Valiant Hearts: The Great War, an artistic love letter to WW1
Valiant Hearts is a game that can be considered an amazing story driven game about the lives the 4 characters (Emile, Anna, Karl and Freddie) that are going through the most violent and the bloodiest parts of the WW1 or also known as the Great War.
Just by starting the game's menu screen, you are instantly shown that this game WILL pull every heart string as you play, the music that plays at the main menu will also surely have you hooked and feel emotional just by the first notes played.
BEING FAITHFUL TO WW1:
It pleases me that this game was made in collaboration with Mission Centenaire 14-18, ensuring an accurate timeline of the events of the WW1 (The Battle of the Marne, The Battle of the Somme and the use of chemical weapons at Ypres). Even if the characters are fictional, their stories are actually based on stories from real WW1 letters and experiences!.
This game also includes educational elements when you collect items scattered around the chapters, you can check these items in the pause menu or in the main menu that teaches you detailed information about the items you have collected.
THE GUT WRENCHING STORY:
Not only me, but everyone who has played this game has at least CRIED once by how the story plays out with each character. Emile's story is by far the most emotional as he traverse's the war finding his nephew Karl while meeting other people that are in the war for their own reasons. Freddy being there to take revenge from the germans that took his wife. Anna, a medical student that puts her life on the line to find her missing kidnapped father. Karl, Emiles nephew that was forced out of France to fight for the germans at will but just wants to return to his family, even Walt the Doberman Pinscher who was a german soldiers rescue dog follows the characters and has a special bond with them (mostly Emile). Each characters section shows the struggles, hardships, horrors and humanity defining moments they go through that it will bring you to tears.
THE MUSIC:
As mentioned, the music of this game is a blessing to the ears, with tracks that were made by the studio and also real life tracks! It reaches to the point where it can even get you emotional with how beautiful the sounds of the instruments used to make the score of this game.
THE ART STYLE:
The art style that was used with the UbiArt Framework is a magnificent choice to represent what this games wants to show the player, it didn't have to be something with the latest graphics were at that time of it's release. The artists at Ubisoft Montepellier built this world with a passion so high that i say that it deserves an award for it.
CONCLUSION:
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is one of the best story driven WW1 games that have been released that shows more of the humanity side of the war than just pure combat like other WW1 games show.
The awards it has definetly earned has put an unforgettable experience in our own valiant hearts as history, music, art, story, videogame fanatics that are always looking for. This game deserves to be bought at full price for an experience that will last you forever.
Thank you Valiant Hearts, thank you Ubisoft Montpellier and thank you Mission Centenaire 14-18 for making a game that is story driven than combat focused about the Great War, this game is one of the few games i have played in my lifetime that actually brought me to tears, and i loved it.
