Whip and fists: what will surprise the new game about the adventures of Indiana Jones

In December, all fans of the cult Indiana Jones franchise will finally be able to play a new game, created by the giants of the game industry together with Lucasfilm Games. This time the professor will have to uncover the mystery of the real existing buildings and their interconnection, and the players will have to wield a whip, shoot a revolver and beat the Nazis, while Europe is on the threshold of the Second World War. About whether the developers managed to keep the spirit of movie Indy and what else interesting awaits gamers in the action - in the review of "Izvestia".

Inside the canon

On the development of a new action game about the adventures of Indiana Jones announced in January 2021. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is being created by Bethesda and Machine Games together with Lucasfilm Games and will be the first game in 13 years connected with the famous archaeologist.

Screenshot from the game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Photo: Bethesda Softworks

Full-fledged gameplay demonstration has been awaited since the announcement - the developers showed the first trailer only at the Developer_Direct presentation this year. The resulting picture clearly reflects the style of those who worked on the project. Thus, the game director of The Great Circle, the head of Machine Games Jerk Gustafsson was the main level designer of The Darkness and The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, and the producer of the game was Todd Howard, who had a hand in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, Fallout 4 and Starfield. He was the one who thought up the plot and timing of the game, as well as put the Swedish studio in charge of development.

In addition, fans of the series could recognize the famous soundtrack from the film franchise, notice its classic elements like the whip or the professor's hat, as well as the young face of Harrison Ford, who played the character in several Lucasfilm Ltd films. This suggests that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle fits into the original narrative, falling in the time period between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade.

Screenshot from the game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Photo: Bethesda Softworks

One of the most anticipated adventures will be released on December 9 on PC and Xbox Series X/S, with a release date of December 6, 2024 for those who pre-ordered the Premium Edition. PS5 users will be able to get acquainted with the novelty a little later - in the spring of 2025. The Great Circle features a Russian language interface and subtitles.

Putting it all together

The Great Circle is set in 1937 before the start of World War II, with soldiers from the Axis countries traditionally acting as antagonists. Indiana Jones has just broken up with his fiancée Marion Ravenwood, at the same time a historical artifact is stolen from the college where he works.

The search leads the scholar to the Vatican. "He discovers that various holy sites around the globe are arranged in the shape of a circle. In addition to Rome, these include the Sukhothai temples in Thailand, the Egyptian pyramids on the Giza plateau, and the snowy Himalayas," the game's description says. The hero teams up with investigative journalist Gina Lombardi, traveling with her to different countries. In addition, he will meet old friends and enemies along the way.

Screenshot from the game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Photo: Bethesda Softworks

Given the zeitgeist of the time, there is a chance that the characters will have to face the machinations of the rising fascist party in Italy, while Europe is teetering on the brink of World War II - at least in the trailers, the professor is very sharp in fighting back against the fascists.

In the course of the adventure, Indiana and his companion get on the trail of a global conspiracy, the culprit being German archaeologist Emmerich Voss, who seeks mysterious extraterrestrial objects and subverts opponents with psychological methods.

Hide or attack

The creators describe Indiana Jones and the Great Circle as a single-player first-person adventure game, but at times the camera will zoom out to show Indiana Jones in his entirety - for example, during cut-scenes or climbing walls. The anticipated action game incorporates elements of other genres, where the player can choose whether to engage enemies or sneak past stealthily. So, instead of openly bursting into the heart of enemy territory, you can disguise yourself as one of the enemies, and sometimes even blend in with the crowd to avoid attention.

Screenshot from the game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Photo: Bethesda Softworks

The developers promise a combination of linear and open episodes: locations will be open for exploration in free mode, in addition, periodically players will be drawn into spectacular episodes of car chases or shootouts on military aircraft. You can get monetary rewards for taking part in underground battles, getting into fights with Nazis and other not particularly pleasant personalities. The world around you will allow you to choose options on how to fight, the emphasis is on improvising to the best of your ability during chaotic hand-to-hand combat, which ideally should reflect the spirit of Indiana.

Analog Fear: What attracted players to Mouthwashing

The most talked about indie horror game of the past fall, and what else to play if you liked it

The famous archaeologist's whip can be used not only during fights, but also to move through complex, impassable locations. With its help you will also be able to distract, disarm and eliminate enemies. Although gamers will have access to a revolver, it is better to use it in rare cases - The Great Circle is more focused on close combat, when you can use not only your fists, but also any stone that comes to hand. In addition, don't forget to block and parry attacks.

You will not do without solving puzzles, some of them will be optional, but their disclosure will help to improve the situation or affect the course of the battle.

Indiana Jones and the Great will not give many options to customize the build, the mechanics of progression will be built around adventure points, which can be spent to unlock various improvements that form Jones' abilities. These include the ability to survive a fatal blow if the hero manages to crawl to his hat and put it back on within a limited time.

Screenshot from the game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Photo: Bethesda Softworks

An important element will be the Indy journal, the professor fills it throughout the journey: there will be maps, sketches, letters and many other things that will be useful for future storylines. Another useful tool will be the camera, with the help of which it will be possible to detect clues.

Brothers Two: Mario & Luigi: Brothership brought to Russia

This is the first game in the series for home consoles, having previously only been released on handheld platforms

System Requirements

Full information about the performance and resolution of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle on different platforms has not yet been disclosed, but the developers have already shared the minimum requirements for PC:

Operating System: Windows 10 64-bit

Processor: Intel Core i7 @ 3.3GHz or AMD Ryzen 5 @ 3.1Ghz

Graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER 8 GB or AMD Radeon RX 6600 8 GB

RAM: 16 GB

Optional: SSD required