Valiant Hearts the Great War is a puzzle adventure game with a strong narrative burden that tells the story of four characters who crisscross the fortunes of war, connecting through a Doberman that was part of the medical service in the German army. Both pillars on which this game is built are the narrative and visual: using comic-style animations, we’ll play different episodes in the lives of the protagonists.Being a game created by UbiArt framework, the visual style is fundamental.
Attention to a title like Valiant Hearts: The Great War begins hopelessly in its visuals. Ubisoft Montpellier using UbiArt Framework, a game engine that is used to create truly wonderful titles to behold as we saw in recent names like Legends Rayman, Rayman Origins or too precious Child of Light. Create cartoon video games, this is one of the objectives of an engine that still gives great joy to lovers of Ubisoft games. Valiant Heart is the latest to take advantage of this motor. But as it is customary in the securities of this caliber are not only in a beautiful shell.
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a video game inspired by the Great War that luxury is allowed, except for some specific moment where you control some heavy vehicle, offering a gameplay where you do not hit a single shot gun. In a 2D plane on that aspect so characteristic of comic UbiArt Framework we stumbled upon a game that invites you to solve puzzles in order to progress. Characters can climb structures, doors enter to go to other planes, up and down stairs and little else.They have a rule’s ability to shock and some other bonus.Freddie can cut wires with pliers, while Anna can heal other characters in a fairly simple type QTE minigame. Meanwhile, Emile creating new paths can dig underground and Walt dog serves to reach places inaccessible to humans, bring objects or activate several mechanisms.
Normally we have to do some action to move forward on the map. For example, at a time when we want to send a letter to Anna. Emile will have to find a sock, wash it in the kitchen when Allied soldiers do not look, drying in a stove and give it to another soldier who give us change the ink. Then we have, with the dog, to steal a piece of bread, put it in a specific place to attract and frighten a pigeon to get the pen. Mission accomplished. We have to relate all the contextual elements of the stage to move forward. Another great example is one in which we have to go by combining objects, making stealth sections to steal various costumes and trick the soldiers to let us pass.
These more open missions can visit various buildings, planes and places, are the great success of Valiant Hearts Playable who is offering super complex puzzles we will crush his head. But many sections of the game have a somewhat simpler profile. There are stages of stealth you have to confuse enemies and hide in bushes to pass. The already mentioned “cures” Anna, do not cease to be a series of QTE rather easy, time-few-shots in which we launched cannon left and right, digging areas Emile without looking for new ways to blow mines and gadgets stuck in the sand and other driving situations, where the back of a vehicle we go around obstacles. Not everything is simple, and there are interesting times when we have to combine the skills of dog with our end-to advance or progress as Karl sections in a house full of gas in which we see absolutely nothing challenging. But overall, the feeling is that there are too many ups and downs in the difficulty and the challenges presented by it can be tedious at times progress.
The title is not exactly short, and will be a five to six hours to finish the first game. Throughout levels find collectibles. There are a hundred in total and have a funny story for two reasons: first, are in many cases well hidden and not easy to find them. Second, because they provide more historical information of the conflict. Helmets, whistles, cards, broken bayonets, ammunition shells … all with their explanation and the role they had in the Great War.Everything that happens in the game, everything we found, is documented and linked with the harsh reality of the battle of a hundred years ago. And that gives you a package and a sense of adventure, who knows also function as a history book. We have a hint system to help us if we get stuck at times and with a higher difficulty mode in which contextual elements are not highlighted on stage and there is no track.
A visual level this is a round, able to convey the harshness of the Great War by comic graphs that do not skimp on product details. Both at the level where you play as the background, or in front, we find all kinds of decorative and contextual elements recreate perfectly know what was happening at the time. It does not require extreme blood or anything like that to transfer the rawness of some situations and characters know perfectly express the problems in which they are stuck.This is perfectly accompanied by a palette of colors grisa with some more colorful moments when recreates situations-few-away from the war. Not a Rayman Legends full of life and color, but he knows how to convey as much or more on your style or proposal. The soundtrack goes well with tunes you know bring sadness, stress and despair. Special mention some of the masterpieces of classical music playing when we driving phases (much to the musical stages of Rayman Legends). The characters do not speak in the game.
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is not only a remarkable adventure game that knows how to mix puzzles, mechanical classic adventure games and some interactive novel. It is a title that tries to go a little further and want to help, too, to learn and remember events of the First World War, an event that is a hundred years in the world of gaming has not been as prolific as the second great war . With a bright-UbiArt visuals Framework returns to the fray-and a huge amount of documents, historical data, collectibles contributing more details about the Great War and diverse views of the war through his characters, Valiant Hearts get what that was proposed at the time. Love the eyes, convincing from the control and document from its content. A special and highly recommended game, albeit far from perfect. Despite having moments of interesting puzzles and we will make estrujarnos head a great time, there is also another side of the coin: has obvious ups and downs in its development, with stretches too flat and simple to do something tedious by their zero difficulty and linearity, and no escape various topics both characters and at times the argument. In all cases, manages to convey all luxury details of the Great War like few before.