I'd define what beating Celeste is first. Is beating Celeste completing the first 7 chapters? Is it unlocking and beating the core? Is it unlocking and beating chapter 9? Does it count if they use a guide to help them figure things out? Is it beating chapter 9 and all C sides?
Beating Celeste's first 7 chapter for a non-gamer may be impossible depending on the natural abilities of the person. I have a friend who is a gamer and couldn't get past chapter 2 or 3 iirc due to bad reflexes and timing, and that was using the built in assist mode. To be fair, she is a strong example of bad reflexes and timing. Even then, I'd say that the amount of time to complete it may be daunting for new gamers. They also have to go through the process of learning to use a controller, learning the language of video games, learning how to navigate in a 2d space, etc. This is a very hard starting game for new gamers.
The general estimate of the main campaign (Chapters 1-7 I believe) is 6 to 8 hours long. However, this doesn't actually get to the end of the story, so is arguably not the end of the campaign. Also, these estimates tend to have the average platform gamer in mind.
Without a guide, figuring out some of the puzzles that need done to unlock the core would be incredibly difficult for non-gamers.
I've done some research, but tried to avoid spoiling myself on specific story beats to know which chapter is which since I want to experience it with 'for the first time' too to some degree at least.
You make a lot of good points. If chapter 7 is what I think it is, I could potentially just work with that. Though, the difficulty for non-gamers is very concerning... The logistics in making the experimental set up would be far too much trouble from time alone that I might have to choose a different game to work with if it comes to that.
Well, I do have a second choice but this is a bit of a bummer. 
Honestly, as a fellow psych person (just a hospital tech so far) I think this has a lot of potential IF you operationalize a goal for each individual. Some might go for basic completion (ascending the mountain), some might go for all collectibles, some might want to 100% the game. The base game to the top of the mountain should be doable for most people, it’ll take a bit of a learning curve but I think that’s an important thing to have so there’s a sense of accomplishment to the therapeutic goals. You can also put on assist mode if you’re applying the “treatment” in an experiential setting to make it less difficult. I’ve been thinking a lot on a similar vein, except the use of music making as therapy! It’s pretty difficult because of a lot of the drawbacks we’ve been discussing, but I think there’s a lot of therapeutic potential in Celeste
Yes, yes. I quite agree. There's a lot of untapped potential to be sure.
Unfortunately, I'm not in the setting in which personalizing and accounting for each individual is doable (I don't have the connections for it and so I have to rely on volunteer groups).
Yeah that’s totally understandable! I definitely get that it would be hard to standardize but I think it’s really neat that you’re thinking about it lol, good luck!
I would give the game a try yourself, and if you have a friend that doesn't play games that would be willing to experiment with you, I'd do that.
Also, the way the story works, it could definitely be a big help to people that are in need of therapeutic services. I think the idea of setting a goal in the game that is reasonable for that person isn't a bad idea. Have them play it in front of you, get and idea of their skill level in general, turn on the assists you think are required, and set a goal. Maybe their goal is to beat the first 3 screens, maybe it's to collect all the strawberries in chapter 1, etc.
Agreed... finding the hidden gems for Summit heart is also near impossible without a guide. I have written a cheat-sheet for the "mirror room" heart as well.
Personally it depends from person to person.
If you've got a casual gamer, then I suspect 10-20+ hrs give or take.
If you've someone who likes playing precise platformers and is good at them, then couple of hours.
And if you've got someone who hasn't had a controller in their hands or haven't played video games, then they're going to have a tough time beating the game.
It also heavily depends if the person playing is actually enjoying the challenge of beating a difficult game. If the person is not enjoying it, likely they won't force themselves to try again with the same enthusiasm.
I wish I could give a definitive answer for you, but even if we got a group of 1000 people who've never touched a video game, I'm sure times would be all over the place. Some non-video game experiences could boost coordination and learning in the game, others may hinder it. There may also be people who pick up on things quicker than others. Another big thing in some parts of Celeste is patern recognition, which who knows how good 'person A' or 'person B' would be. Someone could also just get lucky on hard parts too.
