Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora submerges players in the true fantasy of existing as a Na'vi in their lush, wonderful home. Despite a bevy of open-world familiarity, the joy of exploration, crafting, and combat make this Ubisoft experience one of its most unique.
“Oh yeah,” I thought as I had to crouch to go under a door, “I’m ten feet tall.”
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora asks players one simple thing: lose yourself in this world, let it absorb you.
There is a kind of poetry in a game that allows its players to inhabit a central character. Not just a character that stands on two legs and shoots guns or slays demons or triumphs over gods. How fascinating that 2023 was bookended by two games where players become lost in two uniquely identifiable worlds.
Hogwarts Legacy enrolled us to finally, truly become students attending the same famous school of witchcraft and wizardry that Harry Potter did. And now, Frontiers of Pandora brings the breathtaking wilds of Pandora to life, an alien playground to rescue.
While it may be trite to call Frontiers of Pandora a Na’vi power fantasy, it resonates in the same way that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 continued that wish fulfillment of being the web-slinging superhero. I can’t imagine a better way to be those strange, blue humanoid cat people than this.
Of the six-ish hours comprising Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water, I’ve watched about four and a half. During the extended “whale hunt” of The Way of Water, I had to stop the film. I get it. Humans are awful, a sentiment I truly believe. If we found a planet full of alien life we would try our damndest to profit off every inch. Anything opposing us would be injured or killed with little care. But I just couldn’t watch a troupe of human actors harm those bizarre, fantastical creatures… even if they were CGI. Hell, I barely like killing animals in games. Yes, I avoid it as much as possible in Far Cry games. Yes, that certainly puts me in a pickle with Frontiers of Pandora.
I honestly can’t say I’m much of a fan of James Cameron’s universe. The films are technical showcases and feature impeccable world-building. But I find them a touch pretentious and opulent. Regardless, I was thrilled to play Frontiers of Pandora being a massive fan of developer Massive Entertainment and The Division. There’s something about a Ubisoft open world that calls to me–laundry list of map markers or not–they have an enduring quality frequently pushing them to bestseller status.
For me, Frontiers of Pandora is the desired entry point into the Avatar universe because I have control over its flora and fauna. While thematic elements of human callousness still remain, it can be approached in a way that isn’t as heavy-handed because it is not condensed into a 3-hour epic.
Better yet, players are in control of the carnage this time around.
And the catalyst for the game is the kidnapping of five Na’vi children by human-led RDA. Housed in this so-called Ambassador Program (TAP), RDA Director John Mercer claims the children will be Na’vi ambassadors on behalf of humans. Mercer’s iron fist and desire to suppress Na’vi customs causes the group to attempt an escape. Our player character–referred to as the Sarentu because it was their tribe’s name–watches as their defiant sister is murdered in cold blood.
In terms of motivation, the despicable actions of Mercer is kerosene on a bonfire. Even the most cynical of players will likely feel their blood boil at this blatantly evil character. Criticism may be levied at Frontiers of Pandora for delivering such an absolute to drive the story. But I would argue that the Avatar films don’t often exist in a realm where characters are morally grey. In the game, that same logic applies. Characters are usually a net good or bad. If they are a betrayer, they were only masking their evil to seem good. A character who has done wrong most often strives to condone for past sins.
These pieces make up the puzzle of the Avatar universe and Frontiers of Pandora. The first minutes of the game take place before Jake Sully from the films has risen up against the militant humans. Shortly after, the four remaining Na’vi children are put in cryo sleep, awakening 16 years later to a changed landscape where Sully has impacted Pandora.
The approach to have a Na’vi character kidnapped from their tribe and wake up to a Pandora squarely in the midst of the events of the films is a smart choice for Avatar fans and those with only a cursory knowledge of events. While the children may have recognized Pandora had they escaped initially, their world has gone through drastic changes and they must become accustomed to a home that now has a secondary dominant species.
The ace up Massive Entertainment’s sleeve is that it rarely allows players to forget they are a Na’vi crusading across the surface of Pandora. Players’ first act is escaping the TAP facility, a place built for humans. You race across the metallic hallways, towering over doorways and scrambling across scaffolds. There is a distinct feeling that is captured in Frontiers of Pandora‘s expression of being a Na’vi.
Despite the mildly rudimentary throughline of players taking back control of the RDA and how it literally leeches off the lifeforce of Pandora, it’s impossible to ignore the scope of the planet and how carefully it was constructed in harmony with the vision set forth by the films.
