On December 9, Indiana Jones will get his first video game adaptation in over a decade with Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. With over three hours of cinematic cutscenes, multiple tools at players’ disposal, and a globe-spanning adventure, the game is one of the most highly anticipated releases of the year.

With the release date approaching and preorders for the game already available, Digital Trends caught up with Executive Producer Todd Howard and Indiana Jones actor Troy Baker to discuss The Great Circle and the wild few years they’ve had with the success of the Fallout and The Last of Us series adaptations. Both talked about the effort and insecurity behind turning an iconic character into a video game hero once again. Like a lot of skeptics, Baker didn’t believe he was cut out for it originally — and neither did Todd Howard.

Digital Trends: Indiana Jones and the Great Circle takes place between Raiders of the Lost Ark and Last Crusade, so it focuses on a younger Indy. When you went to make the game, did you get any tips or advice from Harrison Ford or Steven Spielberg about how Indy would move, act, and talk? 

Howard: They’re aware of the project, but we really used the movies as our guide. We looked at Raiders and said this is the character, this is the time period in his life, and these are his mannerisms.

Baker: We have 40 years of source material, so there’s a lot to learn from. To prepare for the role, I would wake up every morning and watch some of Raiders, then I’d listen to John Williams’ score, and watch Temple and Crusade. What I found is that Harrison Ford is the auteur of that character, along with Lucas and Spielberg. But the Indy we all know and love is also created by how we all felt watching those movies. My idea of Indy will be a little different from Todd’s, even though we’re watching the same character in the same movie. For me, it’s not just about understanding his mannerisms and movements, it’s about understanding what’s behind it all. That’s what really helped us take the character they created and make our own story for him.

I have to say, you did a fantastic job of recreating his voice in the game.

Baker: You know, I didn’t originally think I’d be right for the role. Back in 2019, Tom Keegan, a director I’d never worked with before, reached out to my agent and asked if he could call me. He said that they were casting for an Indiana Jones game and he’d like me for the role. I said, “Great I’ll give you two names and one of these two people will be a great fit.” He said, “Thanks, but I like you for this role.” So I agreed to put myself on tape, and I told him that if he thinks it’s good, he can send it on, but if it’s not, then burn that tape (laughs). He ended up liking my audition and everything culminated in one final Zoom call with everyone, including Todd. And Todd gets on and says, “I didn’t want you in my game.” It was a hell of a way to start a meeting.

Howard: I’ll be honest, when they first said they wanted Troy for the game, I gave an eye roll. I believe my exact line was, “What, Troy Baker’s the guy to solve every lead actor issue in a game now?” (laughs) It just felt like a cop-out in some way. But then Troy’s audition came in, and it was just so good. It wasn’t just the voice, but also the mannerisms. We even did a bunch of blind tests with Troy and some of the other possible actors, and every time, Troy won.

I’ve already seen some chatter online with people wondering if this will just feel like Uncharted or Tomb Raider … which is ironic since both of those games are heavily inspired by Indiana Jones. Aside from Indy’s character, what would you say to anyone who is worried this will feel too similar to other franchises? 

Howard: Our game has a lot of cinematics. There’s over three hours of scenes in it, but at its heart, it’s still a game. There’s also certain things that work well for movies and things that work well for video games. Games do geography well and they can put you in a character in ways a movie can’t. It’s a new unique way to experience the franchise.

Baker: I also feel like it isn’t a “do you pick up this or that,” I feel like a lot of people will pick up both. When you watch Indy, you want to be there, cracking that whip and solving mysteries, and that’s exactly what this game allows you to do.

This game is releasing after you’ve both had a pretty massive few years. Todd, you work on Fallout, which just received an acclaimed, Emmy-nominated series adaptation, and Troy, you’re the voice of Joel in The Last of Us, which has had a widely praised Emmy-winning series adaptation. What’s it been like navigating these few years? 