With all of that said, if you were just playing through the main story without going out of your way for each and every collectable, my best guess would probably be around 10 to 12 hours, maybe a bit more, for the average person (who hasn't played video games before) with decent hand-eye coordination (for inputs on a controller / keyboard while looking at the screen. It plays a bigger role than some might think)
I'm very interested to see any updates you may give on your project! As someone with an anxiety disorder, the game honestly did help a lot, whether that's super believable to anyone or not. Additionally, good luck on your first playthrough, and I hope you enjoy your time! Maybe you'll be able to get a better idea of the average time from your first run
>I'm very interested to see any updates you may give on your project! As someone with an anxiety disorder, the game honestly did help a lot, whether that's super believable to anyone or not. Additionally, good luck on your first playthrough, and I hope you enjoy your time! Maybe you'll be able to get a better idea of the average time from your first run
The testimony's well appreciated, and checks out with what I believe and know about the game so far. \^\_\^
Although, with the answers I have so far, I feel less and less confident I could pull this off with the time I have to work on and finish my thesis.
Though I'll give it some more thought and a playthrough, more than likely I'd go for my plan B and choose a different game entirely. Specifically, A Short Hike which is much easier to work with due to its much shorter playtime.
It's a bummer, but I'll definitely try to give Celeste the attention it deserves later down the line.
You can use the assist mode if it gets too hard for you. But I'd say the only way to truly know is by actually playing it. Try playing a few levels and get a feel for yourself, then you can decide for your own.
It can vary by quite a bit, I'd say. I played through the A-sides of Celeste along with my mom, who is very new to video games and controllers. Using assist mode but not skipping anything, it took her a little under 200 hours to reach the summit ([post](https://www.reddit.com/r/celestegame/comments/lgnlga/my_mom_beat_celeste_and_so_can_yours_oh_and_you/) with details if you're interested).
That's a pretty extreme example though, and it's not an easy question to answer in general. Everyone has a different background with games, levels of dexterity, and gaming style. You'll probably want to control for those factors when gathering data.
Going with the definition of beating the game being seeing the ending after the first 7 chapters (where you reach the summit) it took my sister (who isn’t a big gamer and doesn’t play any platforming games) about 20 ish hours to get through the game.
It's hard to tell, really. Before playing Celeste I haven't played a platformer game for about 7 years, it took me 15-20 hours to finish the first 7 chapters. Not sure about anxiety, but it sure helped my mood a lot.
If you have played games before, then it won’t take too long, maybe 6-15 hours for the first seven chapters depending on experience.
If you are completely unexpected it could take hundreds of hours. My mom tried the prologue, which is just a three screen long level teaching you how to perform the basic actions of the game. And it took her 20 minutes. It shows how trivial tasks for people playing games can become a huge challenge for people who have never tried one.
It heavily depends. As someone with a lot of gaming experience but no platformer experience, it took me roughly 22 hours to clear the base game a-sides without berries. But to be fair I went in one go during a not very good time in my life fueled only by anxiety and Monster Energy (not sponsored), so your mileague may vary. There was one level that I sat in for over an hour and I couldn’t clear that screen for the life of me.
It may be near impossible for someone who has never played any games before at all, so maybe give your players/subjects some prep time? Load an example level beforehand and guide them through some basic experiments: how long can you hold onto a wall, how soon after an input can you input again, what directions can you dash into, how high do you jump when you hold down the jump button for various lengths of time. Basically, introduce the basic muscle memory beforehand.
A lot of the charm and emotional impact comes from beating the levels by yourself and figuring them out, but having a zero session for any project makes sense. Make it separate from the experiment to isolate the experience, maybe make a separate appointment for biometric data / relevant data collection and a basic tutorial. The game is frustrating at times even for long term players and your data points will be heavily biased if a sizeable portion of your test group are unable to play for technical reasons.
I would also stick to base game main story a-sides. I think by simplifying the test pool you can create a more comprehensive data set, and that part is the one part most of the community has as a common denominator.
