Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Review: Gleeful Globe-Trotting Beyond the Stealth Slog

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle acrobatically tries to stay faithful to the original source material while also attempting to one-up the game franchise that is most inspired by it, Uncharted. The adventure game has the charm of the movies, but it unfortunately falls short on gameplay. 

The Great Circle is the latest in a long line of video games starring archaeologist and explorer Indiana Jones on new adventures beyond the original films. Swedish studio MachineGames, best known for the new era of Wolfenstein games, was tapped by parent publisher Bethesda to bring its experience making modern Nazi-fighting shooters to bear on the legendary Indiana Jones franchise. Needless to say, there’s a lot of expectation riding on the upcoming game, which comes out on Dec. 8.

The Great Circle takes place in 1937, which puts it right between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade, the first and third films of the Indiana Jones timeline. Indy launches into another globe-trotting adventure after an artifact is stolen at Marshall College, where he teaches archaeology. Like in the movies, he has to uncover long-lost secrets by solving ancient puzzles while racing with the Nazis, who are also attempting to gain a secret power found within magical artifacts. 

The game did a great job immersing me in the inter-war world of Indiana Jones with great voice acting, character exchanges and experiences ripped straight from the movies, but the stealth-heavy gameplay left a lot to be desired.

Explore the world with Indy

There is a certain tone an Indiana Jones game needs to strike that combines a sense of wonder and adventure with the charm of Indy. The Great Circle hits those notes again and again. 

The faithfulness to the source materials comes right at the start of the game as the tutorial level is a recreation of the opening sequence of Raiders of the Lost Ark when audiences were introduced to the adventurer exploring a South American tomb. It’s just amazing that the game captured both the looks and feel of that iconic sequence with a striking digitized Harrison Ford, who gets revealed the same way as in the movie when you don’t see his face until he cracks the whip at the guy who was about to shoot him. There’s even Alfred Molina’s character, Sepito, in the opening sequence. 

Renowned voice actor Troy Baker provides the voice for Indy, and it is a spot-on impersonation that made me really believe Harrison Ford was delivering lines. Baker expertly recreates the different tones Indy has throughout the movies, from the professional, calm voice when he’s at Marshall College to sarcastic yells when things are going badly. The remaining primary voice cast is just as charming, with a lot of playful banter between Indy and the other characters, which really gives the game that Indiana Jones feel. 

As expected with an Indiana Jones game, there are multiple places from around the world to explore, starting with Vatican City following the tutorial stages. Developer MachineGames delivered on giving the area the kind of grandeur expected. It gives a sense of wonder and mystery as if there’s a 1,000-year-old secret hiding behind every wall. 

After discovering clues in Vatican City, Indy continues his travels to learn more about the Great Circle in Egypt, Thailand and other areas. Each region is somewhat of an open world where Indy can take on a few quests, usually consisting of collecting items and seeing sights. 

Indy obtains the camera in the Vatican, an important item he uses to take pictures of historical monuments that will reward players with Action Points. These points can be used to improve Indy’s health, stamina and other attributes when he comes across certain books that are scattered around the world — a bit of progression that rewards exploration and makes combat easier. Money can also be found and used to unlock the locations of some of the treasures in the area, which will bring in more Action Points.

As Indy explores each area, he’ll come across ancient puzzles, another aspect of the game faithfully reproduced from the films. The puzzles are light challenges, usually consisting of moving around certain structures, pulling levels and bouncing sunlight off mirrors or the like. There are a few head-scratchers among them, and sometimes Indy’s companion will give him a clue of what to do. Some harder puzzles leave you to figure it out yourself, although most of the time I was confused, it was because I didn’t look up to see a ledge I could jump to or a post that Indy could use his whip on to climb to the next area. 

It was during the puzzles that I found myself delighted by the score. Composed by Gordy Haab, the game’s background music recreates the legendary score composed by John Willaims for the original films while also adding some new touches of his own, but what made me smile the most were the little cuts of music during the puzzles. Just these subtle hints of the soundtrack played like thinking music for me. 

