Crème de la crème
My view on Celeste
Celeste is a 2D Platformer from a humble indie team (Matt Makes Games). This game has been recognized and awarded multiple times since its original release in 2018. Celeste won The Game Award for Best Independent Game and Games for Impact Award at the Game awards hosted by Geoff Keighley. This game was seen as a start of a bold new direction for not just indie games but video games as a whole because of the way it seamlessly manages to incorporate thought-provoking messages and insights relating to heavy topics such as depression and anxiety with its knuckle-hard platforming.
The main game which includes 7 chapters has only two distinct moves apart from your basic forward, jump and backward movement; these are climb and dash. The main game does not feel stale because of the limited move set given to players instead the platforming constantly builds on itself, and players often enjoy wafts of fresh gameplay due to the variety of zones in the forms of chapters and the diversity in objects and in-game mechanics. An example of this can be seen in chapter 6: Reflection, in this chapter there are multiple objects such as the angry platform and bumpers that interact with the character in different ways. The angry platformer moves fast in a particular direction depending on which side it is struck while the bumper bumps the character based on the direction or area of the bumper they land on. Each chapter has a different feel due to changes in backgrounds and mechanics, from the desolate and decrepit celestial resorts with sludge to the breezy golden ridge.
It is a joy to play the game because of its beautiful soundtrack, even while experiencing repeated and frustrating deaths I was hooked on the game and never unsatisfied. My personal favourite tracks include Postcard from Celeste Mountain, Madeline and Theo and Reach for the Summit.
The Story of celeste lingers in the back of the player's mind as they platform through Celeste Mountain. Players of Celeste, play the game through the perspective of the character Madeline, who is determined to climb Celeste Mountain. The game manages to add sprinkles of story through Madeline's conversations with characters such as Theo and Mr Oshiro. There is a moment at the end of Chapter 5 and at the cusp of Chapter 6 where Theo and Madeline have a genuine conversation on anxiety and depression; this is one of the best parts of the game. There is a discussion on what Madeline’s anxiety possibly means and foreshadowing for Madeline's eventual acceptance of the other part of her or otherwise labelled as “Part of You” in-game. In Chapter 6 (Reflection) Madeline falls back to the bottom of the mountain and confronts part of her, eventually accepting the other Madeline that is governed by fear and anxiety and learning that in some cases fear is good. After Reflection, both parts of Madeline merge and Madeline's hair which was first red blends with her other self: who has purple hair, the new Madeline has pink hair which indicates she is now whole.
Throughout the whole game, the mountain is a metaphor for Madeline overcoming her anxiety and depression. After Madeline fell in Chapter 6, she now had the task of reaching the mountain’s summit from where her journey started. There is one difference between this Madeline that has learned to accept part of herself and the previous. This version of Madeline is an upgrade to her previous form; she can now dash twice instead of once which was the case before. Chapter 7 (Summit) has this new version of Madeline climbing the mountain from start, Madeline is now able to climb the mountain at a much faster pace as she goes through all zones from previous chapters in the length of a single chapter. The correlation between the mountain and Madeline is a significant one because, in the final main game chapter, Madeline can reach the summit and is able to reach her goal without falling back down, it is when she can overcome her internal struggles and focus on the task at hand that she succeeds. The game conveys that Madeline’s goals become far more achievable after she overcomes her overwhelming sense of fear and anxiety and that even after falling, one can reach a summit and with greater speed if one conquers themselves.
Another thing to mention is the boss fights and strawberries. Strawberries are collectables that are attained by platforming through screens that don't affect the main game narrative. The divide between the strawberry levels and the main levels doesn't exist since the transition is seamless. Collecting strawberries can be one of the most fulfilling and fun parts of the game because it challenges the player to think and play more strategically. For example, players may have to pay extra attention to the direction or timing of their dash or could use the velocity of conveyor-belt platforms to go extra distances. Lastly, the main game does also have a few platforming boss fights that I enjoyed. The first boss fight or boss chase that I enjoyed was with Mr Oshiro, although it had some frustrating bits that resulted in many deaths. Oshiro the owner of celestial resorts chases the player as a ghost (fitting as he is haunted by his past) and can shoot lightning while chasing Madeline, this made for decently challenging screens where I had to be aware of the ghost while platforming. My favourite boss fight though was with the “Part of You” where Madeline chases and confronts her other self while venturing through treacherous terrain and trying to make contact with this other self, eventually, Madeline does succeed and the game progresses to Chapter 7.
Celeste is a game that offers a lot of quality content for a game with its price tag and from a studio of its size. Even after the main game, there are more strawberries to collect as well as harder levels to complete in additional free DLC, B sides and C sides; the game gives to you the more you give to it.
Celeste is a triumph not just for 2D platformers but for indie games. It is a game that manages to draw you in with its genuine story and charming characters without overwhelming fluff. At its heart, Celeste is a platformer. It offers tough but fair gameplay and challenges the player to think in different ways and overcome obstacles while nudging them to introspect with its relatable themes. All in all, Celeste is one of the easiest games for me to recommend to almost everyone.