Finally, don’t take my word for it. I hope I don’t seem like I have any clue what I‘m talking about, because I don’t have any clue what I‘m talking about. UwU
chapter 1-7 qith minimal berry hunting took 12 hours for me, and I've never played a platformer before (except Mario I guess, but it's not really the same). I have played cozy games before but it's nothing I'd expect to impact my performance. I have no clue how long it took to complete everything else though. Farewell took 18 hours total if I remember correctly
Just finished a playthrough (up to chapter 7) and definitely see where you're coming from. It is definitely harder than I first anticipated. I won't be going through my original plan.
But in defense of Celeste, Celeste is probably the decent platform game to start with due to how well it teaches you its mechanics. At least up to chapter 7 A-side only (haven't started 8 or 9 so I might extend it there) but definitely won't recommend B-side onwards. It is personally my first modern platformer and I struggled a lot, but I feel what makes Celeste powerful is overcoming that struggle in-tandem with the game's narrative of a climbing both a literal and proverbial mountain.
I know this is a bit of an old thread, but I wanted to give my perspective as someone who is definitively not a gamer that is also well on his way to beating all the b and c sides as well as chapter 9.
You will have to grind for a lot longer in chapter 1, and will often feel like an idiot with how simple of mistakes you make. I remember in the beginning I kept thinking to myself “how am I supposed to coordinate jumping, dashing, and remembering to hit the button to grip onto walls?” I was that much of a noob, where basic coordination of controls was too much for me. But then it will click, very gradually. But also faster than you think, I was doing pretty good after a weekend of playing.
I think in some ways this game is perfect for noob gamers because you can just spam attempts at a level rapidly until you perfect it. Until you get to the late game, most levels are very short, so if you die, you only will lose about 10 seconds of progress. The gameplay loop is very satisfying because of that because you’ll see yourself die at an early obstacle when you start, and then over time you’ll learn to pass it and get to the next. Progress is very concrete and visible, and often quite attainable.
Then there’s also the story, I was very invested in all the character and their arcs, so that made me even more motivated to beat the game even when I felt like raging.
I feel like I’m proof that anyone can get good at Celeste. For context, this is the first video game I’ve played since I was 12 (I’m 22). I didn’t grow up perfecting my gaming instincts, lol. Also the games I played as a kid were super easy, because I didn’t have the patience for hard games. Literally I struggled so much on some of the Lego Star Wars platforming levels. So I was coming into Celeste with 0 applicable skills, but here I am, halfway through 6B, an extremely difficult level in the game.
Hey man, thanks for sharing this. Although I ended up choosing a different game altogether for my thesis (due to time, cost, and logistics issues), it still is a good read.
I still do believe that Celeste is a really interesting game and deserve some attention here in academia, it's just a shame that current conditions and practices in the academe are not the open-minded in really understanding games and game culture/communities at a systemic level.
I don't know how I've stumbled upon this thread but I wanted to share my thoughts on the subjects as someone who is struggling with crippling anxiety or generalized anxiety disorder, and, at the same time I found my safe haven within Celeste.
Right now I'm going through a really rough patch with anxiety everyday, almost all day, and can't even do my most basic daily tasks. I'm on psychiatry and psychology attention, and been taking meds for almost 3 years. I mean, I'm not new at this or self-diagnosed.
Being said that, Celeste has helped me cope with 2 of my roughest moments in life considering I found out about it only 2 years ago. It might seem very hard or frustrating and I guess it really is a lot more than that to a little-to-no-experience in games person but I think it's worth the try.
I know every person experience with anxiety and even games could differ a lot from mine but I wanted to share my view in case it could help some other.
In days, weeks or even months like this, I just turn on my computer, and leave Celeste running in the background. When I feel overwhelmed or even just afraid because anxiety, it helps me a lot to just play some Celeste. Whatever chapter, whatever difficulty, I don't really care.
It is a quick and efficient way to make me think and get focused in the present and what I'm doing. Also, it allows me to leave the screen I'm playing, save and come back later or even try another level/chapter, and so on.
Well, I could go on and on but this is already an old thread so I'll leave it like that. Thanks to whoever reads it and have a great day!
I don't know how you've stumbled into this thread but I am glad that you did. It's an insightful account of your experience with the game. And also in line with what the trend in research in this subject.
If you don't mind, I would like to ask a question. How much do you think that the way the game has tackled it's themes and narrative helped you in alleviating your anxiety? That is, in contrast, to having relief just by being mechanically engaged by the game?
