French publisher Ubisoft has revealed it has won the race to sign up the video game rights to movie director James Cameron's first film since 1997's Titantic.

Planned for release in May 2009, movie Avatar will tell the story of an ex-Marine thrust into the body of an alien, as well as the hostilities of an alien planet.

The special effects team behind Lord of the Rings and Kong King is handling the visuals for the movie, promising a rich alien landscape the likes of which have never been seen before.

"Ubisoft is excited to partner with 20th Century Fox and James Cameron on this important project," said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer of Ubisoft. "True to their reputation, Ubisoft's creative teams are looking forward to recreating Cameron's high definition 3-D environment in a compelling game for film and game fans."

James Cameron added: "For Avatar we are creating a world rich in character, detail, conflict and cultural depth. It has the raw material for a game that the more demanding gamers of today will want to get their hands on – one that is rich in visuals and ideas, and challenging in play.

"I told the Ubisoft team I wanted them to be free to do their very best work, and not think of this as a movie-based game. They responded with a fully realized presentation that captured the soul of the world and the characters, while promising to be a knockout game on its own terms. Their passion inspired my confidence that they are going to do something transcendental."