There's no doubting that The Half-Blood Prince is being geared up as one of the bigger film releases this year amongst movie-goers. It's an event that not only has Potter fans keen as mustard to measure the film up against the novel in every way possible, but it will also undoubtedly cause J.K. Rowling's slacks to descend with the sheer weight of her change purse. Sadly for us in the video game kingdom, our media hasn't been saturated with news of the video game adaptation of the film; there's a good reason why, and it's because the games simply never measure up. The Order of the Phoenix is as close as EA have come to producing a durable, mature gaming experience. I fear EA may have thought too highly of the last Potter outing, as The Half-Blood Prince is, more or less, a carbon copy with a new plot.

I'll admit, I never read the Harry Potter books - nor have I seen the films for that matter. But luckily, the plot is relatively accessible and you can tend to catch up quickly if you pay some attention. The Half-Blood Prince sees Dumbledore getting Harry finely-tuned and prepared for the fast-approaching showdown with Voldemort. Together, they strive to unlock the Achilles heel of Voldemort, as well as a means to his end. So as you see, it's nothing but your typical good versus evil struggle – compelling narrative? J.K Rowling's $7 billion empire says ‘yes'. If you're one of those eagerly salivating at the thought of the pending film, you'd obviously opt to give the game a miss. The gravity of the story's evolvement is often lost at times in the video game, as at no time do I feel like something important is unfolding before my eyes – this is a clear shame, as the book managed to touch millions and yet the game completely misses the mark.

If you've played Order of the Phoenix you'll know exactly what to expect on this outing. The game plays much like a sandbox game, and at times reminds me, surprisingly, of Bully. I'd say the theme of academia and the open-school approach are both obvious attributes to this thought. With that said, The Half-Blood Prince doesn't succeed in nearly enough areas to make it as commendable an effort as Rockstar's trip to the schoolyard. There is limited variety when it comes to mission structure, as you're forced to endure repetitive, mundane tasks such as fetching certain objects, or simply travelling from one point to the next. This is not always so simple, as I often found myself feeling lost around Hogwarts and knowing which way to go – the lack of on-screen map didn't help either. Fortunately, players are able to summon Nearly Headless Nick who, other than attempting to entertain with his brand of humour, will guide you to your objective.

Casting magic is an integral part of Harry Potter gaming franchise, and this is one thing I think was executed well. Using the right analog allows you to cast a small number of magical spells on objects that conveniently litter the courtyards of Hogwarts. This comes in handy for solving the puzzles that attempt to temporarily halt your progress. These said puzzles, though, are painfully dull as it seems little, to no thought have gone into making The Half-Blood Prince remotely challenging.

Much like in Order of the Phoenix, when not dawdling to an objective, you're able to take part in a number of side-missions that are basically, mini-games. These are often worked into the story mode, too, so as well as seeking these superfluous tasks out, they'll also sometimes find you in your travels. These include duelling foes from any of the Hogwarts factions, brewing potions in the Herbology wing and mastering the sport of Quidditch. Duelling can often pose a challenge, but once you work out a sound method you'll be hard-pressed to find any real challenge – even story-based duels will be a pushover. Potions class is aesthetically reminiscent of Chemistry class from Bully, though it plays very differently. The player uses the analog stick to pour ingredients, simmer and stir the pot. Once again, it's a simple little idea that will amuse briefly, but has no real depth.

This brings me to Quidditch, which is a horrid affair. Last generation we saw a fully-fledged Quidditch game offered up which, admittedly, didn't capture the hearts of gamers, but at least it was a commendable attempt at capturing such a radically fictitious sport in the video game medium. In The Half-Blood Prince, however, gamers are subjected to a poor on-rails broomstick ride where your oh-so engaging task is to aim for the centre of golden hoops presented on the path your broomstick takes. It's a shallow experience; I know it's a mini-game but I honestly expected a fuller experience than the one served up.

Unfortunately for everybody's favourite wizard, things just keep going downhill from here. At first glance, The Half-Blood Prince looks very much like a last generation title. While all actors lent their likenesses to the project, very few came out looking like a spitting image of the respective real-life counterpart. The in-game map represents the fantasy college of Hogwarts relatively well, though lacks the polish to make it as surreal an experience as it should be to traverse the courtyards. Not too keep complaining, but the in-game map from Godfather II was almost a revelation so why is it so poor in this game? While the game looks poor in stills, it's needless to say in motion it isn't much better – awkward animation really drives it home that little thought, or careful design, went into making the title, at least, an aesthetic victory. The only visual aspect worth praising could be the pre-rendered scenes, which do have a quality to them; but even they can't redeem how aged the game appears.

The soundtrack by James Hannigan can be considered a minor victory for the title, but let's face it – an emotion-driven score isn't really going to convince the casual gamer to make the purchase, is it? Regardless, the Philharmonia Orchestra really contribute to whatever sliver of fantasy and enchantment the gamer can selvage from The Half-Blood Prince. It was disappointing to discover just how many of the actors from the film failed to reprise their roles for the game adaptation. Of the main cast of actors only Rupert Grint, Bonnie Wright and Tom Felton assumed their roles of Ron, Ginny and Draco respectively. In the end, it's that real lack of quality and A-grade polish that is too consistent in The Half-Blood Prince.