celeste - 10/10
this just in: transgender fem-leaning individual enjoys celeste
i'm a transgender woman. i could quite easily just say that and leave the review at that, but genuinely, the enforcement that this gave me was so critical to me being more open about myself, and more accepting of the fact that i am only human and have flaws and insecurities. i truly learned more from theo than i did from my whole family in my entire life. everything about this game screams out to me, thematically. it is such a wonderful story to experience, even if it isn't mandatory to understanding or enjoying the game.
no, rather, i found myself entranced by the plot due to my personal stake in it and identification with it. the true 5-star worthy point here is the utterly butterly gameplay. i have never experienced a game that makes me feel like i am completely understanding of each of my actions, each pixel of my movement, and yet still maintaining such a high availability of options. the dash is, whilst a small thing on paper, such a genius mechanic. whether it's utilised as an actual tool in the level design, or if you're using crouch dashes, it alone constitutes the five stars, being frank. but there's even more tech; tech that i'm still learning about!
this review is technically being made prior to my beating of the full game. i got to the peak; i am yet to complete the core, or the b or c sides. but you know what? i intend to. i fully, 100% intend to get that done. i wish to dedicate time to showing the respect for this game that it deserves for showing me that the art of the platformer is alive and well, and that even if something is hard as balls, it can still mean the world to you and not evoke your ire. this is my favourite 2d platformer ever, period. it's not even close to a contest.
