The New Bethesda Game No One Saw Coming
Preceded by essentially no fanfare, the official Bethesda Twitter account shared a teaser for a new title on Jan. 12. Though it provided virtually no details as to the game's content, the tweet included a big reveal: Bethesda has an Indiana Jones game on the way.
The video announcing the project consists of a single, unbroken shot, panning over a desk that presumably belongs to the titular Indy. You can see books with titles like Ancient Circle and Forbidden Stories, which are just vague enough to not reveal anything about the game's narrative while confirming some degree of the esoteric intrigue essential to the franchise. Various journals, maps, diagrams, photos, exploration tools and a plane ticket to Rome also come into frame before the camera stops at Indy's trademark hat and whip.
The name of the title's developer, MachineGames, appears in the teaser in place of a brand name on the typewriter. ZeniMax Media, Bethesda's parent company, owns the studio, which is primarily known for its work on the recent Wolfenstein games starring BJ Blazkowicz, starting with The New Order. As Microsoft acquired ZeniMax Media last year, you can safely bet this new Indiana Jones game will appear on Xbox Game Pass when it releases. The jury is still out on whether it will be an Xbox exclusive, however.
A follow-up tweet shared by Bethesda revealed additional details not included in the teaser. Todd Howard, who produced and directed many of the classic entries in both the Fallout and Elder Scrolls franchises, as well as the upcoming Starfield, will serve as the project's executive producer. Additionally, the tweet clarified that the plot will not rehash a story already told in one of the existing Indiana Jones films but will instead serve up an original narrative.
The day prior to Bethesda's announcement, StarWars.com revealed Lucasfilm Games as the new brand name "for all gaming titles from Lucasfilm." A sizzle reel that accompanied the announcement included all of the most recent Star Wars titles, from The Old Republic to Squadrons. It seems the yet-to-be-titled Bethesda Indiana Jones game will also fall under the Lucasfilm Games banner.
Fans excited to get their hands on this fresh Indiana Jones experience might be in for a bit of a wait — Bethesda specified that it will be "some time" before the company can share more about the project.