Understanding Celeste | A Reading of a Masterpiece
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 พ.ค. 2024
- Celebrating three years of Celeste, we take a deep dive into its themes and narrative to compile a comprehensive guide for interpreting this mountain allegory in your very own personal way. From anxiety and depression to the inner self and trans issues, there's bound to be a little bit of something for everyone to latch onto in this modern classic.
Guest voices performed by:
Scott from NerdSync - / nerdsyncproductions
Casey Explosion - / caseyexplosion
00:00 We're Going to Canada
05:03 Mountain Allegory
14:43 Forsaken City
19:01 Old Site
24:15 Celestial Resort
29:25 Golden Ridge
34:10 Mirror Temple
43:19 Reflection
52:06 The Summit and Beyond
59:48 Reading Celeste
1:04:35 The Trans Lens
1:09:31 Conclusion
1:13:31 Patreon Credits
PATREON: / transparens
TWITTER: / transparencyboo
#Celeste #Canada #Explained
Nugget for the algorithm:
CELESTE EXPLAINED WHAT IT MEANS THE ULTIMATE FAN THEORY ABOUT ALL THE LORE COULD BADELINE BE MADELINE BUT DIFFERENT?!
LIKE FAVORITE AND SUBSCRIBE IF YOU WANNA SEE THE VIDEO ABOUT WHY MARIO CAN JUMP SO HIGH - เกม
Celeste is so friggin cool, I wish Canada was real
Me too... me too
If only,,
I live in Alberta that's close to Canada hehe
@@gabeplay8179yep and I live near Narnia
@@gabeplay8179that's like saying I live in London, that's close to Narnia 😂😂
The analysis of the structure of Celeste was really cool, as was the emphasis on the ways the game allows for multiple readings. I'm so glad Canada isn't real.
...And now Celeste 2 is real!
Glad you enjoyed it, makes it all worth it. We were actually a bit worried that the Pico8 Celeste 2 thing would invalidate anything we said here, but turns out it didn't, haha. Vidicating!
I needed a reminder that Canada isn’t real
As a canadian, I can confirm that canada isn't real
As a "Canadian", I can confirm that there is no real country here, it's just a comically oversized icecube.
My reading of Badeline was that she's not a representation of Madeline's problems, her mental illness, or the bad parts of her. In my opinion, Badeline represents all the parts of Madeline that *she sees* as bad, the parts of her that *she herself* doesn't like. Admittedly it's a subtle distinction but an important one. It's a bit unfortunate how catchy "Badeline" is as a name, because the game's text is careful to never actually call her bad.
This is probably why exok never made the name “badeline” canon. They didn’t see her as an evil version of madeline, but as an actual piece of Madeline that she can’t just get rid of. Which I’m now realizing is exactly what chapter 6 ends with.
Say it louder for the people in the back ❤
Madaline and Badaline are both toxic at the start of the game. However, they grow to work together and respond in more healthy ways to the people around them😍
I love that message from a system perspective because there's no magic "good" or "bad" parts of a brain. Just brains doing brain things and sometimes we can work to make those things our brain does better for everyone ❤
@@Cassoosted_Fuper Actually Badeline is the canon name I'm pretty sure - it's on the steam cards and used by developers when referring to her, but it's not mentioned in-game. I think it makes sense if we imagine Madeline naming her when first meeting her. Originally Madeline rejects and struggles to accept that Badeline is part of her, and sees her as her dark reflection (and so it makes sense for her to call her Badeline), and it's only in chapter 6 when she embraces Badeline that she first accepts her as part of herself
She’s also referred as Madedevil in one post
As a trans person, learning she was trans wasn’t like when Harry Potter characters got rewritten as gay, it was something so great to hear because I finally knew why I felt connected to her
It is a lot more understandable too considering Maddy Thorson themself. The Harry Potter thing is just J.K putting in shit afterwards without any real connection to it, while Maddy is indeed trans and explored that side of themselves during and after the development of the game. It is quite personal and an analysis of the game they made which is really cool to see.
Dumbledore was always gay, did you read the books?
Honestly I think it's cool that Madeline ended up being trans but it is an example of a character being rewritten, so yeah
@@lukeshioshio i genuinely can't tell if you are joking or not
@@pew6534 which part? Because Dumbledore is clearly gay in the seventh book and Madeline was rewritten as trans for the farewell DLC according to Maddy herself
So in other words you pick and choose so you fit in with the crowd instead of doing the right thing?
Among many otger thoughts : Celeste is how you do a protagonist meant for the player to identify with. NOT having a blank slate that is either super boring, or people will read the characters from the few bits of personality that couldn't be suppressed from the animations and shouts.
What are the rest of the otger thoughts
This!!
Blank slates are less relatable (particularly when you have less customisation) because any imagined personality they have cannot be reflected in the game, and they just look like a chronically quiet person, which IS ITSELF a distinct characterisation. People relate to people, not people shaped objects
rewatching this video and once again losing my shit at "this memorial dedicated to those who perished on the climb", especially from the context of a trans reading 😭😭😭
:(
Omg I never thought of that
Yeah, it hits so fucking hard
Holy shit. I just opened my eyes, and this makes so much sense. Thank you for waking me up.
this instantly made me cry
Playing Celeste during the confusing "not really sure" part of my own transition, and then reading Maddy's blog post right after I sorted things out gives me a definite lean towards the trans reading, but I love how open ended this game is to each person's unique struggles.
Thank you for the thoughtful analysis, I need to go play the summit level again now.
And thank you too for sharing with us! Glad you liked our video :)
You know, as a red-haired woman with anxiety and depression, I found it incredibly easy to see myself in Madeline's shoes. It felt so much like this game was tailor-made for me that it never before occurred to me the effort that went into making the story widely applicable and letting the game speak personally to a wide variety of people. All this to say, great video, very thought-provoking, and I will definitely be checking out more of your videos, partially because it is very entertaining to hear this sweet-sounding Swedish lady suddenly drop hard curses out of nowhere.
