Review - Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

A groundbreaking adventure for a more civilized age

Recreation of the Raiders of the Lost Ark Indy reveal

I have been a die-hard Indiana Jones fan since I saw the films as a kid, so when Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was first announced I was ecstatic to finally get another video game adventure after more than a decade since the 2009 disappointment, Staff of Kings. I was a little skeptical of the first person perspective and minimal promo material leading up to the release, but the game is finally out and I can happily declare that it is one of the best action-adventure games I have played in recent memory with a strong enough story to easily stand alongside the original trilogy.

Our journey begins with a brief foray into the opening of Raiders of the Lost Ark, an excellent choice that introduces us to the gorgeous visuals and borderline photo realistic lighting that we are treated to throughout the game. Seriously, it might be the best implementation of ray tracing I have ever seen, even if it does come at the cost of being a particularly demanding title. From there, Dr. Jones wakes up to a break-in at Marshall College where a giant man runs off with an artifact, almost immediately sending him in pursuit. It is a great setup that sends players right into the action on a globetrotting adventure through the fascist controlled Vatican to the dusty archeological dig sites of Egypt, swampy jungles of Thailand, and many more locations in between.

Getting creative with the take-downs in Egypt

What impressed me the most is that it features all of the beats you would want of an Indy adventure, yet still manages to not simply feel like a greatest hits compilation. It is set between the first and third films, so by this point we are taking control of an already established Indy. It manages to take the character to new places and explore some different sides of him while still fitting into the mold of what we would expect. While it has become a rote and stereotypical thing to say that video games feel like interactive movies nowadays, the care that has been put into the story, treatment of the characters, and how it’s presented has never made this statement feel more true than it does here.

Throughout the course of the game you will be punching Nazis and exploring three shockingly large hub worlds. Within these zones there are various side missions to complete, extra treasures to collect, and even more secrets to find. Some of the side missions have full cutscenes and stories that lend such a production value to them, that I frequently found myself forgetting that I wasn’t tracking the main quest. You also get a camera that lets you take pictures, and everything you discover and photograph gets added into your journal to look at later. The attention to detail here is jaw dropping and the way you interact with the UI is fantastic. Everything you need can be found within the journal which pops up as an in-game object that you can have out while you walk around the world. This even interacts with the lighting, and I would often be looking around catacombs for wall torches to get a better read on my map to find the right turn towards my objective. It serves to further immerse you into assuming the mantle of Dr. Jones yet never feels overly obtuse or like it gets in the way of what you’re doing.

Voss examining a sacred stone, one of the various Great Circle artifacts

When engaging in combat you will find yourself using a combination of your fists, whip, occasional firearm, and whatever scrappy melee weapons you pick up off the ground. Combat feels impactful and engaging, with snappy punches doling out the familiar Ben Burtt sound effects from the films and bodies ragdolling into furniture and knocking each other over. The whip is a ton of fun to use whether it be swinging between platforms, grabbing guns out of Nazi hands, or pulling guards in for a one-two to the face. One of my absolute favorite features is the ability to pick up a gun and flip it around to beat enemies over the head with instead of firing. It is not the most deep, robust combat system to ever exist, but all of these elements combine to do exactly what it needs to. With some of the finisher animations and facial expressions, encounters can feel totally slapstick just like a real Indiana Jones fight can be, and it is clear that this is what they were going for. You can also find skill books throughout the worlds that give you new abilities and perks such as a second win involving an awesome crawling to your hat minigame that is perfectly in theme, as well as basics like increased health, stamina, and so on. Once again, they are implemented in such an organic way that feels better than a skill tree menu, however I do wish there were a few more unique ones to find.

One of the biggest problems that plagues this game is bad enemy AI. The combat system is a ton of fun but the enemies often feel dumb and easy to run past or fight through. I found myself playing slow and intentionally making fights cinematic, but when I was running around to get the remaining collectibles later, left click spamming punches was enough to knock out entire legions of Nazis without getting a scratch. The game also places a big emphasis on its stealth mechanics, including silent takedowns and hideable bodies but outside of a few larger setpieces, it never felt totally necessary to me. Sometimes I could sprint past a guard and just circle around him to do a takedown before his detection meter filled, and so I never felt incentivized to play this way unless it was a big area that seemed to require it. This doesn’t ruin the experience by any means, but it felt weird when there was clearly a desire to have players play this way. I beat the game on the medium difficulty, so it's possible they get smarter on a higher one.

Dr. Jones and Gina stumbling upon a lost temple

What truly sets this game apart from competitors of the genre is that combat is really a small focus of the gameplay. A majority of your time is spent exploring crypts and tombs with torch in hand, solving puzzles, and platforming through temples with your whip. Making this a priority was a smart move because it gets to the heart of who Indiana Jones is and finds a way to make an engaging experience out of the aspects that you wouldn’t think would translate well. Even most of Indy’s previous gaming outings have been largely action focused, and the balance found here totally works. If you get tired of cave diving, you can take on a nearby enemy outpost in the pursuit of money and treasure, or pick up the main quest for the larger setpieces whenever you want. This applies to the level design as well, with many entrances and alternate paths to navigate through that could make multiple playthroughs feel different every time.

I could gush on and on about this experience. Troy Baker put in a legendary performance as Indy, combining almost freaky levels of Harrison Ford mannerism with enough of his own energy to make it unique but also one of the best screen to game character adaptations I have ever seen. Alessandra Mastronardi as Gina Lombardi and Marios Gavrilis as Emmerich Voss also do incredible jobs in their roles as the capable sidekick and quirky, menacing villain respectively. The only other things I can find to nitpick about is that while having a decently satisfying conclusion, the final fight and moments leading up to it felt a little rushed compared to the time given to the rest of the game. Additionally, the score by Gordy Haab is amazing and captures all the right John Williams beats to add an extra layer of emotion, but I feel his new themes were a little underused. There are some fantastic ones that don’t get enough time in the spotlight outside of brief motifs.

Indy spelunking through an ancient tomb

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle combines all the exploration, puzzle solving, lost temples, action set-pieces, and story charm that one would come to expect from an Indy adventure. It feels like a lost Spielberg script from the 80s that fused with the sandbox elements of Dishonored to create an adventure game that is both unique to play and totally familiar in the right ways. Dr. Jones can finally resume his place alongside the likes of adventure gaming icons Lara Croft and Nathan Drake, who owe it all to him in the first place. Games of this kind, strictly single player campaigns with a focus on exploration over combat, feel like they don’t often get made anymore, which makes it a breath of fresh air that it even exists. It is not without its flaws but it gets enough right for me to consider it a masterpiece of the genre, and I will gladly be seated for wherever MachineGames takes us next. Fingers crossed someone out there can contribute a killer Sean Connery impression.