It’s not the years, it’s the mileage. For Indiana Jones, the mileage keeps going strong. In an unexpected announcement today, Bethesda and Machine Games have officially announced that a new video game, set within the Indiana Jones universe, is in active development. This marks the first new Indiana Jones game since 2009’s Indiana Jones and The Staff of Kings.
Indie’s Back!
The news comes from a surprise tweet on Bethesda’s Twitter account. The teaser trailer shows a messy desk, with various articles and items strewn about. The trailer pans over the desk, revealing photos, a compass, and other souvenirs from various adventures. As the trailer pans over the desk, a stamped passport reveals the Bethesda logo, and a typewriter shows the Machine Games logo above the keys. Music plays in the background, slightly scratching from the vinyl of the record player. The iconic chords of the Indiana Jones theme play in a slow build of excitement. The last shot of the teaser shows a film camera displaying the Lucasfilm logo and a hand grabbing the classic hat of Dr. Jones.
We’re developing a new Indiana Jones video game! As huge fans of the franchise, it’s a tremendous honor for us to create a brand-new Indiana Jones game with a completely original story. We’re very excited and can’t wait to share more in the future! https://t.co/2oN6TZ5GJO
— machinegames (@machinegames) January 12, 2021
Below the tweet, Machine Games officially announced the development of the Indiana Jones game, calling their development an original story, made in collaboration with Todd Howard, director, and executive producer at Bethesda. Following this statement, no other details were given, which includes a release platform or window.
Speculation
This announcement is exciting, but like the Indiana Jones movies themselves, a veil of mystery is now cast on the game and what it will be. However, upon closer inspection of the aforementioned teaser, one intriguing possibility is Indy heading to Scotland’s Avebury Henge, a pagan monument that was seen as a threat by the Christians and were subsequently ordered destroyed. Only to later be discovered by Archeologist Alexander Keiler in the 1930s. While there isn’t much in the way of myth here, the historical implications are fertile ground and would be an ideal jumping-off point for a brand new Indiana Jones. After all, the maguffins of Indiana Jones all had some basis in myth or history to varying degrees, so it stands to reason this new game would follow suit.
The Facts
Granted, it’s important to note nothing has been confirmed as of yet, however speculating about our favorite professor’s next adventure is part of the fun. Late last year, Microsoft made a seismic event in the gaming industry, with the sudden acquisition of Bethesda Softworks and Zenimax Media into Microsoft Games Studio for the price of $7.5 billion. It is unclear if Indiana Jones will be an Xbox exclusive. However, given that Indiana Jones is a licensed property from Lucasfilm, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company, it is very likely that this new Indiana Jones game will be multiplatform to maximize visibility and sales potential.
The announcement of Indiana Jones does come a day following the rebranding of Lucas Arts as Lucasfilm Games, and encourages a prediction made following yesterday’s announcement. It appears that Lucasfilm and Disney are shopping their licenses around to many different developers to see what they can do with the likes of Indiana Jones and Star Wars. Disney shuttered their internal game development around 2016, with the failure of Disney Infinity 2.0. EA has been the exclusive developer of Star Wars games since 2013. With the entire video game industry having greatly shifted and adapted to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, this could mark a new beginning for Lucasfilm as many developers come up with new and exciting ideas with the most recognizable IP’s in pop culture.
In Good Hands
As for Machine Games being chosen for this ambitious project, it makes perfect sense. Machine Games rocked the world with 2013’s Wolfenstein: New Order, 2015’s Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, and 2017’s Wolfenstein: The New Colossus. While 2019’s Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot were met with a more mixed reception, Machine Games has established themselves in knowing how to apply polish and immersive action in a distinctive way.
Their talent in visual portrayal and gameplay is of incredible talent, and the feedback from players has been overwhelmingly positive. Of course, it’s worth saying, especially in the times we live in, that Machine Games clearly has an appropriate way to deal with fascists, and given what we’ve seen, Machine Games is going to make punching fascists and incredible joy.
What do you think of the surprise Indiana Jones announcement? Leave a comment below!
