Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Devs Reveals Why The Game Needed First-Person

Avatar fans will soon get a major video game release. Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will arrive in early December, and if you’re a fan of the films, this game might pique your interest. We know that the game is set during the events of the film Avatar: The Way of Water. But if you were interested in the game footage, you might have wondered if there’s the ability to switch between a first-person and third-person perspective. Unfortunately, you’re locked in these perspectives once triggered in the game, and there’s one vital reason as to why that is.

During an interview with IGN, several developers behind Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora spoke about why we’re getting a game mainly from the first-person perspective. The reason is simple: they wanted players to feel as immersed as possible when going through the game. Developers have noted that the Na’vi are incredible characters with some superhuman skills. However, it’s the actual location of Pandora that the developers want players to feel connected with.

As a result, the studio decided to go with a first-person perspective very early into production. Developers want players to feel the different tactile touches when roaming the area, such as when your character goes through the lush forests or gathers fruit. Hopefully, everything should feel like you’re in Pandora rather than just controlling a character. Additionally, developers wanted to showcase a sense of scale during the game as the Na’vi are significantly taller than humans. So when you’re facing the RDA soldiers, they’ll look tiny, or even going through their structures will make you feel incredibly massive, such as dunking down to enter doorways.

With that said, it’s not that there’s no third-person perspective in the gameplay. When players take flight, the game will adjust to a third-person perspective, giving you an FOV change. This, again, was due to give players a more immersive feel, with players flying through the world of Pandora and seeing the wings of their Banshee brushing against the tree branches or seeing the water move as they race over a stream. 

Again, we won’t have long before we can dive into Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora for ourselves. The game is set to launch on December 7, 2023. When the title drops, you’ll find it available for the PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S platforms. If you want to view the interview between IGN and some of the developers behind the upcoming game, that video footage is available below.