So I Tried… Secret Agent Wizard Boy and the International Crime Syndicate

Each edition of So I Tried… I will try a game that I have never played before. Will I find something new to love? Will I find something new to despise? I'll take a full half hour, no matter how bad it gets or how badly I do, to see if this is the game for me. This time around, I went with the rather odd Early Access title: Secret Agent Wizard Boy and the International Crime Syndicate.

What I thought it was

If you’re a gamer of a certain age, chances are you took one look at this and thought, “Wow, did they re-release the Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone game?” I mean, just from watching the trailer, I was almost expecting to hear a “Flipendo!” or two, and it certainly brought back fond memories of playing the Harry Potter games as a child.

But what did I think this game actually was? It seemed quite obviously to be a love letter and parody of the first few Harry Potter videogames, but instead of Potions and Herbology classes, you’d be taking Espionage 101. Maybe Professor Snape is a Soviet spy? It was quite hard to guess what exactly this would be like, although I was fairly confident with the whole “parody” idea. But, does that make it entertaining enough to keep playing?

What it actually is

Secret Agent Wizard Boy and the International Crime Syndicate stars Wizard Boy, an ordinary boy wizard about to start his first year at Wizard School. That is, until MI6 call to ask for his help in bringing Professor Grumblemort — the leader of international crime syndicate S.P.I.D.E.R — to justice. Not the most in-depth of narratives, but enough there to give you a reason to roam this wacky wizarding world.

Within 30 seconds of starting, I collected a rather tasty-looking biscuit from a toilet stall, before picking up a missile and throwing it at a wall. Unsurprisingly, this didn’t end well, but I then spent the next 30 seconds rolling my ragdolling body across the floor giggling to myself before respawning.

Upon entering the castle, you’re basically left to your own devices, with only a vague objective to steer you towards your goal. I wasn’t too focused on that, though, as I had just collected my first spell (Prodify) and spent the next few minutes being rather unkind to some other students. The explorable castle isn’t huge, but it is full of fun diversions and secrets.

It felt like a physics-based sandbox more than anything, which isn’t a bad thing at all. Being able to get that nostalgia hit whilst simultaneously laughing at some ridiculous ragdoll physics is sometimes just what you need in a videogame!

Will I keep playing

As of now, Secret Agent Wizard Boy and the International Crime Syndicate is still in Early Access, and the developer is hard at work on a new update. I’m interested to see how much is added before the full release, and feel that this could be something quite special. So, yes, I will keep playing!

It was quite enjoyable to just explore the castle, uncovering secrets and tormenting students, but there is a question of how long that will be fun for until it grows stale. If you have fond memories of the old Harry Potter games and like the sound of them mixed with something like Goat Simulator, then, for the cheap price, I’d definitely recommend it.