That final "You can do this." made me tear up. Thank you for putting into words so many of the things I had bouncing around my head about this game, and especially the things that I didn't think about myself. 🏳️⚧️🍓💕
Glad we could move you so genuinely 🧡
this like my 80th celeste analysis video and I always love listening to how it influenced people
It's a rad little game~
It seems to be literally *designed* to be readable from any perspective. Different people will see different things, and you can see other's perspectives by using it as a lens.
Celeste really is such a beautiful game, and I'm glad that it was able to help so many people.
To whoever is reading this, good luck, I hope that you have/will figure everything out. Remember, we're right here with you.
Celeste is too relatable, just hearing someone talk about it is gonna make me cry again. I played it first around the beginning of my own self discovery, finding out I'm trans, and this game has been very important to me and my transition. I will probably get the flying strawberry as my first tattoo
That would be a really rad tattoo! :O
good idea
@@exylophone1 I literally got the tattoo just over a week ago lol
@@Transparencyboo I got it and I love it
@@BC1ZM3 that's awesome!! ♥️
Maybe the real Celeste was the Badelines we made along the way.
this comment is meaningless, but don't tell the algorithms. They won't know the difference in engagement.
There's like four Badelines chasing you, that's a lot of Celestes!
I never knew that Theo's sister was named Alex but I knew Madeline's name and my first save file was called Alex so when Theo said his sister was called Madeline I was confused
I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WAS A THING
omg what an easteregg
He calls her Maddy, and I'm fairly certain that's a reference to Maddy Thorson as well as Madeline herself
@@cheese0827 I doubt it, Maddy thorson wasn't publicly out as trans at the point the game originally came out and was still going by Matt, although it's possible, I doubt it
@@orangenal it works in retrospect tho
Gotta say I wasn't ever expecting to see Shadow the Hedgehog held up (even jokingly) as any kind of Badeline analogue. TWICE.
Not sure whether to say 'bravo' or 'how dare you!'
Why not both, haha!
This is criminally underrated, this is the best reading/video essay I've seen on Celeste out there, and totally worth the 1+ hour watch. Hope y'all blow up and get the recognition you deserve!
Wow, thank you so much! This kind of praise Always gets to us, really humbling and nice to see. We want to believe that our stuff, while niché, does have enough quality to where we could get somewhere with this TH-cam business. And with viewers like yourself supporting and sharing what we do we are hopeful for the future!
This is definitely worth the watch!
Even after playing through all of the Celeste, almost completing it to all 100% and watching a bunch of reviews, I still found out new cool stuff about the wonderful storytelling and worldbuilding of Celeste!
This video is vastly underrated and I can't express that through text. Thanks for this lil' journey of a video Transparency team!
i accidentally deleted my celeste file today, but im kind of excited to start over
Heck yeah! For this video alone we played it several times, more than 30 hours actually.
Hello, thanks for checking out our hour long extravaganza of this lovely game. If you enjoy it and want to see more from us, then you can support us on patreon, which also gives you access to our Discord and you'll have your name appear in new videos; www.patreon.com/transparens
We also want to emphasize that this video was actually endorsed by Maddy Thorson on twitter as well. We might have made Maddy cry, oops!
Nya? Cry? What happened there?
@@Arumia13 She loved the video and she was really moved by it :) ♥️
*sounds of me slowly sliding down the mountain, hitting every tree on the way down*
Okay no but seriously, really good stuff. This is exactly the kind of content I subscribed for. Heck yes.
Glad you liked it! Hope the fall didn't hurt too much.
I love how even in the mirror temple, the way to move forward is to understand and direct the nameless monsters within.
Great video! I loved how you pointed out and fleshed out the importance of the ambiguity of Madeline's journey, which then allows more people to connect with it. I know I got quite emotional during my first playthrough precisely because I was graphing my own internal struggles onto her character.
It's a really neat mix of subtle and explicit, most people probably don't even notice that it felt so personal because of projection. We love that about Celeste.
"Who sets out to climb Celeste mountain, set in the fictional country of Canada."
Canada, my favorite fictional country from South park.
I wish Canada was real
Celeste is one of my favorite games
It's so my favorite I took Madeline's name as my own when I transitioned lmao
That's really sweet
That's really nice :)
Yo same! There’s probably quite a few of us lol
I was thinking of doing that too, currently thinking if I change my name it'll either be changed to kate or madeline
That’s great I can’t relate though.
1:05:17 THANK YOU!!! I've been pointing out that the imagery in the advertisements are Silent Hill-like nightmare images manifested to hurt the protagonist, and the trans stuff was really obvious from Chapter 1.
Yeah, everything in the game is intently designed and put in it. If you just step back and consider that someone sat down and drew those posters to be in the game, it feels very obvious in perspective.
As a trans person who hadn't realized I was trans when I played Celeste, in hindsight it's all really obvious lmao
This is such a detailed , nuanced and well-thought-out analysis. The reminder that progress isn't linear and message about embracing every part of yourself made me sob.
Glad we could make you feel those feels, friend. And thank you for the kind words. No matter how long they are we put so much work and effort into these videos, and these kinds of comments make it all worth it!
I remember i first played Celeste when i was experiencing the worst anxiety i had ever experienced and it helped to have a game almost sum up exactly what i was going through in one beautiful package. this video is a welcome one and it was made just as well as all your others
Huge relate, Kiki played the game during one of her most intense anxiety periods and it hit her so hard we kinda ended up with this passion project video a couple years later, haha.
I'm wondering, is the game triggering for the mental health stuff, or is it sympathetic to players when it evokes that stuff. I get depressed/suicidal/anxious from many of the games touted for being about mental health. They often do these highly triggering mental illness spectacles, and only afterwards maybe do some coping or sympathy scenes.
@@michelottens6083 I’m not sure, myself, but I felt it steadily escalates to give you time to process and prepare for the climax. It doesn’t jump from hours of subtlety to sudden intensity. It’s more like bursts of conflict and rest. You might see it as a calm before the storm, but you can also feel reassured that after the storm is another calm.
