Harry Potter fans would be right to assume that similar themes and motifs will be present in Hogwarts Legacy. For example, it already seems relatively guaranteed that Hogwarts Legacy will follow the source material’s stereotyping when it comes to which students are represented in which Hogwarts houses. This may be most present in the player’s interaction with scripted companion characters from each house, including Sebastian Sallow, Poppy Sweeting, and Natsai Onai. In particular, Sebastian has been portrayed the most thus far in Hogwarts Legacy’s marketing.
The marketing around Sebastian has seemingly been an effort to depict Hogwarts Legacy’s darker side of magic. Much of the game appears to be influenced by horror in its latest trailers, and Sebastian’s particular companion quest may lead players through some of its most conflicted narrative moments. It is unknown how many companions players will be able to have at one time in Hogwarts Legacy, but if players decide to befriend Sebastian, it may be a little more difficult for players to reprimand him for his actions when they learn what his motivations are.
Sebastian Sallow Could Be an Empathetic Slytherin Student in Hogwarts Legacy
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Slytherin has a long and clear history of housing malevolent students. However, Hogwarts Legacy should hopefully still portray characters with more complexity. Sebastian’s companion quest may take him down a darker path than Poppy or Natsai’s, but his narrative is not without its own challenging struggles. Sebastian’s sister is apparently ill, and turning to dark magic seems to be the only option Sebastian has. If this brother-and-sister relationship is represented well, players may actually side with Sebastian in his attempt to cure his sister. Of course, fans know that dark magic is frowned upon and a catalyst for ne'er-do-wells to thrive.
Sebastian may have the same penchant for breaking rules or being where he is not supposed to that other Slytherins demonstrate, but his reasons for being in the library’s restricted section or looking into Hogwarts Legacy’s Salazar Slytherin may be much more empathetic. The perfect balance can be struck for Sebastian if he can be relatable in why he pursues dark magic while also needing the player to keep him from losing sight of why he dabbled in dark magic to begin with. If there is no way to reconcile with Sebastian’s sister being terminally ill without a potential cure, players may get to decide whether Sebastian receives melancholic closure, or becomes an antagonist wielding an Unforgivable Curse.
Hogwarts Legacy’s Slytherin Companion Character Introduces at Least One Unforgivable Curse
It is now known that Hogwarts Legacy will teach players the Cruciatus Curse through Sebastian Sallow, should players follow his questline. More dubious is how Crucio would be of any benefit to Sebastian or his sister, since the curse’s intent is to physically torture someone. Sebastian obviously believes that the spell could save his sister’s life, and perhaps the game’s characters are unaware of what its effect is, as a bit of dramatic irony. If players choose to learn the spell themselves, that could have some bearing on what happens to them or how other characters perceive them.
It seems as though allowing Sebastian to cast it on the player is the better option in that way, since players themselves would not have released that dark magic. If and how Sebastian’s sister could be saved is a mystery fans will have to wait to see; either way, Sebastian’s companion questline in Hogwarts Legacy seems incredibly intriguing, especially for fans who are excited to dabble in dark magic.
Hogwarts Legacy releases February 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A Switch version is also in development.