The video game sold $850 million in two weeks.

Prior to its release, much of the online discussion centered around "Harry Potter" creator J.K.

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Rowling's comments on transgender issues

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Warner Bros. Games said Thursday that the Hogwarts Legacy video game,

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set a century before the story of Harry Potter, has sold more than 12 million copies in two weeks

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Initial sales figures for the role-playing game, which earned approximately $850 million, J.K.

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But came amid a revived debate. Rowling, the author who created the fictional world and

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has drawn waves of criticism for her comments on issues of gender identity.

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Some critics have called Rowling's posts anti-transgender – a sentiment she denies – calling for a boycott of Hogwarts Legacy,

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which Warner Bros. Games has said she was not involved in making.

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The back-and-forth over Rowling's posts became particularly heated

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the afternoon for the four shootings. At a home, a 9-year-old child and his

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in the gaming community, where members are deeply invested in online disputes and harassment can run rampant.

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