At around four to five hours in length, calling The Order of Giants bite-sized doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Within the context of the rest of Indiana Jones and The Great Circle, however, that’s precisely what this DLC feels like.
The base game is at its best when you’re dropped into an extensive playground and left to your own devices, whether it’s a maze of undulating rivers in Sukhothai or a stretch of desert surrounding the pyramids of Giza. Donning Indy’s signature hat and exploring these dense locations is a treat, with each level meticulously detailed and focused on player agency, all while weaving the signature elements of an Indiana Jones adventure into each locale.
Maybe it was naive of me to expect a similar setup in the game’s first expansion, but it’s still a tad disappointing that The Order of Giants presents a more streamlined experience instead. The quality is still there; it’s just missing a few key ingredients.
If you’ve played The Great Circle before, you’ll want to head back to Vatican City to add this new batch of fieldwork to Indy’s journal. From here, you’ll meet Father Ricci, a young priest–with a loquacious pet parrot–who’s desperate to track down a lost Roman artifact once owned by Pope Paul IV. This is more than enough information to pique Indy’s curiosity, propelling you on an adventure just beyond the walls of the Vatican as you head into the ancient city of Rome itself. Or, more specifically, descend beneath the Eternal City’s streets, where you’ll rummage through the cramped confines of dusty Roman tombs, catacombs, and the Cloaca Maxima sewer system, solving various puzzles, uncovering hidden mysteries, sneaking past cultists, and punching Mussolini’s fascist Blackshirts in the face.
As the DLC’s title suggests, The Order of Giants delves deeper into the lore behind the Nephilim Order: a monastic society of giants formed by the descendants of fallen angels. As compelling as this backstory is–and despite the giants’ vital role in the events of The Great Circle–the Nephilim are still shrouded in mystery by the time the base game’s final credits roll. The Order of Giants doesn’t necessarily lift the lid on their past, but it does offer another fascinating peek into their cryptic role in history, dating back to Nero’s reign as emperor of Rome and the 11th-century Crusades.
I enjoyed unravelling the story through notes, puzzles, and Indy’s own observations, particularly the way it’s grounded in real history despite the fantastical nature of the Nephilim. The writing is sharp, and Indy’s quips are on point, with Troy Baker delivering another fantastic performance as the iconic archeologist. I do, however, get the feeling the narrative would’ve fit more snugly if I hadn’t already finished The Great Circle. As an extra addendum, it feels distinctly like a side quest with little to no impact on the main story. This is a tricky conundrum to solve with any story-driven DLC, and I don’t think there’s a perfect way to do it. Just know that those playing The Great Circle for the first time will probably appreciate it more as a natural detour within the greater narrative than those returning after reaching the game’s conclusion.
It also makes sense as an extension of the Vatican map, as you’ll spend most of your time traversing similar underground areas to those found beneath the holy city. The Order of Giants is fairly linear in this regard, yet each location is designed with plenty of hidden pathways and secrets to uncover, ensuring that those willing to explore every nook and cranny will be satisfied. It’s replete with a number of delightful puzzles to solve, too, challenging your thought process while being wonderfully tactile at the same time, from referencing an ancient story to figure out which way to rotate various platforms, to guiding a ball down a track by constantly placing and removing different pieces to alter its direction. These room-scale puzzles are some of the best in the entire game, and the DLC’s pacing guarantees that no one aspect overstays its welcome.
When you’re not solving Roman conundrums, The Order of Giants offers a decent mix of platforming and combat to keep things feeling fresh. Both are relatively unchanged, whether you’re swinging over a chasm with Indy’s signature whip or throwing a thunderous haymaker to put a fascist in the ground. There is one section where you get your hands on some TNT, but you’ll be using your fists and makeshift melee weapons to blunt force most enemy encounters. Clobbering fascists remains particularly entertaining, but the smaller scale of the environments isn’t conducive to the kind of freeform stealth present in the base game, so it loses some of that Indiana Jones-style improvisation. For as atmospheric as each location is, The Order of Giants also lacks the same spectacle as the base game, with the absence of set pieces reinforcing how pared down it is in comparison.
What it may lack in scope, The Order of Giants makes up for with some of the best and most inventive puzzles in the game. It’s disappointing that we didn’t get another expansive environment to explore, but this is still an engaging mini-adventure that’s rich in lore and quintessentially Indy. Those playing The Great Circle for the first time might appreciate the detour a lot more, but putting on that wide-brimmed fedora again still feels great (if only I could get John Williams’ theme music out of my head).
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