Bethesda Softworks Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
Problem
Indiana Jones was crucial to the invention of action-adventure. Today, a new generation has been raised on the heroes who followed him. Bethesda Softworks needed a launch that would restore a legend to the genre he helped build, honour the legacy of the world’s most iconic adventurer and make Indy’s original status undeniable.
Background
Since 1981, Indiana Jones has defined what adventure looks like. The globe-trotting expeditions. The ancient mysteries. The escapes that shouldn't be possible. Beyond character and concept, a generation of game developers built an empire on that blueprint, but let action swallow adventure whole. The genre's founding architect had been eclipsed by the world he inspired.
Ambition
To restore the adventure in the action-adventure category. To stake Indy's rightful claim at the forefront of a genre he created, not as a nostalgic artefact, but as its future. To create a campaign that would land with blockbuster force: a new generation won over, a forty-year legacy honoured and a cultural moment worthy of the man himself.
IDEA Adventure Calls
We reawakened the lost spirit of discovery.
Modern action-adventure had become a contest of spectacle and firepower. But Indy's original magic was always more potent. The thrill of uncovering something hidden for centuries. The chase across continents. The ancient mystery, just out of reach. We created the campaign inviting a new generation to feel the thrill through Indiana Jones’s eyes, and challenged them to chase it.
From there, we built a brand true to Indy’s world and sharp enough for a new one. Identity and key art revived heritage design cues: instantly recognisable, built to stand on a modern shelf. Every touchpoint became a portal into the adventure, allowing people to step into the hero’s shoes and experience the story firsthand. Packaging lifted straight from Dr. Jones’s desk. A trailer built to cinematic fever pitch. Radio spots with the rhythm of old-fashioned serials.
Indy returned. Back like never before.
For all who celebrate history and all who make it.
Role
Brand strategy
Defined what Indy stands for in a new era, bridging over forty years of legacy with a generation of new players.
Brand identity and key art
Honoured the aesthetic legacy of the original trilogy: immediately familiar, yet meticulously crafted for the contemporary collector.
Campaign strategy
Built the campaign strategy for cultural saturation, mapping every channel and moment to make Indiana Jones's return land with blockbuster-level exposure.
Packaging design
Designed authentic artefact-inspired packaging across standard, deluxe and collector's editions, plucked straight from Dr. Jones's desk.
Trailer
Crafted the trailer that revealed the launch date: a cinematic, high-tension showcase designed to make Indy's arrival feel unmissable.
Radio advertising
Created spots in the tradition of old-fashioned adventure serials, the storytelling that shaped Indy's world, brought back for a new audience.
Result
Indy didn’t just return; he reclaimed the genre he started, on his own terms. Within two months of launch, the game captured over four million players, a momentum that sustained half a year later as the PlayStation 5 release sent Indy straight to number one on the US sales charts. This massive player base anchored a record-breaking quarter for Microsoft’s gaming division, driving Game Pass to historic quarterly revenue, boosting PC subscribers by more than 30 per cent year-over-year and pushing Xbox Cloud Gaming to an all-time high of 140 million hours streamed.
4M+
players at launch within 2 months
30%
YoY increase in PC subscribers
140M
hours streamed
At the frontier
Starbucks
Loyal to coffee culture
Volvo
EX60 Reveal
Miami Design District
Where culture comes alive
