EA has released some new information, screenshots and a making-of video (mysteriously titled, "Part 1") for their upcoming videogame adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Of particular note is the knowledge that players are, "free to explore every inch of the castle and its grounds." I'm not entirely sure what that even means in the context of an ever-changing, practically living structure, but EA says you'll be able to explore all of it and you'll do so in an open-world capacity. 

In addition to the expansion of the school grounds, there's been some mention of new motion-capture techniques being used to create the character models and animations for the title. I will say, they do look pretty impressive, although some of the characters (such as Snape) strike me as startingly ugly. By the same token, the likeness to Helena Bonham Carter is so spot on that I'm willing to forgive some of those other transgressions.

Check out the video below the fold and the screenshots in the gallery. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince releases next week, on June 30th for every currently supported game system on Earth.