Discover all the Essentials about Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora

Release date and price

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Release Date, Preorder Bonuses, and Pricing Announced

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will release on December 7, 2023 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X & S, and PC for $70. Preordering any edition of the game will grant the player the "child of two worlds" cosmetic pack, including an exclusive outfit and weapon skin. The game will also be available as a part of Ubisoft+, which costs $15 a month.

The Gold Edition is priced at $120 and comes with a steelbook case, bonus mission, character and ikran cosmetics, and access to two planned 2024 DLC expansions. The digital-only Ultimate Edition is priced at $130 and includes everything from the Gold Edition, minus the steelbook case, as well as additional cosmetics. Lastly, the Collector's Edition is priced at $230 and includes physical goodies, highlighted by a Na’vi statue, along with everything from the Ultimate Edition.

Plot

For those who are not familiar with the world of Avatar, the series is centered around Pandora, a habitable and often hostile moon in Alpha Centauri, the closest star system to our own.

Pandora is home to a wide variety of alien plant and animal life, with the Na’vi at the heart of its world and story. These humanoid creatures are blue, 10 feet tall, and have the ability to connect to other lifeforms through tendrils in the tips of their braided hair.

In the first Avatar movie, a conflict between humans and the Na'vi unfolds as humans, represented by the Resources Development Administration, arrive on the moon Pandora in the mid-22nd century to mine the valuable mineral Unobtanium. In response, the RDA creates Avatars, hybrids of humans and Na'vi, to better interact with the Na'vi people. The protagonist, Jake Sully, initially tasked with gathering information, ultimately joins forces with the Na'vi and helps repel the RDA's advances. The movie concludes with Jake permanently transferring his consciousness into his Avatar body, and the Na'vi, along with some human allies, successfully drive the RDA away, but with a warning that they will return.

The story is canon and connects to Avatar 3

Frontiers of Pandora explores a previously uncharted area of the Avatar universe: the western frontier. The story follows a Na'vi who was abducted as a child by the RDA and trained to be a weapon for humanity. After the RDA is expelled from Pandora, the young Na'vi is placed in cryosleep and wakes up 15 years later. They are then reunited with their own kind and join the fight against the returning RDA, as depicted in the opening scenes of the second film, the Way of Water.

The story is canon and connects to Avatar 3

According to Ubisoft and Avatar movie studio Lightstorm, everything in Frontiers of Pandora is part of the official Avatar movie universe. Additionally, there may be hints about the next Avatar movie within the game, as suggested by Lightstorm's Joshua Izzo.

Development

Ubisoft's Montreal studio tackled a prequel title set two years before the first film. Our Website gave the game a 5.5 out of 10 back in 2009, with reviewer Kevin VanOrd stating, "It's not a bad game, and portions of it are competent, if not quite remarkable. But Avatar wears thin quickly, and the story is too fragile to compensate for the deficiencies."

This time, Massive Entertainment, the developer of the Division series, is working on Frontiers of Pandora, using the latest version of the Snowdrop engine. A prototype of the game was used to convince James Cameron to approve the project. The game was officially announced in early 2017, just over a year before the planned release of Way of Water, which was later delayed.

A scene from Frontiers of Pandora

Unlike Massive's Division games, which are from a third person perspective, Frontiers of Pandora is first person. This decision was made to create a closer connection between the player and the world of Pandora. According to the game’s creative director Magnus Jansén, the world of Pandora is so responsive that a first person view provides a more tactile and immersive experience for players.

Gameplay

In addition to Frontiers of Pandora, Massive is also developing another game based on a Disney property called Star Wars: Outlaws, scheduled for release in 2024. It was the impressive work on the Avatar title that caught the attention of Disney and led to Massive being entrusted with the opportunity to work on Star Wars.

Gameplay

Players have the ability to customize and navigate the open world with their Na'vi character. As previously mentioned, the game is played in first person view, but switches to third person when riding two different mounts.

The first mount is the ikran, a flying creature with its own skill tree that allows players to travel quickly between locations, even reaching difficult-to-access areas like floating mountains. Players can jump off the ikran during flight and seamlessly transition between ground and air during combat. The second mount is the direhorse, used for land travel.

The game features three main biomes: the Kinglor Rainforest, the Upper Plains, and the Clouded Forest. Players can use Na'vi vision instead of a traditional mini-map to highlight important elements in the world, including resources for hunting, crafting ingredients, and objective destinations.

Combat and fast movement are central to the gameplay of Frontiers of Pandora. Thanks to a combination of Na'vi and human training, players can utilize weapons from both races' arsenals, including guns on the human side, and bows, spears, and homemade nature grenades from the Na'vi. While the latter may seem underwhelming compared to the former, remember; you’re playing a 10 foot tall, humanoid cat alien. Those bows pack a punch and will serve you well when trying to approach a situation stealthily. Additionally, a hacking tool can be used to interface with RDA bases or temporarily disable RDA Amp Suits. Na'vi are large but rely on speed instead of toughness.

Frontiers of Pandora releases on December 7. In the traditional Ubisoft open-world fashion, upgraded gear comes in handy as you clear enemy outposts, especially with the need to craft specialized ammo and healing items mid-battle. There's an extensive gear system with different rarities, as you'd expect from a Massive game. Clearing outposts will help heal the world of Pandora, opening up new resources for you to use in crafting. Some more rare plant and animal ingredients only appear at certain times of day and weather conditions.

Additionally, players can access an upgrade tree by connecting with Eywa, the Na'vi's deity that links all living beings on Pandora. In the film's lore, this connection enables a Na'vi to access the memories of the deceased, leading to five upgrade paths for the player: hunter for improved tracking abilities, maker for enhanced crafting skills, rider for upgrading their ikran, survivor for adjustments to health and inventory, and warrior for increased weapon proficiency.

And that's all you need to know about Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. For more insights, take a look at our hands-on preview, stay tuned for our upcoming review, and for all things Na'vi, keep an eye on Our Website.

Editor's P/S

As an enthusiastic fan of the Avatar franchise, I am thrilled about the upcoming release of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. The game promises to be a captivating experience that will immerse players in the stunning world of Pandora. I am particularly excited to explore the new western frontier and learn more about the Na'vi culture and their struggle against the RDA. The game's release date of December 7, 2023, can't come soon enough!

In addition to the main storyline, I am also eager to discover the hints that may be included about the next Avatar movie. The Avatar universe is rich and complex, and I am excited to see how the game will expand upon it. I am confident that Frontiers of Pandora will be a must-play for fans of the franchise and newcomers alike.