How to make a good Indiana Jones game

So in light of the latest discussions and comparisons, we thought we'd bring you what we think is needed to make a good Indiana Jones game, seeing as though we've never really gotten one. You'd think a game based in amazing landscapes with brilliant stories and memorable characters would be a given, but it just hasn't happened.

And now, in light of Uncharted 2, we see how badly we need a kick ass Indiana Jones adventure.

While we wait, get yourself a copy of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. It's one of the best games this generation.

Make the opening suspenseful

All four Indiana Jones movies had pretty awesome opening sequences. All of them had you on the edge of your seat, introducing you to the character and sometimes the villain. There was a level of suspense that let you know you were in for a wild ride, and even though these sequences often didn't have much to do with the overall plot, it was a fantastic way to start off the adventure. Any Indiana Jones game should be no different, giving you the chance to explore and escape through a mini-adventure before the real adventure finally begins.

Include a love interest

Indiana Jones has a way with the ladies, so take advantage of it. The character is naturally charismatic and seductive, so give him something to feed off. Furthermore, it has to be someone he has to save. It can't be someone with the same love of adventure, but rather someone who initially gets on his nerves before he finally falls for them.

Make the adventure interesting and memorable

Indiana Jones has to be fighting for something special. Something we'll care about and ultimately want him to achieve. Even if it's aliens again, we don't care. Just don't make the focus his whip or fighting moves. That's not what Indiana Jones is about. It's about the adventure as a whole, something we want to take alongside him. The action is all fine and dandy, but if there's no strong reason behind it, then it's hard to even care.

Don't make it ALL about the combat

As mentioned above, action is great, especially in a game, but it's not the be-all and end-all. Exploration is Indiana's best trait, so the level design and direction is absolutely crucial. Indiana doesn't just move from area to area fighting off bad guys. He climbs through dirty passage ways, jumps into forbidden lairs and searches through dark mansions. Then, whenever a bad guy comes his way, he takes them down with his whip. A good Indiana Jones game should be about the exploration, puzzles and adventure, not the combat and his whip.

Make it funny

Indiana hates fighting bad guys, so when he does, make it funny. Make us laugh with his dialogue, and make him seem like an old man that is sick of doing what he's doing. That's what Indiana Jones is about. He hates loving what he does. If that means getting someone besides Harrison Ford to voice Indiana, then so be it. Indiana Jones is rarely serious, or violent for that matter, so make the game like the films: witty, fun and adventurous.

Set it somewhere unique to the Indiana Jones universe

How many times can Indiana end up in underground caves of a mystical city? Set the game somewhere unique, somewhere totally and utterly alien for the Indiana Jones universe. We want a different story. Maybe Prague, with its Bohemian architecture, or Hungary, with its gothic feel. Make the adventure familiar to Indiana, but completely new. Make it memorable and different, with all of the things we love about Indiana.

Have a filthy, dirty villain

It's pretty hard to beat out Nazi Germany as a villain, but any good Indiana Jones adventure comes coupled with an evil and sinister villain. But you've also got to balance out the connection to Indiana. His main objective is the artifact and getting it into the right hands, not necessarily destroying the villain. That's secondary for him. He's an adventurer and a man on a mission, not a man seeking revenge. He has to be in a race against a seemingly unbeatable foe. Furthermore, we don't want the villain to be too sinister, ala Resident Evil villains.

Heller's Den Vol #2

It's been a rather slow week in the gaming world, giving you all a chance to catch up on those games you haven't finished before the end of year season is upon us.

Many of you have already finished this title, but Batman: Arkham Asylum has kept me rather busy the past week. I've really enjoyed my time on Arkham, and this is a surprise hit title for me! Still sitting on the fence after playing the demo? Why not read our feature review? Batman: Arkham Asylum.

I was one of the many lucky folks who snagged a Uncharted 2 beta code last week from EB Games Twitter give-away so I'll be waiting to get into that this Tuesday! Those who pre-order the game from EB also get access to the beta so if you can't wait to get online with this game, head down to your local EB today.

