Indiana Jones and the Great Circle mixes genres to become MachineGames' biggest title yet

One of the biggest things that stood out to me during a hands-off preview of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was how much it blended elements of a wide range of genres.

You'd immediately think of adventure when it comes to the fedora-wearing archaeologist, yet fragments of action, stealth, and perhaps even immersive sims emerged in the demo I was shown.

A world that sits between an open sandbox and a linear path, multiple approaches to tackle countless scenarios, and of course, Dr Jones' own multi-faceted whip: it appears that the central mystery of the Great Circle isn't the only instance where there's perhaps more than initially meets the eye.

Globetrotting adventure

What would an archaeologist's adventure be without a bit of globetrotting? And from what I've seen so far you definitely get to see the sights. From the Himalayan mountains to the grand architecture of the Vatican, there will be more than enough variety for you to journey through, with each location holding plenty of secrets within.

One area we were shown in detail as part of the hands-off preview was the Great Sphinx of Giza, which has always been a personal fascination of mine. Not only was Indy able to crawl through the camps surrounding the landmark, but our adventure appeared to take us deep within the caverns of the Sphinx itself, which held all of the ancient traps you'd expect from a forbidden site.

Your journey won't just take you down a narrow path though, as MachineGames has made clear the freedom that will be granted to players. Don't expect the sheer openness of a sandbox world, but you'll definitely have more to explore than a standard linear narrative.

There will be plenty to find off the beaten path, with treasures to discover, secrets to uncover, and unique puzzles to decipher. It's been reiterated that the rewards for exploration are more than worth it, so definitely let your curiosity lead you - even if it is away from your main goal.

More than just a toolbox

While the areas that Indy and his companions will embark upon certainly deserve a lot of attention, what excited me the most from this particular preview was the countless tools that you'll have at your disposal.

These aren't just limited to combat encounters either - which I'll get onto in a little while - but remain vital to how you explore the world and uncover the secrets and puzzles that lie within. Pieces as simple as your camera and journal are essential functions to your progress, letting you capture key visuals and chart your adventure so far.

Stuck on a puzzle? Why not look back at your journal to see what you've discovered so far, and often times you'll find that the answer will be staring you in the face. It's up to you to fill this out though, so remember that your job is that of an archaeologist alongside all of the fighting and sneaking you'll be doing.

Another one of the tools that you'll definitely want to take advantage of is the various disguises at your disposal. The nature of your adventure is that you'll often find yourself in places you aren't quite supposed to be, so donning a different garb can help you escape the heat and distract others from your presence.

I was reminded of the Hitman series in this instance, where clever use of disguises can get you into otherwise inexplorable areas, but it's essential that your actions match your outfits as a disguise is far more than what you're simply wearing. 

There was one moment in the gameplay presentation where the player, upon sneaking into an enemy tent, nearly ruined their disguise by ignoring a request from a commanding officer. He'd asked Indiana to fetch him a drink and, had the player not rushed back to get it upon protest, all of the clever work done up until that point would have been for nothing.

I hope these moments are common in the full game, as they force you to think about your surroundings far more than just donning what would otherwise amount to a cloak of invisibility.

Punching Nazis never gets old

When things don't exactly go to plan though, there are thankfully a number of ways that you can weasel yourself out of a tricky situation. Punching Nazis is, of course, the most desirable option, and thankfully it looks to be both intuitive and satisfying to pull off.

When engaged in hand-to-hand combat you'll have to balance blocks, parries, and your own hits to take down the enemy, offering more strategy than a simple flurry of uninterrupted punches. It also very much stood out how impactful and meaty the punches sounded, adding weight to your actions and that ever-so-satisfying crunch of your fist hitting a bad guy's face.

If a situation calls for more than just fisticuffs though - and it often will - you've got plenty at your disposal to play with. Almost any nearby object can be picked up and deployed into combat, whether it's chucking a bottle into an enemy's face or whacking them over the head with a hammer lying beside you.

In typical Indy fashion, you can bring a gun to a knife fight, although I expect that won't always be the easy way out that you might hope it to be.

What will always be of help though is your trusty whip, which MachineGames have spent a lot of time tuning so that it feels just right. Stun enemies, tear their weapons out of their very hands, or simply slap them around a bit - there's never not a reason to (pardon the pun) whip it out.

Getting into the chaos of combat might not be your thing though, and there are often times where you'll want to avoid the danger of a fight, and thankfully it looks like you can avoid nearly every encounter in the game with clever planning. From sneaking around and clever distractions to aforementioned disguises, there will likely always be a way to get through unnoticed.

Myst-erious puzzles

Beyond the sneaking and the punching though are a variety of puzzles that look to challenge you across a number of scales. These will be far beyond just replacing an ancient treasure with another item too, making you search deeply for clues and work your way through complex scenarios.

One comparison that really drew my attention though was to older point-and-click puzzle games. The Indiana Jones series is no stranger to puzzles like this, but I couldn't help but recall similarities to games like Riven and Myst - particularly their 3D remakes - when seeing some of the puzzles on offer here.

I would be surprised if the Great Circle holds quite as much complexity as those two titles considering the nature of its other systems, but it definitely has got me intrigued and excited for what's to come.

Final Thoughts

While I've only experienced Indiana Jones and the Great Circle in a hands-off setting so far, what I've seen has definitely got me excited. The core rhythms are definitely what you'd hope - and expect - from a game centred around the archaeologist, but it's the variety of systems that stuck out to me most.

It feels like MachineGames is putting a lot of trust in the players to create their own experiences and take charge of their own adventures, with multiple ways to tackle each encounter and countless optional paths to explore.

It's hard to know how well this meshes in practice at the moment, but I'm feeling positive ahead of Indy's return, and hope that it lives up to the variety and depth displayed so far.

Hands-off preview. Preview access provided by the publisher.