@@JaggerG Ooh thanks for clarifying
I tend to have a slightly different reading of Celestial Resort. From my experience with it I think it's a lot less about comparing Madeline and Oshiro and showcasing a worst case scenario for her (although that is definitely still part of the idea behind the chapter) and a lot more about showing Oshiro as one of the most damaging individuals a person like Madeline can come across in her self actualization journey, Oshiro is a toxic mentally unwell relationship.
I find that, under this reading, the thesis statement of the chapter becomes " Forcing yourself to fight the mental health battles of someone who is not only worse off than you but who actively damages your own well being can only lead to BOTH of you getting dragged down and stagnating together". The first piece of evidence for this reading would be the fact that you quite literally have to clean his mess up on his behalf, Madeline is allegorically halting her own recovery and by that logic ultimately damaging her own mental health because she is forcing herself to help a person who is dramatically worse than her, resulting in the indulgence of Oshiro's delusions while also again, stalling Madeline's progress.
I know this can be contentious for some people but I do believe that Celeste is trying to tell the player that this is not ok, that you should not sacrifice your own mental health to help someone who is doing worse than you, especially when they are very directly damaging and toxic ( Oshiro never quite shows behavior that could be considered abusive or even toxic but I do believe the mere act of holding Madeline in the resort translates into the general idea of mentally handicapping and damaging her as long as we read the climb up the mountain, and by that extent the action of making progress in general as the very act as healing and coming to terms with your mental illnesses).
I believe this is also supported by Theo's inclusion in the chapter, unlike your reading, where Theo is just ignorant of the issue and labels Oshiro as a literal old crazy cook, i tend to read Theo a lot more as a voice of reason (even if veiled behind his snarky jokey comments), so to me Theo saying Oshiro is crazy, beyond saving and in need of help that Madeline cannot give him is not him behind dismissive of Oshiro's issues, it's Theo being very much aware of them, enough to know that only very serious professional help can actually change Oshiro for the better, and that both him and Madeline would be doing nothing but damage themselves by attempting to help him. In this reading his final line to Madeline in this chapter is much more meaningful, " Take care of yourself" is the most succinct form of the entire idea behind the chapter, "You're not well, you need to take care of yourself before you take care of someone else, especially someone as toxic and parasitic as Oshiro". Now all of this is obviously said in a very harsh way, but I do think its more of a product of Theo's character and personality and not necessarily the way the game thinks this situation should be handled.
Finally we have the fact that at the end of the game when Mad and Bad are talking to each other about Oshiro, Madeline ends up being the one who gives Badeline credit, she recognizes now that they had to get out of that hotel and that Oshiro was a toxic person who would have dragged her down with him and halted her healing, while making sure to establish that even if taking a stance and leaving was necessary, it was not right to blow up on Oshiro the way she did, regardless of how much damage he may have done to Madeline's journey.
TLDR: I believe resort is about toxic relationships, specifically with people with similar (but dramatically worse) mental health issues to your, and how trying to go out of your way to help these kinds of people is dangerous and frequently leads to not only the toxic person in question not getting any better, but also to your own mental health issues worsening as a result of the stress that comes with managing the anxiety of someone else. Remember that you are not a therapist, it is not your job to fix people, there are professionals who can do that for you, you do not need to sacrifice yourself to help someone who damages you, if they refuse to get help and better themselves, you can leave, its not your fault and you are not a bad person for it, you're just doing the best thing for both of you.
I wholeheartedly agree with you. I've been in a codependent relationship before, where I tried to take care of a severely mentally ill person, ending up wasting a lot of my own energy massively harming my own mental health while not being able to make the person feel any better about themselves. So this chapter of the game hit me really hard. Ironically I had a friend at that time who hugely reminds me of Theo, who would repeatedly tell me: "their mental health is not your responsibility. They need to seek professional help." And I think Theo is very much right on this, and the opposite of ignorant.
@@LiliaGrundt Same thing here, i think the reason this reading became so evident to me was because i was in that exact same situation you're describing, replaying resort and being faced with something so familiar made it crystal clear and even helped me come to terms with the toxic person i had to leave behind.
I hope you recovered well from that relationship and are doing better, have a good day.
"Toughness and fragility are deeply interconnected". Beautifully said.
I have this imaginary definition of what is "normal" and whenever I stray from that norm, I have a hard time telling anyone, even if it's something really simple. But the reality is, you are you, he is he, she is she, they is they, I am I, everyone is unique, and no-one should worry about opening up to other people about their own peculiarities, because everyone has them, It's a signature, a fingerprint, everyone has them and yet they are all unique, so trying to hide your oddities is just trying to hide who you are. Everyone is different, and should not be ashamed to reveal their own identity.
What is normal anyway, right? It all depends. Gotta stay true to yourself in the end.
I played the original Celeste back when it was new, because I got in early on PICO--8 from buying one of the first Humble Bundles that had Voxatron. The indie scene has changed so much since then. It makes me happy to see how far this game has come, and I really feel that bit towards the end about the Fangamer merch. I bought the Celeste scarf that was "coincidentally" trans pride colors and pinned it around the frame of my mirror :p
That scarf is great, we only bring it out for special occasions and have to fight over who gets to wear it, haha!
god when the video essay hits.......
thank you for this, celeste has really helped me through quite a lot of significant changes in my life, among those being one of the toughest I've ever faced before. I kind of realized I was trans myself around when celeste came out (haha)! This analysis is quite thorough and genuine, as well as being entertaining to follow along and listen to. Thank you so much!
Aw, thank you too. Celeste certainly has a lot to give, and people seem to discover things about themselves through it quite a bit. Glad it could help you too!
I know that Maddy may not have known that Madelin was trans during development, but I feel like that subconsciously showed through by the choice of color palette of like... 70% of the game. The sky blue and pink are EVERYWHERE in the game.
