Antistatic Studios, a new outfit made up of former Cyberpunk 2077, Bioshock and Borderlands developers, have announced their debut title, a PvE co-op tactical shooter set on a haunted, post-apocalyptic continent. They’re codenaming it Hornet. The announcement trailer is sort of Lethal Company meets STALKER with a bodycam found footage perspective. It’s quite the cocktail of tropes, though I’ll take this over another “Soulslike roguelite deckbuilder” or similar.
Do you like puzzles? Do you like free games? Do you like free puzzle games that are charming and idiosyncratic? Then you’ll love 20 Small Mazes, a game that is just 20 small mazes. As the Steam store page says, they’re good mazes, though. It’s out on February the 16th from FLEB, which seems to be just one guy who really likes puzzles and making puzzles. I wholly support him.
“Please don’t do that!”.
CGI trailers that refrain from showing any actual gameplay have often been a source of discourse in the video game community. On the one hand, they can be pretty effective in building hype – particularly if it’s for a highly anticipated release – but on the other, they often fail at demonstrating what the game will actually entail regarding its gameplay.
In his latest YouTube video, legendary creator Masahiro Sakurai takes a stand against trailers that don’t show any actual gameplay, stating “In some cases, trailers like the ones seen on a game’s Steam page won’t show any gameplay footage at all – please don’t do that!”.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
2004 was a great year for gaming on the go. The cargo shorts I wore were yet to become the much-maligned fashion no-no that they are today, and the Game Boy Advance SP was small enough to slip into one of my many baggy pants pockets while still leaving plenty of short-legged storage spare to hold my wallet, keys, and chunky flip-phone. As a result a significant amount of my gaming in those days was done on Nintendo handhelds, and one cartridge that traveled with me more than most was Mario vs. Donkey Kong.
Fast forward to 2024 and, while I can’t quite squeeze a Nintendo Switch into one of the front pockets of my pants without walking with a noticeable limp, I can play a modern reimagining of Nintendo’s addictive puzzle-platformer complete with razor-sharp visuals, a bouncy orchestral score, and a number of welcome new quality of life improvements. I’ve only had my hands on the first four worlds of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong remake so far, but it’s already doing a great job of transporting me back to a time when The Da Vinci Code was on top of the best-seller’s list and everyone still spoke using quotes from Napoleon Dynamite.
If you missed it the first time around, the plot of Mario vs. Donkey Kong sees the tie-wearing gorilla bust into Mario’s toy factory, snatch every last Mini-Mario toy off the assembly line, and then ape-escape from under the noses of the factory worker Toads – leaving Mario in hot pursuit. The brand new and beautifully animated cutscenes in this modern Mario vs. Donkey Kong make the mostly static screens from the original seem like storyboard sequences by comparison, and are only a few Seth Rogen chuckles away from seeming like deleted scenes from The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
In order to see the safe return of his stolen moustachioed mini-mes, Mario must complete eight worlds’ worth of puzzle-heavy platforming levels, which has been increased from the six worlds featured in the original. In each level there are coloured switches to control platforms and other mechanisms used to reach a key and transport it to each level’s locked exit. Each world culminates in a special level that has Mario lead his little party of plumbers to safety like a group of lookalike lemmings, before a boss fight with Donkey Kong who seems as jealous of Mario’s toys as the Joker is of Batman.
While there are no Super Stars or Fire Flowers to assist him, Mario is occasionally able to get his hands on the noggin-knocking hammer from the original Donkey Kong arcade game, and he can also pick up and throw wind-up Shy Guys and other enemies at each other like in Super Mario Bros. 2. In addition, he can perform special handstand flips to reach higher platforms, and even walk on his hands in order to use his feet to protect himself from falling projectiles.
The general level layouts in Mario vs. Donkey Kong’s first few worlds seem fairly similar to those of the original, but I appreciate the new bonus levels that can be harvested for extra lives. The simple ‘pick a box’ bonus mini-games of the original are gone. Instead you must now chase a flying key around a special level in each world that puts your platforming prowess to the test in order to snare the elusive key before the time runs out. It’s a lot more fun than simply trying to stop the cycle of a Wheel of Fortune-style arrow.
