31 December,2023 05:45 AM IST | Mumbai | Jaison Lewis
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Frontiers of Pandora is not related to the movie; in fact, it takes place in a completely different area of Pandora. However, that doesn't stop it from introducing familiar enemies, the gorgeous pandora landscape or the thrill of riding an ikran. The whole game starts when you are awoken from cryogenic suspension by Na'vi resistance fighters. You manage to escape the RDA forces and learn the basics of movement and combat on the way out of the facility.
The first few levels of the game try to teach you through the controls and the systems of the game. While these are essential to learn to play the game, they can be tedious and boring. Beyond this point, the game opens up, and there are many things to do.
Pandora looks absolutely gorgeous; the fauna and flora of the world reacts to you in interesting ways. There is a lot of movement; that said, despite this looking like Pandora, I can't shake the feeling that it's a derivative of Far Cry, but the Dunia engine used in Far Cry will not be used in future game iterations. Instead, it seems like Snowdrop, the engine used in Frontiers of Pandora, will be used in the next Far Cry game, which is interesting since this game gives major Far Cry vibes in terms of graphics.
Getting back to the game, as a Na'vi, you are connected to the world around you, and you have a sort of Na'vi awareness sense that lets you track scents, inspect items, and find weak spots. It is very similar to the system Assassin's games have. It is beneficial if you decide to hunt all the various animals on the planet. You can hunt and fight using human weapons or the Na'vi bow and arrow. The gunplay, though, is a bit clunky; I found playing with a bow and arrow a much better experience throughout the game. However, if you decide to take on a base from the comfort of your ikran, the guns are more effective.
I also felt the game is much more inflated than it needs to be, with too much focus on raiding and capturing carbon copy RDA bases. The story itself feels very thin for a game with so much potential, considering it's a unique world with unique creatures. They could have easily had some history of the Na'vi or some more backstory to the various clans. Instead, it focuses mainly on the two RDA villains who never seem to show themselves and the struggle between nature and soulless corporations. The same themes from the movies.
That said, the experience of the game is something else. Moving through the jungle, tracking beasts and flying around on your ikran out, you in the shoes or feet, so to speak, of the Na'vi. The developers have also done a good job at listing the various fauna and flora in Pandora. Listing out all the things you can harvest from them. Harvesting from the various plants is unique; you need to put in the right amount of pressure and twist to harvest the fruits perfectly. A similar approach is applied to hunting, and a single arrow kill can help you get more pristine quality meat as opposed to stressing the animal with multiple failed shots. It's a unique and nice way to harvest.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is an excellent window into the world of the Na'vi. It lets you experience everything you find fascinating about the movie in an open world that reacts to you. If you are a fan of the movies, you will love these aspects of the game; however, as a pure gaming experience, Frontiers is a bit disappointing. There is too much copy-paste content, with lots of busy work and boring gunplay; while it is exciting at the start, it gets tedious after a while. So, I would recommend this game only to the hardcore fans of the movie, while gamers might need to look elsewhere for their action fix.
