“Hogwarts Legacy” is the first open-world, action role-playing game set in the world first introduced in the Harry Potter books. The highly anticipated AAA game is being developed by Avalanche and published by Warner Bros. Games under the Portkey Games label. Portkey Games is dedicated to creating new Wizarding World mobile and video game experiences that place the player at the center of their own adventure. Pentagram created a brand identity for “Hogwarts Legacy” that captures the magical energy and excitement of the game and builds on the visual language of the wizarding world.
Full details remain under wraps before the game’s release in 2022, but it has been revealed that “Hogwarts Legacy” is set in the atmospheric past of Hogwarts in the late 1800s, prior to the “Fantastic Beasts” and “Harry Potter” stories. Players will experience life as a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as they embark on a dangerous journey to uncover a hidden truth of the wizarding world. They will grow their magical abilities by mastering spells, brewing potions and taming fantastic beasts.
The brand identity had to visually relate to the larger Harry Potter franchise, but also stand on its own and establish the game as a new adventure for a wide audience that includes adults who have grown up with the wizarding world. The look and feel of the logo complements the other key visuals from the magical universe, including the identities for the Wizarding World, the films “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” and “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald,” and the mobile game “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite,” all designed by Pentagram.
Ancient Magic is integral to the world of “Hogwarts Legacy.” This swirling, flame-like magic is the centerpiece of the logo itself. The game art was developed at the same time as the identity, and the Pentagram team was able to incorporate the flame form from the game into the logo.
The Ancient Magic icon sits at the apex of the “W,” radiating a bright, shimmering energy that carries through the logotype. The letterforms are constructed of delicate, almost filigree-like strokes that are light and ethereal but also dynamic. Customized from the typeface Tongari, the spurred serif hints at the game’s historical setting and has a beveled treatment to make it appear dimensional. Custom ligatures add a sense of connectedness and swirling movement.
The type subtly shifts up and down from the baseline, a nod to the playful bounce in the original “Harry Potter” logo, but with a little more restraint. The strokes and ligatures of some letters are fragmented to create a quicksilver shimmer that seems to capture the logo in the midst of a spell-like transformation.
Along with a full style guide for the identity, the designers developed localizations for different territories around the world, rendering the logo in Arabic, Chinese and other languages. The team worked with regional experts to retain the visual character of the logo in the respective alphabets. The final colored rendering was created by WORKS ADV.
The official announcement of the game paired the logo with key art of a vista of Hogwarts, offering a preview of the look and feel of the enchanting world waiting to welcome players.