I was blown away by how strongly this game affected me emotionally when I played it. I've struggled greatly with depression my entire life, and I can't think of any other piece of media that visualized how I've felt more strongly than Celeste had. The struggle between difficulty and perseverance is what has drawn me to the souls games(and why my wife doesn't understand my draw to them) and obviously mirrors my feelings towards daily life in general.
To be fair, the blue-pink sky is generally a thing during dawn and sunset (which are themselves fitting allegories - like the last stage being a new dawn), and it is indeed beautiful. In fact, that's one of the reasons the trans flag was chosen to be what it is, because it's appealing to look al.
my favourite part of celeste's level design is how often the scary things provide the solution for moving forward ( bouncing on oshiro, scary monsters, etc)
nice pfp
Wow, you managed to not only make a relaxing and informative video, but make it about a game I have never played, and you held my attention for 75 minutes! The narration and writing is great, and the little jokes keep it light-hearted and fun. Great job!
PS. the cake looked delicious
Thank you! You should really try Celeste if you get the chance, because it is quite awesome to play. And oh, yeah, the cake was freaking delicious!
I'm yet another trans girl heavily influenced by this game and i want to say how heartwarming it is seeing so many similar shared experiences from other trans people in these comments
Nice pfp
@@OlmsAreCool2009 ty c:
Just when I thought the game couldn't get more magical after beating it, dying 1000 times lolz, and having a flaming dpad thumb that can burn a hole through kissingers azz cancer...
I come here to see wonderful comments like yours. It's a cruel crappy world for the most part if you ask me... But there are parts of this world that are truly wonderful. Thanks for being that part. It's very comforting to see comments like yours : )
I'm some dooder. Not a trans person. So I can't relate to Madeline as much as you, but I felt like I related to Theo a lot. Just trying to find meaning in this crazy world. And when she saves his life, he finds it. That 3rd selfie was HUGE for me. He made a great friend in that moment. And so did she. I cried a lil ngl lolz. Two lost souls looking for meaning and they found each other. It's beautiful! They better stay friends forever lolz.
Game really makes you feel like you can take on the world. It truly is something special.
More games like this amiright???!?!?!?!?!?
I decided to replay Celeste recently. After beating the first stage, I looked upon the gravestone with fresh eyes.
"This memorial is dedicated to those who perished on the climb."
If Celeste is a game about the transgender experience, then I shouldn't need to tell you why I dropped my controller in shock.
I have played plenty of horror games. I've been chased through gothic hallways, battled hordes of zombies and gazed into the heart of darkness. Yet those twelve words strike more fear and sadness in me than all of them combined.
If you're reading this, keep going. It's OK, remember? You can do this.
you just made me cry
Oh shit I never thought about it like that
Celeste has honestly helped me come to terms with who i am, it's okay to just be who you are, it's also very relatable with the anxiety and depression etc, and i honestly believe you put it near perfectly here, thank your for making this, was a great analysis of this game.
Shared on the official Celeste Discord! This is one of the best Celeste videos I've ever seen. Period. It's just that good.
Thanks, friend!
i just beat this game for the 4th time and i gotta say, i wish strawberries were real
I'd imagine they'd be delicious
make that 5
I think for me reflection hit me incredibly hard because I was of the same mind as Madeline. I literally thought "letting go" of Badeline was the logical conclusion of that internal struggle, and when she threw me down to the base of the mountain I was completely distraught with the loss of progress and the dread of having to start all over again, to the point where I thought maybe I made a mistake and didn't do the feather minigame right. And then when Madeline finally confronts and embraces this part of herself, I felt so empowered by the "level up", like I was unstoppable. This game perfectly translated these struggles and emotions in a way that I as the player could feel them, and that is incredibly special.
so, if persona 4 were a platformer?
Celeste just portrayed what it is like to be trans, the reason why it may seem non-existent is simply because in actuality being trans is nothing special or unique, it is just another part of life and not a declaration of an ideal that we show everywhere we go.
It's almost as if trans people are just human beings like you and me, amirite?
@@costelinha1867 yea :)
@@costelinha1867 Well said. Sad that this must be aggressively explained to those who obviously want to pick fights with people that they know they can't win.
celeste truly does hit different
Hard hitting as all hell!
That point about there always being something new definitely delivers, haha. Just now noticed that the language select also puts Portuguese under the flag of Brazil, reflecting one of the core staff members and also Theo's cultural heritage (as hinted by an Instagram pic).
Kiki is so cool.
Madeline being trans gives the dialogue “won’t removing that ~Part of you~ hurt you?”
Another meaning
True
I was already out as a trans woman before playing Celeste, but I definitely related to the anxiety and trans themes the most. Especially the "my other self in the mirror" thing. I completely forgot about the "I'm not photogenic" though. Yeah that's a pretty trans thing.
In consuming the content Celeste provides, I was digging in with a shovel and pickaxe, while you came in with a fucking excavator. Super insightful way to get even more out of one of my favorite ways to die repeatedly for fun.
Gotta get the right tools for the job 😎
This is the best metaphor I’ve ever seen
The part with assist mode literally represented me ~10 rooms or a bit more after "Empty Space". At least i beat a half of farewell and 1-7 b-sides...
There is no shame in it either. That shit is hard, haha.
This video is amazing, and I'm immensely proud of the two of you for producing it. I only got around to playing Celeste last fall, and coincidentally it was not long after my own diagnosis with generalized anxiety and depression and the game really spoke to me on those two fronts. Another thing I took from it, something you had mentioned in passing, was confronting regret, and how difficult that can be with the added complications of anxiety and depression.
I've been considering making a video on Celeste as well! Hopefully I can do it as much justice as y'all have done. Great work!
The more Celeste content the better. And thanks, really glad you liked it so much! :D
I said this once, I've said it many times and ill say it again:
"Celeste is not a game, it is a therapy session in the form of a video game"
I paid for this cool soundtrack and I got therapy for free
This channel is criminally underrated
Clearly a lot of people should be in jail right about now.
