Review – Indiana Jones and the Great Circle for Switch 2

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is one of those games I saw everywhere over the past two years, backed by an absolutely massive marketing push and near universal critical acclaim. But for whatever reason, I never paid much attention to it. I mean, it was an Xbox and PC exclusive after all (at launch), and, well, I don’t own an Xbox, and my PC is more of an editing machine than a gaming rig.

So, judging by the trailers, I just assumed it was an Uncharted clone, only in first person. What I did know from those trailers, though, was that the game had a stellar voice cast and some absolutely beautiful visuals, from the character models to the environments themselves. Again, Uncharted in first person.

 

 

It wasn’t until a Nintendo Switch 2 review code landed in my inbox that I finally saw what Indiana Jones and the Great Circle really was, and boy, was I wrong. This is not just another shooter disguised as an adventure game. In my eyes, it’s much closer to Myst than Uncharted, with a heavy focus on story, puzzle solving, and stealth. And most importantly, it absolutely nails the feel of the Indiana Jones films, with fantastic writing, stellar voice acting, and a presentation that made it feel more like a sixth installment of the film franchise rather than a video game.

Not to mention, nearly all of the visual bells and whistles from the Xbox version made the jump to Switch 2 with surprisingly few concessions. Heck, there were multiple moments in handheld mode alone that genuinely made me stop and say “wow” at the visuals. It’s not every day that a nearly two year-old game completely catches me off guard, but Indiana Jones and the Great Circle did exactly that.

 

Switch 2 Visuals and Performance

 

Before I dive into the story and gameplay of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, let’s talk about the Switch 2 presentation overall, because I’m sure that’s one of the main reasons you’re here.

Like I said earlier, this was my first time actually playing The Great Circle. But for the sake of this review, I spent a pretty good amount of time comparing footage and gameplay from the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S versions to get a better feel for how the Switch 2 release stacked up visually.

From what I’ve seen, the Switch 2 version remains remarkably faithful to the visual style and atmosphere of the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions, with surprisingly few compromises overall. Resolution is scaled back to 720p in handheld mode and 1080p while docked, but thanks to DLSS, the image quality still manages to look fantastic.

 

 

But, like with several other current gen Switch 2 ports, that visual quality comes with one major concession: frame rate. While the Series X/S and PS5 versions target, and largely maintain, a smooth 60 fps, the Switch 2 version instead targets 30 fps, which, as far as I could tell, it consistently hit throughout my playthrough.

Now, I’m sure that alone will be a deal breaker for some of you, but honestly, in the roughly 12 hours I spent with the game, I never once found myself pulled out of the experience because of the frame rate. The slower paced exploration, puzzle solving, and stealth heavy gameplay honestly lend themselves surprisingly well to 30 fps overall.

Visually, the biggest concessions I noticed were occasional texture pop in as detailed assets loaded while moving through environments, decreased foliage in some jungle settings, some iffy shadow quality in some places, along with a few brief pauses when transitioning from cutscenes back into gameplay. Thankfully, those moments were relatively minor and never pulled me out of the experience. The cracks did start to show a bit more in handheld mode where I noticed more blur in some locations that was visible while docked, but it never detracted from the experience.

 

 

Whether I was playing handheld or docked, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle consistently looked absolutely stunning on Switch 2. From the detailed environments to the lighting and character models, this is up there with Final Fantasy VII Remake in the visual department in my eyes.

It’s becoming more and more clear to me that the Switch 2 is FAR more capable than I originally gave it credit for. Between this and the growing number of so-called “impossible ports” we’ve been seeing lately, Nintendo’s new hardware continues to surprise me, even if some concessions are still necessary along the way. Not to mention, if you’re picking this up physically, Microsoft actually got the entire game completely on a game cart with no additional download required. Heck, not even the physical Xbox and PS5 versions of the game can claim that!

 

Story and Gameplay

 

Okay, with all of that out of the way, let’s talk about the game itself. At its core, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle feels like an old-fashioned, narrative first adventure game packed with mystery, puzzle solving, exploration, and discovery. The story takes place canonically between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade, following Indy as he investigates a string of mysterious sites around the world connected to an ancient power known as the Great Circle.

 

 

 

Without spoiling too much, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle really does feel like a proper Indiana Jones adventure through and through. Between the globe trotting locations like the Vatican and Egypt, ancient ruins, secret chambers, clever puzzles, and constant sense of mystery, MachineGames absolutely nailed the tone of the films.

And, of course, Indy voice actor Troy Baker deserves a ton of praise, because while nobody can truly replace Harrison Ford, his performance here is damn near perfect. I also have to give praise to Alessandra Mastronardi as Gina Lombardi, who delivers a genuinely fantastic performance throughout the adventure.

