OK, so that's a very heated conversation for another time, perhaps, but it's worth mentioning here, as a few minutes with hands-off gameplay footage of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (courtesy of an invitation to Bethesda's recent preview event) has given us the distinct impression that the next great Indy adventure will arrive in the form of a video computer game. Who'd have thunk it?
With MachineGames at the helm, we always expected there'd be a certain swagger and self-assuredness at play with this one – all of it well-earned through three superlative Wolfenstein adventures – and here we see the same level of polish, the same exacting detail in world-building and characterization, and the same desire to repeatedly commit acts of violence against Nazis…albeit in a much more family-friendly manner this time around.
The second sign that we may indeed be looking at the good stuff here is that there ain't no aliens or magic fridges in Indy's vicinity. It seems as though this is gonna be an adventure that scales things right back and attempts to capture the old-school Saturday-morning-serial thrill of jumping between planes mid-air or fighting on a truck...rather than any of the OTT sci-fi daftness that's ruined the more recent films. We all know the best parts of any Indiana Jones movie are the bits where he climbs around on moving vehicles and punches stuff whilst looking a little worried that he's gone too far, and it seems the devs here know that too.
This grounded approach - well, as grounded as Indy gets - continues in missions that, as far as we've seen, stick to real world locations. A very good idea! There's an added thrill to exploring actual historical sites, and in the gameplay we're shown we see Indy get to grips with a chamber full of traps underneath the Sphinx, rather than lumbering around inside some made-up tombs that don't carry the same historical weight or excitement. All of these signs point towards a game that's gonna serve us up classic Indy, a game that understands the character, as well as the allure of exploring and discovering, and we couldn't be more excited.
The action we're shown relies heavily on Indy's whip, and the most exciting aspect of all here is the presentation's focus on using Indy's wits, tools and natural abilities to solve puzzles and stay out of harm's way. We're told that "Indy's greatest tool is his mind", and this translates directly into gameplay that seems to offer an impressive level of freeform experimentation, both in its environmental puzzles and in its action.
A mission set in the Sphinx shows off a section of gameplay where Indy is stuck inside a classic rising sand trap. In order to escape, instead of a QTE or predetermined path up and out, we're shown the player lifting up a spear from the ground and throwing it so it sticks into the wall of the tomb. Now you can use your whip to grab the spear and move upwards. How much agency do you have in any given situation with this kind of stuff? It's hard to say just now, but it inspires a lot of confidence to see that the dev hasn't just relied on bombastic action or on-rails set-pieces. We may just get to actually use our noggins here, which is nice.
Upgrades and skill unlocks are handled through a perk system that allows you to equip various buffs by spending "adventure points". We're shown one perk called "True Grit" which allows Indy one more chance to get up after taking a hit that would normally be fatal. OK, so it's not the most exciting or original upgrade to be fair, but if these are quick to equip and less fussy than constantly hitting menus to spend XP, we'll take it.
Continuing on with the theme of using tools and being resourceful, we also get to explore Indy's archaeological/academic side through his camera and notebook. Your camera is used to study environs, snap clues and work out aspects of multipart puzzles, and it also - according to the devs - can lead to rare secrets that are hidden deeper within missions.
We've also been suitably impressed by the characters and dialogue we've seen so far. Indy and Gina seem as though they'll make a smart pairing, there's an emotional aspect in the search for Gina's lost sister, and we also get to see a few delightfully deranged enemies - including a glimpse of the great Tony Todd as Locus. There are a ton of nods to the classic movies - even in the small selection of scenes we are shown we get to see a few recognizable outfits and expressions - and mission locations, whilst new, definitely borrow the look, style and feel of the first three movies.
By making Indy a resourceful hero, by giving us a certain amount of free agency in how we approach scraps and archaeological sites, this could be the closest we'll ever get to pulling on that famous fedora and jacket before accidentally getting smashed in the face with a spinning mirror. It also genuinely comes across as a more fitting and exciting follow-up to the classic trilogy of movies than either of Mr Ford's last two outings managed.
