Its existence had already been known for a while, but Ubisoft’s presentation duringE3 2021provided a first look at its upcomingAvatar: Frontiers of Pandoragame based on James Cameron’sAvatarfranchise. Although the trailer appeared to be entirely pre-rendered with no gameplay in sight, Ubisoft says it’s on track to release next year in 2022.
Perhaps the most surprising aspect so far, however, is that it will release as an Xbox Series X/S andPlayStation 5console exclusive, meaning it will not be available on the Xbox One or PlayStation 4. Considering many are still struggling to get their hands on either console, even seven months after their release, members of studio Ubisoft Massive have justified their decision to make the game specifically for newer hardware.
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Speaking with IGN, creative director Magnus Jansen and technical director of programming Nikolay Stefanov gave multiple reasons, the first obviously being the improved graphical capabilities. Arguably one of the most defining/memorable features of the firstAvatarmovie was its visuals, so Ubisoft Massive likely wants to be able to replicate them as faithfully as possible.
Aside from being able to create a much more detailed world, the two explain that, with flying being a major component of the game, the stronger hardware can allow for the world of Pandora to look good even when soaring at high speeds.The Flying Bansheesare another memorable and key aspect of the original movie so giving players flight options was almost guaranteed to be prominently featured in the game.
It’s not just precisely what players can see either. Thanks to the newer consoles' processing power, Jansen hopes to be able to create a far more organic map to explore than previous open-world games, as well as more intuitive AI. Pandora will be populated with all manner of wildlife and Stefanov says that the team wishes to take full advantage of the power of the in-house Snowdrop engine to create NPCs that leave just as much of a direct impact on the environment as the player does. Ultimately, it’s all about immersion. All of this is so that the game can truly make players believe they’re exploring the same world see in theAvatarmovie.
Ubisoft Massive certainly has high expectations to meet, but it has already seemed to impress Disney, which owns theAvatarIP. In fact, it’s because of the studio’s work onFrontiers of Pandorathat it’s been trusted to work on itsownStar Warsgame. There’s still very little info about that project and fans likely won’t learn more until after theAvatargame has released.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorareleases in 2022 for Amazon Luna, PC, PlayStation 5, Stadia, and Xbox Series X/S.
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