Child of Light: Ultimate Edition + Valiant Hearts: The Great War

Genre: Compilation / Turn-Based RPG / Metroidvania / Puzzle-Platformer

Players: 1-2 Co-Op (Local)

Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: UbiSoft

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Review:

As the name of this game implies, Child of Light: Ultimate Edition + Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a Compilation that includes the fantasy-themed Turn-Based RPG/Metroidvania Child of Light Ultimate Edition, originally released on numerous platforms in 2014 and ported to Nintendo Switch in 2018, as well as the World War I themed Puzzle-Platformer Valiant Hearts: The Great War, originally released on multiple platforms in 2014 and ported to Nintendo Switch in 2018.

As for this compilation, it has a bit of interesting history itself. This package was originally released in physical form in 2018, with a $40 price tag – the same cost as getting the two games separately in digital form. Then, in 2021, the compilation was released on the eShop in digital form, with a reduced $30 price tag, all while the physical release maintained its $40 price tag.

Here is what I thought of both of the games in this collection:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Grade
Child of Light Ultimate Edition	Turn-Based RPG / Metroidvania	1-2 Co-Op (Local)	A-
tl;dr Child of Light is an outstanding RPG with Metroidvania elements. There’s a lot of inventive gameplay here, but it’s the game’s dreamy, somber audiovisual presentation that steals the show. And while the game’s story isn’t quite as strong as the rest of the package, this game is still an absolute treat for RPG fans.
Valiant Hearts: The Great War	Puzzle-Platformer	1	B
tl;dr Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a Puzzle-Platformer with a heavy focus on its story, which uses the personal experience of one group of friends to explore the greater conflict during World War I. The puzzle-platforming here is decent, but nothing special. Rather, the real draw here is the story, which brings us into The Great War with likeable characters caught up in the action. If that story sounds appealing to you, this game is well worth trying.

In short, both of these games are good, and although I think Child of Light is the better of the two, they’re both worth playing. Interestingly, these two games have nothing in common other than being published by UbiSoft – the two games are in different genres, have different topic matter, a different tone, and were developed by different teams within UbiSoft. On the one hand, you could look at that and say that the games being so different means that you’re less likely to enjoy both. However, on the other hand, you could argue that the games being so different means that this Compilation offers quite a lot of variety between its two games.

In any case, what’s really fantastic here is the value this package offers, at least if you get the digital version. The $30 price tag slices $10 off the price of buying both games separately, but the price gets even sweeter if you look at UbiSoft’s nearly monthly sales on the eShop – there, both games individually see regular discounts to $5, and this compilation gets discounted to $7.50, which is an absolute steal. And while I don’t normally talk about sale prices in reviews (outside of to recommend not buying a game unless it’s heavily discounted), here I feel a bit more justified because UbiSoft’s eShop sales are like clockwork.

In the end, if you’re only interested in one of these games, the great value you’re getting in this bundle is enough to more than justify buying the two together. I tend to feel that Child of Light is clearly the better game between the two, but both of these games are excellent and well worth playing, and while it’s an odd pairing it’s one that offers some good variety. If you haven’t already bought one of these games separately, I recommend you give a look at Child of Light: Ultimate Edition + Valiant Hearts: The Great War, especially when it goes on sale in the eShop – you’re likely to find something enjoyable at a great price.

tl;dr – Child of Light: Ultimate Edition + Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a Compilation of the two named games – the former a fantasy-themed RPG with Metroidvania elements and the latter a World War I themed Puzzle-Platformer. They’re both good games, and I’d say that Child of Light is the better of the two, but they’re also two very different games. However, even if you’re more interested in one of the two games on offer here, the compilation is still well worth a look, because the digital version of this package has an excellent value (especially when it goes on sale on the eShop). Not so much for the physical version of the game.

Grade: B+

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