Avatar: The Last Airbender, the influential Nickelodeon animated fantasy came out 20 years ago. The premise of the show, which highlights a lore-dense world where people can wield elemental powers, seems practically destined for a good video game adaptation. Somehow, despite no shortage of attempts, video games have never managed to pull it off. Perhaps The God Slayer is here to finally satisfy that need.
To be clear, this is not an official Avatar game. The God Slayer is billed as an original open-world steampunk RPG that takes place in an eastern European metropolis. But if you watch the gameplay for a few seconds, it’s hard not to draw an Avatar comparison. The Elemancer protagonist wields fire, earth, wind, and water much in the way you’d expect Aang to do. The protagonist seemingly bends the surrounding environment to fuel his attacks, like when he pulls water from a nearby tower to flood his enemies in the gameplay trailer below. The flow of combat also seems to be based on many of the same martial arts, like Tai Chi and Kung Fu. The God Slayer‘s industrial fantasy setting shares some similarities to Korra’s steampunk world.
There are no shortage of other influences from popular genres here, as you might expect from a game this high gloss. Traipsing across rooftops screams Assassin’s Creed. The quipping and high-octane, setpiece-based combat could be a nod to Uncharted. The aesthetic and god-centered premise might remind some people of other recent action games, like Black Myth: Wukong. But most people can’t help but see an Avatar game in The God Slayer, based on the top YouTube comments on the reveal trailer.
“inFAMOUS Creed: The Last Airbender,” jokes one YouTube viewer. “There is no war in Ba Sing Se ahh game,” another remarks.
Like the Avatar does in the animated series, the Elemancer can combine his different powers in novel ways. At one point during the gameplay trailer, we can see the Elemancer freeze his enemies and then summon a hunk of stone, which he rides to shatter the ice. But mostly, the Elemancer seamlessly weaves between powers in the way an Avatar would. Well, an Avatar based on the fire nation anyway, as the gameplay showcases flame-based attacks more than other elements.
There’s no release date for The God Slayer, which is intended for PlayStation 5 and PC platforms. But there’s a glimmer of hype based on what developer Pathea Games has shown thus far. The indie Chinese developer has a decent track record, with their previous title, My Time At Portia, garnering generally positive reviews.
But I won’t get too carried away with hope for The God Slayer just because it looks like the Avatar game I’ve been dying to play. The RPG and its weirdly stilted voice acting is more ambitious than what Pathea Games has attempted before. Plus, there are actual Avatar games in the works right now which could fulfill what people want. The thing that makes Avatar such an enticing world isn’t just the awesome combat — people crave its rich politics and human relationships. So far, The God Slayer only fills out half of that equation.
But maybe this time it’ll work out?
