Indiana Jones and the Great Circle overcomes God of War Ragnarok's overeager tip-giver issue with a simple camera trick

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A modern day fix for a modern day problem

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
(Image credit: MachineGames)

Overly chatty protagonists have become a staple in modern gaming. Most notably, Horizon: Forbidden West and God of War Ragnarok's talkative characters will give hints for puzzles mere moments after entering a room.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle developer MachineGames has a simple solution to this problem using one of Indy's trusted tools – his camera. Speaking to Edge magazine, Game director Jerk Gustafsson mentions, "Thanks to that, we've not shied away from doing medium-to-hard puzzles, which is one of my favorite features in the game. We don't have to be afraid that we need to completely dumb it down because someone gets stuck, which is a prickly problem in many ways."

This allows players to decide when they want a hint while also giving MachineGames the leeway to create more challenging puzzles. 

It serves more than just a hint system, though. It also exists to promote exploration and discovery, which design director Jens Andersson points out: "You get adventure points for every photo you take, so it's required to upgrade your character. You fill out this journal where you're collecting all the information about your adventure. So it serves as a very meaningful way to explore. I love the idea that you actually look at the world, rather than prompts."

Indy's camera is a very "player-driven" tool. They decide when to take it out, snap a photo, and learn more about the world around them. Andersson explains, "It helps give Indy's perspective of what you're looking at. Every time you take a photo, Indy comments on it. It's a way to bring personality and the tone and style of the game to the player."

It's an interesting fix to a problem that has pervaded the gaming landscape. We will see how it pans out when Indiana Jones and the Great Circle launches on December 6, 2024. 

If you're looking for more information about the game, be sure to check out everything we know so far about Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. 

Jesse Vitelli
Jesse Vitelli
Contributor

Jesse is a freelance games journalist with almost a decade of experience. He was the Associate Editor at Prima Games for three years and then moved into the world of freelancing where you might have seen his work at the likes of Game Informer, Kotaku, Inverse, and a few others. You can find him playing the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV or whatever hot new multiplayer game his friends are playing.