LttP: Celeste

[Aprikurt]

What a joyful little game. It's an indie platformer that comfortably sits in Metacritic's Top 10 Switch games of all time, and now I finally understand why.

The game is a wonderful blend of tight platforming, environmental puzzles, and a genuinely engaging story. The music and art style both serve to amplify this, paying tribute to 8 bit and 16 bit platformers but also having its own distinctive "style".

I'm loving how they introduce new mechanics gradually and so the game never feels stale. I'm on the last chapter now (7) and it's hard as nails, but ultimately fair. I can't get mad at it because I know exactly why I died each time.

Probably one of the better games I've played in the last year.

 

[Lelouch0612]

Played it for the first time this year.

It is a masterpiece. Level design and platform mechanics are tight and the way the game blends the story into its game design is great.

 

[Raccoon]

best game

 

[MrConbon210]

I got 5 minutes in and got stuck lol. I'm trash at games like this.

 

[Thera]

Don't be afraid to try the other sides, difficulty spike is well done.

 

[Holygriever]

I got so so SO frustrated that Chapter 9 is geared towards Side C style difficulty. It made it so that I could not figure out what to do, which made me drop it cause looking up the internet for puzzle solutions isn't my idea of fun.

I was such a vocal proponent of this game prior to that. It made me really sad.

 

[TheZjman]

Enjoyed what i played but got stuck at the start of the hotel i think? Needed a key and just could not figure out how to do it, lol. It was like at a jump i just couldn't seem to pull off. Feel stupid as i am usually decent at games like these.

 

[Mirage]

The way Celeste introduces new things to interact with is a nice change up going through the chapters. It's my favorite platformer.

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

One of the GOAT platformers for sure. And that music is soooooo, so good.

 

[Crayolan]

I got so so SO frustrated that Chapter 9 is geared towards Side C style difficulty. It made it so that I could not figure out what to do, which made me drop it cause looking up the internet for puzzle solutions isn't my idea of fun.

I was such a vocal proponent of this game prior to that. It made me really sad.

Click to shrink...

I'm not sure why this is a problem when the first half of the level is locked behind chapter 8, which requires clearing 4 b-sides, and the second half is locked behind clearing all of the b-sides. If you can do all that you can probably handle chapter 9.

 

[CaviarMeths]

I'm terrible at games like this but Celeste is so good and engaging that it made me want to stick with it and overcome it. It was my GotY in 2018.

 

[Greywaren]

It's an amazing game. I struggled a lot with some of the levels, but overall it was a fantastic experience and I keep telling everyone to give it a shot.

 

[Soul Lab]

Man, beating the C-sides was hard as hell but so satisfying

 

[RockmanBN]

Farewell was so well executed. My favorite part of the game.

 

[finally]

Best platforming game ever, while I didn't use assist mode I loved that the devoloper included it so that he could go crazy with game difficulty in normal mode W/O anyone complaining.

 

[I Wanna Be The Guy]

It's excellent. Make sure you do the B and C sides and the free DLC as well. What they do with the DLC is so impressive. They teach you advanced mechanics you never have to use in the base game.

Although with that said early on in the DLC there's one part I do think is bad game design where they require you to use a mechanic to beat the screen but they never actually teach you it and just assume you know it. I had to ask in the Era thread what you were supposed to do.

 

[Mifec]

It was the best game that released in 2018 and also had the best soundtrack .

 

[SwampBastard]

Fantastic game. I gladly double-dipped on it when I got my Switch after having previously bought it on PS4. Never got around to finishing it, though...

 

[GabriocheXD]

It's my favorite game of all time, no doubt about it. I even speedran Farewell for a little while and I never do that!

 

[WestEgg]

It was my #1 vote for 2018 GOTY:

1. Celeste - I first played Celeste close to when it came out on Switch, and thought it was a very good, very challenging game that would hold me over until more exciting releases that came out this year. Then I kept playing it, and fell in love with the story and soundtrack. Then I decided I would take on the B-Sides and later C-Sides, and became a bit addicted to the challenge. Having at long last conquered Celeste, I was ready to move on. Except I didn't. I kept coming back to this game, bought the soundtrack, kept discussing it on here. Then I saw it on Xbox One, and thought, "You know, I don't typically care for achievements, but I think I'd like the excuse to 100% this game again." So I did. But yeah, Celeste is the only game that I bought twice this year, played to completion twice, and just never left my head. It's the game I show off to friends, the one I post game-play clips to twitter of. It's just a really, really good game. And now I'm buying it a third time for the physical release.