This modern version of Mario vs. Donkey Kong also features an additional difficulty mode and, while I spent the bulk of my hands-on time on the Classic setting which more or less matches the challenge of the original, I did briefly switch over to the new Casual setting to see how it compares. From what I could tell, this more relaxed mode does away with the level timer so you don’t have the pressure of puzzling against the clock, and it also gives you five invincibility bubbles per life to shield you from enemies and environmental hazards – making it perhaps better suited to younger players who might find the instant deaths of the Classic setting to be a bit unfair.
In either difficulty mode, this remake simplifies the original’s old-fashioned high score system; instead of a points tally you’re awarded a gold star on each level by grabbing the three optional presents and reaching the Mini-Mario capsule before the time runs out. However, there is apparently a new Time Attack mode that can be unlocked, so if you’re a speedrunner or you want to set some best times to challenge your friends with then there could be a substantial amount of extra fun to be found here. There’s also co-op support for two players through the entire campaign, which I’m looking forward to experiencing with whichever one of my kids I can convince to be Toad.
All that said, the brand new Merry Mini-Land, which is the fourth world in this remake, seems substantially more fun than the first three worlds from the original which precede it, packed with clever uses of environment-destroying Bob-ombs, petal-powered fans and portal blocks that presented some stimulating new challenges. It could be purely because those first few worlds feel too familiar to me as a fan of the original, but it does make me wonder if Nintendo would have been better off making a full ground-up sequel rather than this enhanced remake. I’ll know one way or the other when Mario vs. Donkey Kong is released on February 16. I might even slip on a pair of cargo shorts to celebrate.
Tristan Ogilvie is a Senior Video Editor at IGN’s Sydney office. He’s always been more functional than fashionable.
There’s a timelessness to Persona 3 – its story of confronting death with imperfect courage and carrying on in the face of tragedy left an everlasting impact on me when I first played it on PS2, even as RPGs evolved and the Persona series continued to grow. As I’ve gotten older and experienced the very things it’s about, I’ve grown to cherish the earnestness of its message, the way it’s framed, and the characters who embody these struggles even more. That makes it easy for me to get caught up in the hype of Persona 3 Reload, but it also sets the bar as high as Tartarus as this remake tries to recapture the magic of its original versions. But after spending 70 hours playing through it, I can no longer imagine Persona 3 without Reload. It’s a shining example of seemingly small changes adding up to make a significant impact, uplifting its greatest qualities while staying true to the source material. And it more than proves why the darkest and boldest Persona yet deserved this new lease on life.
Although I’d argue there’s a particular vibe and style to PS2-era RPGs that just can’t be replicated, Reload’s visual overhaul is a meaningful way to reframe a world I’ve spent countless hours in, as if this was how I always wanted these places to look. At first it was a bit surreal to see Tatsumi Port Island recreated and these beloved characters remodeled for a new generation – something as simple as giving them sweet jackets, superpowered armbands, and black gloves are neat touches to complement the fancy new combat animations. And yet it’s all so familiar at the same time; the normal attack animations are true to form, the battle portraits are identical, and how your crew blast themselves in the head with an Evoker remains the sickest and best in-lore way to summon a persona. The fresh aesthetics and stylings more akin to Persona 5 also make these characters cooler than I could’ve ever imagined them to be.
This was the first entry in the Persona series to use the school calendar system and social sim elements as a foundation to move through its story, planning activities during the day and going dungeon crawling at night. Persona 3 Reload shows there’s still a novelty to balancing normal life and relationships with the duties of defeating shadows in the Dark Hour – a mysterious 25th hour where time stops as monstrous forces come out, humans turn into coffins, and your school transforms into a deranged 250-floor tower.
This is a structure I still enjoy, even if it falls into a predictable routine of visiting specific spots to upgrade my social stats or finding the next character to hang out with to rank up their Social Link. You can tell that this was the formula’s first iteration at times, especially when Social Link character arcs remain largely the same as they were in the original, a few of which are quite primitive or crude. But as shallow or awkward as some of them may be, there are valuable little stories to be found in Social Links that either feed into the broader message about finding purpose or are just entertaining enough to see to their conclusion.
