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Ubisoft’s Far Cry series has been around since 2004 and has hit massive highs multiple times with Far Cry 3 and the most recent Far Cry 6. Although the games are entirely fictional, they are based in the real-life world and so, have to be somewhat grounded in reality. But now Ubisoft has the opportunity to flex its creative muscles in a universe that hasn’t been reproduced in an open-world video game ever before. Avatar Frontiers of Pandora can offer a far more interesting world to explore and experience compared to the Far Cry games. And if you are a fan of both Far Cry and the Avatar movies, you’re in for a treat.
How Avatar Frontiers of Pandora Can Be The Best Far Cry Game
Avatar Frontier of Pandora is an FPS like the Far Cry games and, from what we’ve seen so far, Ubisoft has splendidly recreated the magnificent world of the Na’vi in a way it hasn’t been shown in any video game so far. The beautiful but mundane plant life of Earth has been swapped with the varied living vistas of Pandora and instead of being limited to vehicles for traveling, the wildlife of Pandora offers varied and interesting means of transportation.
Since Far Cry has been around for a while, fans have certain expectations, while Ubisoft has certain limitations to stay within the boundaries of the IP. There’s been lots of discussion over the years about what the Far Cry series could do by stepping out of its bounds. Ubisoft has dabbled in the idea of injecting more flavor into the series with Far Cry Primal and the Far Cry 3 DLC, Blood Dragon. But with Avatar, the developer only needs to conform to the world that the two movies in the series have established, allowing for far more possibilities for gameplay and storytelling.
Ubisoft’s Past Shortcomings & Future Opportunities
Ubisoft is known for its rinse-and-repeat method of making games, the conveyor belt churning out similar titles with similar gameplay loops has gotten repetitive and bland in recent years. Taking ideas from one franchise and pasting them into another IP is as far as Ubisoft’s creativity has reached for a while now. The most recent example is how Ubisoft cloned the “mark and execute” ability from Splinter Cell Conviction and placed it in Assassin’s Creed Mirage. But with Avatar, the developers have taken the opportunity to eliminate the intrusive UI, the in-game map screen littered with meaningless objectives, the lack of the sense of discovery, and those God-forsaken towers that unlock parts of the map.
In Avatar Frontiers of Pandora, the process of discovery could not be more interesting. Allowing players to find camps of humans by cues in the environment or by the clues they leave behind. Or having events take place dynamically as you progress through the game, instead of funneling players into canned cutscenes. Ubisoft can learn from the success of games like Elden Ring that throw you in the world and let your sense of discovery and wonder guide you instead of a minimap telling you exactly which direction you are meant to go. And being a current-gen-only game, the Improved performance should be lightyears ahead of what the last Far Cry entry offered.
Avatar Frontiers of Pandora Preorder & Release Date
Avatar Frontiers of Pandora is up for preorder and already heavily discounted for certain people. If you preorder anything other than the Standard edition of the game, you will get access to the upcoming DLCs that will bring new Na’vi tribes to the world of Avatar. And since Ubisoft has some hints about what the final movie will hold, and is also working with the movie’s studio, it will be interesting to see how the story DLC could expand upon what the game establishes. Interestingly enough, it isn’t just Ubisoft that is inspired by the movies, but the opposite might also be true, as Ubisoft’s work might also show up in the last movie in David Cameron’s Avatar series.
As long as Ubisoft does not opt for the same conveyor belt approach it has for a lot of its Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry titles, coupled with a reduction in quality when the marketing material is compared to the actual release, Avatar could make for another beloved and long-running franchise under the French developers’ belt.
Avatar Frontiers of Pandora releases on December 7, 2023, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S|X, and PC.
