LEGO® Indiana Jones™: The Original Adventures takes the fun and creative construction of LEGO and combines it with the wits, daring, and non-stop action from the Indiana Jones cinematic adventures that enthralled audiences everywhere.

With a tongue-in-cheek take on these original adventures, LEGO Indiana Jones follows Dr. Jones' escapades through the jungles of South America to the mountaintops of India. Build, battle, and brawl your way through your favorite moments, from Indy's entanglements with snakes to his dashing boulder run.

• Be Indiana Jones: Re-live his epic adventures in a humorous LEGO world based on the original trilogy of movies.
• Explore and discover: Journey from the jungles of South America to the snowy mountaintops of India, all in search of ancient and powerful artifacts that you will use to solve puzzles.
• Whip it! Use Indy’s signature weapon to capture and disarm enemies, swing across gaps, activate levers, and interact with a world of LEGO objects and puzzles.
• Pick your character: Choose from over 60 playable characters, each with a variety of unique abilities that you will use to help solve puzzles and battle enemies. Plus, play the villains and supporting characters.

GCM: Thank you for your time! Please get us started by introducing yourself and telling us about the creative team that is reconstructing one of the great action trilogies out of bricks.

Kellam Eanes – Associate Producer – LucasArts
Kevin Clement – Assistant Producer – LucasArts

The majority of the development team at Traveller’s Tales are veterans of previous LEGO titles and bring a collectively high level of experience and enthusiasm to LEGO Indy.

GCM: With the undeniable success of LEGO Star Wars and now the impending release of LEGO Indy, and even a LEGO Batman, what are your personal thoughts on why making and playing these pop-culture icons in LEGO form is so appealing?

KC: These games appeal to a wide age range because of the inherent humor, ease of use and the great stories that they allow players to experience.

GCM: We know you guys are acting all this stuff out by hand before it goes in the computer. So how many thousands of LEGO blocks are lying around the design studio at this time?

KC: There is no denying that there is quite an abundance of LEGO around the studio, but the majority of the building for the game takes place on the designers, artists and programmers computers.

GCM: One of the fundamental gameplay elements of LEGO Star Wars was disassembling existing LEGO objects and reassembling them into new and often useful objects using Jedi powers. Will Dr. Jones be able to reconstruct the world around him, and if so, how?

KC: LEGO Indy allows players to physically interact with the game environment in a much more in-depth manner than previous games. Indy can use his whip to accomplish a variety of tasks, a few of the actions players will be able to perform include; activating switches, grabbing objects, stunning enemies and swinging across gaps. All characters can pick up and drop objects, including weapons and tools, as well as swim, climb and shimmy across ledges. Just like in the films, players will experience a seat of their pants adventure as Indy uses his wits and daring to battle bad guys across the tops of speeding vehicles.

GCM: The Indiana Jones movies are known for a lot of humorous elements and tongue-in-cheek dialogue. What were some challenges in bringing this style of humor over into the Mime-like world of LEGO acting?

KC: That indeed was the biggest challenge to fit all of the iconic movie scenes from the three classic Indiana Jones films into LEGO world. TT Games does a fantastic job of adding their unique brand of humor to those classic movie moments. You’ll see, remember, and laugh; I guarantee it.

KE: Traveller’s Tales did a great job identifying key iconic moments from the original Indiana Jones films. Some of my personal favorites are the scenes with Mola Ram in Kali’s Temple, the motorcycle scene with Jones Sr., and Willie Scott’s theatrical entrance in Shanghai. It’s the non-stop adventure you expect from Indiana Jones mixed with a healthy dose of LEGO humor.

GCM: With so many major set pieces spread across all three Indy films, did you have to make any hard decisions on which ones to include, or can we expect to play them all?

KE: We fully appreciate that playing LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures will be many young players’ first introduction to Indiana Jones. Parents will be introducing their favorite iconic moments to their kids and also reliving Indy’s classic adventures with a new twist. We included just about every memorable scene you can think of, from the idol swap in Raiders of the Lost Ark to selecting the correct LEGO grail in The Last Crusade.

GCM: Often, video games inspired by films visit new locations or cover material that we didn’t see on screen. Will LEGO Indy show us anything we haven’t seen before?

KE: The original films are the inspiration for everything players will be experiencing in game. However there were areas in which the team did have to take some artistic license in order to fully deliver on the game experience. As always, we have looked for ways to integrate some fun surprises throughout the game, so players will have to keep their eyes open as they explore and discover Lego Indy’s world.

GCM: LEGO Star Wars used the cantina as the hub for accessing all three films. What will Indy’s base of operations be?

KC: Indy’s base of operations will be Barnett College. Here, players will be able to access game levels, inspect their collected treasures and artifacts, customize characters and much more!

GCM: The first two Indy movies pushed the limits of the PG rating with the level of violence (melting and exploding heads, guy chopped up in airplane propeller, chilled monkey brains, unsanitary heart transplants). What were some challenges in walking the thin line between maintaining an “E” rating and remaining true to the original content of the films?

KE: Everything is handled with the appropriate amount of humor so that the whole family can enjoy. As in Lego Star Wars, characters never actually “die,” but break apart and reassemble after taking full damage. The unfortunate boxer that loses his head in the airplane propeller is pretty funny. After the chop, he chases his bouncing head around the tarmac. Indy and friends’ attack moves are comical, like Short Round’s karate kicks or Willie Scott’s flailing arms and signature scream that can incidentally shatter glass. You won’t see Mola Ram ripping out any LEGO hearts, but you will see the re-telling of Indy’s classic adventures in the same tongue-in-cheek style that made you chuckle in LEGO Star Wars.

GCM: What kind of Achievements can we look forward to on the Xbox 360 version? Any personal favorites?

KE: Movie buffs will really enjoy our achievements, as their names are all from classic Indiana Jones movie quotes. One of the most challenging for me is “Indy! Cover your heart!” which requires completing a level without losing any studs.

GCM: What motion-inspired extras will Nintendo gamers get? Will Wii gamers get to “crack” Indy’s famous whip using the Wii remote?

KE: The whip will definitely be an integral part of the LEGO Indy Wii experience. Players will be able to whip objects and enemies towards them and whip swing. Fast build, digging, turning cranks, and building with wrenches will also be enhanced with the Wii remote.

On the DS, players will be able to control the whip, shovel, and cranks with the touch screen, as well as enjoy a selection of exclusive mini-games.

GCM: Let’s talk multiplayer. Indy always seemed to have at least one sidekick tagging along on his adventures. Will this translate into cooperative multiplayer gameplay?

KE: In LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures, players will be able to enjoy the same style of drop-in/drop-out co-op that proved to be so popular in LEGO Star Wars.

GCM: Thanks for your time. Is there some special element or favorite part of LEGO Indy, or perhaps some previously unknown secret you’d like to share with our readers before they get their hands on the final game next month?

KE: Just like you see in the films, it pays to be curious, explore the levels fully; you’ll never know what you will find! ;)

---