The reveal trailer for Hogwarts Legacy dropped almost a year ago, and since then, details surrounding the title have been relatively scarce. With hype built up by the announcement, fans have continued to speculate on features they would like to see in Hogwarts Legacy. Being the first major AAA adaptation of Harry Potter in almost a decade, expectations are understandably high for Avalanche Software's upcoming title.
While it's difficult to glean any meaningful information about gameplay and other in-game features from the trailer, the reveal does tell fans quite a bit about the magical creatures they can expect to encounter during their time in the Harry Potter universe.
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Abraxan (Winged Horses)
Perhaps one of the most familiar-looking magical creatures in all of Harry Potter is the winged horses, which were clearly inspired by Pegasus. In the trailer, they are shown for a few seconds while they appear to be ferrying students, suggesting that they could function in a similar manner to the flight system in World of Warcraft. Of course, if Hogwarts Legacy features a large enough open-world similar to Red Dead Redemption 2 and the like, it could be imperative to have flying mounts.
Acromantula
The infamous Acromantula is among the most intimidating of all the creatures in Harry Potter. They are essentially giant spiders, the most famous of which was Aragog, who inhabited the Forbidden Forest on the outskirts of Hogwarts. In Hogwarts Legacy, it would be surprising if these are anything but a common enemy, with perhaps a uniquely large Acromantula filling in like a boss fight. If that is to happen, expect the encounter to mirror the films and go down in the Forbidden Forest.
Dragons
Dragons played a central role in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when each champion faced off against one during the Triwizard Tournament. The one in the reveal trailer, though differing slightly in appearance from the movie franchise, is likely a Chinese Fireball or a Hungarian Horntail since it is shown breathing fire during its trailer debut. Since fans are already familiar with multiple types of Dragons from the Harry Potter films, it's probably safe to say that players will encounter a handful of different varieties including the Swedish Short-Snout and a Welsh Green, but expect all of these to be among the most difficult encounters in Hogwarts Legacy.
Dementors
If Acromantula weren't bad enough, the reveal trailer also shows a brief shot of a group of Dementors traveling down a hallway (that looks suspiciously like Azkaban). It's hard to imagine the Dementors being anything other than a high difficulty encounter in the game since they literally feed on human happiness and devour people's souls. Since Dementors are associated primarily with Azkaban—and the location in the trailer looks like a prison—this small reveal likely means that players will get to explore Azkaban in some fashion.
Graphorn
The Graphorn is one of the few creatures that never debuted during the original film series and instead came to the limelight in the Fantastic Beasts series. If the film and the Hogwarts Legacy trailer are to be believed, the Graphorn is likely going to be a friendly in-game encounter. If players are pitted against a wild Graphorn, however, it will be an extremely dangerous encounter since Graphorns naturally repel most magical spells and are absolutely massive in stature. Since Hogwarts Legacy is set in the 1800s, and the Graphorn is all but extinct in the films (set in 1926), they will probably be fairly scarce in the game.
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Inferi
While they may look like zombies, the Inferi is a distinct creature in Harry Potter. The Inferi are corpses that have been reanimated using dark magic and are forced to do the bidding of the wizard that cursed them. Like the Acromantula, it seems almost a certainty that Inferi will be a fairly common encounter in Hogwarts Legacy, especially after leaving the school grounds and venturing into the less welcoming parts of the world. Hopefully, the existence of Inferi implies the existence of a powerful dark wizard or witch that could serve as another excellent boss encounter.
Mooncalf
The Mooncalf are a welcome reprieve from the darker, more serious creatures in Hogwarts Legacy. They are four-legged, furry creatures with webbed feet and gigantic eyes that make up the majority of their face. Again, like the Graphorn, the Mooncalf are unlikely to be a major threat in Hogwarts Legacy. Since the trailer shows a student feeding Mooncalves like in the Fantastic Beasts movie, it's an easy bet to say that the Mooncalves could be linked to a collection quest wherein the player is gathering food for them.
Troll
A common enemy in most fantasy games, the ever-popular Troll was also shown in the Hogwarts Legacy trailer. This was probably one of the easier to anticipate enemies in Hogwarts Legacy as the Troll played an unforgettable part in Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone. Although the Troll shown in the first film is a Mountain Troll, other breeds do exist in the Harry Potter universe, and players should expect to encounter at least a few different varieties including Forest Trolls and River Trolls. Along with Dragons and Dementors, Trolls will probably be a tough fight.
Boggart and Thestral (Maybe)
While these two creatures could be in the Hogwarts Legacy trailer, they aren't strictly shown. A Boggart's true form has never been seen, so it's possible that the short clip of a student transforming a cabinet into a sort of mannequin could be an example of the Riddikulus charm that forces them to take on a non-threatening shape. The other creature possibly seen without actually being seen is a Thestral which is invisible unless the observer has witnessed death before. It's possible that a Thestral could be drawing the flying carriage shown at the beginning of the trailer.
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