Cut scenes are crucial for a single-player video game as they enhance storytelling, deepen character development, and immerse players into the storyline. Cutscenes bridge gameplay with narrative to make the game much more engaging. However, video game publishers sometimes stretch them way too much, making cutscenes far longer than they should’ve been.
There are various popular video games out there that feature an exceptional storyline but are filled with long cutscenes. It was recently revealed that MachineGames’ upcoming video game, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, will feature almost 4 hours of cutscenes, leaving players worried that the studio may have gotten too ambitious with the project.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Features Roughly Four Hours Of Cutscenes
The creative director, Axel Torvenius, and design director, Jens Andersson, of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle recently answered 141 rapid-fire questions in an interview with MinnMax. During the conversation, Torvenius revealed the duration of the cutscenes in the game is “roughly 3 hours and 40-45 minutes or something along those lines. It’s a lot.” Further in the interview, it was also revealed that the game is MachineGames’ “biggest and longest game.” The game is all set to feature an original narrative that draws from the film series.
The gaming community is now speculating that Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will be about 15-17 hours long, given that MachineGames’ previous Wolfenstein games were around 11-17 hours long. So, we’re looking at a minimum of 12 hours of playtime here. It could be much more than that, but at the moment, this is all players can expect from the game.
Can Long Cutscenes Ruin The Game?
Cutscenes are indeed very important to provide an immersive experience, build tension, and offer context that enhances gameplay. However, a lot of lengthy cutscenes can ruin the flow of the game, causing frustration or boredom among players. Maintaining a balance between interactive gameplay and narrative-driven sequences is very crucial for a single-player video game.
Hideo Kojima’s Death Stranding is a great example of how some studios have mastered that balance. The game consists of roughly seven hours of cutscenes, in fact, one particular cutscene is 31 minutes long, but the way Kojima Productions has placed these cutscenes made the game engaging for players with low attention spans.
Many modern video game publishers still haven’t perfected this and it often ruins the game even when it features a very interesting storyline. We hope that MachineGames has balanced it out evenly, giving players more playtime compared to cutscenes.
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle will be released for Windows and Xbox Series X/S on December 9, 2024. A PlayStation 5 version is also announced and is set to release in early 2025.
