MachineGames revealed the first look at its upcoming title, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle at Xbox’s Developer Direct 2024 showcase. The Xbox Series S/X and PC exclusive title was announced back in January 2021, but the showcase finally gave players their first look at gameplay and provided some insight into the story, and when it takes place on the wider Indiana Jones timeline.
[Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the Indiana Jones franchise.]Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will be an original globetrotting adventure in which the legendary archaeologist will be racing against sinister forces led by the villainous Emmerich Voss in search of an ancient power connected to the Great Circle. The title will largely be a first-person experience with some third-person elements such as traversal and cutscenes, putting players in the shoes of Indiana Jones.
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When Does Indiana Jones And The Great Circle Take Place?
The New Story Takes Place Between Raiders Of The Lost Ark And The Last Crusade
According to the Xbox Developer Direct presentation, MachineGames’ story takes place between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. More specifically, according to the official trailer’s description on Bethesda Softworks’ YouTube channel, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is set in 1937, one year after the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1936, and a year before the events of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in 1938.
Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade both dealt with the rise of the Nazi party and other fascist movements in the years leading up to World War 2, and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle trailer shows that this will also be the case in the game. Notably, Indy will be traveling to Italy, namely Rome and the Vatican, so it’s possible he will clash with forces led by the country’s dictator, Benito Mussolini, during his venture.
Which Characters From The Indiana Jones Movies Could Return?
The Great Circle’s Place On The Timeline Could See Important Relationships Develop
The placement of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle means that it’s unlikely that players will be interacting with Indiana Jones’ father, Henry Jones, Sr. as the two were estranged until the events of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. However, Indy’s surrogate father-like figure, Marcus Brody, did seem to appear in the trailer for the game, which is in keeping with the British academic and curator’s role in Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
Although Indy will be working alongside a mysterious woman named Gina throughout Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, their dynamic may be platonic, considering his relationship with Raiders of the Lost Ark love interest, Marion Ravenwood at the time. Although it has been mentioned in the films, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has the opportunity to explore the relationship between Indy and Marion further around his latest adventure.
The film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull states that Indy walked out on Marion a week before their wedding with no explanation. With Marion falling pregnant with their son Mutt in the fall of 1937 and giving birth to him in 1938, it’s very likely that the two are still together at this time depending on when in the year the game takes place. It’s also possible that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle shows more of Indy’s thought process at this time, leading up to his decision to leave Marion.
Does Harrison Ford Voice Indiana Jones In The Great Circle?
The upcoming video game, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, captures the likeness of Harrison Ford’s adventure-loving Indiana in animation and voice.
What Is The Canonical Indiana Jones Timeline?
Indiana Jones Has Appeared In Many Stories Over The Years
When Lucasfilm was bought by Disney in 2012, it began work on its new Star Wars canon and erased the pre-existing Expanded Universe seen in games, comics, and novels, choosing a select few TV shows and the main cinematic releases to continue. However, no such announcement was made for the Indiana Jones continuity.
Although the intros and outros showing an old Indiana Jones have been removed from the DVD re-release of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, the TV show is canon to some extent, with some events being referenced in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny‘s behind-the-scenes featurettes also noted that the Lance of Longinus had been featured in the 4-part comic, Indiana Jones and the Spear of Destiny, making that canon as well.
The Indiana Jones movies are considered to be the highest canon and override all other canon levels, even though Indiana Jones has appeared in many other games and books. Despite having a huge range of crossovers and tie-ins over the years, the confirmed canonical Indiana Jones timeline mentioned in the films – with the inclusion of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle – is as follows:
Title | Year | Medium |
|---|---|---|
The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | 1907-1920 | TV |
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (Prologue) | 1912 | Film |
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom | 1935 | Film |
Raiders of the Lost Ark | 1936 | Film |
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle | 1937 | Game |
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade | 1938 | Film |
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (Opening WW2 flashback) | 1944 | Film |
Indiana Jones and the Spear of Destiny | 1945 | Comic |
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull | 1957 | Film |
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny | 1969 | Film |
With the films’ releases moving forward in time and leaving huge gaps between entries, games such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle have the opportunity to expand upon these adventures, especially with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny already confirmed to be the final movie in the series and showing Indy seemingly retiring from adventuring to spend his life with Marion. Hopefully, if MachineGames’ title is well received, its parent company, ZeniMax Media, will look to work with Disney to tell more unique stories in this universe and fill in some of the gaps between the films.
Sources: Xbox/YouTube, Bethesda Softworks/YouTube