I haven't finished the video, but for me Theo being able to be there already and who seem to struggle less makes sense if his metaphor is being a friend that is more healthy mentally. "His" mountain is easier to climb than madeline, his mountain is in fact probably literally easier if the mountain is a representation of struggles. He is in advance not because he is a "better climber" but just because his mountain is less impossible to climb.
Theo is good ally though, more than "shaming" Madeline for taking that long/struggling to climb, he is more impress by how much effort she does to make it.
Yeah, we absolutely agree with this!
Fantastic analysis of one of my favorite games ever. Y'all are really good at knowing when to be funny (you are really funny) and knowing when to dial it back and be real. Can't wait to see what y'all cover next!
Thanks, we are glad that our writing style works for people. We usually don't want to do big long skits and things like that, it is better to try to implement the funny bits in the actual points. Visual gags are a lot of fun to us too, hehe. Hope you'll enjoy whatever we got planned next :)
Me, literally on the last screen of the Summit's C-side: "Pretty sure I already got all the plot events so it should be fine to watch this."
58:04
_"GOD DAMN IT"_
We we'ren't kidding with the spoiler warning in the beginning, we were veeeeery thorough with this one. I hope you'll manage anyway
I feel Badeline is the parts Madeline doesn't like about herself, as she said "I get mad at people on the internet" is represented in Badeline getting angry very often (like when yelling at Oshiro), and of course, the insecurities Madeline has, like Badeline trying to dissuade Madeline from mountain climbing, because she's scared, she's insecure basically, and doubts herself
Understanding "Understanding Celeste | A Reading of a Masterpiece" | A Reading of a Masterpiece. La meilleure vidéo à propos de Celeste que j'ai vu de ma vie.
Gosh, thank you. That's some high praise!
Thank you so much for making this reading through Celeste's story. I, like many people, have anxiety while also being an empath. There were times were I had trouble understanding what I was feeling and was in a dark headspace that made me not wanting to leave my parents' house. Two years ago, I played Celeste, thinking it was another game for me to enjoy, and I got SO much more than that. I really connected with Madeline for I live inside my head, too (Having a Super Ego, as well, named Glichär). From Chapter 1 to Farewell, this game gave me the strength to finally move past my mental strife. After two years, I got a job, patched broken bridges with my sister and I'm pretty happy where I am at. So every May, whenever I can, I have myself a Celeste-versary, to try out new things about the game and to celebrate this game. I even got to try Speedrunning the game, which was certainly unique experience (I only got Sub Hour 40 on my second attempt). But what I am the happiest about is the community that spawn from this game, from general discussion to Speedrunners. As my final thought; Thank You, to everyone Maddy and the Extremely Okay Games team, the Speedrun community, Transparecy, and everyone that is involved with this small game. Thank you for the laughter, the sorrow, and the chance for better outlook, one where we want to reach new heights.
(57:50 - 58:02 also I FEEL CALLED OUT)
To me, "Part of You" reads less to me as a manifestation of Madeline's anxiety, depression, or any other specific mental disorder and more as her "negative" emotions in general. Fear, sadness, anger, pain, etc. Which is why I refuse to use the name "Badeline" - because those emotions aren't negative, they are, very much, a part of you. They are, in moderation, healthy. Fear tells us things are dangerous and to be avoided, sadness communicates our discontent to others, anger motivates us to seek change, etc. Fear of everything is crippling anxiety. Inconsolable grief can be crippling. A blind rage can cause us to hurt those we love. But these negatives come from these emotions being in excess. By and large, these emotions don't feel good, we don't enjoy feeling them...but that doesn't make them bad when they're doing their job properly.
To me, the mirror creatures are more apt as a manifestation of Madeline's mental disorders. In some ways, they are the same as "Part of You" but warped beyond recognition. Anxiety isn't just fear, it's a constant that worms its way through your every waking moment. Depression isn't just sadness, it's a black hole that drags everything in leaving you cold and apathetic. The mirror creatures aren't just "Part of you", they're that but warped into eldritch monsters.
In a way, after the fall, when we finally confront "Part of You" directly, she morphs from just a darker side of Madeline. Her hair goes from a palette shift of Madeline's to something that more resemples those medusa-head like serpents of the mirror creatures. "Part of You" at her most destructive begins to resemble the mirror creatures, just like how a person who's genuinely terrified - feeling an extreme form of normal fear - can begin to resemble someone with anxiety, can begin to break down and lose control.
(Oh, and yeah, if you're wondering why I'm picking up on the anxiety and depression angle of things rather than body dysphoria or alcoholism or post-breakup recovery or any other reading that resonates with you, this is not me trying to say your reading is wrong. This is me, as someone who probably has some degree of anxiety and depression (probably as in "I can't afford a therapist and thus don't have a formal diagnosis but the symptoms line up all too well"), resonating with those particular themes. I don't suffer from dysphoria, more than 2 beers in a day is my standard of heavy drinking (for myself), I'm aro...the anxiety/depression reading is the one that hit, and it hit *hard,* so that's the one that forms my understanding of the game.) (Oh, and if anyone is wondering, no, Madeline being trans doesn't change any of that. In my eyes, she's a person who has anxiety and depression and happens to be trans. Those things can be related - not like the world has been exactly great for trans folks of late - but it doesn't have to be. The game doesn't go into assigning specific causes, and it doesn't need to. Honestly, it's probably more relatable because it doesn't.)
You people are criminally underrated. I found your channel because of this video. After playing through the main story of celeste and craving a deeper reading of the main story, this was the only analysis I have found that satisfied me. All of your videos that I've seen so far have been incredibly entertaining, thought provoking, and insightful. Thank you for being awesome!
I will never forget when I first played this game it made me so angry I almost broke my Nintendo Switch. I dropped the game at chapter 8 and absolutely hated the game.
