeing Thestrals even though by that point the Player and Ben had also witnessed death]].

** Chiara is particularly plagued by this. [[note]][[spoiler:"Howling Hallowe'en" (year 1 sidequest) has Chiara revealing that she is a werewolf and asking for help as she ran out of Wolfsbane Potion and needed Penny to brew more, with Penny mentioning that she had a friend killed by a werewolf and hence her hesitation. "Penny For Your Thoughts" (year 3) was released ''before'' "Howling Hallowe'en", and has Penny explaining her friend was killed by a werewolf ''last summer''. And then we have "Ordinary Wizarding Levels" (year 5 sidequest), where you "meet" Chiara for the first time again. Chiara plays a significant role in year 6 (and the Head Boy/Girl side quest), and is the central character in "Packmates" (year 2 sidequest), but it seems even if you have done either of those but not "Howling Hallowe'en", when "Howling Hallowe'en" reruns again at Halloween you act like you never met her.]][[/note]]
** In year 4, the Player has to travel to the Forbidden Forest to search for the [[spoiler:the Forest Vault]]. By that point, it's possible that the Player had become an Animagus in year 3 and one of the choices being an eagle. They could have easily flown to the Forbidden Forest as a bird instead of using a broom, like Talbott (who is also an eagle) often does, but the Player doesn't even consider the option.
** Many side quests released when the game was already in higher years, but can be triggered in lower years, often have characters act like they're in higher years. [[note]]Ben is one notable exception in "Lone Wolf", probably because he has a sudden personality shift between year 5 and 6. "Welcome to the Sphinx Club" can be triggered as early as year 3, chapter 2 - the same chapter where Ismelda and Barnaby were introduced in the main story, but they were supposed to be purely antagonistic at this point. And of course, [[spoiler:Merula doesn't get stuck as a Flobberworm/Puffskein in other parts of the game even if you leave the side quest hanging.]][[/note]]
** The romance sidequests have very limited effect on the main story, even if they are acknowledged a few times. [[note]]Particularly controversial and jarring is [[spoiler:"distraught Penny" and "lovey-dovey Penny" simultaneously existing in year 5's main story and the Valentine's Day sidequest. You can also confess feelings to Penny in year 5, who would be shocked even if you took her to the Celestial Ball and went on the First Date with her (the [[WatsonianVersusDoylist Doylist]] reason is that Celestial Ball and First Date were released ''after'' that moment, even though those two side quests can be triggered in year 4).]][[/note]]

** During Christmas season, the snowy day background appears in side quests where it would make no sense, like in the very summery Festival Fun, or for the night scenes at the end of First Date, and at the beginning of Head Boys and Girls (the section is even called "A Visitor in the Night"). Particularly jarring is Lone Wolf, [[spoiler:where in this case Chiara would be shown glancing at the ''sun'' before transforming.]]

** You can befriend Dobby after the Meet the Malfoys sidequest, which would seem to contradict the books, unless MC is female, since Dobby in the books said no ''[[ExactWords wizard]]'' has ever treated him like an equal.
** An Enchanted Kiss, released when year 7 is already out but triggered in year 5 chapter 13, has Diego play an extensive role, but in main story year 5 chapter 16, you will meet him for the first time outside classes.

* CutsceneIncompetence: Year 3, Chapter 4 could be completely subverted if your character [[spoiler:had not revealed Jacob's diary in the middle of the Three Broomsticks]].
* DarkerAndEdgier: The story was pretty tame for the first five years. Then the Year 5 finale happened with [[spoiler:Rakepick's betrayal and her using Crucio on Merula]] and then went even ''more'' darker in Year 6 [[spoiler:with [[DeathOfAChild Rowan's murder]]]]. Year 7 lightens up a bit (for now), but shows much more serious undertones [[spoiler:as [[GreaterScopeVillain 'R']], who are arguably more ruthless and dangerous than [[DiscOneFinalBoss Rakepick]] ever was, gets more and more involved in the main plot]].
** The completely [[GoodIsNotNice metal decision]] to [[spoiler:trap Rakepick in the [[PsychologicalTormentZone Sunken Vault]] so she is [[AndIMustScream psychologically]] [[DrivenToMadness tortured]] for the rest of her waking life in revenge for what she did]] is one of the more [[GoodIsNotSoft darker decisions]] the Player is allowed to make.

