Avatarwas a certified phenomenon when it hit theaters in 2009. Boasting some of the most technologically advanced CGI to date, and some groundbreaking 3D tech, James Cameron’sAvatarquickly became one of the highest-grossing movies of all time, even beating out the likes ofStar Warsand Cameron’s previous big-budget ventureTitanic. While a tie-in video game was released for just about every platform, it didn’t do too much to flesh out the vibrant world James Cameron had created, butUbisoft’s ambitiousAvatartitle,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, looks to do just that.
Though only two trailers have been released so far, it seems as thoughAvatar: Frontiers of Pandorais shaping up nicely, with theinnovative new Snowdrop Enginetaking center stage. No real gameplay has been shown just yet, but the game’s beautifully scenic backdrops capture the magical essence of Pandora perfectly, and the supposed grand scale of the game suits the themes ofAvatarto a tee. But withAvatar 2: The Way of Watercoming out soon, fans may be wondering just how, if at all,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorafits into the franchise’s canon.
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Is Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Canon?
In short,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorais confirmed to be in the same canon as theAvatarmovies. According to a recent interview with Senior Vice President of Walt Disney Games, Sean Shoptaw, theAvatarproduction team is working very closely with Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment to ensure that the game stays faithful to the source material. Apparently,Avatar’s producer, Jon Landau, has been tasked with working directly with Massive Entertainment, reporting to the team nearly every day.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorais set to be one of the most faithful video game adaptations of all time, and is apparently designed to be an extension of the main story, much likeaStar Warsspin-off, a side story running concurrent with the main timeline but offering a new perspective on the events.Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorais being designed specifically to flesh out the lore of this universe, a universe in which only the very surface has been tapped into so far.
As the name would suggest,Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorawill be set on the same planet as the movie series, but will apparently bring a whole host of new characters to the world. New Na’vi clans will be explored, as willtheir place in Pandora’s ecosystem. According to Disney, these new clans will have direct links to the movies, and some scenes in-game may even occur in the upcomingAvatar 2: The Way of Water.
It seems likely thatAvatar: Frontiers of Pandorawill take place soon afterthe events of the firstAvatarmovie, with the human-run RDA organization being defeated at the hands of Jake Sully, Neytiri, and co. It could be possible that players will get to relive some of the events of the first movie through flashbacks, such as the battle for the Tree of Souls.Avatar: Frontiers of Pandorahas the perfect opportunity to really dive into the lore of this rich world, and present new themes, characters, and motivations that really enhanceAvatarand its upcoming sequels. As the hype surroundingAvatar 2: The Way of Watercontinues to build over the next few months, it seems likely that Ubisoft will want to cash-in, so fans might get a closer look at the game sooner rather than later.
Avatar: The Frontiers of Pandorais set to release in 2022 for Google Stadia, PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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