GamesIndiana Jones and the Great CircleAfter a mixed 2024 for Xbox, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has a chance to prove why Microsoft deserves Bethesda – and all its acquisitions, actuallyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesIndiana Jones and the Great CircleAfter a mixed 2024 for Xbox, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has a chance to prove why Microsoft deserves Bethesda – and all its acquisitions, actuallyWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Bethesda)
It’s true: Microsoft’smass layoffs and organizational venturescan make it hard to focus on the Xbox wins in a sea of unknown quantities. As the year rounds out with its biggest game release of the year, it feels like Microsoft has been holding its breath the entire time. It seemingly wants to prove why all these studio buyouts were not only necessary, but imperative to the sustained evolutionary success of each one. That’s where we stand right now, with all hopes pinned on a certain whip-cracking archeologist – and the wait could well be worth it.
Sins of the father
(Image credit: Tango Gameworks)
Nostalgia neuralgia(Image credit: Bethesda)Indiana Jones and the Great Circle feels the most rewarding when you’re being stealthy, and it captured my heart with one little reference
Nostalgia neuralgia
(Image credit: Bethesda)Indiana Jones and the Great Circle feels the most rewarding when you’re being stealthy, and it captured my heart with one little reference
(Image credit: Bethesda)
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle feels the most rewarding when you’re being stealthy, and it captured my heart with one little reference
Let’s start at the end. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the pièce de résistance for Microsoft’s gaming division as we head into 2025. The Bethesda-MachineGames team-up has the potential to become the strongest Xbox game of the year. It’ll likely be the game that comes to mind whenever you think of Xbox’s 2024 performance in the future. Or at least, that’s likely to be Microsoft’s intention.
In a year where recently-acquired studio shutdowns have led many to question Microsoft’s integrity in purchasing them, Indy provides an opportunity to cleanse this bitter taste from our collective palate. To that end, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has two main goals from where I’m standing: first, to make bank (duh) and second, to show off how Bethesda is thriving under Microsoft.
Though not the only culprit, Microsoft axed thousands of jobs in 2024 amid a spate of industry-wide studio shutdowns and dismissals. In January, just months after purchasingActivisionBlizzard and despite a perceived drive to demonstrate the growth opportunities afforded to its owned brands, head of Xbox Phil Spencer announced thatMicrosoft would be laying off 1,900 employeesacross ZeniMax, Xbox Games Studios, and the newly-acquired Call of Duty publisher. Just months later, Microsoft revealed that two ZeniMax studios would be shuttered completely –Redfall studio Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks– citing “reprioritization of titles and resources” as a driving factor. These cuts might not be personal, but they certainly haven’t done much to instill goodwill with players and employees alike.
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Apology tour
(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)
Indiana Jones has a hell of a lot riding on his strapping shoulders if Microsoft wants to make me forgive and forget.
Indiana Jones has a hell of a lot riding on his strapping shoulders if Microsoft wants to make me forgive and forget.
But there are some bright spots amid the darkness. I cannot understate how important Ninja Theory has been in proving Xbox’s chops this year as a key player to rival PlayStation.
But with so much uncertainty, is even Ninja Theory safe? A technical marvel though it is, it seems Hellblade 2 never received the raucous attention I’d argue it deserved. That said, Microsoft has shown repeatedly that simply producing good – let alone high-grossing – work has no bearing in exempting studios from the tumult of structural changes. Being a critical Game Pass success couldn’t save Tango from falling victim, after all, and despite PUBG publisher Kraftonswooping in to save itwith a well-timed studio buyback, it stands out in my mind as one of Xbox’s biggest losses of the year. All this to say, Indiana Jones has a hell of a lot riding on his strapping shoulders if Microsoft wants to make me forgive and forget.
Looking ahead to all theupcoming Xbox gamesof 2025, I’m hopeful to see Microsoft Gaming make more earnest strides to ingratiate itself back into our good graces. Delayed first-person RPGAvowedis set to be the first big Xbox exclusive of the year, anupcoming Obsidian gamethat’s already impressing us here at GamesRadar+ at the preview stages. There’s also the long-awaitedFable 4from Playground Games, folklore-infused gothic adventureSouth of Midnight, and the newPerfect Dark rebootto look forward to in the near future.
With Xbox exclusives lacking a strong enough identity to cut through the corporate noise in 2024, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has an opportunity to change course. Here’s hoping Bethesda sends us off with the memorable experience we’ve been waiting for, setting a glowing new precedent that Microsoft can uphold – and perhaps surpass – come the new year.
Look ahead to all theupcoming PC gameswe’re expecting in 2025
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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2
Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2
Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
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5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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1
Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
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3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3
Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”