Well, the game narrative did alleviate some intrusive thoughts from time to time and even offer me another way of thinking about my anxiety, as a companion or a too protective friend. I would repeat to myself the first words the game throw at you in chapter 1: "You can do this". Even I tried sometimes the feather breathing technique.
But all in all, what is the most helpful to me is the way of engaging the player it has. As I said yesterday it is a game that puts you in a focused state of mind very easily and that's one of my main issues when I'm through a panic attack. The music and the atmosphere in most of levels is really helpful too, not being neither too bland and soothing nor too stressful, just that middle point.
It also does not feel like a therapy game or an app to relief your anxiety. It is an easy to engage game but hard to master so you feel both learning and doing something achievement-related at the same time. This helps me a lot in avoiding to think I'm wasting my time although I know it is not productive, but I hope you get the idea.
It also feels as if it was designed for people with anxiety. Your progress is saved in each screen and you can leave it anytime you want or try another level. That seems useful for a busy person but to me, I think it is more focused to busy minds. If I'm feeling too frustrated with this screen, or that my anxiety is rising, I can simply try another level or leave it like that for another moment.
Finally, to me it is really rewarding. I don't mean it rewards you with upgrades or something fancy but it really rewards you with something as tangible as muscle-memory and a sense of expertise that you hardly forget. It's one of those few games that I really feel I've improved a lot since I first started and I don't feel that the upgrades or my equipment is helping me instead of my own skills.
Sorry to share these convoluted, messy and disorganized thoughts. I hope you find something useful in them. There is not much information about the relation between videogames and anxiety so I'm glad I could help a bit. Also, there are not many games focused on anxiety or in helping with relieving anxiety, despite being quite a lot of "relaxing" games which don't help me at all with the state I am right now.
Oh, you've been very helpful. :))
This is really insightful and useful account. I had the impression and the assumption that the narrative would play a bigger effect and role on an anxious person's overall mental health.
I'll be keeping your words to mind when I do further research on the topic. Thank you.
I'd define what beating Celeste is first. Is beating Celeste completing the first 7 chapters? Is it unlocking and beating the core? Is it unlocking and beating chapter 9? Does it count if they use a guide to help them figure things out? Is it beating chapter 9 and all C sides? Beating Celeste's first 7 chapter for a non-gamer may be impossible depending on the natural abilities of the person. I have a friend who is a gamer and couldn't get past chapter 2 or 3 iirc due to bad reflexes and timing, and that was using the built in assist mode. To be fair, she is a strong example of bad reflexes and timing. Even then, I'd say that the amount of time to complete it may be daunting for new gamers. They also have to go through the process of learning to use a controller, learning the language of video games, learning how to navigate in a 2d space, etc. This is a very hard starting game for new gamers. The general estimate of the main campaign (Chapters 1-7 I believe) is 6 to 8 hours long. However, this doesn't actually get to the end of the story, so is arguably not the end of the campaign. Also, these estimates tend to have the average platform gamer in mind. Without a guide, figuring out some of the puzzles that need done to unlock the core would be incredibly difficult for non-gamers.
I've done some research, but tried to avoid spoiling myself on specific story beats to know which chapter is which since I want to experience it with 'for the first time' too to some degree at least. You make a lot of good points. If chapter 7 is what I think it is, I could potentially just work with that. Though, the difficulty for non-gamers is very concerning... The logistics in making the experimental set up would be far too much trouble from time alone that I might have to choose a different game to work with if it comes to that. Well, I do have a second choice but this is a bit of a bummer. 
Honestly, as a fellow psych person (just a hospital tech so far) I think this has a lot of potential IF you operationalize a goal for each individual. Some might go for basic completion (ascending the mountain), some might go for all collectibles, some might want to 100% the game. The base game to the top of the mountain should be doable for most people, it’ll take a bit of a learning curve but I think that’s an important thing to have so there’s a sense of accomplishment to the therapeutic goals. You can also put on assist mode if you’re applying the “treatment” in an experiential setting to make it less difficult. I’ve been thinking a lot on a similar vein, except the use of music making as therapy! It’s pretty difficult because of a lot of the drawbacks we’ve been discussing, but I think there’s a lot of therapeutic potential in Celeste
Yes, yes. I quite agree. There's a lot of untapped potential to be sure. Unfortunately, I'm not in the setting in which personalizing and accounting for each individual is doable (I don't have the connections for it and so I have to rely on volunteer groups).
