Review: VALIANT HEARTS: THE GREAT WAR

By Stephen Heller

Video games based during classic wars isn’t a strange concept to gamers these days. Chances are you have stormed the beaches of Normandy, fought your way through the jungles of Vietnam, and even participated in some assaults in the Middle East. Valiant Hearts: The Great War takes the horrific tales from the Western Front during World War I, using them as a backdrop to explore the human elements at play during the battle. It manages to weave a heartfelt tale, and while the gameplay is rarely the driving force to keep playing, it’s an emotional roller coaster that scratches an itch that The Walking Dead or The Wolf Among Us simply can’t.

Valiant Hearts tells the story of Karl, a German-born man living a peaceful life in France with his wife and father-in-law, Emile. But with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914, Karl is ordered back to Germany to fight for his country, despite his protests, while Emile is forced to take the front lines with the French forces. Along the way you will also meet Freddie, an American who is fighting in France to fulfill a personal vendetta, and a Belgian field medic named Anna who does what she can to help those wounded on the front lines.

These four characters bump into each other across the battlefronts, often to play pivotal roles in the narrative that is unfolding around them. Sometimes it can feel a little strained that Emile just happens to see Freddie at an opportune moment, but that is quickly forgotten because each character is absolutely charming. It’s actually rather jarring to be surrounded by such horrifying circumstances, yet being in control of four lively, likeable characters. Each of their personalities is fleshed out via collectible diary entries, and despite a complete lack of dialogue, each one displays their emotions effectively thanks to the comic-inspired animation.

Still, the tone of Valiant Hearts can be a little confusing at times. We are introduced to these memorable, and lovable characters, yet they are being dragged through environments that feature mountains of bodies, destroyed towns and soldiers who are missing limbs. It manages to be respectful to those who died on the front lines, yet the story portrays an almost wacky situation that is filled with classic villainy. Personally I found it endearing, and it brings a little lightness to the sombre subject matter. Don’t expect an ultra-realistic depiction of the war, but be prepared for plenty of sadness with smatterings of laughter and hijinks.

Running on the UbiArt Engine, which also powered Ubisoft’s Child of Light and the most recent Rayman games,Valiant Hearts is an absolutely gorgeous game to behold. To Ubisoft Montpelier’s credit, it uses the art so effectively to communicate the scenes of anguish from the front lines, and the emotional responses of the protagonists. It manages to pull it off with poise, trusting that the player will listen and interperet the information on their own without the need to hold your hand. It’s subtle in a way that most AAA games simply aren’t, which is really refreshing.

The gameplay itself is less than stellar. During the six or so hours of the war you will be solving a number of puzzles, many of which rely on finding item A, taking it to a certain location, pulling levers and opening up a new pathway. It’s never really challenging, but the narrative is so compelling that you will find yourself blasting through it just to see what happens next.

Perhaps my favourite feature in Valiant Hearts is the collectible system. Each level is littered with a number of collectibles, each of which offers up a tidbit of information about how that item was used on the front lines. Find some British currency and you will learn that each soldier was paid approximately $5.00 USD per day on the front lines, along with $75 USD every two weeks in French currency to barter with the locals. Find a urine-soaked rag and you will soon learn that before gas masks were sent to combat the German chlorine gas, the Canadians discovered that it was crucial in a chemical reaction with the chlorine gas used on the battlefield, allowing them to breathe and escape certain death. As someone with a keen interest in the history of both World Wars, I found this absolutely fascinating.

The gameplay may be a little mundane, but Valiant Hearts: The Great War tackles some interesting aspects of the war in surprising ways. The expressive characters are some of my favourite in recent times, and the art style takes the UbiArt Engine to entirely new heights. If narrative gaming is your thing, you owe it to yourself to check this one out.