Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Dev Explains Decision to Go First-Person Over Third-Person

Following the reveal of Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, developer MachineGames’ decision to go predominantly first-person for the game has become perhaps its biggest talking point.

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is first-person for the bulk of the action, with the camera pulling back to go third-person for parts of traversal and cutscenes.

Given the player assumes direct control over Indiana Jones himself, not seeing the iconic character on-screen has come as something of a surprise to some. But for developer MachineGames, which is famous for its in-your-face first person-shooters such as Wolfenstein, first-person was the correct move.

In an interview published on the Lucasfilm website, MachineGames game director Jerk Gustafsson was asked if the developers tried third-person during development.

“First-person gameplay is part of MachineGames’ DNA, and we wanted to see how we could use this to create a really immersive experience around stepping into the shoes of the world’s most famous archaeologist,” Gustafsson explained.

“It also separates our game from many other action-adventure titles, making it a unique experience that you cannot find anywhere else. However, we still want to show Indy as much as possible, so we have a seamless flow between first-person gameplay and third-person actions, events, and cinematics.”

The line about separating Indiana Jones and The Great Circle from other games may have something to do with wanting to stand apart from the likes of Naughty Dog’s Uncharted series and Crystal Dynamics’ Tomb Raider, both franchises heavily inspired by the Indiana Jones movies and both third-person.

Expanding on the point in a post on Bethesda’s website, design director Jens Andersson added: “Our game is about putting you in the shoes of an iconic hero. Since we are doing this mostly in first-person, you have the chance to truly become Indy. First-person makes you part of this world – allowing you to explore and experience things more intimately. What will you do when you’re dropped into this adventure with your wits and your whip? The world of Indiana Jones is a world with mysteries around every corner, where you’re racing against the clock and outsmarting your enemies as you hunt down artifacts.”

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is set to launch later in 2024 on Xbox Series X and S and PC, as well as straight into Game Pass.

Catch up on everything announced at Xbox Developer Direct 2024.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.