History YMMV / Celeste

* {{Anvilicious}]: The consistent theme of trying to understand your mental illness rather than [[ThrowingOffTheDisability trying to remove it outright]] couldn't be any less subtle.

* JerkassWoobie: Mr. Oshiro is a rare character that manages to peg both aspects in about equal measure. He legitimately just wants people to enjoy their stay at his hotel, seeks to be a good host, and is heartbroken when his "guests" aren't interested in staying, even more so when he starts to realize how run-down the hotel really is - and that's before getting into his own mental problems. He's also pushy, domineering, acts smug and ungrateful when Madeline helps him get the hotel in shape, and [[spoiler:outright attacks her when Badeline pushes her insults too far]]. This is even [[DiscussedTrope discussed]] by Madeline and Theo in the chapter; Madeline is moved by Oshiro's sympathetic side, while Theo insists that he's dangerous and that [[SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped they don't need to risk their personal safety to try and make a stranger happy]].

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped:
** The consistent theme of trying to understand your mental illness rather than [[ThrowingOffTheDisability trying to remove it outright]] couldn't be any less subtle. However, many consider it to be a great message, as a mental illness can't just disappear, one has to learn how to live with it.
** As controversial as Chapter 9 may be, the message of [[spoiler:letting go of a loved one]] is considered one of its saving graces, even with something MundaneFantastic like Celeste Mountain, nothing can change the reality of [[spoiler:Granny's death]].
** Theo at various points is the OnlySaneMan between himself and Madeline. He tells her gently that Mr. Oshiro means well, but you can't always stick your neck out to save someone who doesn't need saving and who has a lot of creep flags. To highlight the point, he finds a secret exit out of the hotel and misses most of the ensuing drama. Badeline even agrees, angering Mr. Oshiro to the point that he chases Madeline out of the hotel. Mr. Oshiro has to eventually put in the work to leave the hotel, and change his attitude.

** '''Farewell''', the 9th chapter added in the free DLC, is not only incredibly long but ''incredibly'' hard, requiring just about every trick in the book executed consecutively with flawless precision, along with introducing a variety of tricky new mechanics that often demand unorthodox usage ''right after being introduced.'' In particular, almost every screen after the halfway point requires multiple wavedashes (a technique taught ''in the exact same level'') strung together with countless other movement techs, including the aforementioned wall bounces. There aren't even double-dashes without items, as [[spoiler:Badeline leaves after the chapter starts and takes the extra dash with her.]] The level culminates in a brutal gauntlet that incorporates just about every mechanic in the level, and lasts for about ''two minutes without checkpoints''. [[spoiler:And woe betide you if you're trying to get the Moon Berry, which requires you to take an even harder alternate path loaded with unconventional platforming.]]

** [[https://radicaldreamland.bandcamp.com/track/scattered-and-lost "Scattered and Lost"]] is an eerie and haunting track that gets even better when the drums go wild.

** Almost all of the [[BrutalBonusLevel C-Side levels]] are brutally difficult, but ''especially'' 7C, where not only do you have to pull off multiple wall bounce moves in succession (which are not only difficult to execute, but you learn about it very late in the game) but you also have to navigate a very tight spike maze using springs, pink clouds and dash crystals without a break for ''half a minute''. There is barely any room for error here.
** The DLC Chapter 9, Farewell, is not only incredibly long but ''incredibly'' hard, requiring just about every trick in the book executed with flawless precision and in tandem, along with introducing a variety of tricky new mechanics that often require unorthodox usage ''right after being introduced.'' In particular, almost every screen after the halfway point requires multiple wavedashes (a technique taught ''in the exact same level'') strung together with countless other movement techs, including the aforementioned wall bounces. There aren't even double-dashes without items, as [[spoiler:Badeline leaves after the chapter starts and takes the extra dash with her.]] The level culminates in a brutal gauntlet that incorporates just about every mechanic in the level, and lasts for about ''two minutes without checkpoints''. [[spoiler:And woe betide you if you're trying to get the Moon Berry.]]

*** The eponymous [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXIqXaX1blY Farewell]] takes the aforementioned determination and awe, before blending it into something truly evocative of how Madeline [[spoiler:has accepted the truth and resolved to set things right.]] It's an immensely suspenseful and hopeful theme that seamlessly blends together the [[{{Leitmotif}} Leitmotifs]] of both Farewell and the game itself, adding in an enchanting choir and gorgeous strings working in tandem with the synths to stunning effect.

** [[https://radicaldreamland.bandcamp.com/track/reach-for-the-summit "Reach for the Summit"]] is an immensely hopeful and determined track, a perfect fit for [[spoiler:Madeline's race to the summit, having finally made peace with Badeline]]. Something of note is how the song switches instrumentation and grows more and more triumphant as [[spoiler:you progress from area to area.]]

