Valiant Hearts: The Great War is a 2D puzzle adventure developed by Ubisoft Montpellier and published by Ubisoft. It mixes exploration, action, stealth, platforming, historical items, and character-specific puzzle tools across a World War I story.
Content note: ESRB rates Valiant Hearts: The Great War T for Teen with Violence, Blood, and Use of Alcohol and Tobacco. This guide keeps war material non-graphic and focused on play.
This is a spoiler-light first-playthrough guide. It is not a full walkthrough, all-119 historical-items checklist, achievement guide, exact QTE route, or per-chapter puzzle solution set.
Essential Tips
1. Read the Whole Scene Before Acting
Most puzzle rooms are built from nearby objects, routes, and interact prompts.
Before throwing, digging, pushing, climbing, or sending Walt somewhere, stop and identify every object the scene is showing you. Valiant Hearts is usually asking you to understand the room rather than brute-force one input repeatedly.
2. Treat Walt as a Second Set of Hands
The dog is not just a companion; he is a puzzle tool.
Use Walt whenever a route looks too small, too guarded, or out of reach for the current character. He can handle tasks like moving through tight spaces, grabbing items, getting into special positions, returning to you, and helping bypass soldiers.
3. Try the Current Character’s Specialty
A blocked route may be waiting for the right person, not a hidden item.
Different playable characters solve different puzzle types. If one interaction does nothing, think about what the current character is good at and whether the scene is signaling a role-specific tool, object, or route.
4. Use Stealth Before Noise
Behind enemy lines, the clean answer is often a distraction or timing window.
Watch guard placement before moving. Walt can help with distractions, but a distraction only works if you already know where you need to go once the path opens.
5. Keep Historical Items in Mind From the Start
The collectible set is large enough that casual cleanup can become messy.
The game tracks 119 historical items across four chapters. You do not need a full checklist for a story run, but you should check side spaces, corners, and unusual interaction spots before leaving a level.
6. Read Historical Facts as They Unlock
Fact entries are part of the completion layer, not just background text.
If you care about achievements or trophies, open and read historical facts as you progress. Do not wait until the end and assume every menu action, fact entry, and platform requirement behaves the same everywhere.
7. Slow Down for Medical QTEs
Prompt timing matters more than speed-mashing.
When the game shifts into a treatment sequence, watch the actual prompt and press deliberately. Rushing the wrong input is worse than taking the fraction of a second needed to confirm it.
8. Separate Story Flow From 100% Cleanup
The story works best when the first run is not just a checklist.
Play through puzzles carefully, collect what you naturally find, and make notes when a screen looks collectible-heavy. Save exact route cleanup for a dedicated pass after checking chapter behavior and platform-specific achievement requirements.
9. Expect the Game to Change Formats
Puzzle rooms, stealth spaces, action scenes, driving-style sequences, and QTEs ask for different habits.
Do not carry one solution style through every level. When the pace changes, reset your approach: observe first, identify the active character or tool, then execute the required timing.
10. Keep Switch Controls Separate From Other Versions
The Switch release supports Joy-Con and touch-screen control options.
If you are playing on Switch, make sure any guide, prompt, or video you follow matches your control mode. Button names from older console or PC guides may not map cleanly to your setup.
Puzzle and Walt Habits
- Look for Walt-only routes: Small openings, unreachable items, buckets, and guarded areas are signals to use dog commands.
- Call Walt back after a command: Do not leave him parked in the last puzzle position if the next step needs him nearby.
- Use distractions with a destination in mind: Move only after you know which ladder, doorway, trench, or object becomes safe.
- Check throw arcs and targets: Bottles, grenades, and other thrown objects are usually part of a specific environmental solution.
- Swap puzzle assumptions by character: A solution that fits one character may not apply when the story shifts to another.
- Pause after cutscenes: A new scene can change the active character, available commands, and nearby objective.
Collectibles and Achievements
| System | First-Run Habit | Why It Helps |
|---|---|---|
| Historical items | Check side paths before progressing | There are 119 items to track |
| Historical facts | Read entries as they appear | Fact reading is tied to achievement progress |
| Four chapters | Expect collectibles to be chapter-organized | Existing guides route items by chapter and level |
| Walt actions | Pet and command Walt when the scene invites it | Some extra actions are achievement-relevant |
| Miscellaneous actions | Try obvious environmental interactions | Some achievements come from specific level actions |
| Platform achievements | Check your platform before a 100% run | Counts and prompts can differ between storefronts |
Hidden Mechanics
| Mechanic | What It Means | How to Use It |
|---|---|---|
| Character-specific puzzles | Characters do not solve every obstacle the same way | Match the scene to the current character’s tool or role |
| Walt control | Walt can complete tasks separately from the human character | Send him where the character cannot safely or physically go |
| Soldier distraction | Walt can help open guarded routes | Distract only when you are ready to move |
| Historical items | Collectibles are hidden through normal levels | Sweep the room before triggering progress |
| Historical facts | Fact entries support completion goals | Read them during the chapter instead of ignoring the menu |
| QTE treatment scenes | Some medical sequences use timed prompts | Watch the prompt and input cleanly |
| Version-specific controls | Switch can use Joy-Con or touch controls | Match advice to the control mode you are using |
Common Mistakes to Avoid
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Do not sprint past small openings - Walt may be able to use a route the human character cannot.
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Do not throw the first item you pick up without checking the target - Many objects are meant for a specific bell, dummy, obstacle, or mechanism.
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Do not walk into a guard route before setting the distraction - A useful distraction needs timing and a clear destination.
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Do not keep forcing the same interaction with the wrong character - Character swaps can change the solution logic.
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Do not leave a screen immediately after solving the main blocker - Historical items can sit near the exit path or just off the obvious route.
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Do not ignore historical facts if you want completion - Read entries as they unlock so achievement progress is not left to guesswork.
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Do not mash through medical prompts - Clean QTE input is safer than frantic button presses.
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Do not press prompts by memory after changing control modes - Confirm the on-screen action before throwing, commanding Walt, or starting a QTE.
Summary
| Category | Top Tip |
|---|---|
| Puzzles | Study the whole scene before acting |
| Walt | Use dog commands for tight spaces, item retrieval, and distractions |
| Stealth | Open a route before moving through guard pressure |
| Characters | Let each character’s role guide the solution |
| Collectibles | Watch for historical items across all four chapters |
| Facts | Read historical fact entries as they appear |
| Cleanup | Check platform-specific achievements before a 100% route |
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8 checked for this guideEvery factual claim in this guide was checked against at least two independent sources before publication. These are the references used for Valiant Hearts: The Great War.
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