Though the nextAvatarsequels are still many years away, Ubisoft is taking you back to the Na’vi’s home moon withAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora. This series from James Cameron is one of the most visually stunning pieces of science-fiction film, and the studio behindStar Wars Outlaws, Massive Entertainment, is now adapting the universe into an equally gorgeous new game.
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The Ubisoft Forward event showed off six minutes of gameplay and cutscenes from Frontiers of Pandora with narration from the game’s director, and many new details emerged in that short clip alone. There was exciting combat, new area reveals, systems and mechanics, and much more to be discussed.
10Aerial Combat And Weapon Variety
Mimicking the set-piece battles in the films, you will engage the RDA’s airborne vehicles in combat while flying on ikrans. You can wield your bow and target weak points on the Samsons or any other aircraft that might appear in the game. Additionally, there was a weapon wheel reveal and showcase of other weapons aside from a bow in action.
For stealth, you have the long bow weapon and a new weapon type called a staff sling, which launches objects and explosive traps (presumably like sticky bombs or mines). AMP suits can be taken down with assault rifles, pistols, shotguns, and a rocket launcher, and you can pull the RDA soldier right out.
9Echoes Of Far Cry
After the reveal, everyone’s initial thoughts turned toFar Cry, one of Ubisoft’s biggest series, and there are a few reasons why. Ubisoft tends to stick to its formula when it comes to game design, and what carries over here are the FPS design and the RDA facilities you need to destroy, akin to liberating enemy outposts in the Far Cry games.
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You can see your character stealthily moving around different kinds of RDA facilities that are causing harm to the environment, and they also seem to come with alarm boxes you’ll need to disable by pulling out the wiring. This FPS Far Cry comparisonis the most worrying aspect of the game.
8Survival Elements
As a species, the Na’avi are not only warriors but hunter-gatherers, and this will become a perfect aspect of the game. It might not bethe most realistic survival gamewith its premise and all the alien life found on Pandora, but hunting animals, gathering various fruit and plants, and making food are mechanics implemented here.
Early on in the trailer, you see a character prepared to strike their spear into a riverbed to hunt some fish. Other creatures can be hunted with a bow-and-arrow and there are allusions to bigger and more dangerous new creatures you’re able to attempt to kill. The food component looks like it has specific areas where you can cook.
7Parkour And Water Traversal
The new footage revealed environmental traversal on foot that created some striking moments, even a recreation from the movie. There area lot of parkour elementsto play around with in the Pandoran biomes. You can even cross the thick Beanstalk bridges and jump from leap pads to provide an extra boost.
The parkour in first-person seems as engaging asDying Light 2, especially since you can slide, though we’ve yet to see if you can kick enemies. You also find out you can swim in the game during a brief shot of your character swimming in a murky river, which can mean different aquatic enemies may appear.
6Multiple Customizable Mounts
Avatar is as much about the RDA as it is about the fauna and living in symbiosis with it. The movies show that Na’vi form bonds with several mounts, including the majestic winged ikrans and direhorses, as well as the aquatic Skimwings and Ilu from The Way of Water. The game so far has revealed the former two mounts will be available.
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You can perform tricks and spins with the ikran mounts in the air, and they’ll even have customizations. When riding your mount, there’s an interesting shift in perspective. You tame the direhorse or ikran in the first person, but the perspective automatically switches to the third person as you ride.
5Gorgeous New Regions Of Pandora
This Avatar game will showcase the new area of the Western Frontier of Pandora, as the second movie revealed the Metkayina Clan’s Eastern Sea home of the Reefs. It doesn’t look like you’ll be able to visit the stunning ocean of the Mekayina, but the Western Frontier has many beautiful locations of its own in store.
Some of the new biomes introduced were an overgrown cavernous mangrove area, the radiant bioluminescent Kinglor Forest, the lush red and green grasslands of the Upper Plains, and the misty Clouded Forest densely populated with flora and fauna. Each looks absolutely amazing, thriving with new species of creatures that will make for exciting exploration.
4Discovering New Na’vi Clans
All these new areas open up opportunities to meet new Na’vi Clans to strike alliances with. The trailer reveals three already, along with the area in which they reside. First is the Aranahe Clan that dwells in the Kinglor Forest, who are peaceful weavers that teach you survival skills and how to ride an ikran.
Next is the Zeswa in the Upper Plains, who are nomadic and live in harmony with the grassland’s wildlife and introduce you to the direhorse mount. Then in the Clouded Forest is an ominous Kame’tire Clan made up of healers who are said to have “dark reasons to stay hidden.”
3Co-Op Multiplayer Action
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora comes from Ubisoft’s Massive Entertainment, a developer known for co-op multiplayer titles that previously helmedTom Clancy’s The Divisionthird-person multiplayer shooter games, and they’re bringing a bit of that into Frontiers. Massive also developedFar Cry 3, so that’s probably where those influences come in.
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The trailer reveals that the story campaign has the option for a single-player story experience or an online multiplayer adventure with your friend. This is narrated over a clip of two Na’vi characters flying together on ikrans by the Hallelujah Mountains.
2Skill Upgrades Through Neural Link
The detailed gameplay also revealed how the skill upgrades would work. One of the skills displayed in the trailer was a combat focus of a dark blue cloud highlighting enemies in orange. You’ll probably be able to get an enhancement for it, and you can do this by the Na’vi way of attaching your hair’s neural tendrils with a Tarsyu plant.
The Tarsyu plant acts similarly to the underwater Spirit Tree from The Way of Water and the Tree of Souls but is a large flower pod whose long petals open and come apart to reveal the stem your queue connects to. It’s a clever way of including it as a mechanic while also allowing you to unlock memories as the true purpose of these connections.
1Standalone Story In The Avatar Film Universe
Among the most surprising moments during the Frontiers of Pandora Ubisoft Forward was when James Cameron popped in with a message about the game. The creator of the Avatar universe himself confirmed that this game is a standalone story exploring RDA expansion in a new region set within the timeline of the films.
The basic overview of the story so far is that you were a young Na’vi taken from your family by a villainous RDA member named John Mercer to turn against your people and adapt to human ways of life. You eventually escape and slowly need to readapt to your Na’vi culture, allying with clans and taking on the RDA’s destruction of the environment. Similar to Jake Sully, you’re perceived as an outsider and need to earn the Na’vi’s trust.