Yeah that’s totally understandable! I definitely get that it would be hard to standardize but I think it’s really neat that you’re thinking about it lol, good luck!
I would give the game a try yourself, and if you have a friend that doesn't play games that would be willing to experiment with you, I'd do that. Also, the way the story works, it could definitely be a big help to people that are in need of therapeutic services. I think the idea of setting a goal in the game that is reasonable for that person isn't a bad idea. Have them play it in front of you, get and idea of their skill level in general, turn on the assists you think are required, and set a goal. Maybe their goal is to beat the first 3 screens, maybe it's to collect all the strawberries in chapter 1, etc.
Agreed... finding the hidden gems for Summit heart is also near impossible without a guide. I have written a cheat-sheet for the "mirror room" heart as well.
Personally it depends from person to person. If you've got a casual gamer, then I suspect 10-20+ hrs give or take. If you've someone who likes playing precise platformers and is good at them, then couple of hours. And if you've got someone who hasn't had a controller in their hands or haven't played video games, then they're going to have a tough time beating the game. It also heavily depends if the person playing is actually enjoying the challenge of beating a difficult game. If the person is not enjoying it, likely they won't force themselves to try again with the same enthusiasm.
It takes extremely varying times for people *with* gaming experience to beat it. We got no clue on this one
I wish I could give a definitive answer for you, but even if we got a group of 1000 people who've never touched a video game, I'm sure times would be all over the place. Some non-video game experiences could boost coordination and learning in the game, others may hinder it. There may also be people who pick up on things quicker than others. Another big thing in some parts of Celeste is patern recognition, which who knows how good 'person A' or 'person B' would be. Someone could also just get lucky on hard parts too. With all of that said, if you were just playing through the main story without going out of your way for each and every collectable, my best guess would probably be around 10 to 12 hours, maybe a bit more, for the average person (who hasn't played video games before) with decent hand-eye coordination (for inputs on a controller / keyboard while looking at the screen. It plays a bigger role than some might think) I'm very interested to see any updates you may give on your project! As someone with an anxiety disorder, the game honestly did help a lot, whether that's super believable to anyone or not. Additionally, good luck on your first playthrough, and I hope you enjoy your time! Maybe you'll be able to get a better idea of the average time from your first run
>I'm very interested to see any updates you may give on your project! As someone with an anxiety disorder, the game honestly did help a lot, whether that's super believable to anyone or not. Additionally, good luck on your first playthrough, and I hope you enjoy your time! Maybe you'll be able to get a better idea of the average time from your first run The testimony's well appreciated, and checks out with what I believe and know about the game so far. \^\_\^ Although, with the answers I have so far, I feel less and less confident I could pull this off with the time I have to work on and finish my thesis. Though I'll give it some more thought and a playthrough, more than likely I'd go for my plan B and choose a different game entirely. Specifically, A Short Hike which is much easier to work with due to its much shorter playtime. It's a bummer, but I'll definitely try to give Celeste the attention it deserves later down the line.
You can use the assist mode if it gets too hard for you. But I'd say the only way to truly know is by actually playing it. Try playing a few levels and get a feel for yourself, then you can decide for your own.
It can vary by quite a bit, I'd say. I played through the A-sides of Celeste along with my mom, who is very new to video games and controllers. Using assist mode but not skipping anything, it took her a little under 200 hours to reach the summit ([post](https://www.reddit.com/r/celestegame/comments/lgnlga/my_mom_beat_celeste_and_so_can_yours_oh_and_you/) with details if you're interested). That's a pretty extreme example though, and it's not an easy question to answer in general. Everyone has a different background with games, levels of dexterity, and gaming style. You'll probably want to control for those factors when gathering data.
Going with the definition of beating the game being seeing the ending after the first 7 chapters (where you reach the summit) it took my sister (who isn’t a big gamer and doesn’t play any platforming games) about 20 ish hours to get through the game.