This weekend I got the chance to go through the paces of the DLC pack for F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin. Reborn runs a story parallel to that of the main game, and while it doesn't do anything to expand the story or the universe, it's a decent addition to the already great game. If you already own F.E.A.R 2 and want to extend it another 2-4 hours, then check out our review here.

So now I'm just counting down the days till Scribblenauts, Uncharted 2 and Modern Warfare 2!

What are you guys and girls looking forward to playing?

Heller's Den Vol #1

So I've decided to retire the Heller's Desk segment, mainly due to the fact I was getting hard pressed to find good desk pics! So welcome to Heller's Den, a chance for me to throw out what I've been researching, playing and looking forward to.

As many of you will know, Batman Arkham Asylum is the hot topic right now, and rightly so! It's a fantastic game and I'm only a few hours into it!. Tano is busy working on the featured review, but until then, why not check out Batman's Greatest Gaming Moments.

While I wait patiently for Uncharted 2 to be released for the PS3 I've started to play Killzone 2 online quite a bit recently. It's a little harder than your average shooter, but it is so in-depth and is a great change of pace!

On the Wii front I've been getting into a lot of Wii Sports Resort, The Conduit, Punch Out!! and I've been getting back into some Grand Slam Tennis which is great fun for local multiplayer!

So we have a huge few months coming up, with such games as Modern Warfare 2, Scribblenaughts, Guitar Hero 5, Rock Band Beatles the list is growing every day!

What are you guys and girls looking forward to playing?

Heller's E3 Predictions

It's back, bigger, badder, and better than ever before. E3 is here on our doorsteps, the biggest gaming exhibition the world has ever seen, which is constantly the event when all the juiciest content is revealed. What are my predictions for this years E3 Expo?

Xbox 360

When looking on the boards there hasn't been that much talk of great, exclusive content coming out for the Xbox 360 in the next twelve months. Microsoft will be showing us more of Halo: ODST which was a given, but other than the staple cross platform titles like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the like, information on exclusives are lacking.

Epic could be set to release information on a either some serious DLC for Gears of War 2 or possibly the expansion with a new title in the series, but this is purely speculation.

There has been a lot of talk about some type of motion sensing device for the Xbox 360 for a number of months now, and with increasing leaks of "information" it is likely that IF such a device is in the works, we are going to see it at E3.

I think E3 will spell out the fate of the Xbox 360. IF there is a lack of content, I feel we will get an announcement by the years end of a new console coming out in the next twelve months. The Xbox 360 has been in our houses for quite some time now, and has almost reached the pinnacle of it's potential. E3 could be the clue that tells us if a new console is closer than we expected.

Wii

Ahh the Nintendo Wii, the little console that could. It's dominance in sales since it's release is impressive, but is let down by it's lack of decent games. Once again, not much is on the cards for Nintendo, and in true Reggie style, I think we will get some corkers announced at E3.

First of all The Conduit will be high on the lists, to continue the hype train as it inches closer and closer towards release. Top this off with Motion Plus and of course a more in-depth look at Wii Sports Resort we will get a taste of what we can get our hands on very soon.

With the release of the DSi we can expect some big titles coming out along with a spiel on the DSi Ware titles. Nintendo should also be ready to unveil a storage solution for the Wii, it's been a hot topic for an eternity, and E3 would be the perfect time to address it.

Mature gaming is going to be high on the list, and we will see a bunch of info on the new Resident Evil title and of course Dead Space Extraction

Purely speculation but I have a feeling we will see one of the big Nintendo franchises with a new title on the Wii, I'd be leaning towards a new Legend of Zelda title.

PS3

Killzone 2 is out, Infamous is on the way, what is next for the big black box from Sony? Uncharted 2 will surely be on display, along with God Of War III and I'd be leaning towards getting some more info on Gran Turismo 5.

Sony has a really good chance at domination in 2009, and E3 is going to be make or break it for the console, especially IF Microsoft announce a new Xbox coming to the streets in the next twelve months.

Heavy Rain will steal the show this year, it's been sitting there with some teasers every now and then, and it would be a perfect setting for David Cage to show the world exactly how far his team have pushed the PS3. It could be the underground title that really propels the PS3 to greatness

Heller's Wish List

Sleeping Giant Will Attack?

