Hogwarts Legacy Easter eggs: Best Harry Potter references so far

Despite that, Hogwarts Legacy is stuffed with Easter eggs that long-term fans of the Potter franchise should be pleased to spot. Keep on reading and we'll run through some of the best nods and references we've spotted so far.

Warning: Towards the end of this article, we've listed a few Hogwarts Legacy spoilers that you won't see until near the end of the game's lengthy story. We'll mark that bit clearly if you want to click away at that stage. Up until you see that warning, though, we'll keep it plot-light.

Hogwarts Legacy Easter eggs: Best Harry Potter references so far

Magical parallels

The Hogwarts Legacy Easter eggs start from the very first scene, which sees a kindly wizard visiting an otherwise ordinary muggle street. This is a clear parallel to the opening of the first Harry Potter book/film, which saw Dumbledore illuminating Privet Drive before dropping Harry off with the Dursleys.

Although you take a different route to Hogwarts itself, you do see the famous Hogwarts Express from a distance. You then follow some similar beats of being sorted into your house and meeting new pals.

Once the lessons begin, the echoes of the past/future continue. You levitate feathers at one point, repot noisy mandrakes at another (they're actually one of the most useful Hogwarts Legacy plants), and you learn the basics of broom-flying in a lesson that feels eerily familiar. Looks like Hogwarts didn't change its syllabus for the next few centuries.

Another parallel that comes later sees the player character harbouring a dragon egg, which gives us major Hagrid vibes. Speaking of Hagrid, his hut (or one just like it) can be found in the game as well.

All the old familiar toilets…

As the title suggests, the game allows you to visit the famous School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the Harry Potter books and films, albeit a few hundred years before Ron and his pals were walking its halls.

Despite that distance in terms of the timeline, there are a number of very familiar locations around Hogwarts. In one of the main Hogwarts Legacy chapters, you'll sneak into the Prefect's Bathroom, just like Harry does in The Goblet of Fire. It looks like the game developers have followed the design language of the films pretty closely, because it feels like exactly the same room. Hogwarts mustn't modernise its decor very often, then.

Speaking of bathrooms, fans have spotted a mysterious green potion being brewed in one toilet stall, which seems to be an Easter egg as well. Fans will remember the time that Hermione hid in the loos, having accidentally turned herself into a cat using Pollyjuice Potion (which does not feature in the game as one of the brew-able Hogwarts Legacy potions).

Fans have also found a reference to the Chamber of Secrets hidden in one bathroom. Although you can't visit Voldemort's Basilisk-concealing stomping ground, the entrance to it is right where it should be - you'll see a snake carved into one of the faucets if you look closely. There's even a nearby Field Guide page that confirms it (see the video above).

Beyond the loos, you'll also be able to visit such familiar locations as Hogsmeade and (briefly) Azkaban. Look in every nook and cranny and you're bound to find things that feel familiar! There's even a Hogwarts trophy room that has some very famous items in it.

… and a few familiar names

Among the Hogwarts Legacy cast list are a few familiar names, with Simon Pegg playing Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black (a grumpy ancestor to Sirius Black) and Lesley Nicol portraying Professor Matilda Weasley (a kindly ancestor to Ron and the rest). Those aren't the only surnames you're likely to recognise, either.

Because ghosts rarely seem to move on in the Wizarding World, you can also expect to see familiar spirits such as Nearly Headless Nick (although you'll see a lot more of him if you're Gryffindor). The Sorting Hat exists and sounds pretty similar at this point in the timeline, too.

Perhaps the most welcome inclusion in terms of returning characters is Peeves the poltergeist. Often an amusing presence in the books, he didn't make the same impact in the films, but he's present and correct in Hogwarts Legacy. If you don't spot him terrorising students, you'll be forced to see him in an early story mission.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Later into the story, your playable character receives a magical bag to collect creatures in - this is a pretty self-explanatory nod to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. In fact, you could argue that fantastic beasts are more important in Hogwarts Legacy than they are in most of those films.

There is an impressive number of Hogwarts Legacy beasts to collect, and many of these species have strong form in the Wizarding World. The gold-loving Niffler is essentially the mascot of the Fantastic Beasts brand, while Thestrals and Hippogriffs are fairly prominent in Harry's journey.

And although you don't get to cast your own Hogwarts Legacy Patronus, this fan-favourite spell does make a brief cameo appearance - another character will cast their Patronus to ward off Dementors at one point.

Getting more niche...

Looking around the web, it's clear that fans have been spotting all sorts of stuff in Hogwarts Legacy. Some of these niche spots may be deliberate Easter eggs from the developer, while some of them may even be accidental parallels.

In a growing Reddit thread, fans have claimed to find all sorts of things, from the Forbidden Corridor (that would later be used to house Fluffy, the three-headed dog from the first book/film) to a painting of Dumbledore (seeing as he should be alive at this point, though, we'd disregard that one).

One fan says they saw a pair of red-haired twins in Hogsmeade - obviously it can't be Fred and George, but it's still a cool inclusion. Another says they found an owl that looks just like Hedwig. And on a different note, someone says they found the cell that Sirius will be locked in years later.

Perhaps our favourite fan-found Easter egg is this: there's a quest that involves following butterflies to find a treasure. This echoes a line from Ron in the Chamber of Secrets: "Why spiders? Why couldn't it be follow the butterflies?"

Spoiler alert! There are major Hogwarts Legacy spoilers from this point

Beware, dear reader — we are going to talk about Hogwarts Legacy spoilers from this point on! Stop reading now if you don't want to know some Easter eggs that don't appear until later on in the story.

Still here? Okay, well then, it's spoiler time for Easter egg hunters! One fairly major connection between Hogwarts Legacy and Harry Potter is the fact that one of Voldemort's ancestors is in the game.

All players will meet a student called Ominis Gaunt, and he will reveal under certain circumstances that he is a descendant of Salazar Slytherin. Tom Riddle, AKA Lord Voldemort, is also a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, which would make these two related.

And here's one other major Easter egg to be aware of: the Deathly Hallows are in the game! You'll encounter the Elder Wand, the Stone of Resurrection and the Invisibility Cloak in the Third Keeper Trial.

In a scene that clearly echoes the memorable animated segment of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows films, the player enters a storybook world and gets a chance to wield all three of the Deathly Hallows. However, you don't get to take them with you back into the open world. But still, it's a very cool sequence, and you can watch it on YouTube if you just can't wait to get there yourself.

All in all, then, Hogwarts Legacy is an absolute treasure trove when it comes to Easter eggs for Harry Potter fans. We're sure that more will be spotted in time, but those are our favourites for now!

Read more on Hogwarts Legacy:

• Hogwarts Legacy review - our full verdict
• Hogwarts Legacy potions - all recipes to know
• Hogwarts Legacy plants - what do they do?
• Hogwarts Legacy level cap - how to spent talent points
• Hogwarts Legacy trophies - the achievements you need
• Hogwarts Legacy release date - staggered launch explained
• Hogwarts Legacy cast - Simon Pegg and more
• Hogwarts Legacy house sorting quiz - take the test
• Hogwarts Legacy character creator - customisation revealed
• Hogwarts Legacy common rooms - tour all four
• Who is Phineas Nigellus Black? Sirius ancestor explained
• Hogwarts Legacy year - when is it set?
• Hogwarts Legacy multiplayer - is it co-op?
• Hogwarts Legacy Switch - handheld version explained
• Hogwarts Legacy PC requirements - the specs you need
• Hogwarts Legacy Deluxe Edition - price for early access

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