Reload also includes fully voiced Social Link scenes for the first time, and that works wonders in terms of giving them more weight and value. All romances are optional as well, which wasn’t the case in previous versions of Persona 3 (except when playing as the Persona 3 Portable-exclusive female protagonist), and it’s pretty wild to think back and realize you used to be forced to have a relationship with every female classmate you got to max rank. Quality of life improvements like text messages help keep track of what’s available daily during the day and night, and the online activity tracker gives you an idea of what other players have prioritized. Both are clutch for quickly deducing what’s important and discovering much of the new content that bolsters Persona 3’s existing world.
Above all, Persona 3 Reload has new social events and activities that truly elevate its central characters. These create a stronger sense of togetherness within the party, showing them really forming natural bonds with each other and having lives outside the confines of their duties with SEES (the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad, which is an afterschool club for persona users, mind you). Something as simple as study sessions at the dorm help you upgrade your academic stat quickly, but more importantly, come with endearing scenes of the crew interacting with each other in believable ways, helping out with math formulas or just venting about the mundane.
You can take your party members on individual activities, too, like gardening or cooking together to get new health items, which also lets them open up to you in ways they hadn’t before. Watching a scary movie with my cheerful bestie Yukari or reviewing boxing matches with my gym bro Akihiko don’t just offer social stat points, they give a bit of insight into their personalities. Reading books with Mitsuru, Aigis, or Fuuka also serves to reward you with both stats and charming little interactions, and even the precious dog Koromaru gets his own adorable side-arc to round him out as a more complete character.
Reload even makes a concerted effort to address the fact that none of the male party members previously had Social Link routes. While they’re not traditionally structured, distinct opportunities to spend time with them now pop up throughout the story and eventually lead to revelatory moments for those characters. Since these are freshly written for Reload, there’s a noticeable contrast in quality compared to the original social sim conversations, making me wish the old dialogue had been punched up to match the heights of these new interactions. They are well-written and honestly touching at times, finally allowing your bros to be fully realized characters. And some scenes get other party members involved to showcase a better group dynamic that feels like a natural extension of Persona 3’s ethos.
All those additions become part of the daily routine and add a genuine texture to characters I thought I knew so well already. But the tangible reward comes in the form of combat perks like permanent stat buffs and status effects, and more substantially, extra Theurgy attacks – basically new Limit Break-style moves that each party member can unleash. It’s one convincing way for the power of friendship to be made manifest.
As is tradition for Shin Megami Tensei games, the turn-based RPG combat revolves around accounting for elemental affinities, knocking down enemies to earn extra turns, and setting up those iconic All-Out Attacks. Persona 3 Reload uses the same foundation as the original but builds upon it in ways that mitigate the monotony of churning through battle after battle. The aforementioned Theurgy attacks are relegated to a meter that fills during fights, each serving a strategic purpose given their limited use and character-specific effects, be that massive damage or major stat buffs – and they all come with some fantastic animations, too. Through the fusion system, which allows your main character to wield different personas Pokemon style, you can unlock a bunch of unique Theurgy attacks, and some of them are as destructive as they are hilarious. Those who’ve played Persona 5 will recognize the Shift mechanic, too, which works just like the Baton Pass; when you hit an enemy weakness, you can pass the extra turn to a different party member who can keep the pain train rolling or hit remaining foes even harder.
Fights come with a swift momentum that’s effortlessly stylized to match the kinetic look and pace of combat. And that’s key for a turn-based RPG, keeping things moving and never letting you get bogged down as you go through the motions of what could otherwise feel like pretty similar battles. And just like watching each of them take an Evoker shot straight to the dome to cast spells, I never got tired of seeing my party’s personas shatter their portrait cutouts when hitting a weakness.
Familiar RPG mechanics are made all the more enjoyable by some challenging new enemies that test your mastery and ask you to engage with Reloads combat systems creatively. As you ascend the randomly generated floors of Tartarus, where all of Persona 3’s dungeon crawling takes place, minibosses will meet you at a steady pace. Sometimes these foes don’t even have weaknesses, so you need to create your own openings with buffs, debuffs, and status effects that can turn the tide in your favor. That often has to be balanced with managing a slew of devastating status ailments and hard-hitting attacks, so things can spiral out of control if you don’t play it smart. The best examples of this come from Monad doors, which are all-new rooms within the Tartarus floors – specifically, the boss gauntlets found at progress checkpoints. These fights throw somewhat unconventional combat scenarios at you that bring out the best of these satisfying turn-based battles whether you line up a sequence of attacks perfectly or barely make it by the skin of your teeth.
