As many Pottermore fans have already been made aware, the first four chapters of Chamber of Secrets have now been made available to all members. Slytherin House, who won the Inaugural House Cup for Sorcerer’s Stone–which didn’t include any last minute points announcements by Dumbledore, making this Pottermore House Cup win very non-canon–were granted access to these chapters, as a reward, 24 hours before every other house.

I have had an opportunity to look at all the moments in the new chapters, but I do have some lingering questions, plus some plausible answers.

Why only four chapters?

It is likely that Pottermore producers wanted to release the chapters for Chamber of Secrets in increments, 1) because fans were growing impatient for some new content and couldn’t wait any longer for the entire book to be ready for release (based on Pottermore’s seemingly slow schedule), and 2) because Pottermore producers wanted to make sure their servers could handle the influx of users coming back for the new release.

Those of us who were beta testers know how much downtime Pottermore suffered as it slowly rolled out to the first million beta users. Now there are even more users when you include those who became members when the beta testing period was over.

Because there hasn’t been much to do on Pottermore other than brew potions or challenge friends in duels (which was down for quite some time also), many users got bored and stopped going to Pottermore. New chapters mean a reason to come back. Many users coming back all at once and staying to read the new content for all the moments of all the chapters for an entire book might have been too much for Sony’s servers.

Then again, perhaps not. Perhaps their servers can handle a much greater load than they were able to last summer. I’m just speculating here.

What, if anything, is going to keep users coming back and staying?

I just mentioned that many users, myself included, have not been very active daily visitors to Pottermore. Sorting was the biggest draw from the initial release. However, there isn’t a whole lot in Pottermore that can continue to draw users back in repeatedly and keep them there. Sure, we were given the opportunity to brew potions and challenge fellow wizards and witches in duels. However, the duels system was down for a long time, and I for one am not particularly adept at potion-making. That said, once I read all the new content from J. K. Rowling, which was the biggest draw for me, I didn’t have any reason to come back, until now, with the release of the first four chapters of Chamber of Secrets. We were given new content from J. K. Rowling, which is great to draw fans in, but to keep them there?

Pottermore has added a couple of games which could, feasibly, serve that purpose.

One game is an old-fashioned one, a variation on a game I used to play with my cousins when I was very little: keep-it-up. We used to use balloons, which was easiest, or beach balls, to add a bit of difficulty. Instead of balloons or beach balls, you’re given an opportunity to keep Aunt Petunia’s pudding from falling on the kitchen floor after Dobby has levitated it into the air. The game is mildly fun, but then again, I’m not the child that I once was, and the allure of such a game wore off quickly.

Another game involves throwing gnomes over a fence, a game which has had many iterations in video games following the story of Chamber of Secrets, including Lego Harry Potter, as well as fan-created Flash games online. Gnome-throwing is certainly not a new game concept. But, it is a welcome one, as I found both frustration and enjoyment throwing those gnomes over that wall, while trying to get a bonus by getting over the tree stump. I also found a few glitches, which was not pleasant, but they went away with a simple browser refresh.

In the end, I personally still think of Pottermore as a novelty. It is not made for daily use. It is made for a one-time experience as new content and features are released, but after that, I find no reason to return regularly. Then again, this may personally come with age. I am 26 years old. I have a full-time job, hobbies, and a number of things that I have to accomplish throughout the day, so the simple answer is that I don’t have time for daily consumption of Pottermore. Also, that I simply don’t find these simple games engaging enough to keep me coming back to play them, though perhaps younger fans might.

What new content has J. K. Rowling revealed about the wizarding world?

Rowling has given us new information about three main things: wizards’ use of muggle technology, Draco Malfoy, and the Malfoy family history. I found the information about the Malfoy family mildly interesting, about Draco somewhat more interesting, and about muggle technology the most interesting of all. I had often wondered why wizards refrained from using muggle technology. Certainly, technology wasn’t nearly as advanced in the 1990s (when the Harry Potter series is set) as it is today, but computers had long been invented and in more or less common use, as well as other communication devices, particularly television sets. Wizards use radios, so why not TVs? Perhaps wizards were too far removed from the muggle world that they were less advanced in terms of technology. Many wizards are certainly not privy to muggle fashion, that much is certain. But that doesn’t make much sense either. Certainly wizards are the “more advanced race”?

Well, that’s essentially what Rowling explains. Because wizards consider themselves to be more advanced than muggles, they tend not to “lower themselves to the muggles’ level” by using their technology. One major exception, however: cars. However, you’ll have to go to Pottermore to read more about that.

Have there been any improvements in art and/or sound?

I think there has. Granted, there wasn’t any sound when Sorcerer’s Stone was first released for beta users; the sound was added later due to, I think, popular demand for it. Now, as each new moment is developed, sound is included in the development process. This, of course, increases the time it takes to develop each new moment, chapter, and subsequently, each new book, but in the end, I definitely think it’s worth the wait to have a fully submersive experience. I also think the art is brighter, more animated, more entertaining, and overall, much better than the art for Sorcerer’s Stone. I can’t wait to see the new moments within Hogwarts when the next few chapters (5-11 are planned for the next installment) are released!

What is the purpose of the still-locked circle on the far left of the header?

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but I think I remember hearing or seeing somewhere (perhaps at the Pottermore information session at LeakyCon 2011 that I attended last summer) that the far left circle would be reserved for a link to the Pottermore Shop. However, the Pottermore Shop has since been opened, with a link prominently featured on the log-in page instead, leaving that far left circle still vacant, except for an image of a padlock and a note that says “(locked)”. So, maybe I was wrong about its being used for a link to the Pottermore Shop. So, then, if not that, what could it be used for?

I don’t know the answer to this question, but here’s a suggestion: games. As Pottermore continues to add more games like the ones that I described above, as I assume that it will, users are going to forget which moment they can find which game, giving users more reason not to return on a regular basis to play them. Why not create a page that aggregates all the games onto one page? That way, they are easier to find and play, giving users some added convenience when they want to return to Pottermore merely to play some mindless game while on break at work (if they can), for example. The only other notable games that were accessible before were Potions and Spells, and they each have their own circles that they call home. Perhaps, though, there is some other game or feature that I am missing that could make its appearance in a future book? Or maybe this circle will be the future home of Pottermore mobile apps, which fans are certainly demanding, but they have not as of yet been released, nor have there been any announcements of their release.

Comment below with your ideas about the use of this still-unused circle!