The Indiana Jones project in development at Bethesda has received a big update as it prepares to be shown off next week. Xbox has recently confirmed its plan to hold its second Developer Direct on January 18, which will give deeper looks at some of its heavy hitters set to come in 2024, such as Ninja Theory's Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 and Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed. Surprisingly, MachineGames' Indiana Jones has also been confirmed to make a big appearance at the event.

Indiana Jones developer MachineGames is known as one of Bethesda's best first-person shooter studios alongside the storied id Software, creators of Doom and Quake. Machine was originally spun up to handle the rebooted Wolfenstein franchise, of which it released four titles. With such a solid background in the first-person shooter genre, many fans of the studio were puzzled at MachineGames' Indiana Jones reveal back in early 2021, as one would imagine the game would be in third-person. In 2022, Todd Howard expressed that the title is aiming to provide a "mash-up" of several different genres.

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In a surprising turn, Indiana Jones is now set to show face at Xbox's Developer Direct later this month, which may indicate it's closer to release than expected. As pointed out by Pure Xbox, there have been several sources claiming that Indiana Jones could very well release in 2024. On ResetEra, insider Shinobi602 responded to an inquiring fan in such a way that made it seem Indiana Jones has had 2024 in its sights for a while. Additionally, Pure Xbox pointed to Insider Gaming, who claim that the title will have a 2024 launch according to their sources. It's important to remember that none of these claims are official, and that clarity regarding Indiana Jones' release plans may be achieved on January 18.

Considering it's been three years since MachineGames' Indiana Jones game was announced, and that it was likely in some form of production before then, this year seems just right for a potential release window, and would be a huge boon to Xbox's already strong 2024 lineup. If true, Indy would be the third AAA first-party title on Xbox's slate this year next to Hellblade 2 and Avowed. Indiana Jones seems like a perfect summer game, as the IP is synonymous with the summer blockbuster, though it could also make for an impactful holiday release if it's aiming for later in 2024.

What Can Fans Expect From Xbox's Developer Direct?

Xbox fans have just over a week to wait for the Developer Direct on January 18. There, Indiana Jones is confirmed to have ten minutes of spotlight, including its first gameplay trailer where many questions surrounding whether the game is first or third-person are sure to be answered. Notably, Avowed and Hellblade 2 will also show up, hopefully with solid 2024 release dates in tow. If Indiana Jones comes away from the Developer Direct with merely a 2024 window, it would be a no-brainer to expect the game's full release date at Xbox's expected Summer Game Fest showcase later in the year.

Bethesda

Bethesda is an American game development studio based in Maryland. They're best known for the Elder Scrolls and Fallout series. ZeniMax Media, Bethesda's parent company, was acquired by Microsoft in 2021, which then made it a part of Xbox Game Studios.

Date Founded

June 28, 1986

Parent Company

Microsoft