Valiant Hearts: Coming Home Review (Tagliabue)
Do not spend full price on this
TL;DR - Semi-decent puzzle game but not good compared to the first game, 4hr length, mechanics from the first game taken out, huge downgrade in quality with writing and storytelling from previous game, overall disappointing sequel but not atrocious as standalone game
- Game is shorter than the already short first game, this feels more like a DLC or rather aspects that did not make the first game
- Some mechanics are taken out, for example, when throwing, you cannot aim to the other direction from where you were looking (i.e. if you're looking left and aim, you cannot just move the aim reticle to the right to aim at a ladder you need down, you physically have to quit out of the throwing animation, then re-orientate yourself and face the direction you want to throw and then go for it, feels like tank controls in the big 2025). In addition, if Walt is not holding anything, you cannot give the item in your hand to him unless he has an item and you can trade, leading to possible back tracking when solving some puzzles. Overall just frustrating when a game from over 10 years ago have better mechanics in smoothness in game play
- Sound design??? Went through several cutscenes that have no music or background noise and when something impactful is happening in the story, the narrator just says is blankly with little no fanfare in music, animation, nothing, just seems bare
- The cinematics are just not as good as the first game, does not have the ability to suck you in
- WITHOUT SPOILING, the ending feels way too forced and not a real closing as compared to the first game, it feel as if the ending was just talked about in a single day and was set in stone
- As a standalone game, its a neat puzzle game, but this is asking full asking price with the name of a sequel to a great game, and this is just NOT up to par with it