Indiana Jones & The Great Circle Released At The Best Time, But Its New Honor Highlights One Drawback

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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has proved to be a smash hit for Xbox, garnering countless glowing reviews as well as a lot of commercial success. This was all thanks to the incredible hard work of MachineGames, the developer behind Indy's latest outing. Of course, that hard work deserves to be recognized, and fortunately, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle has been nominated for multiple awards, including Game of the Year.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle recently became one of the D.I.C.E. Awards 2024's GOTY nominees, a title it shares with only a handful of the year's very best games. However, while it is great that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is finally receiving award nominations, it also reveals one of the drawbacks it has suffered as a result of its nearly-perfect release window.

December Had Breathing Room For The Great Circle

It Wasn't A Busy Month For Games

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle picked the perfect release date, as there was practically no competition for it going into the holiday season. With Avowed getting delayed again, the Great Circle was given the green light to dominate the charts thanks to the absence of any other AAA games. Of course, it is thanks to the merits of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle that it did so well, but the lack of any rival releases did help in allowing it to thrive.

It also saw Xbox end 2024 on a high note, proving to be one of the best FPS games of the year and giving people something to look forward to while the winter weather settled in. It also allowed it to just about get into the D.I.C.E. Awards, where it was, as aforementioned, nominated for GOTY. That nomination will help boost its sales even further, especially when it launches on PlayStation 5 in 2025.

The Great Circle’s D.I.C.E. GOTY Nomination Is Significant

It Gives Xbox A Win In 2024

The player reaching out for something while another character looks at a statue in Indiana Jones and the Great Cricle.

While awards aren't everything, getting a GOTY nomination at an awards ceremony as prestigious as the D.I.C.E. Awards is significant. Not only does it help boost sales as prospective new players suddenly want to see why it's winning so much, but it also gives Xbox a win after years of studio closures, poor releases, and bad reviews. With the Great Circle coming to PS5 soon, this nomination and a potential win couldn't have come at a better time.

However, while Indiana Jones and the Great Circle managed to make the cut for the D.I.C.E. Awards, its near-perfect release date meant that it missed out on an even bigger awards ceremony. Many may have noticed the absence of the Great Circle at the Game Awards, and that's because only games released prior to November 22, 2024, were eligible for nominations. As Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was released on December 9, it missed out on earning an award.

Indiana Jones & The Great Circle Indiana in Chamber of Tribulations with Gold and Silver Forges

Should Indiana Jones and the Great Circle get a sequel?

Having garnered widespread acclaim and landed on many publications' Top 10 of 2024 lists, I already find myself looking to the future of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and whether it should get a sequel. As a longtime fan of the franchise, I think MachineGames has done a fantastic job on the game in recreating a lot of the adventurous feel of the movies, particularly the whip mechanic and puzzle solving. Admittedly, there have been a few things that have struck me a tad awkwardly, including the Harrison Ford face design sometimes feeling a tad uncanny valley, but I'm absolutely open to seeing the studio make a sequel. I think it'd also be a fun idea for each game to start with a recreation of an iconic setpiece from the previous movies, much like Great Circle started off with Raiders of the Lost Ark's opening.

Naturally, it can still be entered into the 2025 Game Awards ceremony, and it will likely be for consideration. Unfortunately, it doesn't stand as good of a chance of winning or even being nominated as it will have been released such a long time before the 2025 Game Awards air, and it'll have fierce competition from the likes of Crimson Desert, Death Stranding 2, and, of course, GTA 6.

The Game Awards 2025 Aren’t Necessary For Indy’s Success

It's Already A Breakout Hit

The Game Awards 2024 trophy facing forwards

Fortunately, it doesn't really matter if it gets nominated at the 2025 Game Awards, as not only were the Great Circle's glowing reviews enough of an indication that it's a phenomenal game, but it has already proven to be a breakout hit without the aid of an award. While, of course, it would have been great had Indiana Jones and the Great Circle launched early enough to be considered for the 2024 Game Awards, its December release date also meant that it remained the undisputed champion of premium AAA games in that month and beyond.

Indiana Jones and the great circle climbing on a wall.

Indiana Jones And the Great Circle Has Even Greater News For Fans Of The Series

While the success of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle makes a sequel likely, a recent update could be the start of a brand new Indiana Jones series.

Unsurprisingly, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will survive without a Game Awards GOTY nomination. With a potential D.I.C.E. Awards win under its belt, the Great Circle can rest assured that it has achieved a great deal since it was released and proven everyone who doubted it could capture the magic of the Indiana Jones films wrong. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is an amazing game, one absolutely deserving of recognition and awards - and maybe even a GOTY win - but one that can thrive and survive without them.