Click to shrink...

 

[jon bones]

My 2018 GOTY - just a purely perfect game in everything it sets out to do.

 

[Lihwem]

Played it for the first time this year.

It is a masterpiece. Level design and platform mechanics are tight and the way the game blends the story into its game design is great.

Click to shrink...

Exactly this indeed. Incredible game.

Not so sure about the Chapter 9 DLC, tho - I started it but couldn't get really far. I feel like, while the main game's level design was all about trying various things to pass a stage and failing at it until you get the right timing/logic, the DLC seems to be more straightforward in terms of figuring out how to pass a stage, but making it really hard to do so, if that makes sense.

I'll probably go back to it at some point, but so far I wasn't as charmed by its game logic as I was from playing the main game.

 

[Holygriever]

I'm not sure why this is a problem when the first half of the level is locked behind chapter 8, which requires clearing 4 b-sides, and the second half is locked behind clearing all of the b-sides. If you can do all that you can probably handle chapter 9.

Click to shrink...

I did not clear all B-sides, no. And you're thinking of Chapter 8, Chapter 9 is the DLC one.

 

[jimboton]

It's a masterpiece.

 

[mindsale]

It's like Super Meat Boy but with an amazing soundtrack and art and a cohesive level integration.

 

[Alastor3]

I dont get why people say it's part story part platforming. Maybe it's because im not very fat away (im at the hotel) but for now it's like 98% platforming, 2% story

 

[LinkStrikesBack]

I did not clear all B-sides, no. And you're thinking of Chapter 8, Chapter 9 is the DLC one.

Click to shrink...

No, they're thinking of chapter 9. Partway through you reach a crystal heart gate that requires beating all the B sides.

It's excellent. Make sure you do the B and C sides and the free DLC as well. What they do with the DLC is so impressive. They teach you advanced mechanics you never have to use in the base game.

Although with that said early on in the DLC there's one part I do think is bad game design where they require you to use a mechanic to beat the screen but they never actually teach you it and just assume you know it. I had to ask in the Era thread what you were supposed to do.

Click to shrink...

Which mechanic/screen is that?

 

[Holygriever]

No, they're thinking of chapter 9. Partway through you reach a crystal heart gate that requires beating all the B sides.

Click to shrink...

Didn't make it that far then. But since I did beat a bunch of screens, that must mean the "first half" isn't locked behind B-Sides then?

 

[RockmanBN]

No, they're thinking of chapter 9. Partway through you reach a crystal heart gate that requires beating all the B sides.

Click to shrink...

You can easily skip the gate doing this

 

[pswii60]

A genuine masterpiece. Love this game so much. Very sad we won't be getting another Celeste.

 

[LinkStrikesBack]

You can easily skip the gate doing this

Click to shrink...

Yes, true, but if you're deep enough in the game to even consider doing that, you've almost certainly already beat the B sides at some point.

Plus if you try and do the second half without at some point beating the B sides, you're going to have a bad time.

Didn't make it that far then. But since I did beat a bunch of screens, that must mean the "first half" isn't locked behind B-Sides then?

Click to shrink...

Yeah, but that's what the person you quoted said. The first half is locked behind chapter 8 (and so consequently a few of the B sides because you need to do some to get past a crystal heart gate there), while the harder chunk is locked behind beating all of the B sides.

 

[Kain-Nosgoth]

one of the best plateformer i ever played, if not the best, regardless of the generation!

yeah it's that good

 

[Hazzuh]

Potentially the best 2D platformer of all time, up there with SMB3. It really feels like the culmination of the new school of platforming level design that the indie scene kicked off in the mid 2000s.

 

[Ramsay]

It's a masterpiece. The level design and how the game introduces and builds on concepts is downright immaculate.

Something about Celeste that goes underappreciated is how it handles accessibility. By having Assist Mode, less skilled players are able to beat the game, while the developers don't have to simplify the level design to make the levels easier (which is an major issue in certain other platformers).

You can easily skip the gate doing this

Click to shrink...

To be fair, you aren't told the technique to skip the gate until the final C-side.