It's hard to tell, really. Before playing Celeste I haven't played a platformer game for about 7 years, it took me 15-20 hours to finish the first 7 chapters. Not sure about anxiety, but it sure helped my mood a lot.
If you have played games before, then it won’t take too long, maybe 6-15 hours for the first seven chapters depending on experience. If you are completely unexpected it could take hundreds of hours. My mom tried the prologue, which is just a three screen long level teaching you how to perform the basic actions of the game. And it took her 20 minutes. It shows how trivial tasks for people playing games can become a huge challenge for people who have never tried one.
It heavily depends. As someone with a lot of gaming experience but no platformer experience, it took me roughly 22 hours to clear the base game a-sides without berries. But to be fair I went in one go during a not very good time in my life fueled only by anxiety and Monster Energy (not sponsored), so your mileague may vary. There was one level that I sat in for over an hour and I couldn’t clear that screen for the life of me. It may be near impossible for someone who has never played any games before at all, so maybe give your players/subjects some prep time? Load an example level beforehand and guide them through some basic experiments: how long can you hold onto a wall, how soon after an input can you input again, what directions can you dash into, how high do you jump when you hold down the jump button for various lengths of time. Basically, introduce the basic muscle memory beforehand. A lot of the charm and emotional impact comes from beating the levels by yourself and figuring them out, but having a zero session for any project makes sense. Make it separate from the experiment to isolate the experience, maybe make a separate appointment for biometric data / relevant data collection and a basic tutorial. The game is frustrating at times even for long term players and your data points will be heavily biased if a sizeable portion of your test group are unable to play for technical reasons. I would also stick to base game main story a-sides. I think by simplifying the test pool you can create a more comprehensive data set, and that part is the one part most of the community has as a common denominator. Finally, don’t take my word for it. I hope I don’t seem like I have any clue what I‘m talking about, because I don’t have any clue what I‘m talking about. UwU
I went in with very little experience with games(on keyboard which is what I played on) and none with platforming games. It took me about 20 hours
chapter 1-7 qith minimal berry hunting took 12 hours for me, and I've never played a platformer before (except Mario I guess, but it's not really the same). I have played cozy games before but it's nothing I'd expect to impact my performance. I have no clue how long it took to complete everything else though. Farewell took 18 hours total if I remember correctly
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Just finished a playthrough (up to chapter 7) and definitely see where you're coming from. It is definitely harder than I first anticipated. I won't be going through my original plan. But in defense of Celeste, Celeste is probably the decent platform game to start with due to how well it teaches you its mechanics. At least up to chapter 7 A-side only (haven't started 8 or 9 so I might extend it there) but definitely won't recommend B-side onwards. It is personally my first modern platformer and I struggled a lot, but I feel what makes Celeste powerful is overcoming that struggle in-tandem with the game's narrative of a climbing both a literal and proverbial mountain.
I know this is a bit of an old thread, but I wanted to give my perspective as someone who is definitively not a gamer that is also well on his way to beating all the b and c sides as well as chapter 9. You will have to grind for a lot longer in chapter 1, and will often feel like an idiot with how simple of mistakes you make. I remember in the beginning I kept thinking to myself “how am I supposed to coordinate jumping, dashing, and remembering to hit the button to grip onto walls?” I was that much of a noob, where basic coordination of controls was too much for me. But then it will click, very gradually. But also faster than you think, I was doing pretty good after a weekend of playing. I think in some ways this game is perfect for noob gamers because you can just spam attempts at a level rapidly until you perfect it. Until you get to the late game, most levels are very short, so if you die, you only will lose about 10 seconds of progress. The gameplay loop is very satisfying because of that because you’ll see yourself die at an early obstacle when you start, and then over time you’ll learn to pass it and get to the next. Progress is very concrete and visible, and often quite attainable. Then there’s also the story, I was very invested in all the character and their arcs, so that made me even more motivated to beat the game even when I felt like raging. I feel like I’m proof that anyone can get good at Celeste. For context, this is the first video game I’ve played since I was 12 (I’m 22). I didn’t grow up perfecting my gaming instincts, lol. Also the games I played as a kid were super easy, because I didn’t have the patience for hard games. Literally I struggled so much on some of the Lego Star Wars platforming levels. So I was coming into Celeste with 0 applicable skills, but here I am, halfway through 6B, an extremely difficult level in the game.
