Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

With Harrison Ford’s recent retirement from the role of Indiana Jones following the release of 2023’s Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, it seemed as though the globe-trotting adventures of everyone’s favorite archeologist/grave robber had come to an end. Ford made it very clear that he did not expect anyone else to don the iconic fedora following his retirement, and with the box office underperformance of the way-better-than-it-got-credit-for final film, Disney and Lucasfilm put the film franchise on ice.

But, as it turns out, the movie theater is not the only place audiences can get their Dr. Jones fix. After several lackluster older titles and a few more recent false starts, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has arrived, and video game fans now have an Indiana Jones title worthy of the franchise. And while it doesn’t seem that Ford participated in the creation of this game, the developers at MachineGames were able to use some technological alchemy (and one banger of a performance by Troy Baker) to perfectly capture the essence of both the character and the actor that has portrayed him.

I can’t speak highly enough about Baker’s transformation into Indiana Jones. He doesn’t just do the voice work here; he was also responsible for the motion capture for the character. If no one told you and you didn’t know otherwise, you would swear that it was Ford doing the part. Hell, Baker’s young Ford is better than Ford’s was in Dial of Destiny. The Great Circle makes it very easy to turn off your brain and just accept what you are seeing on screen as Indiana Jones.

A ton of work has obviously gone into making both Indy and the world he lives in feel film-accurate. Everything on screen - and every sound you hear - just screams Indiana Jones. The hints of the theme tickling their way through the soundtrack. The dust that poofs up in the air when Indy disturbs something that has sat in a tomb for 1000 years. The puzzles that all feel like something you would have seen in the films. It all just fits, and it's all just right. I can absolutely picture this team sitting in a room, and one of them is pitching a puzzle design, and the others are waving him off, telling him that it isn't "Indiana Jones enough". They finetuned the hell out of this game until tonally, it feels absolutely perfect. 

The open exploration areas are absolutely stuffed with detail, and more than once the game pulls off a visual that made me gasp at its beauty. The landscapes are stunning, and if they aren’t historically accurate, the certainly feel that way. I mean, this is a game that off-handedly includes the Sistine Chapel as part of it’s explorable Vatican. I didn’t even realize where I was until an NPC mentioned it, and then I looked up, and was like “Oh. Right. Wow.” Closest I’ll likely ever get to really being there.

So, both Indiana Jones and the world he inhabits are both stunningly well rendered. But Indy is only as good as his latest adventure, and I’m pleased to report that ol’ Todd Howard and the gang at MachineGames have come up with a corker that slots right into the existing timeline, feeling completely at home in the Indiana Jones canon. The Great Circle takes place soon after Raiders of the Lost Ark, and it finds ways to reference Indy’s other adventures (and franchise characters that live outside of this game) without feeling like it is dishing out fan service. I’m almost completely avoiding spoilers in this review, but I will say that fans of the franchise will be very satisfied with the depth of the story and some of the twists and surprises that it unveils. This game has integrity, and it honors the franchise without pandering, in a way that still feels satisfying and fresh.

That is, except for the opening of the game, which recreates the opening temple sequence of Raiders of the Lost Ark in video game form. I can understand the reasons for this decision, both in grounding the player in the universe and using familiar territory to offer a simple tutorial. Yes, it does impress graphically (to the point where it feels a little show-off-y), and it’s fun to see the familiar sequence slightly expanded. But I was really hoping for a more traditional “adventure before the adventure” to open the game, rather than a retread of prior material. Regardless of my minor disappointment with the opening, it is over quickly, and then the game takes off like a rocket.

After the obligatory (and very fun) sequence with Marcus Brody at the university (which is small, but fun to explore), the game takes place in three extremely large open areas around the globe. While I wouldn’t go so far as to call Indiana Jones and the Great Circle an open world game, I was surprised at just how much freedom and latitude to explore the player is given.

Each open area has a main story throughline, but anyone that marches straight through the primary quest path without stopping to take a look around is doing themselves an enormous disservice. It is a delight to explore the worlds this game offers, which feel lively but never cluttered. The three hubs are dense with meaningful activities and optional secrets to discover, all of which are clever and rewarding. I ended up spending about eight hours in each area before moving on, and there are still several things that I left undone that I’m going to go back to. The game wisely allows players to return to previous areas to dig into unfinished business, which gives you the best of both worlds. Play until you feel sated in an area and then move on, knowing you can always come back.

