Valiant Hearts: Coming Home Explores The Underrepresented Heroes of World War I
The Valiant Hearts series is a fresh take on the familiar setting of World War I. Rather than focusing on armed skirmishes and large-scale battles, it focuses on the lives of those on the front lines, the lingering trauma that war has inflicted on them, and the unexpected bonds found in the Dark Ages. Despite the small scale storytelling, the more emotional look at surviving war is a welcome change of pace.
Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, released in January as a Netflix Games exclusive, is the highly anticipated sequel to Ubisoft’s 2014 wartime narrative adventure game. In addition to the return of main characters Anna and Freddie, the sequel also includes new characters. Focuses on the African-American servicemen of the famous 369th Regiment, Harlem and his Hellfighters.
Ubisoft’s Inclusive Games and Content Manager Maya Loreal and Product Director Guillaume Cerda on making Valiant Hearts: Coming Home and what video games can do by shining a spotlight on stories and underrepresented figures. I interviewed.
“Telling the stories of these ordinary people becoming unsung heroes is in the DNA of our games,” Cerda said of Valiant Hearts. Go home. “There is no better example than the Harlem Hellfighters, especially when they are still recognized for their achievements and efforts a century after the end of World War I. Their story fits well into Valiant Hearts. We always say that this isn’t a war game, it’s a game about war, and we’re caught up in that mess.”
revisiting the past
Coming Home picks up after the events of the original game in 1917, with the United States joining the war and the conflict escalating even further. As the returning characters Freddie and Anna continue to survive alongside their fellow French soldiers, Freddie’s brother James enlists in the U.S. Army to join the war effort against his brother’s wishes. Along with facing the brutality of one of the most chaotic wars in history, James and other black soldiers in his unit also battle daily encounters with prejudice from fellow servicemen at home and abroad.
Freddie’s brother James begins “training” in the US Army.
The strength of the Valiant Hearts series is its focus on the human condition, along with the bonds of family and friendship during war. Much like Freddy’s experience in the original game (whose story was inspired by World War I hero Freddy in his Stowers), James’ story revolves around his experiences as a black soldier in the early 1900s. It’s a thing, and it’s a rich and emotional story that unfolds.
With the exception of 2016’s Battlefield 1, Harlem Hellfighters has been largely absent in other World War I-focused games. usa. However, American generals and other soldiers refused to work alongside black servicemen in the segregated military, so the American military sent the 369th Regiment to work with France instead.
Welcomed by the French with open arms, African-American regiments became an important part of the French army, helping to win battles throughout Europe and North Africa. Harlem His Hellfighters were not only exceptional in combat, but they also brought much-needed morale to the French and American armies. In addition, several regimental members were talented jazz musicians, and their music lifted the spirits of Allied soldiers. It also led to the rapid growth of jazz music in France in the 1900s.
fresh perspective
James’ story in Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is compelling and draws from the real life experiences of Harlem Hellfighter James Reese Europe. Europe was jazz musicians before the war, and during the war it experienced many hardships, just like America, which was racially segregated. Nevertheless, he brought humanity and comfort to his fellow servicemen with his jazz music and upbeat demeanor. So after the war ended, he became a celebrity in France.
Speaking with Ubisoft’s Maya Loreal, she explained the work she’s done to bring James to life and honor members of the 369th Regiment in Valiant Hearts.
“From the beginning, the team intended to represent experience and hard work. [the 369th regiment] “Towards equality in the context of racism,” L’Oréal said of incorporating the experiences of black soldiers into Coming Home. We partnered with Harlem Hellfighters history scholar Dr. John H. Morrow Jr. and The 369th Experience, a non-profit that continues their legacy. We see it as a long-term journey to ensure we celebrate those who have had no say in it and have been overlooked.”
Coming Home delves into James’ story from the beginning of his deployment to the end of the war, shedding light on the struggles of many black soldiers in America. For example, during James’ training segment for war, he has to face a racist drill sergeant. However, James and the other black soldiers must instead use brooms and other bricks to perform the drill. It ends with us seeing them teamed up and holding the American flag.
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Even in Valiant Hearts’ emotional and colorful art style, you can feel the animosity and resentment that James experiences in his story. Thankfully, tragedy and humiliation aren’t the only things he faces. In more hopeful and brighter moments in Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, we see James and members of the 369th Division sharing moments of pure, unbridled joy. This is a rare sight for a game set during war. Taking cues from the real-life James Reese Europe, the protagonist and other characters explore their love of jazz, unruly rhythm-based sequences with music composed by musician and historian Jason Moran. unite to share
These moments are spaced throughout the game and are always uplifting and wonderful moments for the characters, showing that there is more to them and their stories than just suffering and hardship.Valiant Hearts: Coming Home shows black characters finding joy in the darkest of times, a welcome and much-needed spectacle for video games.
finding joy in dark times
Even today, we often see stereotypes and other harmful depictions of what it means to be black in the media, whether in the realm of fantasy or in contemporary settings. The depiction of is based on the real world. Valiant Heroes: Coming Heroes demonstrates the level of seriousness and warmth of black characters. This is very important given the actual history and current times.
“The collaboration between 369 Experience and our development team worked so well because it was a very organic exchange,” says Loreal. “We explored other avenues and came to recognize the full cultural resonance of the moment. [during World War I], and what it means today. Working with Dr. John H. Morrow Jr. gave us a lot of insight into the vocal idiosyncrasies that needed to be given to the African American soldiers of the time and brought a lot of credibility to the game. “
James playing his favorite clarinet on the battlefield.
Like the original game, Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is a poignant and effective narrative game that depicts a particularly brutal period of history with a bittersweet hope. Not only is this sequel faithful to the original story and characters, but video games tell stories about marginalized groups, potentially making players empathize with an outsider’s perspective and connection to real life. shows that it is rising. Simply put, playing as a black character in a game about his one of the most brutal wars in modern history is simply another hit.
Even for a game with a budget several times that of Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, the sequel to the 2014 game manages to deliver more honesty and emotion than many other titles in the genre, and the game lives up to its weight. There is always hope that the medium you enjoy will continue to evolve. Games like Valiant Hearts show that video games can really offer more than that.
Alessandro Fillari is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter and his Instagram @afillari.
