As one of the most beloved cartoons and television shows of recent generations,Avatar: The Last Airbenderhas upheld a sparkling reputation for the last decade and saw a resurgence of love from long-time fans thanks to it being added back to Netflix. Unfortunately, the video game adaptations of the show were never able to live up to the same hype.
Looking at the era in which the first games were released could answer the question of why this happened. At the time, publishers would grab externally licensed content like TV shows and movies and hastily slap it together in a video game, which would typically yield half-hearted results. Some older superhero titles andtheHarry Potterserieswere victims of this effect that ultimately could’ve turned out to be exceptional open-world or action-adventure RPGs.
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The Story
Again, oftentimes with game adaptations from the 2000s era, simple regurgitations of the same story and plot seen in the TV series or movie in questions were typically not well-received by fans.TheLego Star Warsvideo gamessucceeded at re-imagining the same plots because they brought something unique to the table. TheAvatar: The Last Airbendergames, unfortunately, do not.
In the hands of talented—or even the original—writers, a spin-off or alternate story set in the same universe has potential. There are many different routes writers could take here; for example, the protagonist could be one of the hundreds ofAvatars that came before Aang. This would allow the player to explore each nation to realize their powers in the four elements and ultimately defeat a main boss, which could be anything, leaving a realm of creativity in the hands of the developers.
An Open-World Adventure
What gives anAvatarvideo game so much potential is the unique universe its creators brought to life. It is inspired by several Eastern cultures and is combined with the original concept of bending. There’s a lot of lore to be discovered in the franchise, especially thanks toThe Legend of Korracontinuation of the series that dives into the history of the Avatar and the four nations. In Reddit threads, fans express how much they would love to play anAvatargame stylized likeBreath of the Wild,where the player is able to freely explore and discover the secrets of its universe whenever they please, equally balanced with enjoyable combat. The Spirit World could also be freely traversed in an open-worldAvatargame.
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An MMORPG
Coinciding with theopen-world possibility ofAvatar’s universe, the prospect of a massively multiplayer online RPG would allow for players to delve deep into its lore and history while offering classic mechanics seen in MMOs, such as raids and group-questing. It would be interesting to offer the player the opportunity to choose which nation they hail from. Similar to selecting classes and races, each bender could then be given different skillsets depending on their homeland.
VR & Motion Sensing Technology
A combat style that relies on different martial arts techniques could prove entertaining for both VR gaming and motion sensing technology such as the Kinect or even simplythe Switch Joy-Cons. This would allow the game to teach the player “bending” through tracking their arm and leg movements, which would also be a creative way of getting exercise for gamers who enjoy the home gyms ofRing Fit Adventure. WhenAvatar: The Last Airbenderreleased for the Wii, players were disappointed to find that the motion detection of the Wiimotes didn’t play as big of a part in the bending combat as they would’ve liked. But with the advancement of technology, it could be a brand new type of battling and fitness to gaming.
With a universe as unique and original as seen in theAvatarfranchise, it’s clear that popular video games inspired by them are highly likely, in the right hands. Just astheHarry Potterfranchise is planningwith its upcoming open-world RPG, perhaps one day fans will get a similar adaptation of theAvatarstory.
