Luc Bernard is a British video game designer and artist. And he’s aiming to change the way Holocaust education is delivered.
The co-founder and executive director for Voices of the Forgotten’s latest game, The Light in the Darkness, was inspired by stories of his maternal grandmother, who was Jewish, and who cared for orphaned Jewish children following the Second World War.
Speaking recently on a panel on “Exploring new media approaches to Holocaust education,” sponsored by Toronto’s Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre, Bernard reflected on his own education at a school in France, where he and his peers only learned about the Shoah from the film Schindler’s List.
The 35-year-old designer has created many titles including Death Tales, Eternity’s Child, Mecho Wars, Desert Ashes, and SteamPirates, but this will be his first Holocaust-inspired game.
Players follow a family of Jewish immigrants from Poland—Moses, Bluma, and their son Samuel—who are living in France. The story begins before the Nazi occupation, and players will experience the horrific reality of life in Vichy, including the Vel D’Hiv Roundup, when 13,152 Jews were arrested in Paris on July 16-17, 1942, and deported to concentration camps.
It’s not a choice-based game as many others are because, as Bernard explained, “Jews did not have a choice.”
His team consulted with Holocaust survivors and experts to keep the story as accurate as possible. Players will explore historical photographs, survivor testimonials, archives, and videos featuring historians. After the main story is finished, an educational mode is available.
“There are so many misconceptions about video games, and that they can actually be whatever you want them to be,” said Bernard. “Whether it’s educational, entertainment, or cinematic—the choices are endless.”
Many games set during the Second World War—like Call of Duty, Medal of Honor and Wolfenstein— ignore the Holocaust and simply paint Nazis as bad guys that a player needs to take down.
The industry itself has changed over the years, and is starting to explore tougher subjects. Bernard feels it has a responsibility to cover more serious topics, including the Holocaust and other genocides.
The game will be free to download and will debut sometime this year. First, it will come to Xbox and Windows 10 and then on PS4/PS5 and Nintendo Switch.
