Over the years, Indiana Jones has captivated the attention of countless moviegoers. But the famed archeologist and explorer has appeared in a lot of video games as well. So, which Indiana Jones video game is the best - and which one is the worst?
A new Indiana Jones game from Lucasfilm Games and Bethesda has stirred up interest in video games focused on Dr. Jones once again. While details regarding the new game are scarce, it has sent plenty of fans back into the annals of past Indiana Jones video games. The games focused on Indiana Jones have been a mixed bag over the years, with some games definitely being better than others.
There are also plenty of Young Indiana Jones video games out there, which aren't included on this list. Instead, this list focuses on the adult Indiana Jones, the one who's been portrayed by Harrison Ford all these years. From mobile titles to arcade games, and from Atari to PlayStation 2, here's every Indiana Jones game, ranked worst to best.
#18 - Worst Indiana Jones Video Game - Indiana Jones and the Lost Puzzles
Indiana Jones and the Lost Puzzles is a mobile game from 2009 that most fans probably just want to forget. It's really only an Indiana Jones game in name, as players connect colored tiles together in order to rack up points. It's simple, it's repetitive, and it's incredibly boring. Even the premise that players are really exploring ancient ruins falls flat, in this thinly veiled cash-grab that's clearly just a Candy Crush copycat wearing Dr. Jones' fedora.
#17 - Indiana Jones and His Desktop Adventures
There's nothing inherently wrong with Indiana Jones and His Desktop Adventures. The adventures themselves are randomly generated, which means the quality of each one varies greatly. Without a concise story and cast, the game just feels a little barebones.
#16 - Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
No matter how people feel about the movie, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on mobile was a valiant effort to adapt the movie into a video game that felt like one of the classic '80s and early '90s titles. Unfortunately, it's also bogged down by being a mobile game, with unintuitive controls and repetitive gameplay. It's also based on a film many people consider to be Indiana Jones' worst.
#15 - Indiana Jones In Revenge Of The Ancients
Indiana Jones in Revenge of the Ancients is an acquired taste, especially by modern gaming standards. Released in 1987, this text-based adventure does a decent job of taking players through classic Indiana Jones exploits.
The never-before-told story involving an ancient power that could destroy the entire world is actually pretty good. However, the game was soon overshadowed by Indy adventures on the NES, and it's not nearly as fun in 2021 as it was in 1987.
#14 - Indiana Jones In The Lost Kingdom
With its generic colors and uninteresting story, Indiana Jones In the Lost Kingdom is far from the greatest game starring Dr. Jones, but it's also not the worst. With six different locations and difficulty settings, there were a couple of innovations that kept it from being boring. Unfortunately, the game doesn't really convey a classic Indy adventure, despite having some pretty interesting challenges.
#13 - Raiders of the Lost Ark
Releasing in 1982 on the Atari 2600, Raiders of the Lost Ark is a video game adaptation of the classic film. The game does a decent job of sticking closely to the story of the film, but its brightly colored settings and pixelated graphics often don't resemble what was seen in the movie. It's not a bad Indiana Jones game - it's just not really a good one, either.
#12 - Indiana Jones And The Staff Of Kings
Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings released in 2009 for the Wii, Nintendo DS, PSP, and PlayStation 2. It already had outdated graphics when it released, but it's perhaps best remembered (and maligned) for its use of the Wii's motion controls. What started as an attempt to make players feel like they're actually cracking Indy's whip ultimately became sluggish, unresponsive controls.
Even the controls in the non-Wii versions weren't great, meaning Staff of Kings is a pretty mid-tier Indiana Jones game, despite having some interesting level designs and callbacks to classic point-and-click Indiana Jones adventures. It might even be one of the reasons Disney waited to release another Indiana Jones game, since sales and reviews weren't especially great.
#11 - Indiana Jones And The Infernal Machine
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine is about as mid-tier as Indiana Jones video games get. Releasing in 1999, it was the first 3D installment in the series, and it had engaging gameplay and plenty of puzzles to solve. Infernal Machine's story was also decent enough, although it's far from the series' best. Overall, though, it played mostly like a Tomb Raider game - although Infernal Machine wasn't as good as the series starring Lara Croft.