A couple years later I saw the game on sale on steam and somewhat forgot I already played it until a short time after purchasing it. Or at least that's how I remember it going, unimportant. I remember being so stressed after remembering how angry and hard this game was for me. I had thought I had moved on from my anger problems but it wasn't true, I had pushed it down and ignored it like it didn't exist and through that I had begun to experience more issues.
But as I began to play the game yet again, I saw the game in a different lens and began to really enjoy the game. The movement, the characters, the music, the graphics and the story. I was absolutely gushing over the game and it is my favorite 2D platformer it is by far non the best feeling 2D Platformer game ever.
As I went on in the game I began to relate to Madeline so much, as I pushed aside my anger issues more issues began to become more present as I pushed those down as well I began to realize the situation I was truly in. I had tried to do therapy but I didn't want to do it, I didn't want help I just wanted to ignore the fact it happened and go on with my life like the heart in chapter two that is what I wanted. And this game was one of the things in my life that made me realize that it is not good to do that at all. And a short time after I had pushed myself to get a therapist a couple months later after truly finishing the game.
Sometime after beating the main game and finally beating the (what I thought) final level of the game was, but I was surprised when I beat it and saw the 9th stage and moved on for that day. After watching some videos on how to beat some things so I began to have things recommended to me such as an article titled: "Celeste is a Trans Allegory". At that point I didn't really even realize what a trans was so I googled it and realized what it was. I thought it was kinda weird but moved on and continued moving on with the game, but the thought lived in my head and further relating with it. But like everything else I pushed it down and beat the game fully.
After beating the game I began to grow more depressed and anxious, and not really understanding why. And then (obviously) I began to push that down too and acted like everything was fine and eventually I made myself believe I was fine when I really wasn't. I didn't take what I learned from the game and apply it to my life. And somewhere in between I think I found what was wrong, or at least a contributing factor. I began to grow unhappy with myself, I didn't like how I looked and began growing envious of everyone around me (well not EVERYONE but you get my point.) But I ignored it and moved on saying that there is no point I couldn't be how I wanted to be and I was stuck the way I was. Then I began to browse reddit casually for some cool art and stumbled across a trans subreddit and began to immediately relate with a lot of the posts on there. It was extremely eye opening, but also downright terrifying. Me being trans would be drastically detrimental to the friendships I have and I would lose a lot of them because of it. I began to sink into even more depression and dysphoria now not being my ideal self image I had in my head. But my therapist helped me see that if they don't accept me for who I may be then they really aren't my friends in the first place.
I would never wish any of the problems I have on anyone, but I am doing better nowadays. I don't really know who I am still, if I am cis or a transfem or something else but it's always comforting to know that this game is always here for me if I need it. Thanks Transparency team for your video.
And thank you for sharing! :)
omg the editing of this video is soooo good! every scene of madeline illustrates the point being talked about! I love it!
and it's so funny too! the getting ahead of myself joke cracked me up
celeste was definitely the initial push i needed, the prologue of my mountain. now i'm kinda stuck in my mirror temple though. it sure is a long chapter. and a painful one.
You can do this
Remember, use the feather, and breathe.
@@cheese0827 My thumb is on fire. 1000 deaths to beat this game. And I don't regret it!!!
I have watched this essay about four times now. I think it has become a comfort video. :P
Glad we could be source for comfort. 🧡
Same, I watch this video while doing art and it’s amazing
This youtube channel is criminally underrated. I have wanted to start a TH-cam channel that gives a highly analytical dissection of a game. Most of the popular channels like Razbuten and Leadhead that do analysis of games contain a lot of introspection. While I find that appealing, I also enjoy watching a video that feels like an English dissertation: no-frills and straight-to-the-point analysis. Your editing skills are great and the writing was eloquent. I agree with all of the points made in this video. Celeste is one of my favourite games and you've really hit the nail on the head. I'm playing it for the second time and a lot has changed in my life since I played it in 2018 when I was 14. Long story short, I have a lot more responsibilities and pressures so I can relate more so to Madeleine's inner conflict. I felt more like Theo in my original playthrough. I was an aimless team who didn't know what to do with my life. I had heart and I cared for others but didn't know my 'purpose'. Now I do (it's medicine, btw).
Ludonarrative Harmony. This term is one that is so overused and ubiquitous in video games journalism that it has kind of lost all meaning. It's thrown onto any fps game that has a badass player character that shows no remorse. (This is the part where I say but, and yes, I am going to say it) . But I have to mention how this game, at least to me, deserves this title more than any other game. It takes the mountain climbing allegory and applies it to platforming video games. A perfect combination! Just as the difficult, will-sucking gameplay amplifies the themes of struggle, determination, anxiety and depression so too do the themes, characters and soundtrack amplify the gameplay!
Lastly, I wanted to mention something that dives into the realm of microanalysis. It's something that, as soon as I realised it, seemed so obvious. I mean, it stares you right in the face the whole time you play. Madeleine's hair colour! It changes throughout gameplay when Madeleine uses her dash (changing from red to blue). I'm probably grasping at straws here but I think this is an interesting interpretation, even if it wasn't intentional by the devs. I have a friend that, when they are struggling with their identity, like to feel and look at their hair. they also change their hair colour frequently to feel more like themself when they're going through a particularly tough time or struggling with their identity. Perhaps the frequent change in Madeleine's hair, although caused by the magical Celeste mountain, could be symbolic of her identity crisis and anxiety. She struggles to look in the mirror. There's also the fact that Madeleine is a trans woman and perhaps is going through a kind of dysphoria throughout her climb. Her hair constantly switching between masculine and feminine pink and blue could suggest she is still questioning her gender identity. it is only at the end of the game when her hair colour changes completely to a new pink that we haven't seen before. A colour that is traditionally associated with women. This could suggest that Madeleine has finally accepted herself for who she is on the inside (a woman) as well as accepting Badeleine as a part of herself. I know this is a little tenuous by I wanted to get it out there because I've not heard anyone else mention this.
