Latest Harry Potter game to use Sony EyeToy

12 March 2004 16:11 GMT / By Stuart Miles

Electronic Arts today announced that Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban will be the first third-party title to fully utilize the EyeToy technology for the PlayStation2. With the Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban videogame, Harry Potter fans will experience Harry's third year at Hogwarts. For the first time, gamers will play as friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger as well as Harry Potter, switching between characters and utilizing their key attributes and skills while following the storyline from the books.

Harry Potter fans will also be able to enjoy the use of their Eye Toy if they have one, to appear in the game. Up to four players can compete in a series of Harry Potter themed games offering hours of fun for the entire family.

To utilize the EyeToy feature, players start out by donning the Sorting Hat and are sorted into their respective Hogwarts house. In addition, gamers can experience a variety of Mini-Games, including: Chocolate Frogs: Clap your hands together to catch a Chocolate Frog and make a nice, chocolaty mess, Exploding Snap: A popular pursuit of Hogwarts pupils, Exploding Snap requires players to match their cards with the snap card to create explosions and increase their score. Chaining correct matches together produces even more explosions, Seeker Practice: Now everyone can improve his or her seeker skills by attempting to catch the ever-elusive Golden Snitch and Zonko's Joke Shop: There's only one way to stop Dungbombs Use Frog Spawn Soap to explode all Dungbombs onscreen; Hiccough Sweets causes them to jump and Stink Pellets slow them down.

The game is scheduled for release on various platforms in spring 2004. EyeToy functionality will only be available for the PlayStation 2 platform.