Stealth, why did it have to be stealth 

It makes sense that an archaeology professor doesn’t go in guns blazing against the Nazis. Although I’m not a fan of stealth games these days, it’s understandable that The Great Circle’s gameplay is focused on being stealthy, and there are a lot of tools at your disposal to avoid attention. While Indy can do well fighting off multiple combatants at once, stealth is going to be key to surviving the squadrons of soldiers in his way. 

There are no particularly unique stealth mechanics in The Great Circle. Just follow the standard playbook of trying not to get spotted by the enemies, but you do have a bit of a timer from when an enemy spots you before they become aggressive, so there’s plenty of time to hide behind a box or vehicle. When there’s a cluster of bad guys around, usually, there are some bottles nearby that can be thrown to distract them. 

One tool that becomes available is the variety of disguises that help to blend into the local area. Once Indy obtains a disguise, he’ll be able to access more areas protected by enemies, but you have to play the part. If Indy is seen grabbing items from a table or attacking someone randomly, all nearby enemies will take notice and immediately become aggressive. Among the bad guys are captains who will spot the disguise right away, which gives an extra level to stealth play in certain areas. 

Stealth works fine in The Great Circle, but it just doesn’t add anything special. There were also some frustrating times when enemies spotted me earlier than I expected, requiring me to quickly hide or just run away until I got a better understanding of the ranges enemies had to spot me.

Not so easy to punch a Nazi 

Like stealth, combat in The Great Circle is both faithful to the movies and logical. Indy isn’t some big Marine who can dispatch a battalion of Nazis with just one rifle; like in the movies, he’s left to throw punches, using various melee weapons scattered around and, every so often, brandishing his pistol. Unfortunately, this isn’t as fun as it sounds and becomes a bit tedious. 

Melee combat is pretty simple. Indy can throw punches with his left and right fists, or you can hold the punch buttons to wind up and deal a more powerful blow that drops the defenses of enemies blocking. He can also block an enemy’s attack, give them a little push to get some space or do a quick dodge. 

Pipes, shovels and even fly swatters are found scattered throughout the world to serve as improvised weapons. Each has its own strength and durability, with some knocking out enemies in one or two hits, and can last for several hits before breaking. One frustrating aspect with weapons is that Indy will constantly drop them when picking up other items or doing other actions, requiring him to pick them up again and again. 

Indy does have his trusty pistol on him but don’t get too excited. It only comes with a few bullets, and it’s rare to find more ammo. Some soldiers carry machine guns that Indy can briefly use, but when you come across them, you’re still likely to be outgunned, which makes stealth the better option. 

There’s also Indy’s iconic whip. He’ll always have it on him, but it’s mainly a tool to traverse gaps and climb up or down. When used in combat, it can distract an enemy and even pull the guns from their hands. Its unique function is to subdue guard dogs that whimper and run away when it’s cracked. 

Despite this mix of tools and approaches, unfortunately, the combat dampens the fun. It’s just a bit boring. Granted, if you’re stealthy, there won’t be many fights, but if you find yourself in one fight after another, it’s just dull without more to spice it up. 

A globe-trotting adventure that’s great for films, not games

The Great Circle attempts to and succeeds in staying faithful to the source material, making players feel like they’re in the world of the classic, original films. While that accomplishment is amazing for such a celebrated film franchise, that preserved tone doesn’t extend to the more interactive parts of the video game. I felt a giddiness when watching a cut scene, figuring out a puzzle or listening to Indy explain the history of some artifact. That fun went away when dealing with the same boring stealthy sections and combat. 

Still, if you can get through the more monotonous parts of The Great Circle’s gameplay, there’s a fun story to experience with fantastic character writing, voice acting and music. This is one of those instances where you prefer watching the cutscenes to playing the actual game because MachineGames did everything just right. I mentioned earlier about the comparison to Uncharted, and when it comes to presentation, it is right there with it. When you factor in if the game is fun to play, the Great Circle can’t compete. 

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle arrives on Dec. 8 on Steam for $70 but can be played three days early when you buy the Premium Edition for $100. It will then launch on Xbox Series consoles for $70 on Dec. 9, and it will be available on day 1 with an Xbox Game Pass subscription.