The world of Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) is about to expand in an epic way with the announcement of a brand-new AAA video game. IGN recently reported the exciting news of a new AAA game set in the Avatar: The Last Airbender universe. While the game is still in its early stages of development, enough details have surfaced to give fans a glimpse of what they can expect from this ambitious project. Hints from insiders involved in the game’s creation suggest that it will be an “expansive and immersive experience”, though many specifics are still being kept under wraps.
The game is a collaborative effort between Saber Interactive and Paramount Game Studios, working closely with Avatar Studios to ensure it stays true to the spirit of the original series. While much of the project remains a mystery, here’s what we know so far:
1. It Will Likely Be a Story-based Action RPG
Paramount Senior VP of Games and Emerging Media, Doug Rosen’s comments in the game’s announcement, reported by Gematsu, hint at a story-driven action RPG. He emphasized creating an “immersive experience” with deep world-building and player engagement, which strongly points to an RPG framework. Instead of just focusing on combat, the game seems designed to let players explore the Avatar universe, make decisions, and experience character growth. These are the kinds of mechanics typical in action RPGs, suggesting that’s the direction this game is heading.
2. Saber Interactive Will Be At The Helm
Saber Interactive, the studio behind critically praised titles like World War Z and Space Marine 2, is leading the development of the new Avatar: The Last Airbender game. Both of these games received very positive ratings on the Steam marketplace, thanks to their immersive world-building and strong mechanics. The announcement of the Avatar project comes hot on the heels of Space Marine 2‘s success, another game where Saber Interactive took a well-loved IP and crafted a compelling experience. If the same creative team is involved, fans can be confident the Avatar game is in capable hands.
Saber Interactive has confirmed that they’ll be collaborating closely with Avatar Studios to ensure the game stays true to the established world of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. Their focus will be on getting the visuals, skill mechanics, and story elements just right, aligning with the authenticity and style fans expect from the series.
3. It Could Possibly Be An Open-world Format
While there’s no official confirmation that the upcoming Avatar game will be open-world, hints from the developers point towards an immersive and expansive experience. Saber Interactive has focused on creating deep world-building, exploration, and dynamic gameplay, which often align with open-world mechanics. However, until more specific details are released, it remains uncertain if the game will feature a fully open-world format or follow a more structured design with open exploration elements.
4. The Setting Will Be Thousands of Years Before the Shows
According to the press release from Saber Interactive, the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender game will be set in a time period thousands of years before the events of the original series. This fresh setting gives the developers room to explore untapped areas of the Avatar universe. The team has made it clear that they intend to capture the depth and richness of the world, while offering fans a new perspective on the franchise’s history. This will add new details to the canon of the ATLA lore.
This also means that there will be no cameos from your favorites from the show. It starting to feel that this will stand completely on its own, storywise.
5. We will Be Playing as a New Avatar
The press release confirms that players will step into the role of a new, never-before-seen Avatar. It also emphasizes the familiar theme of “mastering the four elements,” which has been central to both Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra.
While the original shows succeeded largely due to their beloved characters and balance of high-stakes drama with lighthearted humor, introducing a new protagonist comes with risks. Fans may struggle to connect with unfamiliar characters, but it gives the developers creative freedom to craft a fresh narrative without disrupting the existing lore.
6. PC and Consoles Only (Sorry Mac Users)
The press release from Saber Interactive confirms that the game will be available for Windows PC and major consoles, without exclusivity to any particular platform. This is great news for fans across different systems. However, there has been no mention of compatibility with macOS as of now.
Historically, Saber Interactive’s games have been available on the Steam marketplace, so it’s highly likely this Avatar game will follow suit and be available there as well.
What We Are Dying to Know:
Is there potential for expansion to MMORPG?
It would be sick if they have plans to make this an MMORPG. Imagine picking an element, and fighting in a war with other kingdoms. However, based on the skillset and game inventory of Saber Interactive, this may not be the case. Hey, a man can dream, right?
Will there be blood bending and metal bending?
In the shows, it has been established that these two forms of bending were newly discovered by Hama and Toph respectively. While these two forms of bending are some of the most entertaining to experience, it would be canonically correct to leave them out of the game that takes place thousands of years before their discovery.
When is the release date?
As mentioned above, this is in the early stages of development. It could take years before we see a finished product. If we want a true AAA game, we have to wait. As soon as it is released, we will update this article.
Which nation/kingdom/tribe will the new Avatar come from?
While this may seem unimportant, I do care about the lore canon. We already have an Air and Waterbender for Avatars in the show as the protagonists. Does this mean that the new avatar will come from the Earth Kingdom or Fire Nation?
