Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora PS5-exclusive features, explained

Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will release across multiple platforms on Dec. 7 and players on PlayStation 5 will benefit from some exclusive features at launch.

Ubisoft’s open-world adventure, set on the moon of Pandora, will throw players into James Cameron’s cinematic universe. While Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora has features like raytracing and dynamic environments across every platform, there are several features that will only be available to PS5 players that will increase immersion.

What are the PS5-exclusive features in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora?

There are three major exclusive features for PS5 players in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, all of which are tied to the Dualsense Wireless Controller.

The first is adaptive triggers which, according to the PlayStation blog, will allow players to “feel the tension of your Na’vi bow string’ or the ‘recoil of your human weapon when firing’. It seems it will also make a difference in gameplay, as adjusting the “tension of the triggers while harvesting resources” optimizes their quality—though there isn’t too much indication as to what this translates to in the game, however, and won’t be until we see further details of the crafting mechanics.

Haptic feedback looks to be the most significant PS5-exclusive feature in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, with “well over 400 unique haptic effects”. This includes feeling the reactive plants you touch and feeling “feedback from wildlife”—including the breaths of your Ikran, the Avatar world’s flying mount. Environmental effects like waterfalls and lightning will also be reflected in the haptic feedback, while there will also be a “subtle shift in feedback” when moving in different ways like sprinting, flying, and climbing.

The final PS5-exclusive feature in Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is 3D audio, which makes the environment “come to life from every angle”. As you move around the world, the sounds you hear will adjust to reflect how you would hear in real life. This could come in particularly useful in stealth situations like hunting animals or taking down enemies, as you’ll be able to track exactly where they are.

It remains to be seen how much difference these features will make for PS5 players compared to those on Xbox Series X|S and PC but, if you were on the fence about which platform to buy Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora on, this may sway you.