Denuvo anti-piracy tech has often been a sore point for gamers, especially on PC. However, many of you will be pleased to know that MachineGames' Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will not be s?hipping with the offending DRM software when it ??launches on December 9.

This was confirmed by publisher Bethesda in a post on X recently. The message seems to be a reply to a now-deleted comment from a user, prompting the studio to say that The Great Circle "does not include Denuvo." This was then followed by a statement declaring that it wa?s?? only ever used in "review builds for leak precautions."

Indeed, if you look on the game's official Steam page, you c??an see down the right-hand side that a third-party EULA needs to be agreed to before playing the game, but there's no mention of DRM in use anywhere. This should be good news for PC users.

Indiana Jones and the Stuttering Framerates

If you're not familiar with it (you lucky, lucky people), Denuvo is a form of Digital Rights Management software that became mo?re abundant during the early days of the internet as a means of protecting data on music CDs. These days, however, it's typically associated with video games.

While publishers and studios implement it as a way of preventing intellectual properties from being pirated or tampered with illicitly, it can often lead to issues for the user. Denuvo is especially egregious on this front, with it being linked to low performance and persistent drops in framerates on games like Deathloop. Ergo: Denuvo is often seen as controversial, especially from a consumer/gamer perspective.

As such, many games have it removed post-launch, which is exactly what happened with Back 4 Blood, Lies of P, Doom Eternal, and more.

Given this, PC gamers will be pleased to know that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle shan't be shipping with the contentious DRM so?ftware. However, that doesn't necessarily mean it won't ever be put in. If Denuvo can be removed after a game's release, does that mean it can also be implemented after the fact? Only time will tell.

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Last week, many of us were excited to see the official reveal trailer of MachineGames' upcoming Indiana Jones title The Great Circle. But footage shown at Developer Direct last week appears to be hinting at the return of Quake.

During the showcase of the upcoming Indiana Jones release �at around the 11:35 mark �we see a quick shot of a whiteboard, covered in barely legible red ink. However, among these scrawls you can clearly make out the iconic logo from the first Quake game.

Just above that, it's also possib?le to make out the characters "AKE 6." Given that the first letter is almost cut off from the screen, it could be inferred that this is the other half of the word "QUAKE."

Indy goes gothic

This could easily be nothing more than a throwaway reference, but the fact that it appears at all is interesting. Now, you don't need me to tell you that there's been no confirmation of any Quake projects in the pipeli??ne. At least none that w??e're aware of.

Having said that, with developer MachineGames taking the reins on the modern Wolfenstein titles �not to mention last year's Quake 2 remaster, in which the studio contributed new maps �no one would be surprised if the team turned its attention to the original Quake.

Whether this would be a reboot or a new entry cannot be said, but given that the number six is present in the Indiana Jones trailer, it could be a continuation. If you're thinking there are only four games in the Quake series, consider Quake Champions the fifth installment. Or even Enemy Territory: Quake Wars.

In any case, these are just rumors at the moment. Chances are, if anyone was going to bring the legendary FPS back, who ?better than id Software? But MachineGames would definitely be a solid choice,?? so we'll just have to wait and see if the hidden clue in the video is more than just an Easter egg.

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As part of the Xbox Developer Direct Livestream, MachineGames showed off their upcoming Indiana Jones project, Indiana Jones and The Great Circle. Most importantly, it involves Harrison Ford('s likeness) and punching Nazis. Two awesome th?ings.

Actually, there’s probably everything you’d expect from an Indiana Jones game. There’s a whip, torches, the Wilhelm scream, a travel montage, a female sidekick, and ancient (but still functional) puzzles. Interestingly, it’s mostly done in the first person, except when you’re doing more agile activities or looking at Harrison Ford? in a cutscene.

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle takes place between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade. In it, ??Indy witnesses the theft of an artifact from the College he works at. He follows its trail and discovers that it’s central to a? deeper mystery.

MachineGames is trying to capture the look, feel, and sound of an Indiana Jones movie, and I’m convinced. I’m not sure if I mentioned this, but Harrison Ford is in it. They promise th?at you’ll be ??able to enjoy it, even if you haven’t seen the movies. That’s good because I skipped that last two.

Indiana Jones and The Great Circle is coming to Xbo?x Series X|S and PC later this year.

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Microsoft is ready to get 2024 rol?ling. The company has announced that it will host an Xbox Developer Direct on January 18.

Xbox teased several of the projects that we'll be seeing during the January 18 Developer Direct. Amongst them are Obsidian Entertainment's Avowed, MachineGames' Indiana Jones title, and Ninja Theory's Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2.