I really, really want to make a YT channel of my own. Not for money, but for myself. I love playing games and exploring what it meant to me and what I thought the devs were trying to tell through the narrative, gameplay, soundtrack, etc. Few games have brought me to tears. I can count them on my hand. The final "You can do this" from Celeste is one of them. The 3 others are "Despite Everything. It's still you" from Undertale, pretty much the entirety of The Beginner's Guide and Arthur's last ride from Red Dead Redemption 2. All 4 of these games I'd love to talk about on my channel and create a platform for game analysis and discussion. Games are just as deserving of praise and dissection as any other storytelling medium, if not more so.
Sorry for making this so long. I just had to get my thoughts out. Thanks for the great video.
Hey, thanks for the kind words, friend. Glad you enjoyed it so much. If you do start that youtube channel feel free to tell us, would love to see it. Our Discord is sadly only open to our patrons, but we've had people share their stuff with us there before and it has kind of just been a great way to 'network' I suppose you could say. Good luck!
@@Transparencyboo No problem. Thanks for the response :)
I have a personal vendetta with this game. The first time I played it, I got all the way to the final mission, reach the summit, and I gave up. About a year later I came back to it and restarted the game. And I beat it. (Except Farewell I'm still working on that). This is a great video. Also fun fact about the naming system, if you name yourself Alex, which is the name of Theo's sister, his sister's name changes the Madeline. Thought that was cute.
Wow this was amazing. I thought I already took away everything I could from my initial playthrough and revisit for Farewell, but watching this video more than a year later helped me form new conclusions about the message of the game and how it connects to my struggles. Thank you so much for making this, it helped give me a new understanding of the game, and I even watched this video with my mom to give her a greater idea of how powerful this game is and why it means so much to me.
That's so sweet how you watched this with your mom! Thank you for enjoying our video so much.
Incredible, amazing video! I love how detailed the analysis is, you made me see so much depth I hadn't noticed before!! This video made me stay up late on a school night, I just couldn't stop watching it. Very good breakdowns on what the meta purpose of every chapter mean, and how you talk about the characters in general (I also love the comparison to Undertale). Thanks for releasing such a well worded, detailed and just generally really good analysis on onr of my favorite games.
I love this analysis, it talks about details in the narrative that not everyone is able to find out, as it takes a fair amount of research and you have to pay an extreme amount of attention to see some of the details that make the story truly unique. I found it impressive how well you can relate to the story, no matter who you are, and it's something very very few games have done right. Solid work!
It feels very good to use our knowledge for something ultimately educating and productive. Thanks!
Starting the video by calling dime a dozen some of the most influential and played indie games to have ever come out is certainly a choice.
It's a statement about there being a lot of hard as nails platformers, just like Celeste. It could be a sub-genre in itself pretty much. It is not a judgement of how influential, good or important they have been to the video game landscape.
I adore this video! Your voice is so soothing, and I can't get enough of Celeste! Thank you for making a video I can't stop coming back to!
This video is absolutely incredible! It's so well written, and although there is already a lot of video's about celeste, this one is very unique. You explain the game's writing very well and even the thumbnail looks great! Great job, very underrated, and I hope this blows up
Thank you! It's been out for about a year now, but it's trucking along steadily. Not sure it will ever blow up, but we're certainly hopeful. It got a big boost after Maddy Thorson retweeted it if nothing else :)
Wow. I did not expect to come across such a detailed and in-depth analysis and review of Celeste from the recommendations tab. I had only recently started playing this gem of a game after a bout of depression and it's become one of my favorite games after I've been hooked playing it over the past few weeks. I'll have to be honest-I don't know what else to say other than this video is truly excellent and underrated. Watching the entire thing felt like having all my emotions exposed by all the relatable aspects of Celeste you've covered in this video (especially the part about Madeline's transgender, that hit hard). You and everybody else involved in this video did an absolutely phenomenal job, I hope to see this again when the algorithm hits!
Aw, thanks, glad you liked it so much. Very cool that you got to play the game recently and found this one in particular. A lot of people say our stuff is underrated in general, haha. Hopefully this video will one day see more attention, but until then comments like these make it worth it either way~ ❤️
Your are of culture liking Celeste and one-shot
I played the game not knowing Maddie was canonically trans, but I really saw myself in her. It's not hard at all to see why the trans community latched onto this game so early on
Like we say, it's a very open ended game with problems that you can easily relate to no matter who you are. It's very nice in that way.
99% of celeste fans are trans women. The other fans are just gamers with good games.
Wow this really opened my eyes a lot about the themes and structure of this story. Really good video, thank you!
And thank you for enjoying it!
But we can't forget the most important story aspect: an unused audio file of Madeline singing Never Gonna Give You Up
this was a great video and analysis. I got the game a bit before Christmas and even after struggling through Farewell, it's definetly my second favourite game after Undertale. I really wish I had a way to replay Celeste for the first time. The fear of Badeline, especially at the start of Chapter 6 where she leaves the text box leading to an epic boss fight and finally coming to terms with herself. Also I love how the video is serious for the most part and then there are these small really silly and funny sections like talking about the fiction land of Canada (which is obviously correct it just goes against societal norms), but still putting #Canada in the tags, and the preview image for Forsaken City being Ronald McDonald winking. Thanks for making this, wish I could support you further
Thank you! We do try our very best to be serious and sprinkle in jokes in passing that won't take away from the main points we're making. Same goes for visual gags, we just have very fun with this kind of humor. I suppose the best way to support us further is simply to watch more videos, or by going to our Patreon page if you're inclined. Otherwise we're just happy to have made something you enjoyed :)
i thought Madeline saying she was gonna climb the mountain cause she was tired of breaking promises to herself very convincing!
Great and comfy video as always you two!
Comfy squad!
Great channel! And right on time with my current interests! Time to watch it all
This was truly a beautiful analysis. Bravo!
Thank you so much for making this. It is absolutely beautiful!