The Playstation 3 has been the sleeping giant of the current console war since its release in 2006, boasting features missing from other consoles, yet failing to really deliver games that made it stand on it's own aside from the Xbox 360.

Early titles Heavenly Sword and Uncharted: Drakes Fortune really set the bar high for what the Playstation 3 was capable of, what it was going to bring to us in the future, but the issue is that the time between these unique titles has been too long.

The end of 2008 saw the release of LittleBigPlanet and Resistance 2, both extremely high profile, large budget, and impressive exclusives for the console. Both games received praise, and both games have launched momentum for the PS3 to reach for the stars and really dominate 2009.

Followed up by the massive Killzone 2, which has truly raised the bar for what gamers can expect from their home consoles, and FPS in general, question is can Sony continue this momentum of top notch titles and continue to dominate in 2009?

With inFamous, MAG, Uncharted 2 and God of War III all slated for release this year, one would imagine this is going to be a huge year for Sony Playstation 3 owners.

Problem is that if the Playstation 3 faces another wishy washy year it could be over. The Xbox 360 has dominated the hardcore gamers collection for long enough now, and getting towards the end of the consoles lifespan, chances are Microsoft are going to be announcing a new console in the next year or so, which could see a decline in PS3 sales.

Will 2009 be the big year that Sony needs to propel it's console to greatness? What are your thoughts on the subject?

Heller's Desk Vol #5

Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the year that is 2009! I trust you have all had a great Christmas and New Years, full of food, family, and hopefully you all got the games you were hoping for.

So what is currently sitting on Heller's Desk for the first week of 2009? Nintendo WiFi ISSUES! Animal Crossing - Let's Go To The City has made its way across my desk this week, and to tell you the truth I'm a little addicted. I find myself picking it up at least once a day for about 30 mins, which is about all you need to be content with this title. I never played the DS or GC versions, so I'm not experience the monsoon of nostalgia (or the hit of "this is EXACTLY the same") that some users are experiencing. WHAT I AM seeing is a multitude of Nintendo WFC issues with this title. Continual dropouts have been occurring, and it seems that everyone is plagued with the issue. Online is what makes this game fun! Nintendo need to seriously work this out! Otherwise I'd give this game a big thumbs up!

Dead Space is still loading off my Xbox Hard-Drive and I am absolutely loving it! Games don't scare me, and movies very rarely scare me, but I am crapping my proverbial pants when I play Dead Space! I've never played a game that catches the atmosphere as well as EA's new title. The lighting, the shadows and the stellar sound all add to the scariest experience I've ever had in an interactive medium EVER!

Wario: The Shake Dimension also is sitting on my desk. MyWii has had a feature review of this game for a while, and I gotta say I'm impressed. If you are a fan of the old school platformers, and want to see top notch graphical presentation with a WACKY world, you will LOVE this game! Unfortunately it's not in 16:9 so you are stuck with some annoying borders, but you will learn to deal with that. It's also worth pointing out that the 2 best games to use the Wiimotes gestures have both been Wario games....

I've also got some time with my PC this week and I've been playing some Team Fortress 2 online. For those who played the Xbox version and now aren't keen on trying the PC, I beg you to reconsider. The PC version is AMAZING and feels totally different to its Xbox Counterpart. Also STEAM are having a sale until Midnight today (2nd of Jan) where you can pick it up for the low price of $9.95.

Also I have been playing through Telltale's Sam and Max Season 1. I am a huge fan of Sam and Max Hit The Road, an oldschool point and click adventure which is right up there with my favourite games of all time, easily in the top 5. Telltale have captured the energy of that game, and transferred it into top notch episodic content that is relevant today. You can download Episode 3 for free off STEAM so if you want to give it a go, I'd definitely recommend it!

As you can see, I'm still catching up on some of the great gaming that was in 2008, but what am I looking forward to in 2009?

Skate 2 - Xbox 360

Resident Evil 5 - Xbox 360

Killzone 2- PS3

Heavy Rain - PS3

Bioshock 2 - Xbox 360

No More Heroes 2 - Nintendo Wii

Uncharted 2 - PS3

What is tickling your fancy for 2009? What games did you get for Christmas that you are playing through right now?