Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora Hands-On Preview – Whether or not you like James Cameron’s two Avatar films, one thing that can’t be taken away from them, more notably for the first one, is that they are technical marvels.They look incredible, and its the setting and beauty of the world of Pandora that pulls you in, even before you know anything about the characters or the rest of the world.So an open-world game, from Ubisoft no less, that in 2023, could have the chance to really capture that world of Pandora, seems like something that would be a no-brainer. That’s at least what I imagine everyone in the room for Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora’s pitch meeting must’ve thought.And they wouldn’t be wrong, or at least they don’t seem to be. I got to play about two hours of Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora, checking out a few missions, and different aspects of the kind of gameplay to expect when the full game releases this December.I won’t beat around the floating mountain, in so many ways Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora at first impression seems to be a Far Cry game set within the world of Avatar. It’s that latter point however that includes the potential for this game to be so, so much more.Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora Hands-On Preview – Avatar: Far Cry With The Potential For MoreA Far Cry From The JungleTo be clear, I have no love for Cameron’s Avatar films. I don’t regret watching the first one, though I immediately felt like I didn’t need any more of it, and have yet to see the sequel, and likely won’t. The idea that Cameron would like to do up to seven of these films makes me shudder.I do recognize though that the world in which these movies are set, Pandora, is beautiful. It’s such a vast, and expansive world that I know would be fun to play and run around in. Suffice to say I’m much more enthused about the idea of an Avatar game than anything else from the IP.And now that I’ve played it – or at least a vertical slice of the game – I’m glad to know that I was right to be enthused. Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora may play quite similarly to a Far Cry game, but it’s setting makes it the best looking Far Cry game yet.It’s not just how it looks. In all honestly, I played my two hours over a stream, and not once did it ever really look the way I’m sure it would’ve if I was playing a version of the game properly downloaded on my PC.What I could see beyond that experience is a game where being connected with the world around you and respectful towards it is just as important as the core gameplay.The first mission I completed was simple, gather ingredients for a ritual. Nothing we’ve not done before in similar ways in other open world games, but what struck me was how there’s a specific way to harvest ingredients from plants.If done correctly, you’ll be able to make the most out of what you’ve harvested, while a hack job will reduce the quality. It’s a small action, but it’s one that you’ll do repeatedly throughout your time in Pandora, as you’ll be collecting ingredients for meals, crafting and other mission objectives.That you need to take the time to get it right, and try to remember how each Pandorian fruit and vegetable ought to be plucked includes an undertone of needing to respect the fruit and the tree it comes from.Respecting and treating nature with care is a message commonly heard in our daily lives, but not so much in our video games. I appreciated that even in a small way, it looks like Ubisoft has leaned into this idea, especially considering how important respecting and connecting with the nature of Pandora is to Na’vi culture.The second mission was a continuation of this same tone, as you climb a floating mountain in order to gain the respect of an Ikran, the creatures that the Na’vi bond with and ride on the backs of through the air.It introduced new ways of interacting with the environment, like a vine that can pull you up to a high ledge, or a sea-shell looking plant that blocks your way until you’ve tapped different points along its roots to unlock a path forward.Again in both cases this isn’t groundbreaking environmental design, but it’s another way of showing how connected the Na’vi are with the world around them.These small moments are then made all the more powerful because your in-game character is discovering them alongside you, as you step into the blue feet of a Na’vi that’s never learned the ways of their own people.Bonding with the Ikran though is a much more profound moment, capped off by something that I believe will never truly get old no matter how many hours you put into Frontiers Of Pandora.That would be jumping off a cliff to let your Ikran catch you before hitting the ground. Flying on the back of an Ikran also felt smooth, if perhaps a touch sensitive in how it controls, but smooth nonetheless.I also loved that you can name your Ikran one of a few options, all of which have been included in voice lines that make you feel more connected to your trusty flying companion.Fighting ColonizationThere’s a lot of potential I see in Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora to be a game with a lot of depth, and that comes mainly from its attention to environmental detail and its narrative potential in every interaction with the world around you.Where I don’t see a lot of potential for it is in the combat, mainly because for now it didn’t feel like anything revolutionary, and it’s where the Far Cry comparison rears its head the most.The shooting feels…fine? It’s not going to set the world on fire, and the mechs you destroy do have a crunchy way of exploding that felt fun to experience, but it all feels rather standardized at this point.Which I guess isn’t exactly too surprising considering that Ubisoft has established combat systems from years of Far Cry games to pull from. Now I was just playing a pre-made character with pre-determined skills unlocked, so perhaps my own progression with the skill tree will make combat feel different.I could easily see myself feeling different if I could see and feel first-hand how skills effected my abilities in combat, but the base level I was given made everything feel more run-of-the-mill, and I just really hope that’s not how combat feels the entire campaign.What I will say though is that combat on the back of your Ikran was really cool, and I appreciated how I could easily take down helicopters used by the colonizing humans with a good spear chucked towards their rotating blades.I also think that even though one might be asked to take down, say 50 outposts in the course of Frontiers Of Pandora’s story, there is potential there to make it feel more involved than just checking another outpost off a list.The reality is that you’re fighting off colonizers when you’re fighting the humans back, who’re trying to steal natural resources from Pandora. So a successful destruction of one of these outposts has a deeper meaning to it compared to clearing out an outpost controlled by a local gang or something.Avatar: Far Cry With The Potential For MoreWhile direct comparisons between games can sometimes feel reductive, I don’t think it is to say that Frontiers Of Pandora feels like Far Cry with an Avatar skin. At least based on my short time with it, that’s what I was presented with.It’s potential however comes from its setting, and its narrative, and how well Ubisoft is able to leverage the wonderous opportunity that is making a game set in Pandora.I know this game is going to look beautiful when it’s ready, and I have it properly downloaded on my PS5. The few characters I did meet and interact with all felt realized and in my short time with them, interesting to talk to.There was an issue in the fact that I at times felt lost and needed guidance from the Ubisoft representative watching my gameplay on call with me, and there’s a hacking tool and subsequent mini-game that I would say needs a bit more refining.Combat for now feels fine enough to get by but still mostly bland, but if this was an entire game of flying and exploring across Pandora, I’d probably be fine with just that. That’s where Frontiers Of Pandora shines brightest, at least for now.Until we get our hands on the full title, I’d say its worth being cautiously optimistic for Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora. I don’t think it has the chops to de-throne any of the top games from this year, but it still could quite possibly be one of the better games released in 2023.Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora is out on PS5 on December 7, 2023.Thank you to Ubisoft for inviting us to preview Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora.
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