By LEE TING
It is undeniable that the Harry Potter fandom is a huge, unbreakable force. So much so that JK Rowling decided to give Potterheads the chance to be part of the magical world through Pottermore in 2012.
So when news came that Pottermore was being reborn, many Potterheads, myself included, were psyched. Not just the fact that they were giving us a certificate to prove we were part of the old Pottermore, I could not help thinking, ‘how would a perfect website be made even better’?
Come 22 September, Pottermore was refreshed and it was definitely not how I pictured it.
Gone were all the interactive aspects of Pottermore.
I remembered the excitement of visiting Diagon Alley to buy ingredients for my potions and then going back to the Common Room to meet my fellow Housemates (go Slytherin!), all while enjoying the novelty of collecting house points for the coveted House Cup.
There were times when I would spend an hour a day just going through the interactive experience of the books. These walkthroughs let us search for items from important scenes in the Potter books. At the same time, it would unlock stories of so many characters, stuff that we did not think anyone would have the time to think of even writing it.
What about those exclusive little snippets that were personally prepared by JK Rowling? Nobody can forget the time she gave us an insight on the current state of our favourite character’s lives through Daily Prophet reporter, Rita Skeeter.
Those were the best things that Pottermore had to offer. Now, the interaction is gone.
I am an avid reader and I am not complaining that some of the new articles posted in the New Pottermore were enlightening. There are even more stories of our favourite characters such as the Potter family and JK Rowling originals. But there lies the problem.
That was all there is.
It has simply turned into a Buzzfeed kind of website where there are articles after articles and lists such as ‘Seven times the Invisibility Cloak came in handy’.
Simply put, Pottermore is no longer magical anymore.
Well, let us give Pottermore the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps it is still too new. They did promise us a chance to be sorted into the Houses once again and to find out what our Patronus will be – something that I am definitely looking forward to.
So far, those are the only promises of interaction with no definite release date.
I guess my expectations were set too high, especially since it was supposed to be a revamp of a great community website. I am disappointed in the upgrades, but I will still keep my hopes up for the good part of the old Pottermore to make its reappearance.
So when news came that Pottermore was being reborn, many Potterheads, myself included, were psyched. Not just the fact that they were giving us a certificate to prove we were part of the old Pottermore, I could not help thinking, ‘how would a perfect website be made even better’?
Come 22 September, Pottermore was refreshed and it was definitely not how I pictured it.
Gone were all the interactive aspects of Pottermore.
I remembered the excitement of visiting Diagon Alley to buy ingredients for my potions and then going back to the Common Room to meet my fellow Housemates (go Slytherin!), all while enjoying the novelty of collecting house points for the coveted House Cup.
There were times when I would spend an hour a day just going through the interactive experience of the books. These walkthroughs let us search for items from important scenes in the Potter books. At the same time, it would unlock stories of so many characters, stuff that we did not think anyone would have the time to think of even writing it.
What about those exclusive little snippets that were personally prepared by JK Rowling? Nobody can forget the time she gave us an insight on the current state of our favourite character’s lives through Daily Prophet reporter, Rita Skeeter.
Those were the best things that Pottermore had to offer. Now, the interaction is gone.
I am an avid reader and I am not complaining that some of the new articles posted in the New Pottermore were enlightening. There are even more stories of our favourite characters such as the Potter family and JK Rowling originals. But there lies the problem.
That was all there is.
It has simply turned into a Buzzfeed kind of website where there are articles after articles and lists such as ‘Seven times the Invisibility Cloak came in handy’.
Simply put, Pottermore is no longer magical anymore.
Well, let us give Pottermore the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps it is still too new. They did promise us a chance to be sorted into the Houses once again and to find out what our Patronus will be – something that I am definitely looking forward to.
So far, those are the only promises of interaction with no definite release date.
I guess my expectations were set too high, especially since it was supposed to be a revamp of a great community website. I am disappointed in the upgrades, but I will still keep my hopes up for the good part of the old Pottermore to make its reappearance.