Valiant Hearts: The Great War

Engadget ( )

By the time you perform one of the game's final acts, a moment so brilliantly orchestrated as to be instinctual, you might wonder what it is you've learned in this sometimes sanitized, sometimes upsetting war. There's not really a preaching, obvious message. There is no obsession with the grim minutiae of killing. Valiant Hearts is a war game that recalls, in memories both cheerful and sad, that there is a person first, then a soldier, and then - if you're lucky – a hero.

GameWatcher / Strategy Informer (9 out of 10)

There’s not many video games that treat war with the respect its participants deserve. Metal Gear is too preachy and ham-fisted while Call of Duty & Medal of Honour are bombastic dude-fests disinterested in reality. Valiant Hearts, by using the war as a backdrop and avoiding too much direct conflict, pays tribute to the 16 million that perished in The Great War 100 years ago and does it with humour, pathos and melancholy.

Softpedia (9 out of 10)

Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a truly impressive experience that manages to focus on the realities of World War 1 without becoming a dull or upsetting experience. It adds just enough cheerful moments to stay upbeat and you're certainly going to care and fall in love with the main characters, especially the small dog. The narrator might not fit into the experience and those who don't like history might not enjoy the constant details offered by the game, but it doesn't detract from the experience all that much.

VentureBeat / Gamesbeat (85 out of 100)

I’ve never been much of a history buff, but maybe I would be if more games like Valiant Hearts: The Great War existed. Between the artistic backdrops and the soldierly tasks you commit, both right and wrong, Ubisoft Montpellier retells the events of World War I in amazing detail. Yet, the story is always about the people on the frontlines and what they endured, not the politics. That Ubisoft is also able to balance a lighthearted cartoon style with the violence of war is a testament to the excellent visual storytelling.

The Good Old Days (Staff Reviews only) (5 out of 6)

The character mentioned at the beginning of this review is just reading a letter to his daughter while the credits start to roll. Whatever brought him here, the things he wants to tell her and where his journey is going to take him now, will leave only the most hardened veterans cold. Everyone else should definitely have a look at this small gem of an alternative war game, which handles its serious topic in a surprisingly mature way. Not to mention the very unique visuals…

PC Games (Germany) (82 out of 100)

Mit Valiant Hearts schafft es Ubisoft, einen Spagat zwischen Unterhaltung und Geschichtsstunde zu meistern, den ich kaum für möglich gehalten hätte. Obwohl kleine Schnitzer den Gesamteindruck trüben und es mir manchmal einfach zu wenig Spiel und zu viel Erzählung ist, hat mich Valiant Hearts an den Monitor gefesselt. Die Geschichte der vier Charaktere, die sich ganz unterschiedlich durch die Wirren des Krieges kämpfen, ist spannend erzählt und die Einzelschicksale sowohl erzählerisch als auch spielerisch geschickt miteinander verwoben. Ich hoffe, dass Valiant Hearts viele Fans findet und die Entwickler für ihren Mut belohnt werden, ein Spiel zu erschaffen, in dem auch die schrecklichen Folgen des Krieges thematisiert werden.

GameZebo ( )

Valiant Hearts: The Great War is all over the place. There are moments of madcap adventure and stark brutality; simple, eye-glazing gameplay and a story that’s absolutely riveting; an anthropomorphic dog who wouldn’t be out of place in a Disney animated film, and an in-game encyclopedia filled with colorized photos and a litany of wartime horrors. It is silly and powerful and funny and devastating, and for all it gets wrong, it’s one of the most moving and memorable games I’ve played in a long time.

Adventure Gamers ( )

Although far from a traditional adventure, Valiant Hearts has a strong setting and story that exposes the worst aspects of war and the best of human relationships.

Hooked Gamers (8 out of 10)

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.

PC Invasion (INC Gamers) (8 out of 10)

The four year humanitarian catastrophe of World War One demands sensitive and courageous handling. In Valiant Hearts: The Great War Ubisoft Montpellier have created a commemoration of the conflict in which videogaming can take significant pride.

Digital Spy ( )

Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a superbly titled game. It is a valiant effort at a sincere depiction of war by developers whose hearts were clearly in the right place, telling a gripping story that is still respectful of its source.

