Indiana Jones Game: Everything We Know

Ever since I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark, I couldn’t help wanting to experience gaming in Indiana Jones’ shoes. And even though there have been a few adaptations over the years, like the point-and-click adventure, “Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis,” it seems we won’t have to wait that much longer for a new game. Bethesda and MachineGuns finally confirmed in 2021 that they are working on a new Indiana Jones game. Fun fact: Did you know Bethesda Director, Todd Howard, first pitched the concept for the Indiana Jones movie in 2009? 

The deal fell apart, though, with Howard having to wait a while longer for the perfect team to be put in place. In a recent podcast, Todd Howard hesitated to reveal the genre of the new game, saying it’s going to be a blend of many things, which sparks more anticipation about when exactly Indiana Jones is coming out. What’s the story, setting, characters, or combat in the new game? Although the folks at MachineGames have been tight-lipped for the most part, we can sum up a decent list of things from the little they have shed light on so far. So, whenever you’re ready, here is everything we know about the new Indiana Jones game.

What is Indiana Jones?

Indiana Jones is an upcoming game based on the popular movie hero, Indiana Jones. The game was first announced in January 2021 as a new product in development by Bethesda subsidiary, MachineGames, in collaboration with LucasfilmGames. 

During Lex Fridman’s podcast, Bethesda Director Todd Howard hesitated to reveal much detail about the new game. Questions around the story, gameplay, and overall details of the game went unanswered.

When pressed further about the genre the new game will be based on, Howard described the game as a blend of many genres, saying, “It isn’t one thing intentionally, so it does a lot of different things.” 

He also added that “if you like Indiana Jones, it is a definite love letter to Indiana Jones and everything with it,” instantly reverting back to his love for the archaeologist adventurer, and the movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, being his favorite of all time.

Gameplay

Howard’s comments definitely raise more questions than answers. Especially since most people believed the game to have an action-adventure gameplay style. Now, there’s just no knowing what exactly the gameplay will look like. Perhaps the game will feature some puzzle-solving and dungeon-crawling elements. We’ll have to wait and see.

Story

Very little is known about the story of the new game. During the announcement, Bethesda revealed the new Indiana Jones game is in development and features an original story about Indiana Jones. Some parts of the original story are also presumed to have taken place in 1937, likely in Vatican City. 

Given Bethesda’s past experience in developing stories about Nazis in the Wolfenstein series, it’s possible we’ll see a step-up adaptation of the same. Moreso, considering we know Indiana Jones to fight against Nazis in some parts of his adventures.

With Indiana Jones still in its early development stages, the overall idea for the storyline is that it will be a standalone feature set at the height of Indiana Jones’ career. 

Development

The Indiana Jones game is currently in its very early stages of development. MachineGames isn’t at all new to the scene, having developed the Wolfenstein series and, more recently, Deathloop. With Wolfeinstein’s focus on first-person gameplay and the Nazis, it’s possible MachineGames will step up their game in their transition to Indiana Jones, both narratively and gameplay-wise.

Trailer

So far, there is only a very brief teaser that was released as part of Bethesda's January 2021 announcement for the new game. There isn’t much to go by from the trailer, which shows a simple display of Indiana Jones’ desk featuring plenty of his iconic items atop it like his fedora hat and his iconic whip.

You can also see a plane ticket to Rome with the date 1937. So, perhaps the game will be set in 1937, somewhere between the events of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Along with the plane ticket are a few notes scribbled with references to Vatican City and the US government. 

If I were to take a wild guess, I’d say the new game probably takes gamers on a hunt for some ancient holy relic or wild discoveries in some ancient ruins in Rome. Other than taking wild guesses, it’s hard to say whether Harrison Ford will voice the character in the new gamE. Or what the gameplay or story will be like.

Since the trailer release, Bethesda has given very little away to feed spikes in curiosity. So all we can do is wait a little longer for the actual release or a more defined trailer.

Release Date, Platforms & Editions

During January 2021’s first announcement, Bethesda was pretty reluctant to give a definitive release date for the new game. It’s highly unlikely that Indiana Jones will be ready in 2022. However, a 2023 release window could be more realistic. Plus, a new Indiana Jones movie will drop release on June 30th, 2023, so perhaps Bethesda will capitalize on the movie’s hype and release the game within the same year. Time will tell.

Platform-wise, since most Bethesda games launch on the Xbox, we believe Indiana Jones will be an Xbox exclusive too. It could also launch on PlayStation 5. Either way, Bethesda is yet to give an official confirmation as to which platforms the new game will release on. We also don't know the editions available, which isn’t surprising given that Indiana Jones is still in its very early stage development phase.

There isn’t much we know about the new Indiana Jones game. And with Bethesda’s past extensive periods between announcements and actual releases, it’s possible it might be several years before we get our hands on it. Still, the anticipation runs high as we anxiously wait to hear more hard details about the game. For more information on that, you can follow the social handle here.

So, what’s your take? Will you be picking up Indiana Jones when it drops? Let us know over on our socials here or down in the comments below.