Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Review | Get in player, we going adventuring

When it comes to action-adventure cinema, few names are as iconic as Indiana Jones. From his spelunking escapades in ancient tombs to high stakes chases through exotic locales, Indy has become a symbol of daring exploration and the relentless pursuit of discovery. Now, the legendary archaeologist makes his grand return to gaming in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, a canon entry to the franchise by MachineGames. It’s a tall order to position yourself so closely to such beloved films and claim to be a core entry into the narrative that millions of fans already love. Surely the talented developers behind the excellent Wolfenstein able to whip something special here. This is our Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review.

The game takes players closer to the action, with a first-person perspective that puts you directly in Indy’s boots. Admittedly this was something I was apprehensive about since these types of games safely operate on third person. I already primed myself going in that I should not expect bombastic action ala B.J. Blazkowicz. What makes Indy so iconic is that he’s an everyday man who just makes it up as he goes. He’s not the perfect action star. He misses more shots than he hits, he’s always beaten to a pulp with every fight, and he also panics and gets scared a lot (especially with snakes). So, does Indiana Jones and the Great Circle capture the essence of the character while making a fun game to play? Or does it fumble the fedora in its ambitious new approach? Let’s dig in.

In the Jone

The most immediate thing you’ll notice about Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is in how closely it resembles the classic films. MachineGames absolutely nailed the cinematic look and art style for the game. While it won’t grab your attention with the most detailed textures or the most impressive VFX, but I can definitely see each location here be ripped straight from the movies themselves.

Cutscenes are also an absolute blast to watch. Of course, I had to rewatch the original trilogy before booting up The Great Circle and I was pleasantly surprised to see some camera angles and lighting techniques made by Spielberg and his crew be translated so well here in the game. The developers definitely hold the source material with clear reverence, and it is magnificently recreated with what you see in the game.

However, there were a handful of moments that a number of visual bugs would pop up such as weird cloth physics or faint ghosting. They happened almost with every other story moment. Sometimes, re-opening the game would fix the issue but it’s not a 100% fix. It definitely took me out of the experience a couple of times which is a real shame given how I thought that the story had strong direction alongside great performances.

Speaking of which, Troy Baker as Indiana Jones is an absolute revelation. Harrison Ford’s voice is something that is so recognizable and distinct to me already as a massive fan of Indy and Han Solo and so I never thought anyone else could pull it off. While it’s not perfect, I could definitely hear Troy’s voice when speaking in normal tones at times, he definitely hits the mark in high emotion moments whether it be screaming, laughing, or being sassy at someone. Moments that make Indiana Jones the endearing icon that he is. What a fun performance to watch.

Character models, especially the facial animations are all excellent in the way they look in cutscenes and even in live gameplay. This is where I first found appreciation for the first-person perspective. It allowed me to really take in the sights of each location I found myself in while also catching small little details in the faces of people I would talk to or the enemies I would punch.

After a fantastic gamification of the opening of the first movie, we find Indy in Marshall College be woken up by a strange noise in the museum. After a confrontation with a mysterious man goes south, he discovers that one of his artifacts has been stolen. Him being the man that he is, opts to chase down a potential lead into the Vatican, against the wishes of Marcus Brody. The call to adventure is just too strong for Indy and he’ll swing on any chance he gets to put back on the hat.

This is the simple premise that catapults the game’s narrative. While it’s not my favorite Indiana Jones story, I can definitely say that I enjoy it far more than whatever Dial of Destiny had going on. The writing still contains a lot of what I love about Indy. An intriguing mystery to solve, stereotypical nazi villains, and a strong cast of characters that all have great chemistry with Indiana himself. I found myself grinning from ear to ear and at times, outright laughing at what I was watching. Just wait for a moment where you’re pulled into doing a confession since you’re pretending to be a priest. You’ll know what I mean. Comedic gold right here.