* DeusExitMachina: The game really does it's best to make sure Dumbledore stays out of the main story. This time, it's fully justified as he has previously already stopped the curses unleashed by the Cursed Vaults and the main protagonist is searching for their brother in ways that break many rules and having him present would negate any reasons the heroes actions would be tolerated as he can pretty much just do it again and they would have been expelled as it's the fact that Dumbledore ''isn't'' in the school that means they can break the cursed vaults and look for their brother while making sure they have enough credentials to not be thrown out of the school in process.

** [[spoiler:Rowan does this to Ben, saving him from the Killing Curse and dying in the process.]]

** Sometimes these hidden responses aren’t the correct one, either.
* TheDogBitesBack: Some dialogue choices allow you to back-talk Snape, but you will of course lose house points for it, or have to endure particularly cruel snark.

** Now upgraded to [[spoiler:fatal as of Year 6. The whole reason Rowan was murdered was because 'R' needed one of your friends to die]]. Several people have gotten cursed and injured because of the Player tampering with the vaults. Most of plot of Year 7 is happening because [[spoiler:'R' is still targeting you for some reason]].

** A very brief one in Valentine's Day, [[spoiler:MC and their friends won't be able to expose Lockhart as a fraud before he wipes their memories.]]

* DramaticDrop: In the Lone Wolf side quest, [[spoiler:the camera follows the fluttering dropped photo Chiara was holding when she transforms.]]

** Beginning in Fourth Year, you start having the option of partnering with Merula Snyde on curse-breaking activities. Justified in that she has nearly as much experience searching for the Cursed Vaults as you have, and she has the endorsement of professional curse-breaker Patricia Rakepick. By Years Five and especially Six, Merula is more or less forced on the player's adventures, as she demands to be included.

** Rowan is always the same gender as MC, but may still come across as bi if MC is female due to her crush on Bill.

* ExponentialPlotDelay: There are five Cursed Vaults. The first was opened at the end of year 2. Afterwards, one is opened at the end of each year. The problem is every year is longer than the last. Year 2 has 11 chapters, and year 6 has 46 - not to mentions the chapters are also longer, with three or four year 6 chapters being as long as the entirety of year 2, so year 6 is easily more than 10x longer.

* ExtremelyShortTimespan: In-universe time is generally kept vague, but it may came as a surprise when Year 7, chapter 4 to 7 all take place on the same day.

* FantasticDrug: Unfortunately, not the fun kind. [[spoiler:The plot of the "Penny For Your Thoughts" side quest can be summed up as "Penny, a 13-year-old girl and previously CheerfulChild, breaks into storeroom to steal drugs in desperation to [[HarmfulToMinors cope with crippling PTSD from seeing a friend brutally murdered]]". Penny, being a potions whiz, shows an almost alarming tendency to solve her personal issues with possibly ill-advised potion-taking, much like drug use. In year 5, when Beatrice goes missing, she tries to invent an entirely new and extremely complex potion to find her and drinking it without a second thought. Then, when the stress of Beatrice being trapped became too much, she tries to brew her own Draught of Peace to calm herself down, and if you let her, leads to DissonantSerenity.]]
* FloweryElizabethanEnglish: The in-universe play in "An Enchanted Kiss" has shades of it, but more prominent in the Chinese translation, which borrows significantly from [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_Chinese Classical Chinese]].

