When Indiana Jones was trying to figure out which the real Holy Grail Was in The Last Crusade, he had to use his knowledge of history and insights to pick the right one. However, that tense scene wouldn’t have been as great if his annoying companion kept giving him hints like “Try picking the dirtiest looking one.”
Indiana Jones and the Great Circleis trying to avoid exactly that kind of annoying companion hints –looking at you, Atreus. In order to do so, MachineHead devised a unique camera mechanic which will give players hints to puzzles, only if they ask for them.
Picture Perfect Hint
We had the opportunity to hear about this neat hint system from Jens Anderssonat a recent preview event. Design Director at MachineGames. He went into detail, talking about how the team wanted to create a hint system that doesn’t get pushed onto the player, but rather the player opts to use it only when they are stuck.
“This is something that was really important,” he said. “[Other triple-A studios] have cinematic puzzles and stuff like that, but puzzles where you have to think a little bit - we need a robust system to help the player not get stuck. We never want to see someone go to YouTube to solve a puzzle, and at the same time, we don’t want a companion nagging “why don’t you pull the lever?”
“We wanted you to be able to take your time and solve it,” explained Andersson. “We needed what I call an opt-in system where when you feel stuck you may ask for help, but it’s not pushed on you. The camera proved really useful there. Whenever you get stuck, pull up the camera, point to the puzzle, and get one more clue. One more part of the solution, and that’s worked really well.”
MachineGames has found a unique way to help players solve puzzles and has seamlessly worked it into the game itself. Indy simply whips out his camera to take a picture, and perhaps a lightbulb goes off in his head.
This method is perfect for those who want to take their time solving puzzles, and not have a companion constantly badgering them to pull a lever, step on a tile, or use some other tool. This was an annoying feature in God of War: Ragnarok, where Atreus or Mimir would give unsolicited advice before Kratos could even approach the puzzle.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
WHERE TO PLAY
Uncover one of history’s greatest mysteries in Indiana Jones and the Great Circle™, a first-person, single-player adventure set between the events ofRaiders of the Lost ArkandThe Last Crusade. The year is 1937, sinister forces are scouring the globe for the secret to an ancient power known as the Great Circle, and only one person can stop them - Indiana Jones. You’ll become the legendary archaeologist in this cinematic action-adventure game from MachineGames, the award winning studio behind the recent Wolfenstein series, and executive produced by Hall of Fame game designer Todd Howard.
