Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Switch 2 Review

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Switch 2 Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2

When it comes to iconic action heroes, few names carry the same legacy as Indiana Jones. While the recent films may not have reached the heights of the originals, those classic adventures remain some of the most beloved action movies ever made. That gives Indiana Jones and the Great Circle some enormous shoes to fill. Not only does it need to capture the magic of the films, it also needs to prove itself on Nintendo Switch 2 hardware. Which left me wondering, are we about to uncover a hidden treasure, or should this relic have stayed buried? What’s It Like? Grab your whip, throw on the fedora, and remember, you call him Doctor Jones, doll, as we review Indiana Jones and the Great Circle for Nintendo Switch 2.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is set between Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, following Indy on a globe-trotting adventure involving the Vatican, ancient giants, and of course, Nazi conspiracies. I do not want to give too much away here, but I will say the story is incredibly well written and perfectly captures the feel of the classic movies. The narrative is driven forward through gorgeously animated cutscenes featuring expressive character models that are bursting with personality. Indy himself is brought to life by Troy Baker, who could easily be mistaken for Harrison Ford himself at times, while the rest of the cast also deliver stellar performances that perfectly match the classic Indiana Jones tone and charm. The main villain, Emmerich Voss, puts in a chilling performance and completely commands the screen whenever he appears, thanks to his cold and calculating demeanour. The writing consistently hits the right beats throughout the adventure, balancing humour, tension, mystery, and blockbuster spectacle across its runtime.

The gameplay itself was not at all what I expected… but that ended up being a very good thing.

Going in, I thought I was in for a fairly linear first-person action game packed with fistfights and shooting, but Indiana Jones and the Great Circle instead places you into large open hub areas filled with side activities, hidden secrets, and optional quests handed out by NPCs. The first major area, the Vatican, can easily take upwards of fifteen hours to fully complete if you want to uncover every secret and finish every side quest. Alternatively, you can focus mostly on the main story like I initially did and push through the adventure at a faster pace. I would not necessarily recommend that approach, though, as I accidentally missed important upgrades early on, including boosts to my health and stamina, which made later sections far more difficult than they probably should have been.

Thankfully, the game allows you to revisit previous locations at almost any point during the adventure, making it easy to clean up unfinished quests and missed discoveries later on. What really makes these hub areas stand out, though, are the smaller details that have very little impact on progression, but add an enormous amount to the world-building and immersion. You might help a nun reach a book sitting high on a shelf, or, while disguised, casually exchange good mornings with people passing by as Indy naturally responds in character.

The puzzles are exciting and thoughtfully designed, offering a satisfying level of challenge without ever becoming overly frustrating. Solving them feels rewarding, especially as many require you to carefully observe your surroundings and piece together clues like a real archaeologist. Combat is also surprisingly visceral and challenging, usually resulting in frantic fistfights where blocking, parrying, and throwing punches become essential for survival. There is also a huge emphasis on using the environment to your advantage, with improvised weapons like shovels, pipes, and hammers scattered throughout levels. Smacking Nazis over the head with whatever random object you can find never really stops being entertaining. There are firearms, too, but they are very clearly treated as a last resort. Firefights can end incredibly quickly, with Indy only able to survive a few shots before going down. This is where the gameplay may divide some players expecting a more traditional action-heavy experience, because Indiana Jones and the Great Circle strongly favours stealth, caution, and quick thinking over brute force. There were multiple moments where I tried to charge headfirst into danger and immediately paid the price, forcing me to slow down, rethink my approach, and play more carefully instead.

The world is brought to life through some absolutely gorgeous visuals, featuring highly detailed character models and richly crafted environments, all further enhanced by impressive ray-traced global illumination that looks stunning in motion. Whether playing docked or handheld, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle consistently looks fantastic, with DLSS helping maintain a sharp and clean image quality across the adventure. The environments are especially standout. From the sprawling hub areas of Gizeh to the war-torn chaos of Shanghai, every location feels grand in scale and packed with atmosphere. The sheer scope of these set pieces makes the fact that this is all running on a handheld device even more impressive.

When it comes to performance, there are naturally some compromises. The frame rate does occasionally falter during heavier moments, while transitions between gameplay and cutscenes can sometimes feel a little abrupt, briefly pausing for a frame or two before continuing. There is also some noticeable pop-in across environmental assets and lighting in certain areas. Thankfully, none of these issues significantly detracts from the overall experience, because Indiana Jones and the Great Circle remains an incredibly polished adventure from start to finish. It is clear that a huge amount of care and technical expertise went into this port, with MachineGames managing to push Nintendo Switch 2 hardware in ways that challenge what many of us thought was technically possible on a handheld system.

For my archaeologists looking into accessibility, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle features an extensive accessibility suite designed to make adventuring more comfortable for a wide range of players. Options include UI scaling, motion blur and screen shake settings, colour filter modes, the ability to isolate audio sources, mouse controls, full control remapping, as well as difficulty modifiers that include custom difficulty settings and puzzle hints for players who would prefer to focus more heavily on the story. There are far too many accessibility options to mention individually here, which is always fantastic to see. As always, I recommend doing a little further research yourself to determine whether Indiana Jones and the Great Circle suits your own personal accessibility needs.

At just under $105 AUD, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle offers an enormous amount of content thanks to its huge selection of side quests, secrets, and discoveries, on top of an epic main story that will likely take at least fifteen hours to reach the credits. The Order of the Giants DLC is also available now, which I will be covering separately in another review, so stay tuned for that.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is simply phenomenal.

As a game, it is a lovingly crafted tribute that proudly stands alongside the original trilogy of films, perfectly capturing the tone, characters, and adventurous spirit of Indiana Jones. It delivers mystery, humour, exploration, and blockbuster spectacle in equal measure, constantly pulling you deeper into its world. Even during its quieter moments, the exceptional world-building and memorable characters make it incredibly easy to become absorbed in the adventure. As a technical achievement, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle also sets a new benchmark for what many of us thought was possible on Nintendo Switch 2 hardware. Like uncovering a long-lost relic hidden beneath ancient ruins, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a treasure worthy of any gamer’s Switch 2 collection.

So, What’s it Like? Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is like Chronicles of Riddick, crossed with the original trilogy of the Indiana Jones movies.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is a What’s it Like Certified Exceptional game.

In the interest of full disclosure, a review copy was provided by the publisher, but this doesn’t influence my score.

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