Fighting games are notoriously character-centric experiences. It’s a genre that historically has needed to sell itself through cool presentation, but when you only have 60 seconds to choose your character, there is no time for deeper introductions. Therefore, by making use of established IPs, you can guarantee that some characters already have the recognition they need. Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game is the latest entry in this trend, making use of the universally acclaimed animated series of the same name. Even if the established lore of that world wouldn’t allow it, there is a certain charm to the idea of Avatars from different eras facing one another.
The studio behind this title worked on publishing two small fighting game titles: Them’s Fightin’ Herds and Diesel Legacy: The Brazen Age. Despite Avatar Legends being from a much bigger franchise, the game itself still has roughly the same “indie” scope as those previous games. It’s not technically an indie game, but you could say it is really reminiscent of one. The game is launching with 12 playable characters, a story mode, and all of the hallmarks of a fighting game, such as robust training tools, rollback netcode, and arcade modes. As a whole, though, Avatar Legends succeeds as a fighting game, even if it slightly comes up short as an Avatar game.
Somewhat Disappointing As An Avatar Game.
The underlying promise of adapting another franchise into a fighting game is that you need proper tutorials to onboard people who are intimidated by the genre’s notoriety. The point of “how hard fighting games are compared to other competitive titles” is one of those circular discussions that the fighting game community loves to litigate. However, as much as I do enjoy taking part in these discussions, I have to be direct and say that I don’t think Avatar Legends does enough to welcome Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend of Korra fans.
For single-player content, the only notable mode the game offers is Story Mode. There isn’t much to say about it other than it won’t be enough to sell Avatar Legends to fans of the series new to the fighting game genre. In content, it’s basically a filler episode that could air in pretty much any Avatar show. The premise is a staple of the “multiple timelines converge” trope, with the added bonus of scrambled personalities. Despite not being an avenue to deepen the Avatar lore, it’s also undeniable that the story can be legitimately funny for fans of the show. Seeing a confident and laid-back Korra being friends with a meek Azula is about as amusing as seeing Sokka suddenly being a wise guru guiding characters through their struggles.
The mode has 27 chapters, each ranging from one to four scenarios, and each scenario may have 1 to 3 consecutive fights, some with no fights at all. It’s a short mode that shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours to beat. There’s an attempt at giving a little more substance to the mode with individual character XP and a shop that unlocks abilities, but it can be largely ignored. The CPU in the game is the standard that fans of the genre should be well accustomed to dealing with. If you’re new to fighting games, the formula is simple: find one button that has good range and repeatedly smack the bot with it. If they get too close, mash your light button, and within hours, you will have completed the story mode with no trouble.
The idea of fighting game characters getting stronger through a leveling system and becoming overpowered is honestly very compelling. Games like Granblue Fantasy: Versus, Soul Calibur VI, and even BlazBlue: Chronophantasma all made very good use of it. However, Avatar Legends doesn’t do anything to make the mechanic, and Story Mode as a whole, stand out. It’s a linear story you play with predetermined characters and never really challenges you once you learn how to cheese the AI. While the developers plan to add New Game Plus in a future update, I don’t think it would meaningfully change the dynamic the mode offers.
When it comes to the overall presentation, it’s also a mixed bag. Personally, I loved the janky cutscenes that use in-game sprites. Having Katara talk to others in her unusual battle stance just adds to the hilarity of her being a subordinate of Avatar Kyoshi. On the other hand, I don’t think it’ll be the kind of experience dedicated fans of the show would expect to get as the main mode. Players who aren’t interested in engaging with the competitive modes won’t have much to do in the game.
Avatar Legends Won’t Ease You Into Fighting Games
As mentioned earlier, adapting well-known franchises into fighting games requires onboarding an audience that might never have interacted with the genre. Sadly, Avatar Legends doesn’t do a good enough job with its tutorial to help ease in new players. The game commits the cardinal sin of relegating explanations to a big checklist of actions with little guidance. A recording plays automatically to give a visual example of what the mission expects from you, but it’s not a particularly engaging introduction.
It’s a model that expects a certain degree of familiarity with the genre. It may be enough to get some people started, but it can equally look very intimidating. I can easily see players quickly dropping it in frustration, further perpetuating the notion that fighting games are uniquely difficult to play. To put it simply, it’s an inflexible presentation that teaches methods instead of the overall flow of the game.