The Xbox Wire shed a few more details on what to expect from the event, including our first real look at Indiana Jones. The Developer Direc??t will spend about?? 10 minutes on the project, which includes the first gameplay trailer and details on the title's setting and story.

There weren't really any details given for Hellblade 2's segment. Instead, the Xbox Wire says to expect a behind-the-scenes look at the game courtesy of Ninja Theory. We last saw the title at The Game Awards within an impressive new trailer and a release window confirmed for this year.

Avowed is getting a "deep dive into the gameplay experience" from Obsidian Entertainment. The studio will detail the game's Living Lands?? and the action RPG's "deep themes, dynamic gameplay, ??and thoughtful reactivity."

Also at the Developer Direct will be Oxide Games' Ara: History Untold. We'll get a new look at gameplay and features from the history strategy game crafted by veteran developers of the Civilization series.

Xbox also notes that there will be a standalone presentation from Zenimax Online Studios following the Developer Direct. Here you can expect details on The Elder Scrolls Online's 2024 roadmap, including a new zone, storyline, and?? gameplay features.

The Xbox Developer Direct will strea?m on Xbox channels on Thursday, ??January 18 at 12:00 p.m. PST, 3:00 p.m. EST.

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Though Game Pass may pick up the slack

Both Starfield and MachineGames' Indiana Jones are going to be exclusives for the Xbox. As such, not only will a lot of PlayStation owners be pissed off they won't get to play either of these games, but some may question whether Microsoft ha??s considered that this move wil??l likely mean less sales.

However, the Xbox company has anticipated this, it seems. Screenshots from court documents used in the Microsoft vs. FTC case (as uploaded by games journalist Stephen Totilo) reveal that Tim Stuart, chief? financial officer ?for the tech giant, believes exclusivity won't be a problem.

//twitter.com/stephentotilo/status/167930795??0706372611

In fact, Microsoft is confident both Starfield and Indiana Jones would sell "more than 10 million units" if they were going to be released on PlayStation. Testifying in court, Stuart said that the company had "evaluated exclusivity of ZeniMax [parent company of Bethesda??] games in December 2020".

Ten million is a huge potential loss

Having said that, Microsoft is certain it can offset such a potential loss through Game Pass. By making Starfield and Indiana Jones available on the Xbox cloud service, the company hopes to make up for not selling 10 million units via its ??biggest competitor?.

In the?? grand scheme of things, it doesn't seem like Stuart or Microsoft are concerned about not being able to shift millions more on the PlayStation. Given the immense hype surrounding Bethesda's upcoming sci-fi RPG, there's no question about it being able to make a significant profit.

Starfield is due for release on September 6 for Xbox Series X|S and PC. If you want something to do until then, may we suggest this 1,000-page compendium?

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There's a curious job opening at MachineGames

For all you B.J. Blazkowicz fans out there, it's possible that Wolfenstein 3 could currently be in development. While Cyberpilot and Youngblood came ?out in 2019, the last mainline entry in the revitalized series was back in 2017. Since then, many of you have wanted to see more exploits from the Nazi-killing protagonist.

The existence of a new job opening comes from Reddit user Hard2DaC0re, who points to a new vacancy posted by developer MachineGames. The studio has been responsible for the modern wave of Wolfenstein games, so the fact that the company is advertising a new position suggests something is on the horizon (indeed, the MachineGames website s??hows a number of job openings). The senior animator listing specifically states that applicants must be famil??iar with the developer's prior releases.

Is B.J. back?

//youtu.be/bkrwUzWeACg

It's still early days to say for certain if Wolfenstein is poised for an immediate comeback. At the time of writing, there's been no confirmation from official parties about whether Wolfenstein 3 is currently in the works. We already know that MachineGames is making an Indiana Jones game. These new positions could be related to that project. But it's really just a matter of when in terms of Wolfenstein's triumphant return.

While 2019's Youngblood wasn't as well received,?? it was still a welcome continuation of the rebooted series. Plus, it's nice to see i??d Software's iconic FPS franchise is still finding a home in the modern gaming world. Things have certainly changed a lot over the decades, but it seems what hasn't changed is people's desire to take on the Third Reich.

Just to reiterate, the rumors about a new Wolfenstein game being in development are just that. F?or now, it's best to hold off any excitement, but hopefully, there'll be some official news to gorge on at some point.

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The former Darkness designer looks to make an Indy project

Game developer Jens Andersson, who's worked on projects like The Darkness and Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay, is taking up a new role at MachineGames. Andersson is joining the team to work on its upcoming Indiana Jones game.