** [[https://radicaldreamland.bandcamp.com/track/beyond-the-heart Beyond the Heart]] from Chapter 9/Farewell, much like Reach for the Summit, is an energetic and exciting theme that just screams determination, abeit in a slightly more melancholic way than Reach for the Summit's hopeful tone.

* DemonicSpiders: The floating, multi-eyed enemies in the Mirror Temple. The moment they see you, they’ll immediately make a beeline for you, and they’re much faster than you. While they can be temporarily stunned by jumping on them, it doesn’t last long, and they’ll create a shockwave once they resume that can send you flying into a pit if you don’t move away quickly enough. To make matters worse, you’ll often have to contend with them while holding Theo, which limits your movement options to just jumping, making them harder to dodge.

* ThatOneAchievement: Certain golden strawberries get into this territory due to requiring a NoDamageRun of levels where one mistake can undo up entire minutes of work - but the cake goes the Chapter 9. Besides applying the usual rules to a [[BrutalBonusLevel Brutal Bonus]] MarathonLevel taken UpToEleven, there's also [[spoiler:the fact that at the end of the level is an additional, tough-as-nails room that ''only appears'' when carrying the Golden Strawberry.]]

* SignatureSong: "First Steps", the theme of the first area.

** Almost all of the C-Side levels are brutally difficult, especially 7C, where not only do you have to pull off multiple wall bounce moves (which are not only difficult to execute, but you learn about it very late in the game) but you also have navigate a spike maze using springs, pink clouds and dash crystals without a break for ''half a minute''. There is barely any room for error here.

* ThatOneAchievement: Certain golden strawberries get into this territory due to requiring a NoDamageRun of levels where one mistake can undo up entire minutes of work - but the cake goes the Chapter 9. Besides applying the usual rules to a [[BrutalBonusLevel Brutal Bonus]] MarathonLevel taken UpToEleven, there's also [[spoiler:the fact that at the end of the level is an additional room that only appears when carrying the Golden Strawberry.]]
* ThatOneBoss: As mentioned in [[AwesomeBosses/VideoGames Awesome Boss]], the fight with [[spoiler:Badeline]] has some great atmosphere, but it goes on for ''ages'', with no indication of how far you still have yet to go, and the (often lengthy) levels you run through would be hard enough without getting blasted by lasers. Eventually, it just wears out its welcome and becomes a chore.

** The Core is a tough level on its own, but its B-Side is utterly insane with its difficulty.
** Almost all of the C-Side levels are brutally difficult, especially 7C, where not only do you have to pull off multiple wall jump moves (which are not only difficult to execute, but you learn about it very late in the game) but you also have navigate a spike maze using springs, pink clouds and dash crystals without a break for ''half a minute''. There is barely any room for error here.
** The DLC Chapter 9, Farewell, is not only incredibly long but incredibly hard, with almost every screen after the halfway point requiring multiple wavedashes. There aren't even double-dashes without items, as [[spoiler:Badeline leaves after the chapter starts and takes the extra dash with her.]]

* LGBTFanbase: Gained one after the release of chapter 9, Farewell, suggested that [[https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/celeste-protagonist-possibly-transgender/ Madeline may be transgender]],[[note]]Madeline has a tiny trans flag by her desk, a photo shows her having short hair when she was little (implying that she was AMAB), and a pill bottle is shown that may be for HRT[[/note]] later [[https://maddythorson.medium.com/is-madeline-canonically-trans-4277ece02e40 confirmed by Maddy Thorson]]. The entirety of the game's story is also painfully obviously a trans metaphor from the start, which is especially amusing considering that Maddy Thorson themselves was unaware at the time that they wrote it. Madeline's mountain climbing hobby is referred to in such a way that it can ''very'' easily be substituted with "being a girl" and the game's theme remains unchanged.

* LGBTFanbase: Gained one after the release of chapter 9, Farewell, suggested that [[https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/celeste-protagonist-possibly-transgender/ Madeline may be transgender]],[[note]]Madeline has a tiny trans flag by her desk, a photo shows her having short hair when she was little (implying that she was AMAB), and a pill bottle is shown that may be for HRT[[/note]] later [[https://maddythorson.medium.com/is-madeline-canonically-trans-4277ece02e40 confirmed by Maddy Thorson]]. It's also painfully obviously a trans metaphor from the start, which is especially amusing considering that Maddy Thorson themselves was unaware at the time that they wrote it. Madeline's mountain climbing hobby is referred to in such a way that it can ''very'' easily be substituted with "being a girl" and the game's theme remains unchanged.

