Indiana Jones and the Great Circle devs believe that a 'properly characterized villain' is what 'makes the hero shine'

MachineGames, developers of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, prioritize well-developed villains as catalysts for hero growth, grounding them with relatable flaws and contrasting them with the protagonist's strengths, creating engaging narratives.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle developer MachineGames has a specific design philosophy when it comes to crafting villains. 

Speaking to Edge magazine, lead writer Tommy Tordsson-Bjork explained how the studio - responsible for both The Great Circle and the Wolfenstein games - brought its bad guys to life.

"We've gone into every project with the philosophy that a properly characterized villain is what makes the hero shine. I always try to find some characteristics that make the villains feel more real, whether it's giving them some quirk or flaws that they try to compensate for - even a sliver of humanity or empathy."

Grounding a villain with relatable flaws helps players connect with the character, but it's also used to prop the hero up and bring out their best qualities. When writing Emmerich Voss, the calculating main antagonist of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Tordsson-Bjork mentioned that "his personality has been incredibly fun to write. But also, since I am not hyper-intelligent myself, it can be a bit challenging. You have to go into research mode and find angles to use that lean into those characteristics whenever he and Indy go head to head."

Heroes like Indiana Jones are constantly challenged and pushed because of the villains they are put up against. MachineGames understands that a villain needs to be more than just evil, they need to act as a foil to the hero. This philosophy permeates through the MachineGames catalog, and it doesn't seem like it's stopping anytime soon.  

If you're looking for even more on the game, be sure to check out everything we know so far about Indiana Jones and the Great Circle.