The puzzles themselves, while not groundbreaking, are actually well designed, although the "go here, Indy; move that box, Indy; push that button, Indy" mindset gets tiring quickly. Even when the monotony is broken with novel twists, like the river-rafting puzzle, the knowledge that there'll be another go/move/push puzzle around the corner is a real letdown. Compounding the tedium is the fact that, to do anything useful, you have to be positioned exactly right. Be even a little off place and Indy will jump in place rather that climb a ladder. There are too many necessary actions in the game that are impossible to perform if you aren't precisely situated. The difficulty level for the puzzles is just right, however, and most players should be able to puzzle through each level with a bit of thought and little frustration. Unless they have to mix it up, that is…
Where would Indy be without his trusty whip? Alive, apparently, because using it in combat is an easy way to get dead fast. You're supposed to be able to whip the gun out of an enemy's' hands, which sounds really cool in theory, but Indy is so slow on the wind up that he almost always ends up taking a few shots to the chest before disarming his foe. Even if you manage to disarm an enemy, he'll proceed to beat you senseless with his bare hands while you desperately try to switch to a more effective weapon. You have the option to fight fair, but it's usually smarter to plug the poor shmoe with one of your more useful armaments, unless you like seeing Indy beaten to death.
The graphics are pleasant, if a little dated. Levels are nice to look at from a distance, but become blocky up-close and lack spiffy graphical touches. The levels are deceptively small, which is reinforced by the fact that Indy is blocked by even a 20-degree slant and can only grab onto ledges that are perfectly flat. This makes the environment that you can interact with very limited and gives a claustrophobic feeling to what should be an expansive game.. The engine, which was stunning in the Jedi Knight games, is starting to show its age, as is our hero. Indy looks like a cross between Harrison Ford's Jones and a slightly bloated Kevin Spacey, as though he were recently roughed-up or stung by a bee. The fact that the cut-scenes are done in-engine is a mixed blessing. The characters remain blocky and unexpressive, but not having a change in presentation keeps the player in the story, which remains the game's saving grace.