Summary
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorais far from a straightforward video game. An action-adventure in every sense of the phrase,Avatarsees players enter the gorgeous world of Pandora, where they’re tasked with completing some classicUbisoft open-world formulamissions. Players will be taking down RDA facilities, hunting wildlife, gathering ingredients, crafting upgraded weapons and gear, and learning more about the rich history of James Cameron’sAvataruniverse every step of the way.
But whileAvatar: Frontiers of Pandoradefinitely embraces the Ubisoft open-world formula, it gives it a few unique spins of its own. One of its biggest and best surprises is its parkour system, letting players scale trees, leap off mountains, and use special plants to gain speed boosts. In fact, parkour plays such a prominent role inAvatarthat it actually makes a great case for anAssassin’s Creedgame in a similar first-person style.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Proves a First-Person Assassin’s Creed Could Work
How Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s Parkour Works
From the get-go,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandoraputs parkour front and center of the experience. While breaking out of the RDA facility atthe start ofAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora’s story, players are given immediate access to a slide and charged jump, the latter of which players can use to reach pretty tall heights. When approaching a ledge or low-to-the-ground obstacle,Avatar’s player-character will automatically mount and climb it, paving the way for some fast-paced movement.
As players progress throughAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora, they’ll start to unlock a slew of new abilities, many of which revolve around the game’s parkour mechanics. Players will unlock the ability to dash through the air to gain extra momentum, roll upon hitting the ground from great heights to avoid fall damage, and a plethora of other genuinely helpful skills. Though it isn’t the most complex video game parkour system, it’sa big highlight ofAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora, going a long way in capturing the feeling of being this athletic alien species, and in turn, making the game feel authentically part of theAvataruniverse.
Avatar’s Parkour Would Work Well in an Assassin’s Creed Game
While playing throughAvatar: Frontiers of Pandora, it’s hard not to think of another Ubisoft franchise that revolves around fast movement and parkour, andAvatar’s mechanics do make a strong case fora first-personAssassin’s Creedgame. While some ofAvatar’s more fantastical parkour abilities probably wouldn’t work in the more groundedAssassin’s Creedseries, the basic gameplay mechanics ofAvatar’s parkour could form a nice blueprint for a new type ofAssassin’s Creedtitle, informing its controls and the general speed and flow of momentum.
Of course, to make a first-personAssassin’s Creedgame work, it would need to add uponAvatar’s groundwork in some major ways. The ability to scale walls would need to be implemented, along with the ability to use additional gadgets like a hookblade or grappling hook. For this, Ubisoft may want to take inspiration fromMirror’s Edge Catalyst, with it having similar parkour abilities and gadgets in a first-person setting.
Fans technically got a first-personAssassin’s Creedgame just a month ago withAssassin’s Creed Nexus, but the issue here is that it’s only for VR. Still, it doesn’t quite count as a traditional first-personAssassin’s Creedgame, as players have to physically move their arms and hands to climb walls and swing from poles, while the hypothetical first-personACgame in question would use a standard control scheme.
Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora
WHERE TO PLAY
Protect Pandora. Become Na’Vi. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora™ is a first-person, action-adventure game set in the open world of the never-before-seen Western Frontier of Pandora. Abducted by the human militaristic corporation known as the RDA, you, a Na’vi, were trained and molded to serve their purpose. Fifteen years later, you are free, but find yourself a stranger in your birthplace. Reconnect with your lost heritage, discover what it truly means to be Na’vi, and join other clans to protect Pandora from the RDA.
