Machine Games

Machine Games is a developer.

Machine Games Webpage, Facebook

A Swedish development studio based in Uppsala, owned by ZeniMax Media since 2010. The studio, headed by Jerk Gustafsson and Jim Kjellin, focuses on creating games for PC and consoles. Its flagship titles belong to the Wolfenstein franchise - Wolfenstein: The New Order and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus.

The history of Machine Games

In 2009, several Starbreeze AB employees left the team and founded their own company. Those people were Jens Matthies, Jerk Gustafsson, Fredrik Ljungdahl, Jim Kjellin, Kjell Emanuelsson, Michael Wynne, and Magnus Hogdahl. Interestingly, the latter was also one of the founders of the aforementioned studio.

Machine Games, the studio they founded, was acquired by ZeniMax Media in November 2010. This brought the team into the ranks of the renowned Bethesda Softworks, Arkane Studios, and the legendary id Software. Shortly afterward, the developers received the rights to create another game in the Wolfenstein series.

Wolfenstein, or the path to glory

Gamers had to wait almost four years for the release of Machine Games' debut game, until May 2014, when Wolfenstein: The New Order was released. It was powered by id Tech 5, which delivered high-quality graphics. The main character was once again B.J. Blazkowicz, an American special forces veteran of Polish descent. This time, however, the action didn't take place during World War II – the developers presented an alternate history in which the global conflict ended with the Third Reich's victory. The title was so well-received by players and reviewers that, following suit, the developers prepared a standalone expansion. Wolfenstein: The Old Blood debuted in May 2015, allowing players to experience the events preceding the plot of The New Order. Interestingly, unlike the base game, this title wasn't released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, only PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

However, The Old Blood was only a teaser of what was to come two years later. In 2017, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus was officially announced, in which B.J. Blazkowicz traveled to the Nazi-occupied United States to aid the local resistance. The game utilized the new id Tech 6 graphics engine, boasting top-notch visuals – interestingly, although it debuted on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, it later also appeared on the Nintendo Switch. Like its predecessor, this production did not offer a multiplayer mode.

Things were different with the studio's next project, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, which we first heard about at E3 2018. The title, a collaboration between Machine Games and Arkane Studios, allowed for both solo and cooperative play. Set in an alternate version of the 1980s, the game follows B.J. Blazkowicz's daughters, Jessica and Sophie, as they travel to Nazi-occupied Paris to find their missing father and aid the French Resistance. The game debuted on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch on July 26, 2019.

Besides Young Blood, the Machine Games and Arkane Studios teams were working on another project. That same day, Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot, a game designed for virtual reality headsets, was released on PlayStation 4 and PC. This time, players could take on the role of a hacker taking control of Nazi machines and using them to wreak chaos among the Third Reich soldiers occupying Paris.

A new Indiana Jones adventure

On January 12, 2021, Bethesda Softworks announced that Machine Games was working on a new Indiana Jones game. The then-untitled project was being developed under the supervision of Todd Howard. Shortly thereafter, the studio posted job offers for a level designer and gameplay animator, seeking individuals experienced in creating first-person shooters. Although many players immediately assumed the new Indiana Jones would be an FPS, it seemed more likely that the new hires would be working on the studio's fourth Wolfenstein game. Bethesda itself admitted that it would be a long time before it would share any specifics with us, which indicated that the project was at a very early stage of production.

Machine Games' Indiana Jones finally emerged from the shadows in January 2024. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was presented on a long gameplay video. As it turned out, the developers had prepared an action-adventure game in which the events are mostly presented from the protagonist's perspective, switching to third-person at selected moments.

In August 2024, it was announced that Machine Games' work would also be released on PlayStation 5; however, it was supposed to debut on Sony's console with a delay, in April 2025. Meanwhile, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was released on PC and Xbox Series X/S on December 9, 2024. On Steam, Indy's new adventure received "very positive" reviews, while the average rating from industry media was 87/100 (according to Metacritic).