GameSpot (8 out of 10)

But these are minor blemishes on a visually beautiful game that deftly moves between moments of joy and moments of tragedy, and ultimately doesn't shy away from the fact that "great" is just about the last thing any war should be called.

GameStar (Germany) (73 out of 100)

Selten hat mich ein Spiel so betroffen gemacht. Mit (zumindest auf den ersten Blick) einfacher Comicgrafik lässt es mich den Schrecken des Krieges intensiver erleben als sämtliche Militär-Shooter der vergangenen Jahre. Weil Valiant Hearts eben nicht nur die Schlachten thematisiert, sondern auch und vor allem deren Folgen. Interessanterweise ist Valiant Hearts spielerisch dann am besten, wenn es das Tempo rausnimmt und sich ganz auf seine Physik- und Kombinationsrätsel konzentriert. Umso deplatzierter wirken da die Actionsequenzen. Minutenlang mit einem Auto Hindernissen auszuweichen, war schon in den 80ern langweilig. Auch die Reaktionstest-Operationen haben mich regelmäßig komplett aus der Atmosphäre gerissen. Rein als Spiel betrachtet ist Valiant Hearts bestenfalls Durchschnitt. Aber es ist eben nicht nur ein Spiel, sondern eine interaktive und deshalb nachhaltig wirkende Geschichtsstunde über eines der schwärzesten Kapitel der Menschheitsgeschichte. Sollte man erlebt haben.

4Players.de (70 out of 100)

Die Inszenierung schwankt zwischen Drama und Komödie, Beklemmung und Belustigung, Antikriegstonalität und kitschigem Pathos - mir fehlt die klare Linie. Dieses Wechselbad setzt sich spielerisch fort, denn die über weite Strecken magere, im besten Fall solide Rätselqualität wird immerhin von Kooperation mit dem Hund sowie Abwechslung in Echtzeit aufgefangen. Man schleicht, verarztet oder fährt allerdings auch nur auf Reaktionstestniveau. Unterm Strich über etwa acht Stunden ein solides Abenteuer mit ausgezeichnetem Artdesign, aber zu viel spielerischer Gewöhnlichkeit und vertanen erzählerischen Chancen. Wer wissen will, wie man das Thema Erster Weltkrieg auch in Comicform erwachsener, konsequenter und eindringlicher umsetzen kann, dem empfehle ich „Elender Krieg“ von Jacques Tardi.

Absolute Games (AG.ru) (70 out of 100)

Valiant Hearts: The Great War могла стать классикой на все времена — хотя бы потому, что здесь есть отдельная кнопка «Задействовать собаку». А ведь тут еще и великолепная музыка, от главного меню до финальных титров, и прекрасная, остроумная картинка, использующая изящные комиксные приемы вроде кадра в кадре. Здесь отличная честная концовка, где небо темнеет, кресты белеют, укрытия рушатся, а от ядовитого газа, кажется, нет спасения. Игра Ubisoft Montpellier оказалась яркой, бесконечно очаровательной и, увы, одноразовой поделкой, компромиссной безделушкой, в которую легко влюбиться с первого же трейлера, но уже через полчаса заскучать до зевоты. Возможно, в Valiant Hearts нужно играть вместе с ребенком — тогда это будет похоже на чтение лучшего в мире учебника по истории. Но в таком случае авторам игры стоило указать ребенка в графе «Системные требования».

Eurogamer.net (UK) (7 out of 10)

And while Valiant Hearts struggles to make sense of itself as a game, in its odd, playful innocence and in its focus on four friends (and a dog) it at least offers a fleeting human perspective on a new kind of war that turned out to be far, far worse in its mechanised violence than anybody was quite expecting.

Gameluster N/A

There isn’t much to do in the game after beating the story, apart from visiting certain sections of the game to clean up the collectibles. But Valiant Hearts is one of those games were replayability isn’t expected as there’s no way the developers could add extra hours. Valiant Hearts still delivers in nearly all aspects, having a few slow sections and repetitive ‘puzzles’ it still makes you feel like you had an amazing journey from beginning to end. Even though it doesn’t feel like much of a game and the gameplay being ‘slow’, it is still the best downloadable title of the year so far.