Tartarus itself has been revamped to give it a sinister new vibe and a more distinct look for each block of floors. From Giger-like biomechanical labyrinths to shapeshifting industrial halls, Tartarus is at least more visually interesting than before, and the floors themselves are generally laid out less like tedious, sprawling mazes. It’s not a drastic overhaul that will completely stave off the repetitive nature of ascending Tartarus, but it’s just enough to prevent it from feeling like the weak link it could have been. Beyond Tartarus, bespoke story-centric boss fights await you on each full moon throughout the story. Although they’re relatively quick in how they unfold, all the new mechanics and visual flourishes of Reload give these battles a bit more gravity and spectacle, especially as you inch closer to Persona 3’s bold, daring, and moving conclusion.
All these exciting combat encounters, Tartarus floors to blitz through, and heartfelt moments tucked away in the social aspects of Persona 3 Reload provide a rich context for what this game is really about: finding purpose. For as goofy and irreverent as Persona 3 may be, its greatest strength is its emotional sincerity. Its storytelling largely manages to avoid tired tropes and lets its characters be real people who endure tragedy and contemplate the emptiness they feel in the loss of loved ones. But they find their own way to come to terms with that loss and let it be their strength as they fight to the end, even when the temptation of nihilism stares back at them.
Revisiting this story in 2024 through the lens of Persona 3 Reload put a lot of things into perspective. In too brief a period of time, I experienced what it’s like to lose the people you hold dearest and see those loved ones pass with dreams unfulfilled. I’ve also faced my own mortality with health conditions brought on by simply drawing the short straw when I was born. Persona 3 has taken on an entirely new meaning for me, even as the story remains the same. When I see these characters express their pain after loss, I don’t necessarily feel an intense sadness, but rather a certain empathy and understanding I just didn’t have before. When they question their purpose in life and search for meaning in the face of impending doom, I’m no longer shocked, but instead confident they can work through it and make the most of the hand they’re dealt.
Chasing the truth behind the Dark Hour, the existence of personas, and the rising cases of Apathy Syndrome that’s overtaken the world like a widespread pandemic creates an unmistakable existential dread that lingers over this world. And the original story stands the test of time because of how sharp it was in bringing those darker themes together. Several characters examine their will to live when there’s so much suffering to endure, but Persona 3 fires back with fulfilling, bittersweet answers that it doesn’t always have to outright say.
All that time you spend with these characters in Reload, learning about them and going through a typical day together, shows the value of a normal life. But they weren’t brought together by choice; at critical moments in the story, their complicated histories create a believable tension that boils over, sometimes harboring resentment for each other and doubting their trust. Weathering those storms together builds a realistic dynamic that evolves beyond simply tolerating one another. They are the epitome of this classic viral tweet – Persona 3 is Trauma Bonding: The Video Game.
One of the biggest reasons why everything comes together so powerfully in Reload, specifically, is the way the new voice cast brings its characters to life. I cannot overstate how the fantastic voice performances perfectly capture the original spirit of each party member, then elevate them to become even better versions of themselves. It’s impressive considering how distinct each voice was to begin with, but right from the jump, I knew this cast had nailed each role. Big heartfelt scenes, intense battle cries, and moments of levity have a newfound enthusiasm while sounding so familiar, as if these were their voices all along. I’d crack a smile at all their little quips and feel my stomach knot when they pour their hearts out. Although the main story hasn’t really changed, the portrayal of characters I’ve known for so long gave me a new love and appreciation for my favorite Persona crew.
And, of course, the glue that binds any Persona game together is its music. At this point, it feels routine to sing the praises of an Atlus soundtrack, but Persona 3 Reload is a case worth examining because of its fusion of the new and old, and the storytelling embedded in the songs themselves. In the mid 2000s, it stood out for having a wild mix of funky J-pop and the nu metal rap rock trend that was prevelant in the years leading up to its release. Yet that’s what has made it stand the test of time; there’s just nothing like it and the more time has gone on, the more it has been ingrained in Persona 3’s identity. Returning tracks have been rearranged with new singer Azumi Takahashi and I’ve grown to love her renditions. At the same time, there’s something comforting in hearing the deep vocals and distinct flow of rapper Lotus Juice again. For Reload, the brand-new songs not only fit wonderfully alongside the originals, they’ve quickly become some of the series’ best tunes, which I don’t say lightly given its track record.
