Little is known about the plot of Ubisoft's release, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, but game trailers showcase another stunning open world for players to explore. Taking from its source material of James Cameron's Avatar franchise, players will be able to traverse new corners of the planet Pandora as a Na'vi in a first-person action-adventure game, fighting RDA forces and enjoying the graphical capabilities of Ubisoft's Snowdrop Engine.
The first Avatar movie had a few morally-questionable takeaways with a story that's predictable and drawn-out: a white savior infiltrates an indigenous alien population, subsequently realizing that colonizing an occupied planet to extract a finite resource at the cost of the environment is wrong. The protagonist has a change of heart, there's a forbidden love side plot, and a big final battle where some characters die and the protagonist ultimately gets the girl. It remains to be seen where Frontiers of Pandora falls on Avatar's timeline, but it's a loose chronology to begin with.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Will Be Pretty, But That's Likely It
The Avatar movies are visual marvels, but the pacing and simple story leave much to be desired. comparing Frontiers of Pandora CGI to Avatar 2 trailers, Ubisoft's release seems to be another spectacular sandbox.
Ubisoft's Specialty: Pretty Games With Simple Writing Executed Well
Even though Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora wasn't always Ubisoft's, the pretty sandbox fits the company's expansive repertoire. Looking at other Ubisoft franchises like Assassin's Creed and Far Cry, a trend appears: expansive, fully-realized worlds rife with side-questing content and fun one-off characters, but writing that quickly becomes formulaic and predictable. Player exploration is less plot-driven and more for enjoying the details of the world itself. However, looking at other hit franchises like Super Mario, Banjo Kazooie, and Zelda, overarching simple plots don't inherently mean the games are irredeemable or boring, and the established world could make Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Ubisoft's Super Mario Odyssey.
Predictable writing isn't a bad thing, as long as developers can focus on the inherent joy of exploration in a fully-realized world. Super Mario Odyssey, for example, didn't feature particularly complex or surprising writing, but the levels were tightly designed, immersive, and fun to explore. It's fine to have a simple, predictable plot as long as its execution is meticulous and thorough. Avatar is not a literary masterpiece, but its prettiness captivates audiences. Following these expectations, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora doesn't need to be shocking to engage players - it just needs to be a high-quality, breathtaking open world rife for exploration.
Sources: Ubisoft, Ubisoft/YouTube