There are side quests in The Great Circle that I would consider to be almost mandatory to the experience. Yes, you can push through the main story without doing them, but they do offer some of the best story and character moments in the game. These side activities also add a ton of flavor to the main quest line, fleshing out some of the side characters and offering a deeper look into the conspiracy that Indy is trying to uncover. Do yourself a favor and make a point of doing them.

In addition to the primary storyline and side quests, a lot of smaller puzzles and interactions are scattered about to add some spice to Indy’s world. While I did not pursue every single one of these, they are fun and well-designed. They also frequently tie directly to the game’s progression system, making them worth seeking out. Indy upgrades his abilities by reading books that he finds lying around and then investing exploration points into them. So, the more you explore, the more books you find, and the more upgrades you can afford to give Indy. It’s a smart system that feels organic to the world while still allowing you to increase your abilities.

This is important, because the Indiana Jones depicted here is going to need every advantage he can get. He is the most human video game hero I can remember playing. I won’t soon forget the first time I had Indy try to dangle from a ledge to skirt around a building like Nathan Drake. He ran out of breath immediately, and I had to pause to let him regain his composure. Indy can only run so far, can only climb so high, he seems to be terrified when swinging across gaps on his whip, and if he gets surrounded by more than a couple of enemies, he will get his ass kicked. Indy doesn’t lose fights because of the player’s lack of skill. He loses because he gets tired.

The combat in The Great Circle keeps things squarely in the realm of reality (or at least, more realistic than 99% of video games). Indy will not be running from room to room, gunning down waves of enemies. In fact, I did my best to never pull my gun at all, instead relying on stealth, fisticuffs, and the game’s fun “improvised weapon” system, which allows players to just pick up random stuff and clobber Nazis with it.

The stealth system is much more engaging and forgiving than the release version of Star Wars Outlaws. Thankfully, getting caught never results in an instant loss. Indy always has the opportunity to fight his way out of a pinch – or simply try to run away. There is no gameplay advantage to killing dudes (no experience points, for example), and clearing areas of enemies is strictly temporary. They all eventually return. If you can avoid fighting and simply sneak past baddies, you might as well. Still, smacking Nazis in the face with guitars and sledgehammers is a ton of fun, so that is something of a reward in itself.

While the game primarily feels like playing through a big-budget Hollywood adventure, with some cut scenes so thrilling that I completely forgot I was playing a game, I did experience a few moments that brought me back to video game land. At one point, my lovely reporter companion Gina Lombardi got caught in a dialogue loop and followed me through an entire tomb saying “Help me up! Dr Jones, come on!” until I wanted to toss her off a cliff like Elsa Schneider. She continued for the rest of the mission, and then on and on throughout my time in Egypt, even after a reload. Simply maddening. I also saw a few funny ragdoll effects; one Nazi I knocked off a cliff had the bottom of his foot securely glued to the ground, causing his body to flap and twitch in very amusing ways. But for the most part, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle plays crisp and clean. Certainly no upside down dragons to report.

As an enormous fan of the Indiana Jones franchise, I would love to see this game spawn a series, and I would further love to see that series push into less familiar territory. There is no question that The Great Circle is keeping things squarely in both physical and thematic areas that will feel good and familiar to franchise fans. For this first effort, MachineGames and Bethesda definitely committed to playing the hits, and while Indy isn’t precisely revisiting exact locations from the films, he’s close enough that most players will be like “Ah yes, the desert dig.” Still, the game is playing those hits well, and it’s a pure joy to hold a controller and sing along as Indy explores the catacombs under Vatican City or solves a water puzzle out in the jungle.

There is so much mythology in the world for Indy to explore, so many characters to meet, so many historic settings to visit, that I wouldn’t mind playing ten more of these things. This is a very well-made, gorgeous, fabulously entertaining video game. It has big budget Hollywood-level production values, amazing performances, great bad guys, and a fun and satisfying story. It’s a delight to know that Indiana Jones can continue his adventures in the medium of video games and still feel like Indiana Jones. The Great Circle takes its place among the very best film and television adaptations, and among the best games of the year.