Howard: For Fallout, it was a long journey. There were a lot of pitches to do Fallout as a movie or TV show, and then I met Jonah Nolan and his crew at Kilter, and it felt like we melded on what this could be. My mode was ‘Don’t treat it like it’s a video game, this is source material for a linear story.’ It’s been great to see so many people experience the world of Fallout who never would have played the game.

Baker: I think what led to the success of both Fallout and The Last of Us was that they kept the creators involved. Even if it’s a spiritual connection to the people who brought these franchises into the world, keep them involved and engaged, as opposed to just going, “Yeah, yeah, we get it.”

Do you think there are any other games out there that would be perfect to adapt into a movie or TV show? 

Howard: Indiana Jones, I feel like Indiana Jones would make a good movie (laughs).

Baker: Oh yeah, someone should really do that!

With its latest flagship, the OnePlus 13, OnePlus has taken an innovative approach to managing storage space for apps and files. The company has already confirmed to provide users with over 5GB of additional storage space for user data.

This improvement comes with the release of Oxygen OS 15, OnePlus‘s storage-efficient operating system built on Android 15.

Oxygen OS 15, the latest iteration of OnePlus’s operating system, was initially released in beta for last year’s OnePlus flagship last month. While the update includes new features such as refreshed animations, a Quick Settings split panel, enhanced icon colors, and a “Share with iPhone” function, it also introduces a significant space-saving feature exclusive to the OnePlus 13.

OxygenOS 15 offers you more space for your apps and files

According to OnePlus, Oxygen OS 15 on the OnePlus 13 uses around 20% less storage space than Oxygen OS 14 on the OnePlus 12, giving OnePlus 13 users additional room for their apps, photos, and files.

The company optimized the system by analyzing and removing redundant features and reducing preloaded resources, like wallpapers, which users can now download on demand.

This change reduced the space required by system files while ensuring that essential features remain intact. OnePlus also fine-tuned the partitioning in its devices, giving the OnePlus 13’s user data partition more room.

Understanding partition changes

OnePlus achieves this optimization by resizing the “super” partition, which holds critical system files across various sub-partitions. Android devices use a set of dynamically resizable partitions within the “super” partition to facilitate updates and maintain system integrity. If OnePlus makes the super partition too small, the device may not support future updates. On the other hand, if it’s too large, it wastes valuable storage space for user data.

OnePlus identified an opportunity to save space by reducing the super partition size. The OnePlus 13 now reserves only 14.3GB for the super partition, down from 16GB on the OnePlus 12—a 1.7GB reduction. This change allocates more storage to the user data partition, increasing usable storage on the OnePlus 13 by 2.19GB. Developer MlgmXyysd pulled these numbers from the Chinese versions of the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus 13, though, and thus these figures might not be fully reflective of the global models.

Extra storage is beneficial, especially with increasing file sizes of apps, games, and media. Even those who opt for the base model of the OnePlus 13 will enjoy more storage without worrying about the limitations often associated with smaller storage variants.

TikTok is all about the tunes, and the social network has added to directly post audio from streaming services. Share to TikTok is a new feature that will let listeners in Apple Music and Spotify share music to the video platform. The tool can post a track, album, playlist or other content to the TikTok Feed, either in FYP or Stories. Streaming audio material can also be shared via a TikTok DM.

Even though TikTok has become a popular place to discover and share audio, the company recently that its TikTok Music platform would be shutting down later this month; the service never launched in the US. The business has also faced scrutiny for in its users, as well as posing a possible security threat. The US has considered the app, and Canada recently ordered TikTok to its domestic operations.

Sony reported its sales for its game and network services division were 1,071.5 billion yen ($7.01 billion) for the second fiscal quarter ended September 30, up 12% from a year ago.

Operating income for the G&NS division was 138.8 billion yen ($908 million), up 2.8 times from a year ago. Much of the improvement comes from sales of third-party games.

Sony said that sales grew because of an increase in third-party game software sales, better foreign exchange rates, an increase in network service sales including its PlayStation Plus online service. This was offset by a decrease in hardware sales.

