Summary
Categorizing video games used to be easy. When the games industry was in its early years, the vast majority of titles could be easily sorted into specific genres, such as sports games, platformers, action games, text-based adventures, or RPGs. But as gaming has continued to evolve and become more complex, the lines between genres have started to blur. Nowadays, it’s common to see a sports game with action elements, or anaction-adventure game with RPG mechanics. AndAvatar: Frontiers of Pandoracertainly belongs to the latter camp.
Announced all the way back in 2021,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorafinally received a gameplay trailer back in June, and the reception to it was a tad mixed. On one hand, many fans thought thatAvatar: Frontiers of Pandoralooked like a faithful adaptation of the source material, and a great expansion of James Cameron’s Sci-Fi universe. On the other hand, some fans foundFrontiers of Pandora’s gameplay a bit lacking in originality, with it seeming to share quite a few similarities with theFar Cryfranchise. ButAvatar: Frontiers of Pandoraisn’t a complete carbon copy ofFar Cry, and its RPG elements could be the thing that separates it from Ubisoft’s open-world franchise.
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Doubling Down On RPG Mechanics Could Help Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Stand Out
Based on the one gameplay trailer released so far, it seems as though Ubisoft may be carrying over a lot of theFar Cryseries' mechanics toAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora. The trailer showcases the player-character storming an enemy outpost, gunning down RDA soldiers with assault rifles, shotguns and arrows, all looking almost identical to anaverageFar Crymission, albeit with a new Sci-Fi skin. Later on inFrontiers of Pandora’s trailer, players can see a handful of light RPG mechanics, again looking as though they’d been ripped right out ofFar Cry.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s first gameplay trailer shows the player harvesting plants, taking them back to a specific NPC, and using the materials to craft new pieces of gear.Frontiers of Pandorawill also apparently feature a skill tree, which grants the player new abilities. These RPG elements are now pretty much standard across the whole AAA action-adventure gaming landscape, but ifFrontiers of Pandoradoubled down on these mechanics, then it could easily shake itsFar Crycomparisons.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorashould take its current RPG mechanics and expand on them while also adding some other in-depth RPG elements. Rather than featuring a skill tree that offers just three branching paths - covering stealth, movement, and mount handling -Avatar:Frontiers of Pandorashould offer players a few more categories of upgrades, maybe highlighting the game’s more unique elements such as its flying or bow and arrow mechanics. This skill tree should be big enough that it encourages replayability, but it also needs to offer worthwhile skills and abilities, encompassing a wide range of playstyles.
Similarly, if gear crafting is in the game, then it needs to be complex and engaging. The usualFar Cry-style of harvesting flowers to dye outfits will definitely translate toFrontiers of Pandorawell, but that alone won’t offer anything new or fun.Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s craftingneeds to properly incentivize players to go out and hunt or harvest resources. A good way of doing this is by rewarding players with upgraded weapons, gear, or abilities.
On the subject of gear,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorashould lean all the way into it, and make it a vital part of the experience. While convoluted gear systems can often ruin a game that doesn’t suit them, it would make perfect sense for anAvataropen-world RPG, with the Na’vi having to craft better gear in order to fightthe technologically advanced RDA.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorareleases December 7 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