Thank you, you are absolutely beautiful too! :)
@@Transparencyboo aww that's really sweet
This was an amazing watch all the way through. When you said that Celeste outed many people's anxiety, that couldn't be a truer case for me. I've always resonated with this game, and it's amazing to see a video contextualizing all different types of readings. Thank you so much for your hard work
And thank you for watching and enjoying it! Celeste is a very simple but powerful game, and we are glad that it resonates with people the way it does!
I gotta say I've never seen such a deep video talking just about every level and character, design choices, the mountain, the narrative, and "reflection" being a motive in more ways than I could keep track.
Very well-edited video, the script is detailed and comprehensive despite the complex topics it brings up that not many people would attempt to understand.
I shouldn't linger on the game just like you shouldn't linger on past mistakes and fantasy stories, but damn, I really wish I could go back and experience it all over again.
I can't get enough of hearing different people's readings of the game and how it affected them (or didn't, rarely)
my first time playing it was when I finally picked it up while my dad was laid up in the hospital with cancer for the second time in my life (couple months after this video came out, funny enough)- he's fine now, got it all cut out and hopefully won't hear about it again... Celeste's message of persevering no matter what was one that really hit home with me when I was going day to day wondering if I'd hear my dad's voice one more time
Thanks for the comment, glad your dad is doing alright!
writing this before watching
Celeste is one of my favourite games. ever. Its no exaggeration to say it changed my life. When i played this game, i was in a rough spot, my Dad had passed away the year prior, and i was in a deep depression. It helped through my mental health issues and helped me understand myself better. It taught me that trans people exist, and cracked my egg. The gameplay is deep and rewarding, and thanks to assist mode super accessible. Thank you, Extremely OK Games, thank you Maddy Thorson, and everyone who made this masterpeice possible. I love Celeste with my whole being.
What an amazing video! Wish I had seen this sooner. I'm glad Maddy shared this on their Twitter.
We are too, believe us, haha. :)
I love your long video essays so much 💖
Thank you, friend! ❤️
This was a genuinely incredible analysis and Im so glad I found this video :) Celeste means a lot to me and Ive been trying to gather my thoughts on it, but your interpretation is both so thorough and heartfelt that I feel like almost everything I thought, consciously and unconsciously, is already expressed here. The way you connect the open-ended nature of Madeline's issues to how many people are able to connect with the game and find meaning in it is brilliant. I know that a video this long probably took hundreds of hours of work and you really nailed it all the way through. You've got a new fan
Hey, thanks! Welcome aboard. Glad people are still finding it and finding some meaning in it, because like you say - a lot of work and time went into it, haha.
Finally I finished Celeste and came back to watch this. I think this is one of your best videos so far, really good overview of the game. It was great to see all the things I missed like the crystal hearts. I also collected some of the tapes but never played the B-sides and C-sides because this game was really hard but I was satisfied with making it to the top of the mountain and that alone was a big challenge. I'm not into platformers but I'm glad I played this one.
I found this video trying to explain to someone what Celeste is that’s never heard of it, and I must say this video was incredibly well made!! Celeste is genuinely one of my favorite video games ever made and this video even taught me a few things about the game that I didn’t even know about previously (whether it was a meaning/interpretation of a chapter or character to something like the language setting having the Canadian flag for English)
I have yet to play Celeste but I love the quality and content produced. Seriously thanks for this content especially since it's a hour video!
Thank you, glad you liked it. If you get the chance take a look at Celeste too, it is quite good.
1:04:25 THATS A ROOM IN THE GAME??? (also this video is so good, it’s really good at explaining what Celeste entails!)
Yes if you climb up the driveway that nearly kills you
oh my god, this is so well written and amazing and i love this oh my GOOODDDD
this video is incredible and i love your accent as well. congratulations to your whole team for making this incredible video essay!
Such a great essay! This gave words to thoughts about the game i was vaguely aware of but never could properly say. Also I came here because Maddy's 4 year celeste anniversary post recommended this video essay!
What if I want to be my own Badeline? WHAT THEN? I like her aesthetic okay.
(Great video :) Thanks a lot for sharing it!)
You can be absolutely whatever and whoever you want. Don't let your dreams be dreams as they say~ And thank you for watching and enjoying of course!
What if I told you YOU ALREADY ARE? And thats the POINT OF ~PART OF YOU~ SHOWING UP IN THE GAME AT ALL?
Wow, I'm impressed you even brought up the post-credits meta-narrative of struggle and self-improvement. I haven't seen that talked about very much at all.
Wasn't expecting a game review to make me cry, but here we go. Thank you thank you thank you. This review is everything that could have made my day and so much more!
We are glad that we could make your day just a bit brighter with our work. Makes everything worth the trouble we went through ❤️
Thank you so much for making this video, your analyze makes my vague feelings and thoughts from during playing Celeste much clearer, and it means a lot considering my current life point or situation. Wish more could gain something from this game and your video ♥
Glad you liked it and found it helpful! You can do this! :)
I'm happy you pointed out that Badeline must be read as simply part of Madeline during the confrontation with Mr. Oshiro. One thing I noticed is that Oshiro never actually acknowledges Badeline's presence. The entire time, he's only talking to Madeline - because really, Madeline is the only other person there. It's actually really interesting to re-read that entire scene while attributing all of Badeline's lines to Madeline and see how it reads.
I wish Canada was real
Me too, buddy.
Thank you. No more words need to be said. I already knew that I loved this game, and I knew about Madeline being trans, but as a queer person struggling to find themselves, this game stands out from the rest on my radar. Not only is it a challenging experience, it's a treasure trove of life advice and perspectives which can be interpreted in so many ways. There may come a day when I stop experiencing Celeste, but its lessons will always be with me.
It's been al long while since this was released and it has also been a while since i watched it for the first time near the beggining of my transition, but this still remains my favorite video ever
Phenomenal analysis❤
Thank you so much for coming back! Glad you like it so much. We've changed a lot too since we made this video, but it remains a highlight in our catalogue. ♥