Operating income grew due to an improvement in the profitability of hardware, an increase in third-party software sales, and higher network service sales.

Sony is now forecasting that its game and network services division will hit 4,490 billion yen ($29.3 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2025. That is more optimistic than the 4,320 billion yen ($28.2 billion) predicted in August. Operating income is also expected to be higher for the fiscal year for the division by 35 billion yen.

Operating income for the group is expected to be 355 billion yen ($2.3 billion), up from the earlier forecast of 320 billion yen.

Overall, Sony’s sales in the quarter were 2,973.4 billion yen ($19.45 billion), up 9% from a year ago. Sony’s stock price is up 5% in after-hours trading.

Sony had some big titles like Astro Bot, but it also had failures like Concord, which sold so poorly that Sony shut down Firewalk Studios, the game studio that made it. Astro Bot, which debuted on September 6, has sold 1.5 million copies.

Among games, Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut on the PS5 and PC — released on May 16, 2024 — sold 9.7 million copies to date. Helldivers 2, made by Arrowhead Game Studios, has sold 12 million copies.

Hardware sales in Q2 were 218.2 billion yen, down from 287.5 billion yen a year earlier. Game software sales were 612.3 billion yen, up from 479.3 billion yen a year earlier. Digital software sales were up at 258.6 billion yen, up from 200.9 billion yen a year earlier.

In the quarter, Sony sold 3.8 million PS5 consoles, down from 4.9 million a year ago. Sony sold 77.7 million games, up from 67.6 million a year ago. First-party game sales were 5.3 million copies, up from 4.7 million a year ago.

On the PlayStation Network, the monthly active users were 116 million, up from 107 million a year ago.

Back in January, Sony said it had sold 50 million PlayStation 5 consoles. That sounds like a lot, but it’s not nearly as much as the PlayStation 4, which has sold more than 117 million units as of October 2024. Sony did not update its cumulative total.

Back in May, PlayStation leader Jim Ryan retired and he was replaced by two executives. Hideaki Nishino became CEO of SIE’s Platform Business Group, and Hermen Hulst was appointed CEO of SIE’s Studio Business Group.

Serkan Toto, a game analyst and CEO of Kantan Games, said in a message to GamesBeat that Sony had a “silent” quarter aside from the launch of Astro Bot.

“But overall, their game business looks pretty solid,” Toto said. “I think they are increasingly getting people to pay more for PlayStation Plus, a high-margin segment that helps prop up their numbers. The only concern is declining hardware sales after all the price hikes, so Sony needs to figure out a way to boost sales ASAP.”

And he said 2025 could be a much, much better year for Sony if they manage to release more first-party games and if Grand Theft Auto VI — coming in the fall of 2025 from Take-Two Interactive’s Rockstar Games — really hits.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav thinks putting Donald Trump back in the White House could offer a friendlier environment for major media mergers. “We have an upcoming new administration,” Zaslav said during an earnings call on Thursday. “It’s too early to tell, but it may offer a pace of change and an opportunity for consolidation that may be quite different.”

Zaslav made the statement in response to a question about streaming partnerships, saying changes under the Trump administration could have “a real positive and accelerated impact” on the entertainment industry. With more competition than ever in streaming, it’s getting harder for services to get a viewer’s undivided attention.

“This is an industry that really needs to consolidate,” Zaslav said. “Consumers put on a TV set and they see 16 apps, and each of those are doing different pricing and you’re sitting there with your phone and Googling where a show is… it’s just not a good consumer experience.”

Generative AI is evolving. Knowledge-based applications like AI chatbots and copilots are giving way to autonomous agents that can reason and perform complex, multistep workflows. These are powered by what is known as agentic AI. This latest development in AI is poised to transform the way businesses operate by being able to understand context, set goals, and adapt actions based on changing conditions.

With these capabilities, agentic AI could perform a whole range of tasks previously thought impossible for a machine to handle – such as identifying sales targets and making pitches, analyzing and optimizing supply chains, or acting as personal assistants to manage employees’ time.