Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
- Genre: Augmented reality-based mobile adventure game
- Release date: Summer 2019
- Publisher: Niantic Labs
- Developer: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Portkey Games
- Platforms: iOS, Android
- Price: Free-to-play with microtransactions
- Official website
UPDATE: June 22, 2019
The game has been released in several new countries, as detailed in a blog post:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Brunei Darussalam
- Canada
- Denmark
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Iceland
- India
- Indonesia
- Ireland
- Italy
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Mexico
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Papua New Guinea
- Philippines
- Portugal
- Singapore
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
Also, Niantic have said that more countries will see availability soon!
Don't forget to check out the awesome launch trailer:
Synopsis
"A calamity has befallen the wizarding world, causing artefacts, creatures, people, and even memories to mysteriously appear in the Muggle world. Witches and wizards from across the globe must come together to solve the mystery of The Calamity, overcome the confounding chaotic magic that surrounds these “Foundables,” and return them to their rightful place, keeping them safe from Muggle eyes.
Your journey begins as a new recruit of the Statute of Secrecy Task Force, established by the Ministry of Magic and the International Confederation of Wizards for the purpose of investigating and containing The Calamity."
For the moment, no information on the gameplay itself has been revealed. It seems that the main activity of the game is to cast spells and travel around to find clues (creatures, items etc.).
The story of the game takes place decades after Harry Potter's adventures and battles with Voldemort at Hogwarts. Harry is now an Auror,. and helps you capture Foundables (game items) to send them back to the world of magic.
PREVIOUS UPDATES
Below you can find all the news relating to the release of the game, as it happened.
UPDATE: June 20, 2019
Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is now available for download in the USA and UK — one day in advance!
UPDATE: June 19, 2019
Last night, many influencers participated in an exclusive event for the game at Universal Studios' Wizarding World in the USA.
Live streaming on-site was prohibited, and all information (videos in particular) are subject to an embargo until 6 a.m. PT on June 20.
However, the release date was announced — the game will go live on June 21! That's in just three short days....
For photos of the event, take a look at this site.
The release date was announced during the event, and also confirmed by the dozens of influencers on-site who all had to post on Twitter at the same time!
A new three-minute trailer was then shown to confirm the release on June 21.
Worldwide deployment will still happen gradually, starting with this US and UK launch.
UPDATE: June 11, 2019
The partnership between WB Games and the mobile operator EE seems to be coming along well. However, another operator is joining the party — AT&T.
AT&T are already hosting Harry Potter events in their stores, and are planning an event for June 23. Developers Niantic will be on hand to discuss the mobile game.
Rumour: "trusted persons" from EE have reportedly revealed the release date as June 20 in the UK only — in-between the Los Angeles event on June 18 and the EE event on June 23.
UPDATE: June 5, 2019
Certain North American youtubers and influencers have recently received an email inviting them to participate in a Harry Potter: Wizards Unite event on June 18, 2019.
In the screenshot we have obtained, only the date and location are specified. The event will be held at The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter themed area at Universal Studios in Hollywood.
Even if it is necessary to be cautious before deducting anything from this type of information, some hypotheses can be made. If this is indeed a demonstration event offered to American youtubers, the geolocation mapping for HPWU would have to be operational in California.
In other words, the game would have to be playable in that part of the state. As a reminder, so far only Australia and New Zealand have access to the beta.
In addition, the date of the event seems to confirm that the global release of Niantic's new game will not take place before the end of the month, as may have been expected from previous updates.
UPDATE: May 24, 2019
Communication around the game is becoming more and more frequent — in recent days, WB Games has given us the benefit of many teasers (Monster Book of Monsters, Puffskein, Hippogriff), and has also revealed a complete trailer for Harry Potter Wizards Unite.
Fans then began to propose theories about the Threat Clock that can be seen in the trailers and on the game's posters. The biggest theory is that the closer we get to the release date, the higher the threat level (red).
On the official website, we notice that the clock is still at a "danger" level of threat (yellow), but the last teaser on Cerberus shows a red threat level (emergency).
Be careful, however — these levels of threat clearly show the threat of the magic object itself, and not the global emergency against The Calamity. The latter is only shown on the site.
Two other important pieces of information suggest that the game will be released around May 30!
The first is directly related to the in-game event announced a few days ago. This now has a countdown of six days and a few hours, then schedules the event for May 30.
It is not uncommon for events to be tested in beta, but it would be logical to think that the global release of the game could come on May 30.
This brings us to our second piece of information: May 30 coincides with the deployment of the 5G network in London and other UK cities via Niantic's mobile partner EE and WB Games. #
This partnership will favour players with an EE 5G package by giving them more rewards, for example from Inns. We don't yet know exactly how it will be symbolized, but May 30 marks the beginning of 5G coverage!
Will it be a beta test in the UK, or a worldwide release? We'll see soon enough!
In any case, let's not forget that the game is scheduled to be released officially "this summer" — and in some countries, summer begins on June 1.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Since its announcement in November 2017, the release of Harry Potter: Wizards Unite has become more and more hyped despite the limited communication around it.
Whether from Niantic or Portkey Games, silence was the rule — but for the last few months we have been treated to teasers, videos, articles and, since April 17, 2019, a beta release!
Even if it is only available in New Zealand for the moment, an APK installation allows you to download the game and explore the tutorial.
As far as the rest of the world is concerned, the deployment of this beta should not be too long coming.
In fact, in just two days of play some New Zealanders have already reached Level 7. As the game data is retained after the beta is over, it seems logical that Niantic wants to minimize the difference in levels between players.
If we look at Pokémon GO as an example, the beta should be deployed worldwide in just a few weeks. Be patient — you should be able to choose your wizarding profession very soon!
As a reminder, it is possible to register for the beta directly on the Google Play store and on the official HPWU website, but also to reserve your in-game nickname.
In HPWU, Niantic's new mobile game, the wand doesn't really come to you as usual. In order to get the wand of your dreams, you have to create it from scratch — so let our guide show you the way!
Belonging to a House is essential to wizards in the making. In Wizards Unite you can select yours via the "Ministry ID" menu.
