14 DAY TRIAL // Valiant Hearts: The Great War was a strange showing at this year's E3, as amidst all the explosions and over-the-top action scenes that all the games were flaunting in order to garner attention, it was merely attempting to bring some tears to your eyes.
Ubisoft's E3 press conference also managed to sneak in a Valiant Hearts trailer among all the triple-A games, showing the gorgeous artistic styling of the upcoming game and its heart-wrenching story.
The game is built on the UbiArt Framework, the same engine that powers Rayman Legends and Child of Light, and it is designed as a puzzle adventure title set during the nightmarish events of World War I.
The years between 1914 and 1918 were some of the most devastating in mankind's history, and Ubisoft attempts to take a step sideways from the usual route of glorifying war and mass murder and show the impact of such ample conflicts on the lives of everyday people.
Valiant Hearts: The Great War presents the story of four crossed destinies, four unsung heroes who trek across Europe and witness all the great tragedy firsthand, together with Walt, their trusty canine companion, in their quest to reunite with their loved ones.
The game aims to present a deeply emotional story about friendship, love and sacrifice, showing the tragedy that befalls each one of the members of the group, as they try to help one another to maintain a glimmer of humanity when faced with the horrors of war.
"I think it's something, it's realistically the first game that will bring a tear to your eye, and I think that's something that's quite special and very rare," said Adrian Lacey, IP developer director over at Ubisoft, in a developer diary.
Valiant Hearts is based on genuine stories from World War I, inspired by real letters written on the front lines and merged by the developers with their own imagination in order to create a gripping story of love and loss, a heartbreaking adventure set during the turmoil of The Great War.
The game seems very atmospheric, and the graphical style suits the narrative, conferring a visual novel feel to the entire experience and enhancing its narrative focus.
Valiant Hearts: The Great War is coming to the PC, the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 consoles from Sony, and the Xbox 360 and Xbox One home entertainment systems from Microsoft, on June 25.