The script doesn’t rely on cheap nostalgic call backs. That was always my number one fear. The writers definitely did not play it safe here. Some risks were taken but I still found it to fit nicely into the already established franchise narrative. I’m sure Indy fans and newcomers alike will find something here to latch onto.

Controller, camera, action!

Instead of the usual chapters or acts, the game is broken down into locations. It is a globe-trotting adventure which each new area acting as a massive playground for exploration, puzzle solving, stealth, and combat. These are the 4 main things you’ll be doing.

Exploration takes the cake as the best one. I already mentioned it, but it’s definitely helped by how incredible the locations look. Clearly, extensive research was done to recreate a lot of the areas. Climbing and swinging will switch to a third-person perspective which can feel jarring at times and only serves to make me think occasionally of what an alternate version of this game could look like. Aside from the main story missions, there are also a lot of side stuff that are actually interesting to do because of how they’re integrated into the larger narrative or the potential rewards you’ll get. Finding loot such as money or even special artifacts will give Indy points to spend on upgrades. These upgrades come from books you’ll find throughout the game. It can be as simple as health and damage upgrades or as unique as having a Borderlands-esque second wave option as long as you pick up Indy’s hat when you get downed.

Puzzle solving is where a little bit of the disappointment steps in. While they do take some form of effort to accomplish, I did find them a little bit too simple for what I felt like would be appropriate for an Indiana Jones experience. Solutions are often spelled out and spoon fed to you through notes you’ll find just a stone’s throw away from a locked door or for a missing code. And some of the larger roadblocks are only intricate in its presentation and not necessarily in its execution. Coming straight off of the excellent puzzles of Silent Hill 2 Remake, The Great Circle definitely didn’t live up to my expectations.

Stealth and combat are 2 things you’ll definitely be doing a lot of but it’s not something that exactly refined here. While I do like the fact that sneaking around is the most optimal thing to do given how Indy is not a special ops soldier who can take on multiple enemies at once, the system is shallow with how it plays out. You just sneak behind someone and bonk them in the head with whatever breakable item you pick up. Satisfying in motion and I love how Indy uses random stuff he finds in the area, but the enemies’ cones of visions and sense of hearing are incredibly forgiving. I can bonk their comrade that’s basically an eye twitch away from them and they won’t notice.

Indy doesn’t regenerate health, has limited stamina, and can only really take on 1 on 1 direct physical fights. I actually love this. He’s always someone who barely makes it out of a physical fight and is usually almost fully ran down by the end of it and MachineGames did a great job at translating that into gameplay. Trying to alert everyone and taking them all on face-t0-face is an easy way to re-load a checkpoint. I also love the fact that you can’t really aim down sights for a fully accurate gun shot. The scrappy everyday man fighter is wonderfully realized here.

What ultimately drags both stealth and combat down is the severely limiting level design that loves to push you into specific scenarios and what I claim to be my biggest issue with the game is the broken enemy AI. A stealth system lives and dies by these 2 factors and The Great Circle fundamentally fails at both of them. The AI is easily exploitable. Enemies barely react to what’s going on mere inches away from them. There were a number of times where I wish I could just sneak past a group of soldiers but the only possible way to the objective requires me to knock most if not everyone out in the area. In the first ever underground area you go to, there are times where it is practically pitch-black and so I just have to blindly run into someone because their torch is all I see. How and why Indy doesn’t carry a flashlight everywhere he goes is beyond me.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Review Final Verdict – 8/10

There is a lot to love here in terms of narrative beats, character performances, beautiful visuals, and a strong script. The core essence of an Indiana Jones adventure is translated well into the overall experience. It’s the technical shortcomings and surface-level gameplay mechanics that hold it back from standing amongst the greats.

It seems that all the confidence and risk-taking the developers had was all poured into the narrative and presentation and the game design was left to scavenge what little was left. Nevertheless, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is still a lot of fun to be had despite the flaws. The fact that the audio team had the over-the-top sound punching sound effects already makes this game an absolute gem. Much like its cinematic counterparts.

This review was made using a game code for the PC provided by the publisher.