In the mid-2010s, Maddy Thorson (nee Matt Thorson) and Noel
Berry developed Celeste, aka Celeste Classic, in a four-day game
jam for the Pico-8 fantasy console. The game’s popularity, enough to become one
of the most popular games on the Pico-8, was enough to justify developing it
into a full game with over 200 screens across eight Chapters (as opposed to the
original’s 30 screens). This version of the game released in 2018 to rave
reviews, with critics calling it one of the year’s top games. After hearing all
the praise, I was one of those who decided to go for a physical copy through
Limited Run Games, only to wait several months for the DLC Chapter, Farewell, to
release so the discs could finally be printed and shipped. Soon after I got my
copy, I found the opportunity to play it and persisted through a difficult, but
rewarding experience.