The new, upbeat battle theme “It’s Going Down” you hear when surprise attacking enemies during exploration complements the soulful classic “Mass Destruction” nicely, and I didn’t mind failing to jump the enemy so I could sing along with an enthusiastic “Ooooh yeah! Dada-dada, dada-dada!” the same as I did years ago. However, it’s the beautifully chill night time theme “Color Your Night” that sets the mood with familiar instrumentation and lyrics that wistfully reflect on the events of Persona 3 – I can guarantee it’ll become a fan favorite. But the one song that brings it all together is the banger of an opener “Full Moon, Full Life,” which uses clever melodic and lyrical callbacks to Persona 3’s musical history while representing the message of its story to a tee. So even if the more granular details of Persona 3’s story start to fade, these songs can evoke the memory of an unforgettable journey.
On the 23rd of May, I strode out of the exam hall with my head held high. Not only had we cleared out the 42nd floor of the cursed extra-dimensional horror house that was our school’s midnight alter-ego, I’d also just aced my midterms. I spent the afternoon helping my french foreign exchange friend sew a kimono for his estranged uncle, then killed some time before bed by consoling the small child I’d been hanging out with lately about her parent’s divorce.
So goes an average day in one of the very, very many days stuffed into Persona 3 Reload’s year long taste of demon-slaying high school life. A charming fantasy? Perhaps! There’s plenty here for fans who don’t mind an old-school approach to grinding while exploring heartfelt, albeit cheesy, friendships. Those who don’t get on with anime tropes, though, might find it exhaustingly written and repetitive.
Dragon Quest Builders is finally coming to PC via Steam, seven years after it launched on PlayStation and Xbox.
A Steam page for the long thought forgotten game appeared alongside an imminent release date of February 13, 2024, meaning PC players can explore its Minecraft meets Dragon Quest style role playing game mechanics very soon.
“The beloved block-building RPG, Dragon Quest Builders, is bringing its handy crafting features to Steam,” its description reads. “Weave your own tale as you build your own unique buildings and towns to restore Alefgard to it’s former glory.”
Developer Square Enix neglected to release a PC version of the game when it launched on January 28, 2016, but did release its sequel, the aptly titled Dragon Quest Builders 2 on the platform.
The franchise therefore hasn’t passed over PC completely, but the addition of the original game to Steam will satisfy players eager to see where it all began.
“Dragon Quest Builders is totally, thoroughly engaging,” IGN said in our 8/10 review. “Its gameplay is accessible to kids while its dialogue offers enough sly references to keep Dad or Mom amused. Collecting, crafting, and building all sounds familiar, but this package encapsulates so much of the best parts of this creative process and wraps it in light roleplaying progression and storytelling.”
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Times are a-changin’.
Following the departure of Mike Ybarra from Blizzard just last week, Microsoft has announced that Johanna Faries has now been appointed as the new President of the formidable subsidiary.
Faries is currently serving as General Manager for the Call of Duty franchise, with her new role at Blizzard effective from February 5th, 2024. She has also held multiple roles at the NFL for over 11 years before joining Activision Blizzard in 2018 as Commissioner for Call of Duty eSports.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Every “incoming missile” alert in Nebulous: Fleet Command spawns a host of questions, scattering through your brain pan like chaff. The most important of those questions is: “which missiles, exactly?” There are many species of self-propelled ordnance in this dangerously engrossing space sim from Eriadanus Industries – you can design your very own in the fleet editor – and while all are bad news, some are far worse than others.