 

[Holygriever]

Yes, true, but if you're deep enough in the game to even consider doing that, you've almost certainly already beat the B sides at some point.

Plus if you try and do the second half without at some point beating the B sides, you're going to have a bad time.



Yeah, but that's what the person you quoted said. The first half is locked behind chapter 8 (and so consequently a few of the B sides because you need to do some to get past a crystal heart gate there), while the harder chunk is locked behind beating all of the B sides.

Click to shrink...

Well then. So there's a bunch of screens before the barrier, and I didn't even beat all of them. Nice.

I guess my frustration comes from feeling pretty good about beating the main game (which is quite hard), but then learning that no, I did not beat Celeste.

Celeste beat me.

 

[Piston]

I dont get why people say it's part story part platforming. Maybe it's because im not very fat away (im at the hotel) but for now it's like 98% platforming, 2% story

Click to shrink...

The gameplay starts getting more and more tied to the story as you go.

 

[malaphorically]

God, did I love this this game. But it's also the game that convinced me joycons were irredeemable as controllers lol

 

[In Amber Clad]

Yeah, it's pretty good.

 

[scare_crow]

Great game. Fun mechanics but I thought the story was way too on the nose and a little cloying to be effective.

 

[The Main Event]

Did all chapters. All C-Sides. It's a classic.

 

[ajszenk]

One of my favorite games of all time. It's a masterpiece in my eyes

 

[Lobster Roll]

Extremely happy for you OP. Always happy when another person decides to give the game a try and gets to experience the GOAT platformer for themselves. It's platforming perfection, and it's a game that respects the player's ability to fail, learn, and conquer. It's my go-to palate cleanser when I just want to play a "pick up and play" game. I'm a little jealous that you get to experience it for the first time. If anybody is reading this thread has not played it for themselves, drop everything and buy this game today. Oh, and wear headphones when you play.

 

[LinkStrikesBack]

Well then. So there's a bunch of screens before the barrier, and I didn't even beat all of them. Nice.

I guess my frustration comes from feeling pretty good about beating the main game (which is quite hard), but then learning that no, I did not beat Celeste.

Celeste beat me.

Click to shrink...

Just keep in mind that Chapter 9 is meant to be super hard. It was released at a point where the game had been out for months and a lot of people who would have been the target audience for it would have already well completed all the B sides

I wouldn't worry about not clearing all of Celeste's content. Basically nobody would. The game just keeps ramping up the difficulty challenges until virtually nobody will beat it. To put that in context, to access the final bonus screen of the game you have to clear chapter 9 in a single go without dying outside of one screen where you have to die to proceed. I didn't get that far either.

Personally I ducked out at the step before before that at the bonus strawberry challenges including moon berry.

 

[Petruccis Biceps]

Once you beat the game, try the B and C sides! Thats when the game elevates to another(sometimes frustrating) level. But its satisfying when you beat those.

 

[HardRojo]

Bought it a few weeks ago during a sale on Switch, will play it this weekend for sure after I finish Yakuza 0.
Are there any other interesting Metroidvania games one can play on Switch (or PS4 as well)?

 

[Scruffy8642]

Honestly didn't like the game much while doing the story mode. But got totally hooked once the platforming got tighter on the B and then C sides. Chapter 7 C side really pushed me to my limits, but my god chapter 9. One of the hardest things I've ever done in a game for sure. That was like 13 hours of brutal platforming straight. Took me a week playing a few hours every day, and I injured my thumb from pressing jump and dash so much haha. I think it's the only time I've ever injured myself playing video games lol.

 

[Mirage]

Bought it a few weeks ago during a sale on Switch, will play it this weekend for sure after I finish Yakuza 0.
Are there any other interesting Metroidvania games one can play on Switch (or PS4 as well)?

Click to shrink...

Hollow Knight is the big one if you haven't played that before.

 

[laxu]

I got through the main story but I don't want to ever play it again. Not touching B or C sides. I find games like this just too frustrating to play.

 

[HardRojo]

Hollow Knight is the big one if you haven't played that before.

Click to shrink...

Ah yeah that one too. Does it have established levels or is it similar to Dead Cells? I got Dead Cells but dropped it because I don't really enjoy the procedural style games.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

As others have said, it is an absolute masterpiece and one of the only games that has gotten an emotional response out of me.