LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1–4 is a video game in the LEGO video game franchise, developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Released in June 2010, the game is based on the LEGO Harry Potter line and its storyline covers the first four books and films of the Harry Potter series. The game is available on the Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X.

Gameplay
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1–4's gameplay is similar to that of most previous Lego games, with an emphasis on collecting and exploring. Casting spells is an integral part of the gameplay, with a wide range of spells available for unlocking as the player progresses. As there are many spells available in the game, you use the spell wheel to select your spell. Potion-making is another integral feature; potions can help the player complete levels or, if created incorrectly, have adverse side effects such as turning the player into a frog.

Changes to the mechanics of previous games include 'Student in Peril' missions, which are a group of challenges to help a student, and Polyjuice Potion, which allows players to temporarily change one of your characters into any other mini-figure unlocked. A major change is to the hub system. The Leaky Cauldron works as a central hub for purchasing unlockable extras and returning to previous levels, while Hogwarts acts as a constantly evolving massive hub with the unlockable characters found by picking up their hidden portraits.

The bigger areas in Hogwarts have led developer Traveller's Tales to improve the overall level design. Also included is another bonus level that allows players to customise the level similar to LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues. If you are lost in-game you can follow a trail of Ghost Studs to the next level. These do not count towards your stud total, but will guide you to the next section of the level. However one of the collectable 'red bricks', found in the courtyard next to herbology, gets the player an 'extra' that makes the ghost studs worth 1,000 each.

Multi-player Mode
The game employs the same two-player split-screen technique intro used for LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues, but there is no online support for all consoles.

Changes for the Nintendo DS version
In the Nintendo DS version, several changes were implemented from the versions of the other formats. These include that there is only one hub, the Room of Requirement, but the explorable Hogwarts of the other versions has been removed and both boss battles and spell-casting have been simplified.

Development
News of the game's existence was leaked in March 2009, although rumours had been circulating since late 2008. Warner Bros. officially confirmed the game in June 2009 with an estimated release of 2010.

Demo
A demo of the game was made available to download from PlayStation Store and the Xbox Live Marketplace in June 2010.

Trailers
A teaser trailer was released on the day of the game's official announcement followed by four individually released vignettes, beginning in December 2009. Each vignette focussed on one of the first four years featured in the game. A new trailer was released to coincide with the game's launch. All six trailers are available on the official website.

Reception
The game has received positive reviews. Official Nintendo Magazine gave the Wii and DS version 80%. Saying that it was "one of the best Harry Potter games ever", but that it lacked originality compared to previous Lego games. GameSpot gave the console versions an 8/10, complimenting the large amount of secrets and charm. IGN praised the game giving it an 8.5, complimenting the new additions to the game, while the PSP version of the game received a 7.0. IGN editor Nicole Tanner awarded it "Best Mindless Fun".