Earlier this month, the inaugural Xbox Developer Direct gave us our first proper look at gameplay from Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, which is coming to Xbox and PC later this year. Developed by MachineGames (Wolfenstein: The New Order), The Great Circle is a first-person action-adventure game boasting an original narrative set between the events of the first and third Indiana Jones movies, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Way back in January 2021, when it was first revealed that Bethesda had partnered with Lucasfilm Games to work on an Indiana Jones project, a short video teaser was released that I pored over on then-Twitter. I collated my findings into a trailer breakdown, and in the spirit of that investigation, I have returned – like Harrison Ford for the past 40 years – to recap what we know and speculate on the narrative. With all the new footage and my dust-gathering undergraduate degree in Archaeology at our disposal, let’s see what we can find out about Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.
The original 30-second teaser offered a surprising number of details about the plot of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. First off, we learned that Indiana Jones is set to embark on an overnight service to Rome on October 21, 1937, and his entry has been approved on the basis of Research / Education. The enormous map indicates that Jones is headed to Vatican City in particular, even going so far as to place a cross on the official residence of the Pope.
A typewritten note in the teaser also suggests that a “Father [x]” has been helping him with his research and that Jones will be meeting the father’s contact when he arrives in Rome. Other than that, we can see that Indy has been researching myths, stones and circles (aha!), with specific references to Mesopotamia, Peru and Egypt.
Before we get into the trailers, the official Steam page for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a great place to firm up some details. First off, the description confirms that Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is set in 1937, at the height of his adventuring career. The description also notes that “sinister forces are scouring the globe for the secret to an ancient power connected to the Great Circle”. As is typical for the adventurer, Jones is in a worldwide race against time to stop evildoers from getting their hands on something powerful.
In an interview with Lucasfilm.com, Game Director Jerk Gustafsson revealed some details about the opening of the game. As of the beginning of The Great Circle, Indiana Jones has separated from his fiance, Marion Ravenwood, and is “adrift in his own obsessions with his work,” Gustafsson says.
The Developer Direct revealed a little more about the events that set the game in motion. Professor Jones falls asleep at his desk at Marshall College but is woken up in the middle of the night to the sound of a break-in. He confronts the thief in the college museum and finds a “giant of a man,” stealing what Jones believes to be a historically insignificant artefact.
The aforementioned monumental man is Locus, played by Tony Todd, who most recently gave his voice to Venom in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. You can see Locus in the trailer, looking menacing in the dead of night in the middle of an Egyptian exhibition. Indy wags his finger at him in his professor get-up.
Locus’ theft of the artefact prompts Jones to head to the Vatican to investigate why the piece was targeted. The Great Circle’s store page description suggests a “world-shattering secret” tied to this heist, which Jones will uncover throughout the globe-trotting adventure.
A ‘great circle’ is a geometrical term to describe a circle of latitude that can divide a sphere equally. The Earth’s equator is a useful example of a great circle. In Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, the titular ellipse is the game’s main mystery, concerning a great circle that appears to cover several important archaeological sites. This is a real theory that wasn’t invented for the game, and some of the locations on the real-life great circle align with the locations Indy visits in the trailer.
Troy Baker’s Indiana Jones explains it as such: “Mankind had built sites of great spiritual significance. If you were to draw a line through these ancient sites around the globe, you’d get a perfectly aligned circle.” In an interview with Lucasfilm.com, Game Director Jerk Gustafsson notes that MachineGames developed the story concept with executive producer Todd Howard, who had “long nurtured the idea of doing a story-based game on the mysterious Great Circle.”
Additionally, a scene near the end of the trailer suggests some kind of secret society or cult that boasts hidden knowledge about this unusual phenomenon. While reading what looks to be a stone tablet, Indy says, “Patron of the fallen angels, protector of the circuli magni… the great circle.
It would make sense that the “ancient power” that the game’s sinister forces are rushing to find is woven into all this. It’s also interesting that Tony Todd’s character is called Locus, given that a locus in geometry is defined as a set of points that satisfy a specific condition. Maybe Locus, or whatever he took from Marshall College, is the key to unlocking the secrets of The Great Circle.
The Steam page description mentions that players will “travel from the halls of Marshall College to the heart of the Vatican, the pyramids of Egypt, the sunken temples of Sukhothai, and beyond,” which confirms at least four key locations that players will visit, probably connected to the plotted points on the coveted Great Circle.