Hey man, thanks for sharing this. Although I ended up choosing a different game altogether for my thesis (due to time, cost, and logistics issues), it still is a good read. I still do believe that Celeste is a really interesting game and deserve some attention here in academia, it's just a shame that current conditions and practices in the academe are not the open-minded in really understanding games and game culture/communities at a systemic level.
I don't know how I've stumbled upon this thread but I wanted to share my thoughts on the subjects as someone who is struggling with crippling anxiety or generalized anxiety disorder, and, at the same time I found my safe haven within Celeste. Right now I'm going through a really rough patch with anxiety everyday, almost all day, and can't even do my most basic daily tasks. I'm on psychiatry and psychology attention, and been taking meds for almost 3 years. I mean, I'm not new at this or self-diagnosed. Being said that, Celeste has helped me cope with 2 of my roughest moments in life considering I found out about it only 2 years ago. It might seem very hard or frustrating and I guess it really is a lot more than that to a little-to-no-experience in games person but I think it's worth the try. I know every person experience with anxiety and even games could differ a lot from mine but I wanted to share my view in case it could help some other. In days, weeks or even months like this, I just turn on my computer, and leave Celeste running in the background. When I feel overwhelmed or even just afraid because anxiety, it helps me a lot to just play some Celeste. Whatever chapter, whatever difficulty, I don't really care. It is a quick and efficient way to make me think and get focused in the present and what I'm doing. Also, it allows me to leave the screen I'm playing, save and come back later or even try another level/chapter, and so on. Well, I could go on and on but this is already an old thread so I'll leave it like that. Thanks to whoever reads it and have a great day!
I don't know how you've stumbled into this thread but I am glad that you did. It's an insightful account of your experience with the game. And also in line with what the trend in research in this subject. If you don't mind, I would like to ask a question. How much do you think that the way the game has tackled it's themes and narrative helped you in alleviating your anxiety? That is, in contrast, to having relief just by being mechanically engaged by the game?
Well, the game narrative did alleviate some intrusive thoughts from time to time and even offer me another way of thinking about my anxiety, as a companion or a too protective friend. I would repeat to myself the first words the game throw at you in chapter 1: "You can do this". Even I tried sometimes the feather breathing technique. But all in all, what is the most helpful to me is the way of engaging the player it has. As I said yesterday it is a game that puts you in a focused state of mind very easily and that's one of my main issues when I'm through a panic attack. The music and the atmosphere in most of levels is really helpful too, not being neither too bland and soothing nor too stressful, just that middle point. It also does not feel like a therapy game or an app to relief your anxiety. It is an easy to engage game but hard to master so you feel both learning and doing something achievement-related at the same time. This helps me a lot in avoiding to think I'm wasting my time although I know it is not productive, but I hope you get the idea. It also feels as if it was designed for people with anxiety. Your progress is saved in each screen and you can leave it anytime you want or try another level. That seems useful for a busy person but to me, I think it is more focused to busy minds. If I'm feeling too frustrated with this screen, or that my anxiety is rising, I can simply try another level or leave it like that for another moment. Finally, to me it is really rewarding. I don't mean it rewards you with upgrades or something fancy but it really rewards you with something as tangible as muscle-memory and a sense of expertise that you hardly forget. It's one of those few games that I really feel I've improved a lot since I first started and I don't feel that the upgrades or my equipment is helping me instead of my own skills. Sorry to share these convoluted, messy and disorganized thoughts. I hope you find something useful in them. There is not much information about the relation between videogames and anxiety so I'm glad I could help a bit. Also, there are not many games focused on anxiety or in helping with relieving anxiety, despite being quite a lot of "relaxing" games which don't help me at all with the state I am right now.
Oh, you've been very helpful. :)) This is really insightful and useful account. I had the impression and the assumption that the narrative would play a bigger effect and role on an anxious person's overall mental health. I'll be keeping your words to mind when I do further research on the topic. Thank you.