Valiant Hearts: The Great War

by Jonathan Fortin
reviewed on PC
Mixed Messages (cntd)
Another great sequence turns adventure game puzzle-solving on its head, with Anna being forced to utilize makeshift solutions. There's a soldier who needs a sling, but no slings are available, so Anna gives him a scarf to use instead. There's a soldier who needs a walker, but no walkers can be found, so Anna gives him a shovel. Moments like these, in which the goals and obstacles are ripped straight out of history to devastating effect, make it clear what Ubisoft set out to do with this game. It's just strange that other moments seem to conflict with that.
No time to cry
It's as though Valiant Hearts's interest in, well, being a game is at odds with the story it wants to tell. The tank sequences are there because they're fun and keep the gameplay fresh, but they hinder the game's message. Another example of this lies with the optional collectible items hidden in each stage. Thorough players will want to seek these items out whenever possible, but they add a dark undercurrent to Anna's chapters. Anna enters people's homes to heal them, but the collectible items all belong to the people she is trying to save. If the player tries to find all the secret items, Anna becomes a kleptomaniac, breaking into people's homes and taking their things even as she heals them. Either she steals because she believes this to be “payment” for her aid, or she heals the injured to feel better about stealing from them. However, the game never explores this, and never draws attention to Anna's actions. If Ubisoft was covertly using Anna to comment on war looting, bravo, but I get the feeling that they want us to think of Anna as a heroine rather a thief.
Similarly, the game gives mixed messages about its historical accuracy. On one hand, it is so interested in recreating history that it includes a series of historical notes, which describe the real-world events with accompanying photographs. The prompt to check these notes is constant and insistent, and quickly becomes irritating. The notes rarely say anything that isn't better conveyed by the game itself, and the photos feel out of place within the game's cartoon world. Despite all this, we are occasionally confronted with historical liberties. One scene has players facing off against a super-fast boss tank that can only be described as dieselpunk.
Ubisoft really wants to make you cry with this game. It was practically a promise from the marketing team. But for all the game's beauty, it never quite manages to be as moving as it wants to be. Part of this stems from the overdramatic narrator, who summarizes events instead of showing them. There are brief instances where the characters speak, or narrate events via letters, and these moments are far more effective than those with the narrator. This is especially evident at the end, where we are treated first with a moving voice over from one of the characters as he reads a letter he sent aloud. He says everything that needs to be said at the end of the game. Then, almost immediately after, the narrator gives us a spiel that feels trite and unnecessary, taking us out of the moment.
Worth the wait
Valiant Hearts isn't perfect...but it's still pretty great. It may not be completely tear-jerking, but it's still touching. The story may not be one I'll remember in detail decades from now, but it's still strong. The message may occasionally get lost in the gameplay, but it still rings true in the end.
And the beauty. God, the beauty. From the visuals to the soundtrack to the very soul, this is a gorgeous game. And it is most definitely worth playing.
8.0
fun score
Pros
Beautiful story and graphics; gameplay is surprisingly diverse and well-paced
Cons
Narrator is a bit hammy; the gameplay sometimes contradicts the anti-war message