With that said, gamers more or less know what to expect from a Ubisoft game in 2022, as countless memes mocking Ubisoft Assassin's Creed -esque clutter , bloat, and microtransactions have surfaced over the past few years. Whether players enjoy this approach to game design or not, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora needs to avoid taking the same approach if Ubisoft hopes to set it apart from the rest of its prolific catalog. For this upcoming Avatar game to be enjoyable and memorable, it needs to steer clear of many tropes laid out and popularized by the modern Assassin's Creed relea

Players got a small sneak peek of what combat might look like in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora during the release trailer, where a Na'vi drops onto a Banshee and begins fighting modern enemy aircrafts. Aerial combat should be primarily ranged and archery was showcased, but the options expand from there. Some combat was shown in the trailer, but none of it was in first-person so it's not clear yet what the gameplay will look l

In Na'vi culture, Tsaheylu refers to the act of the Na'vi bonding with one of Pandora's many wondrous animals. As depicted in the films, the Na'vi can bond with many of the fauna of Pandora, sharing not only a physical connection but an emotional one as well. The Na'vi have a variety of uses for bonding, ranging from animal training to communicat

Because of the importance of bonding to the Na'vi, players can expect to bond with more than a few animals in their journey across Pandora. While venturing with the Aranahe clan, players will be given the opportunity to bond with the flying Banshees , much like Jake in the first Avatar film. While on land with the Zeswa clan, players will be able to bond with the Zakru, giving them a fast way of traveling both in the skies and on l

The Na'vi rcognize a close connection to nature , but their relationships with Ikran take things to a whole new level. Because they form lifelong bonds with their riders, Ikran hold a special position in Na'vi beliefs. Many of the clans treat bonding with an Ikran as a rite of passage, and an essential step to becoming a warrior. Because of this, every Na'vi warrior has their own Ikran mo

Although it is a central part of their culture, successfully bonding with an Ikran is quite dangerous. Just reaching them is difficult enough. It requires traversal of the Hallelujah Mountains , a range of floating peaks where any misstep could send an unfortunate individual falling to their death. Upon finally reaching the biggest mountain, Mons Veritatis , actual interaction with the Ikran can begin. The caveat is the "correct" Ikran is identifiable because it will immediately try to kill its future rider, requiring them to wrestle with it until they can get their braid properly connected. The final step involves riding the Ikran off a cliff. As Neytiri puts it, "the first flight seals the bond." However, this process takes a few minutes, during which the rider will have to continue wrestling with the Ikran which will alternately be plummeting, flying erratically, and/or resisting the rider's influe

As complex as these details are, they still look to be tightly and neatly stacked next to one another. While many gamers may be used to open-world adventures where the densely populated areas and open wilderness feel like, they are lacking something the other has Frontiers of Pandora may have a true balance between them. In environments where animal and humanoid NPCs are all part of the ecosystem, it is hard to think of a way where their interconnected nature will not be present on the ground and in the skies. The proper execution of this could be incredibly important for the game and the future Avatar seque

James Cameron's ambitious sci-fi epic Avatar introduced fans to the alien world of Pandora. This was a planet that certainly felt alien, with its jungles full of odd creatures that at most only vaguely resemble those of Earth. Among the many peculiar creatures to be prominently featured was a flying animal referred to as a mountain banshee by humans and the Ikran by the Na'vi. These large creatures have a prominent role in Na'vi culture, with one spending a portion of the film as a companion of protagonist Jake Sully. Their role in the movie and subsequent material has allowed the Ikran to stand out among Pandora's wildl

Additionally, Waterwing Mount the Ikran is fully customizable. Players get to name it and, presumably, modify its appearance. The exact range of options has not been disclosed yet, but it would probably at the very least include being able to change colors. This means that not only can the player get their own Ikran, they can personalize it to better fit their game experie

Combat is also very easy , or it at least it was in the preview build. Human mechs that I recall taking out dozens of Na’vi in the films can be downed with three arrows or fewer than a full magazine of bullets in Frontiers of Pandora, turning outposts into a cakewalk. You are also very tall, so human enemies can be brushed aside with a light punch unless they’re hiding in the mountains or atop tall platforms aiming snipers at you. Even as a new species in a video game that could easily expand on the types of technology and weapons they have access to, Massive hasn’t done much here to take advantage of that. I can use some sort of cool launcher that can fling poisonous or explosive projectiles, but when it’s more of a chore to use than existing weapons, there wasn’t much of a point. Much of it feels uninspired.