Indiana Jones and the Great Circle: The Order of Giants review – Order up

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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle became a popular game later in 2024. Playing as Indy – exploring old tombs, capturing historical scenes, and fighting enemies – was incredibly fun. Its detailed and explorable locations, like the Vatican, Egypt, and Sukhothai – filled with secrets, challenges, and puzzles – even put it in the running for Game of the Year. Unfortunately, The Order of Giants doesn’t offer the same level of depth or excitement.

If you’re hoping this Indiana Jones and the Great Circle expansion will recapture the magic of the original game, you’ll likely be disappointed. It only adds a small amount of new content – a quick revisit to the Vatican and a short section along Rome’s river. After that, the game becomes a straightforward series of caves and somewhat frustrating puzzles.

The Order of Giants begins with a conversation with Father Ricci and his parrot in the Vatican, which soon sends you on a quest for a golden dagger. This adventure is more straightforward than the main game; instead of letting you choose your own objectives between story sections, it follows a single, set path. You’ll progress by solving puzzles and collecting items, and while some areas might appear to have branching routes, they ultimately lead back to the same destination.

So, Father Ricci told me about this awesome golden dagger, and he thinks the clue to finding it is hidden somewhere underneath the Vatican. I was expecting this ‘Order of Giants’ DLC to be all about a secret society of giants, given the name, but honestly, it’s not really focused on that unless you spend ages reading all the notes scattered around. There aren’t many cutscenes or much dialogue to explain things, and there’s just not a ton to *do* overall, unfortunately.

This expansion adds a few optional collectibles, like new artifacts and safe codes, but the puzzles are noticeably harder. While this extends the playtime, some of the optional challenges don’t feel worth the effort. The main content consists of four large puzzles linked by lengthy caves, and the game often requires a lot of button presses just to read the clues needed to solve them.

The main game plays like an action-adventure film, smoothly blending exciting moments, sneaking, puzzles, and exploring. However, the story, ‘The Order of Giants,’ feels straightforward and lacks depth. It’s similar to Uncharted, but without the memorable banter between characters. Even the final battle and obtaining the legendary dagger feel rushed and unsatisfying. The story doesn’t offer a strong conclusion – there’s no impactful moment of realization about the Order of Giants, and the game simply ends with the protagonist returning to the Vatican.

The core gameplay is still enjoyable, and the game looks and runs well. However, the ‘Order of Giants’ expansion feels empty compared to the original. The puzzles weren’t fun – they just felt like roadblocks – and there wasn’t much else to really engage with or explore.

If you only bought the Indiana Jones and the Great Circle premium version hoping for more content later, this new DLC, The Order of Giants, will likely leave you feeling let down. If you’re unsure whether to get it, it’s best to skip it. While it adds another story, it’s really only worth playing if you’re a dedicated fan and don’t mind the cost. It offers more Indiana Jones adventures, but it doesn’t capture what made the original games so special.

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2025-09-15 14:16