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In year 5, when the Weasleys and Nearly Headless Nick help the player search for the Marauder's Map. A lot of emphasis is put on Percy and the fact that he brought his pet rat Scabbers with him. Anyone who's read [[Literature/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban the third book]] knows that Scabbers is an animagus named Peter Pettigrew who spent 12 years (approximately 10 at the time) as a rat hiding with the Weasleys. Moreover, Pettigrew is one of the Marauders who ''made'' the very map that they're looking for, meaning that Percy inadvertently brought one of the few people who would know what they were looking for. What does all this mean? [[spoiler:You eventually meet Pettigrew later that year.]]
** In the beginning of Quidditch season 1, Skye is worried she would be kicked off the team because she is failing Charms. [[spoiler: at the end of season 1, the short-haired Beater mentions she's been practicing instead of doing her Potions essay. She was suspended in season 2 for this.]]
** In the Weird Sisters side quest, which could be triggered as early as Year 2, has a cryptic message [[spoiler:from 'R' about the Coral Key and "We can’t return to the Sunken Vault without it." You don't hear about the key or the Sunken Vault otherwise till the end of Year 5.]]

** The central plot(s) of the game, finding Jacob and solving the [[DrivingQuestion titular mystery]] of the Cursed Vaults. [[spoiler:You find Jacob in year 5 chapter 30, but he leaves to pursue Rakepick and much of him remains unknown. There is a bit of backstory of him with 'R', Duncan, and Olivia, the latter of which we know practically nothing about, it is not all clear yet and half the information we have is from [[{{Troll}} Duncan]]. Year 6 chapter 1 has Moody revealing he has is own investigation into 'R' worldwide - and apparently not working with Dumbledore, as they do not agree on how to move forward (year 6 chapter 21). Year 6 chapter 35 reveals that even after Rakepick's ousting, 'R' has a mole in Hogwarts. Alanza, an exchange student who arrived in year 6 chapter 22 (who has her ''own'' subplot about MC being her guide in Hogwarts), is one of the prime suspects. There is also the mystery of the quills. The white quill came from a white eagle owl seen with, but not necessarily owned by, Rakepick, but it has yet been revealed where all the black quills came from.]]
** The player character and Jacob's parents, [[spoiler:they have yet to physically appear, and [[AmbiguouslyAbsentParent their father doesn't seem to be mentioned at all]]. In year 4 side quest "Unleash Your Patronus" and year 5 chapter 18 mentions their mother and her relationship with her children (she was very strict but gradually became more supportive of MC's crusade over the years, but we don't know how much she knows), yet when found, Jacob refused to let her know he is alive. [[UnreliableNarrator We also don't know whether MC is entirely open/truthful about their parents.]]]]
** Rowan [[spoiler:or rather, how they died in year 6 chapter 18, [[NothingIsTheSameAnymore which impacts everything greatly.]] The collective grief over their death remains ongoing, although MC got some closure with the "Head Boys and Girls" side quest. Speaking of which, that is also likely to lead into another side quest on its own, just like the Prefect side quest.]]
** Chiara [[spoiler:being a werewolf, which plays a central role in "Howling Hallowe'en" and "Packmates". This, along with her increased confidence from MC's support, appears to be folding into the main story via ArcWelding in year 6. Ben and Talbott both saw her werewolf form and raised suspicions, while Diego questioned why she is so familiar with the moon phases.]]

*** Speaking of ''that'', Penny, Beatrice, Merula and Ismelda in year 6, chapter 22 [[spoiler:were revealed to be brewing Felix Felicis with stolen ingredients to gain an edge over Rakepick, which was witnessed by Alanza. Since Felix Felicis takes six months to brew, it might be finished by the end of the year.]]