* LGBTFanbase: Gained one after some new DLC suggested that [[https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/celeste-protagonist-possibly-transgender/ Madeline may be transgender]],[[note]]Madeline has a tiny trans flag by her desk, a photo shows her having short hair when she was little (implying that she was AMAB), and a pill bottle is shown that may be for HRT[[/note]] later [[https://maddythorson.medium.com/is-madeline-canonically-trans-4277ece02e40 confirmed by Maddy Thorson]]. It's also painfully obviously a trans metaphor from the start, which is especially amusing that Maddy Thorson themself was unaware at the time she wrote it. Madeline's mountain climbing hobby is referred to in such a way that it can ''very'' easily substituted with "being a girl", and none of the game's theme changes.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Alex appears relatively often in fanwork, for a character [[TheGhost who is merely spoken of]]. Because of that, it allows creators to [[OCStandIn project a unique personality onto her]].

* ContestedSequel: While still technically a part of the base game, the free post-game chapter, Chapter 9/Farewell is more divisive amongst the fandom compared to the 8 main chapters, with fans either loving it for its highly emotional story, the new gimmicks, use of more advanced techniques and degree of challenge or disliking it for how [[NintendoHard ludicrously difficult]], long and seemingly inaccessible it is compared to the main chapters. Some of its story beats have also been controversial.

* BrokenBase: While some appreciate the added representation it brings, others feel that Madeline being 'revealed' as trans was a cheap attempt to add in said representation when [[ShockingSwerve no indication was given she was anything of the sort]], leaving a bad taste in people's mouths. It doesn't help that this 'reveal' came out a while after the game made most of its sales, with said critics feeling that, if it was genuine and not [[ThrowItIn something the creator threw in]] for positive attention from the LGBT Community, they would have been more up front with it from the start.

** [[https://radicaldreamland.bandcamp.com/track/reach-for-the-summit "Reach for the Summit"]] is a very exciting and hopeful track.

* AlternateSelfShipping: There are a non-insignificant number of fans who took the game’s Aesop a bit too far and ship Madeline with her LiteralSplitPersonality Badeline.

* AlternateSelfShipping: There are a non-insignificant number of fans who took the Aesop a bit too far and ship Madeline with her LiteralSplitPersonality Badeline.

* CrackPairing: [[ScrewYourself Madeline/Badeline]]. It exists...

*** Doorskip locator here, doorskip is at 27:19. [[labelnote:Explanation]]People in the comments section have been pointing out the location of the doorskip in runs.[[/labelnote]]

* ContestedSequel: While still technically a part of the base game, the free post-game chapter, Chapter 9/Farewell is more divisive amongst the fandom compared to the 8 main chapters, with fans either loving it for it's highly emotional story, the new gimmicks, use of more advanced techniques and degree of challenge or disliking it for how [[NintendoHard ludicrously difficult]], long and seemingly inaccessible it is compared to the main chapters. Some of its story beats have also been controversial.

* LGBTFanbase: Gained one after some new DLC suggested that [[https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/celeste-protagonist-possibly-transgender/ Madeline may be transgender]],[[note]]Madeline has a tiny trans flag by her desk, a photo shows her having short hair when she was little (implying that she was AMAB), and a pill bottle is shown that may be for HRT[[/note]] later [[https://maddythorson.medium.com/is-madeline-canonically-trans-4277ece02e40 confirmed by Maddy Thorson]]. It's also painfully obviously a trans metaphor from the start, which is especially amusing that Maddy Thorson herself was unaware at the time she wrote it. Madeline's mountain climbing hobby is referred to in such a way that it can ''very'' easily substituted with "being a girl", and none of the game's theme changes.

* LGBTFanbase: Gained one after some new DLC suggested that [[https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/celeste-protagonist-possibly-transgender/ Madeline may be transgender]],[[note]]Madeline has a tiny trans flag by her desk, a photo shows her having short hair when she was little (implying that she was AMAB), and a pill bottle is shown that may be for HRT[[/note]] later [[https://maddythorson.medium.com/is-madeline-canonically-trans-4277ece02e40 confirmed by Maddy Thorson]].

** Theo at various points is the OnlySaneMan between himself and Madeline. He tells her gently that Mr. Oshiro means well, but you can't always stick your neck out to save someone who doesn't need saving and who has a lot of creep flags. To highlight the point, he finds a secret exit out of the hotel and misses most fo the ensuing drama. Badeline even agrees, angering Mr. Oshiro to the point that he chases Madeline out of the hotel. Mr. Oshiro has to eventually put in the work to leave the hotel, and change his attitude.