#10 - Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade: The Action Game
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Action Game is exactly what the name implies. It's the more action-oriented version of the games that released in support of the third Indiana Jones film. The gameplay is overly easy, but the music and levels do a great job of letting players feel like they're in the movie, creating an overall enjoyable experience.
#9 - Indiana Jones And The Fate of Atlantis: The Action Game
Not to be confused with the LucasArts classic with almost the same name, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis: The Action Game is a more action-oriented version of one of Indy's greatest adventures. It has the same plot, but instead of pointing-and-clicking through puzzles, players punch enemies and swing their way through the game's various levels.
#8 - LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues
LEGO Indiana Jones 2: The Adventure Continues is a zany and fun spin on the Indiana Jones movies. This sequel rehashed some content from the first three movies (and first LEGO game) and added a focus on the newly-released Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which many consider to be the worst of Indiana Jones' films.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the gameplay suffers from being a bit too repetitive from the first LEGO Indiana Jones game. It also focuses too much on a movie that a lot of people didn't really like, which even Traveller's Tale's fun gameplay couldn't fix.
#7 - Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom
Releasing in 1985, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (the video game) has the distinction of being an arcade release first. The game is widely hailed as an arcade classic, and it features actual voiceovers from Harrison Ford and John Williams' score. This was the first video game to actually feel like an Indiana Jones film, which is why it's still fondly remembered today.
#6 - Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade
This 1991 version of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is different from both the Action Game and the Graphic Adventure. This NES classic had bitmapped pictures of the actors form the movie, levels taken directly from the film, and some of the best action sequences the Nintendo Entertainment System had to offer.
#5 - Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures
Arriving on the Super Nintendo in 1994, Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures was a platformer that perfected the gameplay seen in The Last Crusade on NES and allowed players to go through all of Indy's big-screen adventures. The game stayed pretty faithful to all the movies, and although its graphics weren't anything special, it was still a ton of fun on SNES.
#4 - Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure
The best of the games focusing on the third film, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure was a LucasArts point-and-click adventure at its finest. It added several innovations, including the IQ (Indy Quotient) point system and allowed players to tackle puzzles in multiple ways. These alternate solutions to puzzles are still one of hte highlights from the game.
It remains one of the best-reviewed Indiana Jones games, and although its graphics may feel outdated by modern standards, they were pretty great at the time. The game itself still holds up reasonably well, meaning it's one of the few Indiana Jones video games that's just as fun to play in 2021 as it was when it initially released.
#3 - Indiana Jones And The Emperor's Tomb
Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb released in 2003 on PC, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. With its 3D graphics and original story, the game felt like players were finally getting to experience a new Indiana Jones film. At the time, it was the most realistic portrayal of Indy in a video game - and Emperor's Tomb mostly succeeds at recreating the style and tone of the films.
#2 - LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures
The superior LEGO Indiana Jones game, LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures managed to mix the wackier feel of Traveller's Tales games with iconic Indiana Jones moments and levels to near-perfection. The storyline takes players through the first three movies, and also allows them to create vehicles and characters. With over 80 playable characters from the Indiana Jones franchise, the first LEGO Indiana Jones game is a must-play.
#1 - Best Indiana Jones Video Game - Indiana Jones And The Fate Of Atlantis
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (not to be confused with the Action Game version) is hands-down the best Indiana Jones video game to release so far. Fate of Atlantis' original story is compelling and thrilling, and the point-and-click gameplay was just about perfect. It also had three different paths, offering players unique puzzles, cutscenes, and even locations depending on their choices. It's still considered one of the greatest adventure games of all time, and it frequently places on "Best of" lists for PC gaming. If there's one Indiana Jones video game worth playing, this is definitely it.
The Indiana Jones games released over the years all offer a little something different, but some of the games are just better than others. From arcades to mobile devices, and from point-and-click adventures to 3D action, these are all the Indiana Jones video games, ranked worst to best.