In a statement shared on Twitter and spotted by VGC, Andersson confirms he's joining the project as the Design Director on Indiana Jones. Andersson says that in 2009 he accepted an offer to lead design on an Indiana Jones project, but the game was cancel??led before he ?got there.

"Now, I get a chance to do what I [originally] hoped to, but this time I get to do it with some of my oldest and best friends," said Andersson. "Joining MarchineGames is like coming home—amazing people I worked with during Riddick and Darkness, but also teeming with new ones, whose talent daily [blow?s] me away."

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfVYgWYaHmE

Alongside Riddick and The Darkness, Andersson has also worked on Colors Live and the surprisingly fun Metroid-meets-pinball game Yoku's Island Express.

"I'm so excited about what we are building, and the way [we] get to do it—featuring one of the most iconic characters ever, in collaboration with ??my friends at Lucasfilm, published by one of the biggest publishers in the world, and doing it at an amazing studio like MachineGames," said Andersson. "This will be something special."

A new adventure for Indiana Jones

The new Indiana Jones project was revealed to the public in 2021, and it's been fairly quiet since. MachineGames, of Wolfenstein fame, is developing the new take on Indy. Presumably, there are top men work?ing on it. Top. Men.

It does seem like the new Indiana Jones is a ways off though. With a n??ew design director on board, we'll hopefully start to see more of what MachineGames ?is putting together.

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Horde and Honey are here for Quake

The remaster/re-release of the original Quake from NightDive Studios is still getting new content. Bethesda announced that Update 2 is out today and contains both a new Horde Mode and the Honey add-on, alongside some other new improvements to good ol' Quake.

In a Bethesda blog, the publisher breaks down what's all in the update. The Horde Mode added to Quake today is a new experience designed by MachineGames, letting one to four players or bots take?? on waves of enemies together. There are multiple difficulty levels, four new maps specifically designed for Horde play, and even boss monsters that let you unlock new weapons and items.

And for the solo players out there, Quake is also adding the Honey add-on. MachineGames senior level designer Christian Grawer created Honey, a trip through a village with a sinister secret. Originally released years ago, it's getting added back in as an add-on for Quake. Much like the add-ons for the Doom re-releases, these seem simple enough to boot up and play, so you get to enjoy some new Quake content like its 1996 all over again.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=jut8g31RZH8

As time has rolled on, it's been nice seeing these classics of PC gaming past get so much attention. The Quake re-release left a strong impression on us, and even outside Bethesda, companies like EA have gone back to their vaults for some PC gaming revivals. Plus??, the addition of new co??ntent really shows how timeless some of these games are.

Other improvements to Quake include text chat and push-to-talk support in pre-game lobbies, crosshair color and type options, and improved auto-aim to reduce the amount of snapping and view-locking. If you still needed an excuse to play some Quake, well, take this as your cue.

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Just in time for QuakeCon, here's some Quake

After popping up on the radar a few times ahead of this weekend's QuakeCon, a remaster of the first Quake game is out now. The remaster brings Quake to PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch with next-gen versions (and a free upgrade) on the way, and?? it's got some extra content in store, too.

According to the store description on Microsoft and the Nintendo eShop, this version of Quake will get higher resolution (depending on platform) and widescreen support. There are?? also some visual touch-ups, like anti-a??liasing and enhanced models. The remaster will also still have its soundtrack, including the theme by Trent Reznor.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=vi-bdUd9J3E

On the single-player side, there's obviously Quake's campaign. Also included are the Dark Fantasy campaign, The Scourge of Armagon and Dissolution of Eternity expansion??s, and two more expansions developed by MachineGames: Dimension of the Past, and the all-new Dimension of the Machine.

In Dimension of the Machine, you? travel across space and time to bring together lost runes, powering a long-dormant machine to open a portal that's ??hiding the "greatest threat to all known worlds."

If multiplayer's more your speed, the Quake remaster will also have both online and local multiplayer. There's support for four-player local split-screen, dedicated servers for online matchmaking, and peer-to-peer support for custom matches. Crossplay is also enabled, so you can match up against both your Switch pals and?? PC pals.

Quake will also have some more content in store too, as this remaster will support free fan-made and official mods, starting with Quake 64. Bethesda says more fan-made an??d official mods and missions will be coming soon, too.

All of this, plus gyro-aiming on the Switch and a pretty reasonable $9.99 price point (or available simply as part of Xbox Game Pass), is a pretty rad announcement for nostalgic Quake players like myself. It's been literal decades since I first picked this series up, but I?'m very ready to hop, strafe, and frag my way back in.

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