Niantic’s latest location-based RPG, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, has officially been release in the US and the UK. In fact, even if the launch was originally scheduled today, June 21, some players noticed that downloads went live Thursday for both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
The game had gone live in Australia and New Zealand back in early May.
The game is pretty much like Pokémon Go, but instead of gathering creatures, you go out and stop magical items and beings from being discovered by Muggles. The game follows an event called the “Calamity,” and it is up to players to stop anomalies.
Initially, the release was to be worldwide, but apparently it has been limited to the US and UK regions. This is, of course, in addition to the Australia and New Zealand areas. Some players from other regions like Asia have complained on Twitter with Niantic Support saying that the game is expected to be launched to more areas. No actual time frame or schedule was given for this release.
Sorry to see that you're frustrated, Asia. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is currently available in the US, UK, New Zealand and Australia. Don't worry, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is coming to more areas soon, for more info visit https://t.co/5H1lPMwCSN Thanks for your patience! ^KM
— Niantic Support (@NianticHelp) June 21, 2019
So far Harry Potter: Wizards Unite has received positive reviews. Phil Hornshaw said in a Gamespot article said that it was like Pokémon Go, but with none of the growing pains. Indeed, Pokémon Go had a strong start, but user interest eventually waned as the game fell short especially on content. While it is a lot different today than it was before, it still took a long time. According to Hornshaw, this latest offering from Niantic has the feel of being “a more robust content package.”
Meanwhile Gita Jackson of Kotaku wrote in a piece that the game is more polished and at times “really makes you feel like you’re a wizard.” She added that unlike catching Pokémon, the activities offered in Wizards Unite is varied enough to make it fun and challenging.
There’s no doubt that Niantic had learned lessons from Pokémon Go and applied them to the game. So far most comments have been positive, but then again the game remains limited to four regions. The real test begins once the game is released worldwide as it can show just how prepared Niantic is in terms of support and how much content is readily available in other regions.
