Bethesda pulled back the curtain on a new Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, and Lucasfilm Games.

While the contents of the game are unknown at this point, the fact there's an Indiana Jones game in development at all is exciting news. The franchise has been absent from mainstream video games for a while now, with LEGO Indiana Jones arguably the last popular release involving the property. Bethesda's acquisition by Microsoft was always likely to give the company even more freedom in tackling exciting IPs and potential licenses, but even still, the announcement of a new Indiana Jones game from a company as high-profile as Bethesda is a major surprise.

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The teaser trailer on Bethesda's official Twitter doesn't reveal much, and it remains to be seen how the new Indiana Jones game will approach its gameplay design, but the pedigree of MachineGames suggests a title that will feature smooth, intuitive action and crisp visuals. A new Indiana Jones game comes as a complete surprise, and the trailer pans slowly over a desk that features a typewriter, Indiana Jones' iconic hat, and, once the latter is removed, the hero's famous whip as well. During the trailer, there's a ticket to Rome that's dated for October 21, 1937. That would place the adventure somewhere between Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade.

It's also the first major project for the newly rebranded Lucasfilm Games, which previously announced a "new era" for the company that many believed to be a teaser for an  Star Wars title. While that still seems likely - the rebrand was announced via StarWars.com, after all - it's encouraging to see the company's rebrand complemented by a surprising announcement first, hinting at a greater diversity in its portfolio of games in the future.

For now, though, fans of the property are simply excited there's a new Indiana Jones game and it's coming from studios that are known for producing high quality titles. There are questions worth considering - will the new Indiana Jones be an Xbox console exclusive, for instance? - but without any information beyond the confirmation of the project's existence yet, speculation will remain as varied and bombastic as the adventures that make an Indiana Jones video game so potentially enthralling in the first place.

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Source: Bethesda