Bethesda will finally show off Indiana Jones gameplay at the Developer Direct showcase happening later this month

Three years after it was first revealed, the Indiana Jones game in development at MachineGames is finally ready for the spotlight. Microsoft announced today that the upcoming game will take center stage at the next Developer Direct showcase, set to take place on January 18.

Despite all the time that's passed since the Indiana Jones game was announced, we still don't really know anything about it, including where (or even when) it will be set. The Developer Direct showcase looks set to change all that: Microsoft said the presentation will include details on the setting and story, "how fans will actually play as Indy," and—this is the big one—the first-ever gameplay trailer. 

Optimists may also hope for a release date, or at least a target: MachineGames hasn't announced any kind of launch window but at this point I reckon it has to be getting close enough for developers to at least make an educated guess.

The Indy game is the headliner, if only because it's the game we've known the least about for the longest time, but it's not coming to the show alone. Obsidian will present the first "deep dive" into Avowed, the first-person RPG set in its Pillars of Eternity world (honestly, that's the one I'm most excited for), and Oxide Games will reveal gameplay, "key features," and future plans for its 'Civilisation meets Crusader Kings' historical grand-strategy game Ara: History Untold. Ninja Theory will also reveal more about the process of developing Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, including a look at "the ambition and meticulous care involved in creating Senua’s journey of survival."

The Elder Scrolls Online fans also have something to look forward to: At the end of Developer Direct, ZeniMax will hold a separate TESO 2024 global reveal, featuring the new zone, storyline, and new features coming in the next chapter, "the game's biggest update this year."

One thing we won't see at this Developer Direct is Activision Blizzard. Microsoft finally completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard in October 2023, making it the new home of Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, and numerous other big-name games, but there won't be any updates from A-B development teams until "later this year."

The Developer Direct event will take place on January 18, beginning at 12 pm PT/3 pm ET/8 pm UK, and will be followed by The Elder Scrolls Online 2024 global reveal an hour later.