All of the above can be easily cross-referenced with scenes in the gameplay trailer, too. You can see Nazis posted up at the Great Sphinx of Giza, a boat sailing towards sunken ruins, puzzle-solving in the jungle and some sneaky climbing around the Vatican. Outside those environments, a snowy scene is backed up by concept art in the Developer Direct, inferring that Indy will also visit the Himalayas during the events of the game.
We can’t confirm this one outright, but the scene where Indy jumps between planes features Chinese characters in the lower left corner. A thread on Reddit suggests that this level could be set during the Battle of Shanghai, part of the Second Sino-Japanese War. This would line up with the game’s 1937 setting and the Japanese plane Indy leaps onto. There’s also a piece of concept art in the Developer Direct showing Indiana and his companion cowering away from a bombing run in an environment that features Chinese iconography.
The cover art for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle provides a few extra details for the eagle-eyed. As well as showing us the Nazi-occupied temples in Egypt, you can spot Indy and Gina approaching what we assume to be the sunken temples of Sukhothai. However, the most intriguing detail is in the top corner, which shows Indy hanging by his whip from a biplane.
This may be connected to the aforementioned plane-jumping scene (which appears to be set in China) or another location entirely. In the Developer Direct, we see a motion capture sequence that looks like two actors falling from the sky and trying to hold onto each other, which could also be MachineGames recording part of this sequence.
In the Developer Direct, there’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment where we get a glimpse over the shoulder of a MachineGames developer who is working on a scene from The Great Circle. If you look closely, you’ll see they’re pointing at a monkey, and the lower screen preview looks like a marketplace, perhaps a bazaar or a souk.
This could indicate another level location than what we’ve seen so far in the marketing materials and reveals that there will be at least one monkey in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle… as well as all the spiders and snakes. What a scoop! I will rest easy tonight.
Indiana Jones is joined by an investigative journalist, Gina Lombardi (Alessandra Mastronardi), during the events of the game. It’s not clear whether you can play as Gina, but she is described as “the other main protagonist” during the Developer Direct.
According to MachineGames, Gina has “a personal stake” in the mystery of The Great Circle and encounters Jones while tracking a lead. The Developer Direct also adds that “their pasts are intertwined,” which is worth noting. The footage and concept art shown reveals that Gina will accompany Indy in Rome, The Himalayas, Sukhothai, and China (at least).
The Great Circle’s trailer begins with Emmerich Voss (Marios Gavrilis) taunting Indiana Jones, who is buried in the middle of the desert. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Game Director Jerk Gustafsson said that Voss “is searching for those major mysteries and those things that are unknown to the rest of the world. That’s a big part of what’s driving him. So when it comes to that obsession, they are very much alike.”
In the Developer Direct, Voss is described as an intelligent man “obsessed with the human mind and manipulating it”. The spectacled devil boasts a bandage on his nose when we see him in the desert scene, which isn’t there on the game’s cover art. We all know that one of Indiana Jones’ favourite pastimes is punching Nazis, so it’s pretty easy to surmise what happens there…
Elsewhere on the villain front, The Great Circle’s store page copy mentions that players will be “forging new alliances and facing familiar enemies,” which could suggest that evildoers from the first two Indiana Jones movies could potentially pop up in The Great Circle. Familiar enemies to Indy could also just mean “fascists”, though, and there are plenty of those in the trailer.
Marcus Brody is a British Archaeologist and dear friend to Indiana Jones who appears in Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. Given that The Great Circle sits between those two movies, Brody is set to reappear in The Great Circle. In the gameplay trailer, Brody has a brief exchange with Jones, withholding his trademark hat to issue a prescient warning: “You can’t just run away from your problems, Indiana.”
During the Developer Direct, one of the series’ famous map sequences details Indy instigating trip to Rome after Locus steals the artefact. Indy issues a telegram: “On next plane to Rome. Need help. Meet me in the Vatican.”
We can see the reply from a character called Antonio overlain on the screen. Antonio tells Indy that the Vatican isn’t safe and that he will wait for him at the “village steps,” noting that “subtlety is a virtue.” Perhaps this Antonio is the “Father” Indy was communicating with in the 2021 video teaser or, more likely, the contact he refers to in the typewritten message.
The IMDB page for Indiana Jones and The Great Circle lists Indiana Jones, Locus, Gina Lombardi, Emmerich Voss and a mystery character, Fiore, played by actor Giuseppe Russo. Maybe Fiore is the ‘Father’ character? Father Fiore would be a fitting name… but it’s truly anyone’s guess.
