Why Hogwarts Legacy’s Game Awards Snubs and Switch…

Summary

Some games at The Game Awards received multiple nominations, while others were arguably put into inaccurate categories or snubbed, depending on fans' opinions.
Despite not receiving any nominations, Hogwarts Legacy's massive sales ensure a sequel is likely in the works, as Warner Bros. Will probably want to replicate its success and revitalize the Harry Potter IP in the gaming landscape.
The inferior Switch port of Hogwarts Legacy may not significantly impact its overall success, as players still have other options to play the game and future sequels may prioritize current-gen consoles.

The Game Awards 2023 airs in a little under two weeks now and eager viewers may already have their sights set on nominees winning for certain categories. Some games were fortunate enough to have several nominations in different categories, a couple of games were arguably put into a category that is inaccurate or misrepresentative, and a few games were snubbed. Of course, which games were considered ‘snubbed’ is almost entirely up to fans’ biases and opinions on games, while votes were clearly in favor of other nominees claiming those spots.

Dead Space not receiving a Best Performance nomination for Isaac Clarke’s Gunner Wright may seem like a snub, for instance, as it might seem like a snub for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor to only have nominations in Best Performance and Best Action/Adventure. On the other hand, Hogwarts Legacy has been massively snubbed at The Game Awards with not a single nomination, which might seem odd due to how successful it was. It makes quite a bit of sense why it wasn’t nominated for anything, though, even if Hogwarts Legacy’s seemingly deliberate snub has little effect on fans’ perceptions of it.

Hogwarts Legacy’s Sales Speak Louder Than Its Nominations

Hogwarts Legacy’s Sales Likely Ensure a Sequel is in the Pipeline

Because of Hogwarts Legacy’s whopping 15 million copies sold since launch, it’s plain to say that it was one of the more popular open-world action-RPGs to release this year. That said, because of its unavoidable associations with Harry Potter’s highly controversial author, it isn’t surprising to see that it didn’t receive a single nomination in any category.

It’s possible that this snub was wholly from a place of Hogwarts Legacy not being seen as worthy of any nominations, but its sales would suggest otherwise. Unfortunately, a snub of this magnitude would hopefully seem like a scathing indictment against the author by the people who have spoken out against Hogwarts Legacy, but the game’s sales are demonstrative of Hogwarts Legacy being tremendously successful nonetheless.

If a Hogwarts Legacy sequel isn’t already being planned that would be incredibly surprising. Warner Bros. Probably wants to replicate that success as soon as possible, and while not winning any awards in the meantime may be disappointing to some of the developers at Avalanche, it is likely an indifferent matter to the publisher when it knows that Hogwarts Legacy and potential sequels can be a gold mine that revitalizes the IP in the gaming landscape after the well of interesting theatrical adaptations has recently run dry.

Hogwarts Legacy’s Switch Port Blemish Will Be Easy to Forget

On another matter, Hogwarts Legacy’s Switch port being inferior is twofold in its controversy. First, nobody was truly expecting this port to perform even half as well as the other versions due to that being how Switch ports of huge AAA games usually turn out, namely the recent port of Mortal Kombat 1.

Second, because Hogwarts Legacy had already sold a ridiculous amount, it probably wasn’t ever relying on the Switch port to generate any unreasonably high revenue in the back half of its shelf life. If nothing else, the poor Switch reception could result in Hogwarts Legacy’s sequel not taking the same risks or development time and sticking purely to being a current-gen-exclusive. Indeed, the next Hogwarts Legacy may not arrive before the next PlayStation and almost certainly not until the next Switch, meaning that an upgraded model might have more allure to it.

In the meantime, the Switch port will remain a valid option for Hogwarts Legacy, and that’s assuming fans haven’t decided to simply pick it up for the PlayStation Portal handheld anyway. Either way, regardless of peoples’ views on its snubs and Switch performance, Hogwarts Legacy is surely going to continue to thrive.

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Harry Potter: Hogwarts Legacy Tag Page Cover Art

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Action

RPG

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OpenCritic Reviews: Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 88%

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Released: February 10, 2023
ESRB: T For Teen Due To Blood, Fantasy Violence, Mild Language, Use of Alcohol
Developer(s): Avalanche Software
Publisher(s): Warner Bros. Games
Engine: Unreal Engine 4
Cross-Platform Play: Hogwarts Legacy doesn't have crossplay or crossplatform support
Cross Save: you can freely use your saved data between each console as long as you are connected to the internet and signed into the same account where the saved data was created

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Hogwarts Legacy is an immersive, open-world action RPG set in the world first introduced in the Harry Potter books. For the first time, experience Hogwarts in the 1800s. Your character is a student who holds the key to an ancient secret that threatens to tear the wizarding world apart. Now you can take control of the action and be at the center of your own adventure in the wizarding world. Your legacy is what you make of it.

Explore an Open World
The wizarding world awaits you. Freely roam Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, the Forbidden Forest, and the surrounding Overland area.

Be the Witch or Wizard You Want to be
Learn spells, brew potions, grow plants, and tend to magical beasts along your journey. Get sorted into your house, forge relationships, and master skills to become the witch or wizard you want to be Experience a New Wizarding World Adventure
Experience the wizarding world in an unexplored era to uncover a hidden truth from its past. Battle against trolls, Dark Wizards, goblins, and more as you face a dangerous villain threatening the fate of the wizarding world.