Realms Collide review – there is no fun in Ba Sing Se

As an avid Avatar: The Last Airbender fan, 2025 is a huge year for me. It’s the show’s 20th anniversary, we’re waiting on a second season of the Netflix series, and Nickelodeon just greenlit a brand new series set in the ATLA universe. Avatar fans just keep winning, so I was incredibly excited to get the chance to review Avatar Legends: Realms Collide early.

Somehow, despite the absolute wealth of source material and worldbuilding that the creators have established throughout the series’ twenty-year history, Avatar games always seem to flop. Arguably, the best implementation we’ve seen of the Gaang is in games like Fortnite, so I know I wasn’t alone in hoping that Avatar Legends: Realms Collide would break this trend.

Realms Collide is a 4x strategy game, which admittedly isn’t my go-to genre, but I was willing to give it a shot thanks to the Avatar theming and the promise of Father Glowworm’s first visual appearance. The opening cutscene had me hooked and eager to learn more about the Shattered Skulls and the dangers of the spirit world, but unfortunately, even getting to play as my favorite edgy firebender, Zuko, hasn’t stopped me from getting bored.

Publisher Tilting Point told me that Realms Collide features “immersive gameplay, engaging narrative, and stunning visuals,” and I have to say that I disagree. Firstly, the gameplay is pretty generic, especially in terms of 4x games. I spend most of my time tapping on little icons to collect materials or upgrade buildings, and I’m not even sure what the purpose of my stronghold is in the larger narrative.

Without the vague Avatar themes and elements, this game could pass as any other generic mobile strategy title. Battling cultists is repetitive and boring, with no player input besides choosing who to send out, which is wild considering the sheer diversity of combat styles in the Avatar universe. If I were to make an ATLA game, I might even opt for turn-based combat rather than idle tactics matches.

Then there’s the narrative element. Aside from the promising opening cutscene, Realms Collide’s story is tough to follow and seems to act as a thinly veiled vehicle for the standard ‘make your city bigger and take down larger enemies’ conquest game loop, which feels particularly out of place during peacetime between the nations. So much of ATLA’s original message is staunchly anti-war that it really baffles me why developers insist on making combat and expansion-driven Avatar games.

I understand the desire to see awesome heroes like Aang, Korra, and Kyoshi fight side-by-side, but it makes figuring out the time period and setting really confusing – arguably more so if you’re an invested fan than if you’re a casual viewer. What do you mean kid Aang and Zuko are working with middle-aged Bumi Jr and Tenzin? The lovable, deep, and flawed characters from the Avatar universe come across as poorly written and one note, and the Shattered Skulls feel like a placeholder, faceless horde of enemies.

Lastly, the visuals are certainly not stunning. The characters’ 3D models look like they’re reused assets from other failed Avatar games, the resolution is crunchy, and the isometric point of view reminds me of Facebook-era farming games. I know it’s harsh, but it’s true! What ties all of these issues together is that we never see anything happening. We’re simply told through dialog that something has happened, which is a cardinal sin of movie and videogame storytelling.

It would be irresponsible of me not to at least touch on Realms Collide’s in-game shop. As a 4x strategy game, you spend a lot of time waiting for things to happen, whether that’s research, exploration, or expansion. It’s 2025, people’s patience is at an all-time low, and companies love to exploit that. There are so many different microtransactions in this game and they all feel incredibly predatory. Yes, the primary audience of Avatar content nowadays is adults who grew up watching the show, but it’s fundamentally still a kids’ franchise, so advertising this many microtransactions in the game is borderline dangerous.

Overall, Avatar Legends: Realms Collide is a massive let-down on all fronts. I’m no game developer, but I really don’t understand how companies consistently fumble the ball when making an engaging Avatar game that isn’t full of microtransactions or glitches. Of course, if you like 4x games and Avatar, this might be right up your alley as a casual idle game to play throughout the day, but I’m not sure there’s anything that Tilting Point could add to reel me back in.

If you’re looking for a top-of-the-range 4x experience, check out our lists of the best mobile strategy games and tactics games next. We’ve also cataloged the best anime games, showing that stunning animated TV shows can achieve greatness in the gaming sphere.