Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora is a beautiful sci-fi Far Cry coming this December

Avatar: Frontiers Of Pandora looks like it could be the best Far Cry in years. I’m aware that probably sounds like I’m damning the game with faint praise, given the recent stink of Far Cry 6, but Ubisoft’s brand-new open world Avatar adventure genuinely looks like a riotous, vibrant time.

Check out the trailer below!

Frontiers Of Pandora has players taking on the role of a Na’vi that was raised by humans as part of some nefarious RDA scheme. A prologue set during the climatic events of the original Avatar movie shows us how our Na’vi escapes this captivity and wakes up 15 years later with the opportunity to explore Pandora and reclaim their heritage. Long story short, this explains why your Na’vi can run around using assault rifles and rocket launchers. I’m not complaining.

As you explore the game’s lush, verdant open world and its many biomes, you’ll meet a number of different Na’vi tribes who can all teach you something about yourself and your heritage. One tribe will teach you how to ride a mount that can tear across the fields of Pandora, while another will show you how to connect with your very own Banshee and soar high above the clouds in some of the most visually spectacular sequences I’ve ever seen in a Ubisoft game. Oh, and you can even customise your Banshee to really deepen the connection between the two of you.

There are also resources to collect, upgrades to craft, and Na’vi tools to master as you chase off the RDA. One awesome moment in the gameplay trailer saw the player take out a giant mech using some explosives strapped to a bow and arrow. I don’t know how, but Ubisoft has somehow got me hype to take out enemy bases in an open world again.

I’ll level with you: I’d rather staple my hands to the wall then ever have to sit through the original Avatar again - but Frontiers Of Pandora looks like a genuinely brilliant time. It takes the seamless, explosive Hollywood action of the Far Cry series and marries it with a properly stunning open world packed with imagination and, from the looks of it, plenty of verticality. I got real Tears Of The Kingdom vibes as I watched the Na’vi and their banshee zip and glide between floating islands.

I’m super excited to play this one for myself, and think it could well be one of the year’s best surprises when it arrives December 7.