Despite Avatar Legends not being overly complicated by itself, it’ll likely fail to convince people of that. Any player who decides to stick around will find that it’s not a hard game to grasp, but you will need to learn through trial-and-error or by asking for help from the community. There are no general explanations for interpreting HUD elements or for the resources at your disposal (Flow and Spirit). These are intuitive concepts if you have at least some experience playing Capcom or SNK fighting games, but I wouldn’t blame an Avatar fan if they felt overwhelmed.
The saving grace here is that the in-game documentation is very good. Every character’s specials and specific mechanics are carefully described in the command list. The game even contains a built-in hitbox viewer. It’s a shame that these only start to show their value once you clear the initial hurdle. The tutorial has a poor first impression, but if you are willing to stick around and learn, then the difficulty curve flattens.
Conversely, It’s Everything The FGC Has Been Asking For
Looking past the poor introductions and somewhat underwhelming Avatar content, Avatar Legends is a very solid fighting game. Animations are clear and readable, and the 2D sprites bring a lot of the old-school charm that modern 3D models are sometimes unable to capture. Movement feels incredibly satisfying, and global mechanics do not shape what characters can or can’t do. Plus, the netcode is stable and robust. Overall, Avatar Legends addresses a myriad of common complaints fighting game fans have been airing as of late. When it comes to the actual meat and bones, Avatar Legends delivers everything you’d expect.
The initial roster of 12 characters might sound somewhat small, but if there’s one criticism that absolutely can’t be levied at this game, it is that it has no variety in play styles. Each character can choose between 3 fixed support characters. These aren’t assists or any form of active participants in battle; rather, they just buff or change certain parts of your character’s kit while hanging in the background of the stage cheering you on. The immediate comparison is with Mortal Kombat X variation mechanic, but I’ve found that Avatar Legends feels closer to old-school Melty Blood moon choices.
Assists don’t add or remove entirely new specials. It’s hard to find a “best in slot” assist because the character largely remains the same regardless. Aang always focuses on air movement and mixups, Kyoshi is always about gigantic buttons and serious damage, and Sokka is always about unconventional neutral and setplay, just to name a few examples. Assists only enhance small portions of each character’s abilities that can play into your strengths or compensate for weaknesses. You seldom need to learn how to fight a specific combination of character and assist. That said, learning what they do can give you information about your opponent’s playstyle.
As an example, Avatar Kyoshi’s three assist options are “Enhanced Followups,” “Enhanced Air Movement,” and “Enhanced Stomps.” These can give enhanced damage and conversion ability, more defensive options and better pickups, or can make certain combos easier on the corner and possible midscreen. Kyoshi can utilize all with just her base kit, but the assist options can enhance any specific area that you want to focus on.
For newer and casual players, it’s perfectly possible to pick only one assist and never need to learn any other. For those who like the experience of learning new things, you won’t be “solving” Avatar Legends anytime soon. The slight variations these assists offer serve to further emphasize player expression. Twelve characters don’t seem as restrictive when players can use them significantly differently and to great effect. (Except for Firelord Azula, she just plays by herself, but I digress.)
Avatar Legends May Become a Cult Classic
The bottom line is that Avatar Legends is strong enough for fans of the genre to be very happy with what it has to offer. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for Avatar fans who might be looking for more of their favorite universe and characters to dig into. Single-player content exists in Avatar Legends, but it never rises above a side distraction that can last up to 5 hours if you’re really willing to squeeze the most out of it. In that sense, it’s a classic fighting game experience. You’ll be getting the game to play against others and improve your own understanding of the game.
It won’t be an easy game to get into, but it’s a rather intuitive one once you do. The combination of blazing fast movement with slower-than-average attacks (the fastest attack in the game is 6 frames) allows for combat that feels hectic without being scrambled. Fighting players of comparable skill is always fun and engaging, although it can be among the cruelest fighting games to be matched against a player leagues above your own level. The game’s matchmaking and player base are the biggest factors in mitigating this issue, but both depend on widespread adoption more than anything else.
I’m looking forward to the competitive scene that this game will foster. Unless there’s a centralizing mechanic that lab monsters will find that breaks the game, it is shaping up to be one of the most entertaining titles to watch in tournaments. The sheer number of options available per character is already a big selling point in its favor. Even if all good Aang players will need to be zooming around the screen to bring out his potential, there are several different ways to do so while opening up their opponent and avoiding getting anti-aired. I’m expecting some tournament matches to feel as exciting as some of the show’s best fights. A perfect balance of flashy at a surface level and incredibly deep for the genre aficionados.
Disclaimer: Skydance Games provided a PC (Steam) copy of Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game for review purposes.
