11 January 2024 , 18:00
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The next game from MachineGames is set to be fully unveiled later this month, but a potential name for the Indiana Jones tie-in may have been discovered.
It’s the new year and Xbox isn’t wasting any time. Earlier this week it announced that the January Xbox Developer Direct livestream will return for 2024, promising deeper dives into upcoming Xbox Series X|S exclusives such as Hellblade 2: Senua’s Saga, Avowed, and Indiana Jones. We already have some idea what to expect from the presentation thanks to last year’s Xbox and Bethesda showcase, which lifted the lid on Redfall and even stealth released Hi-Fi Rush. Even before the livestream’s airing, however, small titbits of information have started to leak.
MachineGames’ upcoming Indiana Jones game is highly thought to be called “Indiana Jones and The Great Circle”. That’s according to Twitter user @Kurakasis, who in a post highlighted the fact that Lucasfilm had filed a trademark in Europe for said title no less than two years ago. This supposed title lines up with a similar name seen on of one of the books featured in the game’s initial 2021 teaser trailer. Up until now it’d just been referred to as ‘Indiana Jones’ but that looks set to change on Thursday, January 18, when the Xbox Developer Direct gets underway.
The Indiana Jones game hasn’t been seen or heard about for nearly two years, meaning that hopes are high it’ll impress when the game is fully unveiled next week. Unfortunately, the title “Indiana Jones and The Great Circle” doesn’t tell us too much about the plot, but developer MachineGames has proven with its previous Wolfenstein games that it knows how to weave tight gunplay with a great story.
The next crusade
I previously expressed my thoughts regarding how 2024 is the year Microsoft needs to prove it’s worth buying an Xbox Series X|S. After a string of flops and mediocre exclusives, this upcoming Xbox Developer Direct is the chance to get people excited, including via the reveal of Indiana Jones gameplay, a name announcement, and hopefully a 2024 release window.
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Indiana Jones and The Great Circle will mark the first game MachineGames has released a title as a first-party Xbox studio, since Microsoft purchased Bethesda for a then unprecedented sum. I’m sure that the studio’s experience making games like Wolfenstein: The New Order and then Wolfenstein: Youngblood has come in handy when making another period-set, first-person adventure. Alongside great gunplay, all that’s needed to make this the ultimate Indiana Jones simulator is whip-swinging and quips. We’ll hopefully see both very soon.