There's no beating around the bush, Celeste is one of the best 2D platformers I've had the pleasure of playing in a long time. It's initially quite unassuming, since you think to yourself "oh it's just an 8 directional dash, how much can they really squeeze out of this?", and the answer is a lot.

As per usual with these kinds of games, it introduces new mechanics in every level, and then progressively builds more and more around them. Additionally, each new mechanic is kept rather simple: bubbles that give a short burst of speed and replenish jumps, moving platforms, an unspeakable lovecraftian void that you can dash through, you know, standard stuff. The result of this is that the new elements don't ever make the gameplay feel bloated, they just become elegant additions to the solid foundation that was already there. One aspect that is particularly unique is its amazing integration of momentum to the platforming, a lot of the moving platforms can give you speed in the direction that they travel as you hop off of them, which is often used in jumps and is a fantastic touch.

Another thing to note is Celeste doesn't shy away from making jumps difficult, yet perfectly calculated in such a way that it becomes incredibly satisfying at a mechanical level, while not simply being technical skill check, as a lot of the jumps do require some brains to figure out how to do properly. Consequently, the game feels quite fair, regardless of how long it takes to get a hard jump down, since you actually make steady progress with each attempt until the point of mastering it.

Not much needs to be said about the artstyle or OST I believe, they're excellent, and the remixes definitely keep you hyped up while tackling the B-sides (I haven't tried the C-sides yet, I'm missing some collectibles, please pray for me). The story is also nice, with endearing characters and an important lesson on self improvement and learning how to deal with the rough points in our lives which, let's face it, we've all been through. The use of climbing a mountain as a metaphor for this also justifies the game's difficulty, while bringing it all together in a very compelling way.

Beyond the fact that it's a bit short (which is fine anyway since there's a lot of extra levels and collectibles to keep you challenged), it's honestly a flawless game. It does everything right, and it's the most fun I've had with a platformer in a while. Also, it turned me into a woman, which I wasn't expecting but it seems to be a common side effect, I suppose. Eh, ♥♥♥♥ it, 10/10.

A specific cut of people, but I finally 100%'d Celeste. These are all the people that either watched me along the way or also know the struggle this game brings to its player, and at the risk of sounding little sappy, little silly, thank all of you for being a part of my life, and caring about a game that changed me as much as some of you have across my time knowing you. this game means everything to me and I'm glad to be able to say I finally 100%'d it, and HAH I never used assist mode! Just kept grinding and learning, and doing my best so that I could keep getting better and eventually I did. I suppose this is less of a review and more of a love letter from me to the game itself, and everyone I know. so to (try) to keep things short-

Farewell , Celeste. You changed my life for the better, Thank you.

p.s. What was my final score?
all tapes, hearts (W/ b&c sides), and berries (moonberry too!), exactly 12,222 deaths with a final time of 41:52:37.802

https://gtm.you1.cn/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3370086046

it turned me into a girl