Indiana Jones And The Great Circle was one of the best games of 2024. Machine Games’ remarkable fusion of stealth gameplay, detailed open-ended levels, and a dogged faithfulness to the film series was a match made in heaven. Now, just a week ahead of its PlayStation 5 debut, The Great Circle is getting a few new additions that will make re-experiencing this modern classic worthwhile.
The Great Circle Title Update 4 will add entirely new perks for players to take advantage of in combat, over a dozen quality of life improvements, and a new hilarious use for an often underutilized item in the game.
The biggest item on the list is two new Adventure Books. One is called “Open Season,” which makes enemies more vulnerable to follow-up damage after getting hit with Indy’s whip. The second is called “Sleight of Hand,” which lets Indy use his whip to pull an enemy’s weapon towards him after doing a disarm whip attack. For players partial to the game’s optional gunplay, Sleight of Hand will add new strategy and variety to how ranged combat encounters play out.
For the more melee-focused player, Indy now has a secondary use for repair kits. These consumables are typically used to give more longevity to Indy’s makeshift weapon of choice. But The Great Circle is so chock-full of random pick-ups that they can often go ignored through most (if not all) of a single playthrough. Machine Games has made note of this player trend and adjusted things accordingly.
“Some of you have told us that you don’t have much use for Repair Kits,” the update’s patch notes read. “Well, now you can throw them at your enemies!”
Additionally, the developer got Troy Baker back in the booth to record more one-liners for Indy to spout off while exchanging blows with fascists.
A handful of customizable features have been added as well, including the ability to turn off the reticule (not recommended for players who get motion sickness), new tutorials for various mechanics and systems throughout the game, a timer that indicates how long aggroed enemies will look for you after being detected, and the ability to turn off the screen’s darkening effects when crouched. In total, the update adds 14 new features and options that players can mess with and tailor their experience.
Lastly, Machine Games took the extra development time working on the upcoming PlayStation 5 version of the game to improve its already lifelike graphics. Ray-traced global illumination and lighting have been improved across all platforms without affecting performance, according to the studio. A testament to the technical wizards over at the Sweden-based studio.
Update 4 is a substantial addition, giving one of last year’s best offerings a few finishing touches before millions of new players get an opportunity to jump into this globe-trotting adventure for the first time. Microsoft announced earlier this year that the game had already reached four million players on Xbox and PC. In February, the game earned three accolades, including the Adventure Game of the Year award at DICE.