** Ben, [[spoiler:something of a Neville counterpart, extremely cowardly from year 1 to 5, but the traumatic experience at the end of year 5 caused him to snap to being an arrogant daredevil. However, throughout year 6 he seems to be undergoing a difficult but gradual transition to a more level-headed leader. On the other hand, he is also a common suspect as the mole from 'R'. He has fought MC while seemingly under some sort of control before in prior years, and so did Rowan, but it has not been explicitly stated what happened there. He wrote a letter to MC before the Buried Vault expressing his admiration, and it is only opened in year 6 chapter 43.]]
** Defence Against the Dark Arts, [[spoiler:where no teacher can hold the post for more than one year; after Rakepick's betrayal, we have yet to meet a new teacher in year 6, and we don't know whether Bill, as de facto teacher, will be affected.]]
** The piece of parchment in year 5 [[spoiler:that turned out to be Marauder's Map. If they follow book canon, Fred and George found it in Filch's office in their first year, or year 6 in this game. It was last known to be in Rakepick's possession - is it transferred to the Ministry like the rest of the artefacts she left behind? MC also met Peter Pettigrew (but was Obliviated), and found him as Scabbers with the map, but we have yet to know what that is all about. MC spotted someone moving across the map so quickly they can't see their name; Rakepick recognised it but did not reveal it, claiming it is the person who attacked Mundungus, but the Wizard in white robes (at least, that's what Mundungus claimed) shouldn't be able to get into the castle.]]
*** The other artefacts [[spoiler:that Rakepick presumably had in her possession, particularly the Gillyweed Key retrieved from Filch in Year 4, Chapter 8. There is also the Coral Key, which Ben and MC found with the help of Sickleworth and presumably still have. They ''look'' the same, but MC did not seem to recognise it and it is unknown whether it is the same.]]
** The lake [[spoiler:is hinted to be location of final vault in year 5 chapter 30, someone has been diving into it on a broom many times, and Trelawney and the centaurs also offered helpings of VaguenessIsComing about it. More specifically, its creatures are of interest. Grindylows are agitated, Charlie and Liz are training Murtlaps and other creatures to help, and Firenze told MC to study the constellation Cetus (sea monster).]]
** Side quests take place on a floating point on the timeline, so they can run concurrently with the main plot(s) at any time at or after their trigger chapter. "Packmates" is a year 2 side quest, but its dialogue changes significantly if done in year 6. There are 2 side quests that are definitely in year 6: [[spoiler:"Head Boys and Girls" which ties into the Rowan's death plot in the main story, and "The Dragon's Treasure" which ties into Bill being the gang's DADA tutor.]]

* FunnyBackgroundEvent: "Read the Cards" sections of Divination class. The students are supposed to be practicing fortune telling with tarot cards, and they are hunkered over tables and interacting intensely with card spreads. However, if you pay close attention to the animation and read between the lines in the dialog, you realize they're really just goofing off and playing Exploding Snap.
* GambitPileup: the player and their friends want to open the vaults to find Jacob, Merula wants to open them and end the curses for the glory that goes along with it (and possibly to spite the player), R, Jacob, Rakepick, and [[spoiler:the Cabal]] each have their own [[spoiler:that may or may not overlap, given their history]], and in the midst of all this, [[spoiler: Peter Pettigrew]] just wants to get the Marauder's Map back. And [[TheChessmaster Dumbledore]] and Snape may have their own plans for the player as well.

** Similarly, the second year starts with several quests revolving around Ben missing, and even the professors looking for him. Although they do make efforts to replace him with Penny in classes, he still appears in side quests, and can be seen on the house points scoreboard.
** Done once again during third year where you can take a break from looking for Fang to play fetch with Fang.
** House Points are a constant source of this: if you attend classes to bulk up your stats, you can have several times the points of your nearest rival, according to the Leaderboard (although the AI will boost the other House's points accordingly, so that the race is always closely run). Yet the way your Prefect carries on at key points in the story, you would think that your character was regularly throwing bricks at [=McGonagall=], since you will be blamed for any loss of points even if (a) your House is in the lead and (b) you're the student with the most points.
** Early in the third year, you're not allowed to go to Hogsmeade until you prove yourself to your teachers that you won't cause trouble through the main quest line, but in the concurrent sidequest that has you helping Hagrid finds Fang, Hagrid invites you to drink with him at the Three Broomsticks Inn in Hogsmeade after Fang is found, even though you're not supposed to be there yet.

** The player officially meets Liz midway through their fourth year and apparently had no idea who she was beforehand. However, this is long after the player unlocked Care of Magical Creatures (and had multiple storyline requirements taking place in the class), where Liz is in the class and already seems well-acquainted with the player. The same can happen with Badeea in [=DADA=], Andre in Flying, and Diego in sidequests.

