Celaria is a first-person racing parkour platformer in which the player races against the time on various tracks. Find the fastest path to the goal and take advantage of the environment in order to improve your runs as much as possible.
Players praise the game's fluid and responsive movement system, which they liken to the parkour-focused mechanics of Mirror's Edge. The character controls with precision, requiring players to perfectly time their jumps, wallruns, and other parkour maneuvers. Maintaining momentum is crucial, as the movement feels more akin to a "racecar" than a traditional platformer. Seamlessly chaining together actions like wallrunning and midair redirections allows for creative and efficient routes through the levels.
While the fundamental gameplay may seem straightforward, reviewers highlight the depth and high skill ceiling present. The experience starts off approachable but quickly ramps up in difficulty, demanding that players masterfully control the movement system to achieve the fastest times and collect all the hidden items. This depth draws comparisons to other speedrunning-focused games like Trackmania, rewarding repeated attempts and optimization of each level.
The game's levels are designed to offer multiple paths to the goal, encouraging players to thoroughly explore the environments to discover the most efficient routes. Ability-boosting platforms, such as those that increase jump height or running speed, add an extra layer of complexity to the route planning and execution.
A central focus of the gameplay is the speedrunning and competitive aspects. Global and friend-based leaderboards, as well as the ability to download and race against other players' ghost replays, drive players to continually refine their skills and pursue new personal bests. Reviewers describe the immense satisfaction of shaving mere milliseconds off their times, testament to the depth of the movement system.
The game's level editor and Steam Workshop integration allow players to create and share their own custom maps, further expanding the gameplay possibilities. Reviewers express excitement at the potential for the community to continue providing new and creative challenges.