The recent Xbox Games Showcase had plenty of surprises in store across a wide range of studios and projects, withIndiana Jones and the Great Circlegetting some time in the spotlight throughout the event. Many fans theorized before the showcase that it seemed like the perfect opportunity for MachineGames to dive deeper into a story expansion for the title, with these predictions thankfully coming true.
During the event, MachineGames confirmed the upcoming launch of theOrder of the GiantsDLC forIndiana Jones and the Great Circle, which is already shaping up to be an exciting addition that pays similar respect to the widerIndiana Jonesfranchise in a similar vein toGreat Circle’s base game. WhileIndiana Jones and the Great Circlewas quite well-received, its staggered level of accessibility across different platforms around the time of its launch was confusing and divisive to many, andOrder of the Giantsis set to smartly avoid this criticism.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle’s DLC is Going All-Out For its Platform Availability
Indiana Jones and the Great Circlereleased in December 2024 for Xbox and Windows, with MachineGames being the studio behind many of themodernWolfensteintitles, among other projects. It seemed clear from the outset ofGreat Circle’s announcement that the game was focused on portraying a faithfulIndiana Jonesexperience, right down to Troy Baker’s impressive recreation of Harrison Ford’s voice, with the game possessing an engaging level of combat and exploration mechanics to complement this.
Alongside the likes of Bethesda, MachineGames fell under the ZeniMax umbrella, withZeniMax itself being acquired by Microsoft in 2021for just over $8 billion. With MachineGames subsequently belonging to the wider Xbox Game Studios name, it was initially reported thatIndiana Jones and the Great Circlewould launch as an Xbox and Windows exclusive title, with the game originally launching only on these two platforms.
It was recently announced that the upcomingGears of War: Reloadedwill be available via PlayStation, with rumors suggesting that a similar treatment forHalois in the works, further outlining Xbox’s new commitment towards multi-platform gaming.
Despite these original plans, it was quickly announced that aPlayStation version ofGreat Circlewould eventually launch, with fans of the Sony console gaining access toIndiana Jones and the Great Circlein April 2025. Xbox cited its growing commitment to making gaming as accessible as possible while maximizing the reach of Microsoft-owned games as the major reasoning for this, with the staggered release of the game across major consoles creating a disjointed level of overall reception and discussion around the title.
Order of the Giant’s Platform Release Schedule is Best For the Game’s Community
TheOrder of the Giantsexpansion forGreat Circlewas recently announced at the Xbox Games Showcase on June 8, taking place in Rome during the events of the title’s main storyline. A release date of September 4 was announced alongside a full trailer for the expansion, with it being confirmed that the DLC will launch across Xbox, Windows, and PlayStation simultaneously. This further solidifies Xbox’s growing ethos in terms of moving away from exclusivity, while hopefully creating a more cohesive community experience compared toGreat Circle’s launch.
WithOrder of the Giantsbeing immediately available for all fans across all platforms, players can finally engage in more widespread discussion and exploration of what the DLC has in store, a far cry from the unsynchronized experiences across platforms forGreat Circle’s base game. Away from the benefits that this will likely have for the community, this simultaneous launch could potentially allow forOrder of the Giantsto make a much more noticeable impacton the industry, creating a big uniform splash that will hopefully bring much larger overall and lasting benefits compared to the divisive release schedule of the base game.