Pair that with fantastic cinematics, nostalgic music, and some damn good writing, and you end up with one of the most authentic Indy experiences I’ve seen outside of the films themselves. Heck, I honestly enjoyed this story even more than a few of the actual movies. Can you guess which ones?

 

Puzzles and Exploration

 

One area where The Great Circle really separates itself from other cinematic adventure games is its puzzle design. This isn’t just rotating a statue or pushing a box before getting back to the action. Puzzle solving is a core part of the experience here, and honestly, that ended up being one of my favorite aspects of the game overall.

Many of the puzzles require you to carefully study your surroundings, search for clues, read notes, and decipher symbols, to solve them. It’s not like each puzzle was too difficult, but I did find myself stuck on a few for longer than I am willing to admit. But when I eventually solved a more complex puzzle, it felt pretty damn good!

 

 

The Great Circle also heavily rewards curiosity and exploration. Each location in the game is jam-packed with optional side quests called “Fieldwork,” hidden relics, secret pathways, collectibles, and stunning environments that practically beg you to slow down and take everything in.

Straying away from the main story path is almost always rewarded with something interesting to discover. I admittedly didn’t uncover every single secret during my playthrough, but more than a few times I stumbled across something unexpected simply by exploring the world around me. Whether it was hidden relics, keys, food that increases stamina, bandages for healing, or random objects you could use as makeshift weapons, exploration was always worth the time investment.

 

Stealth Over Shootouts

Now, that’s not to say there isn’t some focus on combat, because there’s definitely plenty of action to go around. But it became abundantly clear after I tried playing this game like Wolfenstein or Doom that running and gunning was not the developers’ main intention. Sure, you can approach encounters guns blazing if that’s what you want out of the experience, but trust me, it’s a lot harder than taking a stealthier approach. Enemies hit hard, resources are limited, and it only takes a few good punches to knock Indy on his ass.

 

 

Not to mention, most melee weapons break quickly, and firearms usually have extremely limited ammo. You can absolutely brute-force your way through encounters if you’re patient enough, but the game clearly wants you to think before acting. That being said, I DID clear out an entire Nazi compound packed with about 30 enemies just to see if I could pull it off, but it took me at least a dozen tries before I finally succeeded.

 

 

There’s also a hand to hand combat system you can rely on if you don’t have a melee weapon nearby, but don’t expect to button mash your way through fights. You’ll need to block enemy punches, manage your stamina, and pick your moments wisely if you want to land blows. And some enemies take quite a few of them.

Overall, stealth feels far more natural than direct combat, and honestly, I think that works heavily in the game’s favor. Sneaking through enemy camps, distracting guards, sneaking around restricted areas, and improvising your way through dangerous situations just feels more “Indiana Jones.”  I mean, Indy never really came across to me as the Doom Slayer when I watched the films.

 

A Few Frustrations

 

That brings me to one of my biggest frustrations with The Great Circle: the UI and inventory management. It’s not terrible by any means, but there’s honestly just a lot mapped across the D Pad and inventory systems at once. Healing, eating food, repairing items, pulling out weapons, and equipping key items are all tied to different controls, and in the middle of a tense fight, it’s surprisingly easy to hit the wrong button while panicking.

More than once, I found myself fumbling through menus when I was trying to quickly heal or pull out a weapon, and if that happens during combat, there’s a pretty good chance you’re getting knocked out.

 

 

Beyond that, the only other real issue I encountered was some occasionally dumb enemy AI. There are certain sections of the game where enemies simply refuse to pursue you past invisible boundaries. There’s one especially hilarious spot in the Vatican where enemies absolutely refuse to move past a small barricade on a side street. This basically allowed me to run up, punch an enemy in the face, then casually retreat back to safety just a few feet away while they stood there helplessly throwing objects at me.

Honestly, I had so much fun abusing this that I almost struggled to even count it as a negative, but there were definitely moments where it became abundantly clear that some enemies weren’t exactly the sharpest tools in the shed.

 

Final Verdict

 

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is an absolute blast from beginning to end on Nintendo Switch 2. If you fancy yourself an Indy fan, even in the slightest, the story, set pieces, characters, music, and constant sense of adventure alone are worth the price of admission. And beyond that, the game’s stealth and exploration mechanics really make you feel like Indiana Jones. (I’m sorry. I had to.)

Between the fantastic writing, stellar performances, rewarding exploration, clever puzzle design, and shockingly impressive Switch 2 presentation, MachineGames managed to create something that’s far more special than just another licensed game cash in. More importantly, it actually understands what makes Indiana Jones so iconic in the first place.

Sure, there are some rough edges here and there. The UI can occasionally be frustrating, the enemy AI has some goofy moments, and the Switch 2 version obviously comes with a few technical concessions compared to the higher powered consoles. But honestly? None of those issues ever came close to ruining the experience for me.

And somehow, one of the best Indiana Jones adventures in years ended up being a video game.

 

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