Players race across its lush surface, dazzled by the beautiful colors and dense flora and fauna. As a Na’vi, players can charge up a jump to cross wide gaps and reach high tops. Plants aid in traversal from those acting as trampolines to others acting as grapple lines to ascend or descend great heights. This world is packed with alien life with its own role in the food chain. Predator, prey, carnivore, and herbivore respond to the player and can be hunted for their unique items. Plants and other vegetation can be harvested to further aid in crafting.
Unlike a Far Cry game, there is a weight to a kill or collection. Players frequently engage in a minigame to pluck bark or fruit from a tree or plant, often having to be mindful of whether that organism can electrocute or poison you. Frontiers of Pandora lets players craft ammunition, weapons, and armor from what is gathered across the planet. While I lament the inclusion of a mild gear score, it’s wonderful to see the fruits of these labors produce unique items with perks and combat effectiveness.
I’m sure it sounds as if Frontiers of Pandora has all the trappings of similar open-world games and that can be the case. Players are going to go into enemy camps or bases and dispatch foes using stealthy Na’vi gear or powerful human weapons. The game doesn’t overdo it with weapons, keeping the arsenal fairly contained. This means each method of death has a personality and players will have plenty of time to familiarize themselves with their effectiveness. It truly is a gleeful opportunity to silently pick off humans with well-aimed arrows and blast mechs with a shotgun.
Familiar enemy states of unaware and alert dictate how players may wish to approach various situations but it is important to note that the Na’vi cannot withstand much gunfire. Healing items and other buffs are a boon to survival but combat is meant to be more kinetic than static. The various open and closed arenas players fight in should be used like a Na’vi. Jump up high to gain a vantage point, sprint away to dodge bullets, slide around and shoot arrows to become an impossible target to hit. Moments exist where players will be kept on their toes, especially in human facilities that don’t provide the full freedom of movement a Na’vi possesses. Rather than being frustrating, however, these fights ask for a slight change in tactics.
An element of repetition does become a factor, however. Early on, players may find themselves activating Na’vi vision to see targets behind walls and pop their heads up and down to take shots while the humans scatter. With more power, players are likely to become braver, taking risks to mop up fights quickly.
Objectives across side quests and the golden path are rooted in familiarity but because they take place on this astounding realization of Pandora, they are less stale. One of the game’s highlights is the journey atop the Ikran Rookery to bond with one of the flying creatures in order to use it as a mount. Players progressively climb higher and higher up the world’s surface, working through platforming challenges. All the while, the vast expanse of Pandora trails off into the horizon. Especially breathtaking moments such as these are the pinnacle of what Frontiers of Pandora aspires to be.
As players begin to build the human/Na’vi resistance and work to destroy the RDA machinery tearing apart the world, it’s difficult not to feel bonded to the collective of characters met across the game. Despite their ferocious nature the Na’vi are defending their home and it’s easy to become wrapped up in the drama of wanting to see it through the end.
Being an open-world game rife with collectibles and things to do, the drip feed of content is sustainable. Players express their playstyle through a simple yet diverse skill tree that emphasizes hunting, combat, traversal, and more. Passive improvements and skill points can be discovered by interacting with specific organisms. And a massive database is formed that gives players the chance to read more on the unique things they experience in the game. There are times when I felt Massive Entertainment relied too much on the Na’vi vision that highlighted objectives and more. Plus the ability to hack objects was slightly undercooked if not entirely unnecessary. But playing in the mode where objective markers aren’t explicitly placed provides a sense of adventure as players can literally smell and track where they need to go. Also, why in 2023 are we still not allowing audio logs to be played outside of menus?
Yet any particular frustration or qualm that bubbled up in my time with Frontiers of Pandora was usually stifled after a jaunt through the world. Whether on foot, wing, or hoof it truly felt like I was a Na’vi desperately seeking salvation for my kind. I loved the delicate shift from first-person to third-person when on a mount, having the camera unleash Pandora upon my eyes. If combat ever felt too solitary, a co-op partner could join the fray and we could tackle encampments together.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora may be the most “definitive” Avatar experience in a game we will ever receive and that should be relatively sufficient for most. Often, its limitations extend to the boundaries of it existing as a game with rules and objectives carved into it. But an open world is the only way to truly suit the lofty goals of what Pandora actually means from an entertainment level. The home of the Na’vi is supposed to feel real, like a place we could reach if only humans had the capability. And in that sense, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is practically boundless.
