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PC | Action | Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine

There is no Boxart for - Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine 9 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 3.0
  • SOUND: 4.0
  • CONTROL: 3.0
  • FUN FACTOR 4.0
  • AVG USER SCORE n/a
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 3.7

Review: Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine

Review by Thomas Crymes | 11/24/2000 | 14:47:41 PM PST

LucasArts' modus operandi is well established: Take a popular computer-game genre, merge it with one of the huge Lucas franchises, and turn out an eminently enjoyable game. It has infiltrated the space combat-sim with the X-Wing series and the first person shooter with its Dark Forces line.

LucasArts' modus operandi is well established: Take a popular computer-game genre, merge it with one of the huge Lucas franchises, and turn out an eminently enjoyable game. It has infiltrated the space combat-sim with the X-Wing series and the first person shooter with its Dark Forces line.

Now, Lucas is taking on the third-person action/adventure--going head to head with the Tomb Raider franchise and the lovely Lara Croft--and, once again, it has produced a stellar game.

Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine starts after World War II. Indy must find the five parts of the infernal machine before the Russians. In addition to hostile Soviet forces, you'll face a nasty assortment of animals, booby traps?and a bit of the supernatural.

Like the three Indy movies, the Infernal Machine is set in many different locations around the world--from snow-capped mountains to desert islands. The varied terrain provides a lot more for the gamer to look at than just caves and stone-walled temples.

To negotiate the 17 levels, Indy has an assortment of moves and an arsenal of weapons. Indy's basic moves are much like Lara's from Tomb Raider. Indy might not be doing Lara Croft-like back flips anytime soon, but, like the popular heroine, he has an assortment of basic moves such as sidestepping, hanging, rope climbing, long jumping, and dive rolls. Indy's weapons are also very similar to those used my Ms. Croft except for the bullwhip, which Indy can use to swing and climb. (Unfortunately, it's not very useful as a weapon.)

Almost every level contains a central puzzle, which, in turn, typically requires you to solve minor puzzles. Most of these are fairly basic, but some will make you wish you were never born. You have no idea how to solve them and no idea what you are doing wrong, and you end up wandering around the level aimlessly hoping you will bump into a solution.

The Shambala Sanctuary level has a puzzle where Indy must make a statue travel across a set of tracks and ring a giant bell on the other side. The puzzle requires Indy to meet objectives in two different areas of the map, a time consuming task even if you know what you're doing. Undoubtedly, most players will stumble onto a puzzle with no apparent solution. In these situations, frustration builds as players push every switch, pull every lever, and handle every object in the entire level hoping to stumble onto a solution.

Gamers tend to have a love/hate relationship with games of this kind. You play the game knowing that sooner or later you will become so ticked off that you will want to personally burn every copy ever produced.

Then you solve the puzzle and everything is right with the world again? until the next tough puzzle.

To combat this problem, the Infernal Machine features an on-screen map. When you get stuck (and you will get stuck), you can throw a switch that will put an "X" on the map showing where Indy should go next. This is immensely helpful in reducing the overall frustration factor.

In addition to puzzle solving, Indy must deal with a multitude of boss's throughout the game. A boss guards each of the five parts of the infernal machine. Getting away from the world of Indiana Jones, the bosses are supernatural beasts. The Indiana Jones movies have always featured magical items, but never fanciful beasts like rock monsters or insectoid creatures made of ice.

Unfortunately, the map feature and the whip are roughly the extent of The Infernal Machine's differences with the Tomb Raider series. There's no mistaking this game for what it is, a Tomb Raider clone with a prominent name. A damn fine clone, but a clone nonetheless.

If you find the Tomb Raider games an exercise in frustration, then you might want to skip this one.

But fans of those games will have a great time with Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine's addictive game play and interesting puzzles. The man in the hat is back to reclaim the role he never should have lost.