Two pieces of art shared online highlight the level of appreciation and dedication Hogwarts Legacy has engendered in its biggest fans. The portraits are the most recent in a long string of fan art inspired by Hogwarts Legacy, which has far surpassed its expectations in critical reception and sales.
Avalanche Software had a tall order with Hogwarts Legacy, tasked to deliver an open-world game in the Harry Potter universe, far beyond the scale of its previous titles. Marketing for the game led to optimism surrounding its quality, but some fans remained skeptical given the half-hearted history of previous Harry Potter games, combined with Avalanche Studio’s track record. Those fears were put to rest with the game’s release, as it broke sales records, reviewed well, and delivered on its promise to provide an enthralling and immersive game world that fans could get lost in.
Reddit user moonkatt7 shared their first incredible portrait of Ominis Gaunt in a stark and foreboding style, then, following a surge of support online, followed it up nearly a week later by posting a piece featuring Sebastian Sallow. The first piece shows Ominis’s face being clasped and groped by ghoulishly contorting, sickly-green hands emerging from cloudy darkness. He appears unconcerned, his occluded eyes shining like beacons as the blackened nail of one of the disembodied hands leaves a gash on his left cheek. The second portrait from moonkatt7 shows Sebastian with his wand at the ready, as the haunting visage of a skull protrudes from it like a wisp of toxic vapor. Both pieces have distinct dark lighting with clever usage of Slytherin’s house colors, and both highlight the internal struggles of the Hogwarts Legacy characters.
One of the reasons Hogwarts Legacy shattered its sales expectations is the quality of its characters. Faithfully creating a Hogwarts Castle and Hogsmeade was a dream come true for Harry Potter fans anxious to explore the wizarding world they grew up reading about and watching on the big screen, but the narrative and nuance of the world’s inhabitants is what makes Hogwarts Legacy a truly memorable experience. Artist moonkatt7’s depictions would not have the same gravitas if it were not for the captivating turmoil of both characters over the course of the game.
Currently, there are no plans for additional content for Hogwarts Legacy. Given its massive financial and critical success, however, coupled with the passion of fans like moonkatt7, the green-lighting of a sequel to Hogwarts Legacy seems all but certain.
Hogwarts Legacy is available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, with PS4 and Xbox One versions launching May 5 and a Switch port releasing July 25.