** In Year 6, Chapter 15 ended with the player being wounded. In real life there was a two week break between chapters, where you could hang out to level up friendships and do classes for events. They also released the next chapter in the Quidditch sidequest, where you could win the cup. Then, Chapter 16 finally dropped and it started with the player seeking out Chiara to get treatment for the wounds the received in the end of Chapter 15, making it seem as if the apparently had to play for the house cup and whatever else they did, while severely wounded.
** Year 6, Chapter 45 [[spoiler:sees Merula Apparating away with a dark witch to join with "R". You can naturally see her participating in class just fine right afterwards, as if nothing is out of the ordinary.]]

* TheGhost: We hear a lot about the mishaps of a student named Billingsley without ever meeting him. We also have yet to meet any DADA teacher [[spoiler:other than Rakepick]], but it is a RunningGag that they are all terrible. Ron and Ginny are also conspicuously absent in a couple of cases: "A Very Weasley Christmas" where you visit the Burrow for Christmas, but they are among the Weasley kids ill with the flu and don't appear. They also do not appear at the end of year 5 when the Weasleys gathered at Hogsmeade to celebrate Bill's graduation, as they've ran off to Zonko's with the twins.

** Barnaby is introduced as the dumb muscle of Merula's gang. Once you befriend him, you learn that he is fascinated by all things magical creatures, and loves caring for them more than anything. He also [[spoiler:defeats both Ismelda and Merula in a two-on-one duel to buy the player more time]]. He's still quite dumb, though.

* HopelessBossFight: [[spoiler:Merula challenges you to a wandless duel in year 7, and your spells only do two base damage to her. Even if you massively outlevel her in stats and win thanks to the desparity, the resulting dialogue shows you losing, although she'll compliment you putting up a good fight in that case.]]

** Every single character that can be befriended (25 of them) show up in the friendship interface, even though you only meet 5 of them in year 1. Another 5 of them (Tonks, Tulup, Barnaby, Andre, and Charlie) has a description that tells you when you will meet them.
** The pop-up interface of Lone Wolf/Packmates plainly states you will meet Remus Lupin, [[spoiler:even though Chiara spends the whole sidequest avoiding telling you she's been meeting him.]]
** Out of the icons of the four romance side quests, First Date and Valentine's Day have non-indicative images, but Celestial Ball's shows Penny in her special dress. Festival Fun's icon also shows Penny in her new outfit along with Jae, who has never been a date option prior.

* VertigoEffect: done when Snape [[spoiler:and the player]] cast Legilimency.

** You are also given multiple opportunities to be nice to Merula despite her bullying and mean spirited tendencies.

** Gobstones are a strange case, in which to win most easily, you often have to say mean or insensitive things to "distract" them. For example, when playing against Chiara, [[spoiler:the player had to remind her of being a werewolf to get most points. This trope comes into play when some players refuse to pick the easy option, and instead use their high attribute points to win at gobstones anyway while picking the "wrong", nice options.]]

* WaterIsAir: [[spoiler:Going underwater in year 6 chapter 37 and after gets pretty bad about this. You do need the Bubble-Head Charm and it is said to be "dark and murky", but otherwise, you can simply walk on the lake floor, no mention of cold, no flow in hair or clothes, and you can use Incendio under water despite Merula specifically claiming you can't in chapter 41.]]

* WolverinePublicity: Snape and [=McGonagall=] are on the app thumbnail despite having minimal impact on the plot, unless your character is sorted into Slytherin or Gryffindor.

* YouALLLookFamiliar: While there are is a significant amount of facial variation (particularly hair; e.g. Merula and Penny have very distinctive hairstyles the player can't replicate), almost all students of the same gender have the same body model, in any year, which makes Erika Rath, who's very muscular, stand out a lot.

* TheEighties: In Years 1 through 6, it takes place from 1984 to 1989.

* AndNowForSomethingCompletelyDifferent: Most generic classes (not ones for learning a specific spell or concept) consist of reviewing spells, plants, or creatures you've already learned so far. History of Magic, on the other hand, is so boring that most of the activities aren't related to the class material at all and instead include eating sweets from Honeyduke's, playing exploding snap, or helping Penny brew potions. They still work mechanically like any other class period, though.

* Padding: Quidditch plot is full of it. Half of it you have to go through dozens of friendlies, long recaps with friends (only to have a recap of the recap with another friend after that) and amazingly long pre-game and post-game parties.