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Hi PlayStation Blog readers! Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora debuted a bunch of new gameplay in today’s Ubisoft Forward. Here at Ubisoft, we’re thrilled to bring you a little more insight into the world of Pandora and the Western Frontier directly from the game’s creators.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will launch on PlayStation 5 on December 7, and PlayStation players will receive the Aranahe Warrior Pack for free, which grants them exclusive character and weapon cosmetic sets. Developed by Massive Entertainment – a Ubisoft Studio in collaboration with James Cameron’s production company Lightstorm Entertainment and Disney, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora lets players take on the role of a Na’vi who awakens on Pandora years after being abducted as a child and raised by the Resources Development Administration (RDA), a human militaristic corporation. Now a stranger on Pandora, you must learn what it means to be a Na’vi while reckoning with the RDA and the threat they pose to the birthplace you are only just becoming familiar with.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Creative Director Magnus Jansén explains that this push-and-pull between two different worlds shapes the heart of the game. “This character has never connected with Pandora,” he says. “You’ve never set foot there. You don’t know the ways of the Na’vi. You must learn how to become Na’vi, and that is what a big part of this journey is about.”
Being a child of two worlds has its practical uses, too, and your knowledge of humans uniquely positions you to combat the RDA. “You know how humans think,” says Jansén. “You know their gear, you know their tech, and that gives you an enormous advantage.”
A new world
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is an expansion of the Avatar lore, and as a result Jansén and his team at Massive were afforded an exciting sense of freedom, one they wanted the game itself to reflect.
“It brought me great joy very early on in the project when it was clear that Lightstorm didn’t want a game that repeated events that you see in the movies,” says Jansén. “In the world of Avatar, the joy comes from discovering and seeing mind-blowing new stuff.”
With this in mind, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora takes place on a never-before-seen region of Pandora: the Western Frontier. “The Western Frontier hasn’t been explored in any other media, and we’re excited to take players on an all-new adventure,” explains Jansén.
First-person on the ground, third-person in the skies
You’ll traverse the Western Frontier in first-person, a decision intended to immerse you fully into the body of a Na’vi. For Jansén, once again, it all comes down to that feeling of discovery and freedom.
“So when I watched the first Avatar all those years ago, and then again with Avatar: The Way of Water, there’s this feeling when you first see Pandora, that it’s almost real, because the groundwork that went into creating it and the quality of execution is so impressive that it feels like a real place, and you instantly have this feeling that you want to go there,” says Jansén. “And I remember, walking out of the movie theater and almost feeling a little sad that I couldn’t.”
“My ultimate core goal is to make it possible for me, and you, to go to Pandora, and a first-person perspective is the best way to be immersed in a new place. There’s so much in the details and in the technology of Pandora, all these otherworldly, reactive things, and you want to touch them and see how they react. First-person was the most tactile, and most importantly, the most immersive,” says Jansén.
However, your perspective switches to third-person when you’re in the air, on the back of your very own customizable companion banshee, or ikran, which is pivotal to the core Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora experience. “Soaring through the skies is so key,” says Jansén. “And what the current generation of consoles has allowed us to do – with regards to how far we can render the speeds at which we can travel – meant we could really do it justice.”
The way that you’ve customized your banshee, too, helps make it feel like it belongs to you; something that can only properly be seen in third-person. “The mission where you get your banshee is a central part of becoming a Na’vi, and you’ll get to really make it yours by naming it, equipping it with gear, and more,” says Jansén.
There’s a lot more waiting for you in the Western Frontier of Pandora, so get ready to dive into Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora on December 7. You can also pre-order the different editions of the game: The Collector’s Edition includes the ultimate edition of the game and physical items including a statue (35cm), an artbook, a premium SteelBook, a field notebook, a set of three lithographs, and an AMP suit blueprint. The Gold Edition includes the game and season pass including two DLCs, an extra quest, a unique banshee, and more. The Ultimate Edition includes the game, season pass (including two DLCs, an extra quest, a unique banshee, and more), Ultimate Pack, and digital art book*. Upon pre-ordering, you will receive a “Child of Two Worlds” pre-order bonus with a character cosmetic set and a weapon skin. To pre-order Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, please visit PlayStation Store.
*Learn how to redeem: ubi.liAFoPDigitalArtbook