After a long hiatus, Avalanche and Portkey Games have finally unleashed a new look at its long-awaited Harry Potter RPG, Hogwarts Legacy. Rather than following “The Boy Who Lived” we’ve come to know, the open-world adventure takes its magical premise back to the 1800s and allows the player to customize their own student as well as explore the expansive school grounds and beyond. However, this free-reign approach also includes the ability to pursue the Wizard World’s most forbidden magic.

As shown during Sony’s latest State of Play event, Hogwarts Legacy allows one to learn all sorts of wand-based maneuvers throughout the course of the game, including “mysterious, powerful magic your professors do not understand.” This apparently includes such practices as dark magic, as we see the player character able to conjure the infamous “Avada Kedavra,” a.k.a. the Killing Curse, during one of the final moments of the showcase. Check it out at 13:50 in the video below.

The notion of utilizing dark magic is a taboo one in Wizarding World lore, with the aforementioned Killing Curse being one of three deemed “unforgivable” among magic-wielders. Anyone caught casting it would immediately earn lifetime imprisonment in Azkaban, complete with soul-devouring Dementors. The curse is most infamously associated with series’ villain Voldemort, having snuffed out many witches and wizards in his heyday, including the parents of Harry Potter.

With this in mind, it’s probably safe to assume that dark magic isn’t an attendable class in Hogwarts Legacy, and players will likely need to follow this “darker path” outside of school grounds. It’s not currently known just how far this path may go, but the opportunity for evil definitely isn’t unheard of in the RPG space. Games like The Witcher and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic are characterized by their morality systems, presenting some interesting possibilities if Hogwarts Legacy can go a similar distance.

​What do you think? Are you intrigued by the chance to use dark magic in Hogwarts Legacy, or would the Killing Curse be a bit too far for you? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day!​

​If you enjoy this writer’s work, please consider supporting them by tossing a Ko-fi their way! Every little bit helps and aims to keep DFTG independent and free of bias. Thank you so much for your support! Eric Hall @ Ko-fi