Xbox Series X Critic Reviews

This is no lazy homage. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle delivers one the finest cinematic gaming experiences you'll ever play. A proper new Indiana Jones film that is actually a video game, in which you control Indy, with all his signature moves and quirks: the stuff of fans’ dreams, in other words.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the best adventure this character has embarked on in over 30 years. Developer MachineGames has leveraged its expertise in the FPS space to deliver an immersive, authentic first-person adventure that is quite unlike anything you’ve played before.

A grand, immersive, clever, and well-crafted action adventure that doesn’t bend the source material to fit the gaming genre but embraces it instead. This is perhaps the most faithful adaptation of an Indy adventure we’ve ever had, where you can spend dozens of hours and still discover something new.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is an utterly faithful, masterfully immersive adventure which impresses in so many ways. It captures everything special about the films but stands tall as an outstanding achievement in its own right.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the franchise's best entry since The Last Crusade. Machine Games' "adventure-action" game is one of the most alluring experiences on Xbox and delivers one of the best games of the year. Despite a few small faults, it's an adventure that could entice an introvert to leave the house. To me, that warrants a perfect score for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle!

Perhaps The Great Circle never again quite hits that fabulous high bar of the Vatican locations but as the enthralling remaining hours roll on, you never regret the time spent in Indy’s company – or, more accurately, being Indy.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the best iteration of the character and easily the best thing Xbox has put out in years. MachineGames understood the assignment and nailed every aspect of the character while making it feel like a new entry in the movie/adventure series.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a true homage to the best games in the adventure genre that were a hit in the 90s, but with a series of technical improvements provided by the new generation of consoles. With a setting rich in detail, an extremely rewarding sense of exploration and a story that maintains excellence from start to finish in the journey of pop culture's most famous archaeologist, the title closes 2024 on a high note and recaptures the spirit of the classic Indy movie trilogy of the 80s. More than just relying on the name of the Indiana Jones franchise, The Great Circle delivers one of the best games of the year and reinforces MachineGames' excellence as a developer.

All of this amounts to the exact type of praise we hoped we’d be left with; this is Xbox’s definitive game this year, and a perfect love letter to the original films. It captures what made them great in the witty tone, sense of adventure, and captivating mystery and expands it into a full on 30 hour videogame packed with fun and meaningful things to do in addition to the story. Some smarter enemies and a bit more of an expansion to the freedom to solve certain areas our own way would have been welcome, but other than a few minor quibbles Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is a brilliant adventure from start to finish.

If you love adventure, exploration, facing down the detestable Nazis or unraveling countless mysteries, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is for you. On the other hand, if you are a faithful follower of the character, you will not be disappointed when you put yourself in his shoes and travel the world as Indy. From any perspective, this game meets and exceeds expectations. It features majestic audiovisual work and gameplay that invites you to be part of its universe.