While the term "retro gaming" usually applies to the 80s games, since the idea is playing old games, it should also apply to the ones developed in the early 2000s.

Today I found Harry Potter: Prisoner of the Azkaban the video game in my shelf. The main reason why I installed it, actually, is because the music was pretty good and I was thinking of using a track or two for my next game (with giving them credit, of course). I thought that while I installed it, I may as well play it a bit. I always liked Harry Potter games amongst the films, sure as hell better than some of the movie based games out there. And so I played it.

As soon as I neared the end of the first stage, I realized something. The game is meant for children. Literally. Not only there are lack of enemies, they are REALLY easy. They die in one spell. One shot, and they drop dead. Just like some of the enemies in Cadillacs and Dinosaurs the game, they run around aimlessly and throw a very inaccurate shot in every 10 seconds. None of the enemies present a challenge, except maybe dementors, which entail good timing. The difficulty cannot be adjusted, you have to stick to the dull, easy style of play. I completed two stages and I swear, I didn't get hit a single time. I collected the chocolate frogs just for the hell of it.

The bosses are easy, too. In the first battle with Peeves, I just casted TWO TIMES until he died. He didn't do anything, he just roamed around. The bosses are nothing special, they are all "hit him until he dies" kind of bosses. They don't require thinking, awareness, or even skill. Cast your spells at him and dodge his rarely fired attacks, until he dies.

The secrets and puzzles don't even require any logic. You just have to cast at the knight armors or paintings. As long as you hold your mouse button on every painting and stuff like that, you should be able to find all the secrets.

The amount of different spells and collecting wizard cards and all that, the game is quite fun. The easy gameplay however, kills it. I guess I don't even have to talk about the 2004s graphics. The music is pretty good though, as mentioned earlier.

I'll keep playing it but something tells me that I'll get bored VERY soon. Retro gaming never really was my style, and I guess it will never be. Maybe I'll just get what I want from the sound files and just delete the game. Kinda sad that I used to be a big fan of this game at the time.