Long before Avalanche Software's Hogwarts Legacy enchanted gamers worldwide, another studio attempted to bring J.K. Rowling's magical universe to life in an unexpected format. Volition, best known for the Saints Row series, secretly developed a Baldur's Gate-style Harry Potter RPG prototype during the PS1 era - a project that never saw the light of day.

Preserved footage of this lost prototype now resides at The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York, offering a fascinating glimpse into what might have been. The museum's digital preservation director Andrew Borman revealed the existence of this forgotten project during a recent tour.

According to GamesRadar+ reports, the prototype featured PS1-era graphics with a top-down perspective reminiscent of classic CRPGs like Baldur's Gate. Test footage showed Harry Potter and Rubeus Hagrid navigating through rudimentary environments, with character models and world design that reflected the technological limitations of the late 1990s.

The project reportedly took just weeks to develop - enough time to create a proof-of-concept for publisher THQ. Industry analysts suggest this prototype was likely created before the release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 2001, during a time when game adaptations were often experimental.

While Volition's vision never materialized, the Harry Potter franchise eventually found gaming success through EA's movie tie-ins and more recently with Hogwarts Legacy. The Avalanche Software-developed title has become one of 2023's biggest hits, with a Nintendo Switch 2 version scheduled for June 2025.

This revelation puts Hogwarts Legacy's accomplishments in perspective - demonstrating how far wizarding world games have come from those early experimental days. The canceled prototype's existence also highlights the fascinating 'what if' scenarios that populate gaming history.

As the Harry Potter franchise continues to expand with HBO's upcoming reboot series and potential new game projects, Volition's lost prototype serves as a reminder of the many creative directions the IP could have taken. While fans will never play this particular interpretation, its discovery enriches our understanding of gaming history and the evolution of licensed adaptations.

For preservationists and Harry Potter enthusiasts alike, this unearthed footage represents a valuable artifact - a snapshot of gaming's experimental past and a testament to how far both technology and adaptation approaches have advanced in the decades since.