Indiana’s trip to The Eternal City is a complicated one. This was a period in history when Benito Mussolini’s Fascist Italy was supporting Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany ahead of World War 2. Mussolini and Hitler formed the Rome-Berlin Axis in 1936, which led to the Pact of Steel alliance in 1939. The Great Circle is set in 1937, which is when Mussolini embarked on a state visit to meet Hitler in Germany, and also the year Italy left the League of Nations.
Due to the fasces emblems visible on their soon-to-be-knocked-off helmets, we can deduce that Indy’s visit to Rome will involve lots of scraps with Blackshirts, the paramilitary wing of Mussolini’s National Fascist Party.
During the Developer Direct, we get numerous evening shots looking out towards the Vatican from Rome. Thanks to some Google Earth sleuthing, I can tell you that they all appear to be taken from the perspective of Castel Sant’Angelo on the river Tiber, otherwise known as the Mausoleum of Hadrian (the Roman Emperor of Hadrian’s Wall fame).
We know this due to the in-game depiction of the castle’s famous Archangel Michael statue, which looks very similar to its real-life counterpart. You can see for yourself via the handy 3D model on the castle’s Google results page. Given Jones’ comment about the “patron of fallen angels” at the end of the trailer, the significance of the appearance of Archangel Michael is something to stew on.
At around 1:30 in The Great Circle’s gameplay trailer, you can also catch Indy swinging down into one of Castel Sant’Angelo’s bastions, so it’s fair to say this is a location we’re going to explore in some detail. You can also see Blackshirts walking around the grounds at night, suggesting the castle is occupied when Indy attempts infiltration. The castle was decommissioned in 1901 and is now a museum boasting a huge collection of art and artefacts, which explains why the famous adventurer might be snooping around there in 1937.
This could also be where the meeting between Gina and Indy from the trailer takes place, in the room full of (mostly religious) artefacts. A piece of concept art seen in the Developer Direct shows Gina dressed as a nun and Indy wearing a black cloak in a very similar room. If it isn’t the same location, the disguise suggests that the storehouse may, at the very least, be close to a religious site in Rome.
One final fact to note about the Castel Sant’Angelo is that it is the site of the Passetto di Borgo, a papal escape route that links the castle with the Vatican. Speaking of which…
At some point during his trip to Rome, it looks like Indiana Jones is going to sneak his way into Vatican City. You can see the crossed keys of the Holy See emblazoned above a door as MachineGames demonstrated Indy’s third-person environmental traversal.
Later on, we also see Indy use his whip to climb onto a zeppelin hovering above the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. The zeppelin features the emblem of the Wehrmacht, suggesting that this is a Nazi-controlled airship. The cover art’s illustration of Egypt also shows us a zeppelin hovering over the Pyramids of Giza, so perhaps this is how Voss and his crew are “scouring the globe” for all the sites plotted on the Great Circle. Maybe Jones stows away on the ship to get to Egypt?
MachineGames offered plenty of details about Indiana Jones’ “fully simulated” whip and how it can damage, distract and disarm enemies while also serving as a traversal tool. However, one aspect of the presentation that I’m curious about is the camera Jones seems to be carrying around. Indy can be seen wielding the camera in Egypt and Sukhothai, so it’s clearly an important part of the game, perhaps something to do with puzzle-solving or record-keeping.
In an interview with Lucasfilm.com, Game Director Jerk Gustafsson notes that a third component of playing as Indy is “the discovery of all these historical moments hidden in the earth, or in the sand. Feeling like you are an expert archaeologist out on an adventure is perhaps the most important part of shaping the experience of being Indiana Jones.” If MachineGames is keen to explore Indiana Jones as an archaeologist, I’d love to see them attempt to gamify parts of the process, such as fieldwork, finds analysis and curation.
Capturing sites, artefacts, and text with analogue photography is important to the archaeological record, and The Great Circle is confirmed to feature “open-area maps” beyond its more linear set-piece gameplay. With that in mind, there’s definitely room for Indiana Jones to nurture his inner shutterbug while tackling all the traps, secrets and optional puzzles littered around the place.
