To anyone not paying attention to either of the Portal games you might not be aware that Aperture Science Laboratories exists within the same universe as a Black Mesa Research Facility. The question i am asking is: Is this the same universe that the Half-Life games happen in or a different one that also happens to have a Black Mesa?

Same universe, the Borealis, the ocean liner which was in the Half life 2 beta before it was scrapped and re appeared in Episode 2 (and is going to be one of the main focal points of Episode 3) is a signifcant part of Portal history. Its apertures main fuck up basically.

It's supposed to be the same universe, but there is no real direct crossover. Just a lot of subtle nods to the other franchise.

Where don't they cross over?

Finish Half-Life 2: Episode 2, then finish Portal 1, followed by Portal 2. In particular, make sure you acquire the "Ship Overboard" achievement in Portal 2. If you still need some help understanding the prime connections, you can always read up on the Borealis outside of the game.

In Portal 1 GLADOS mentions "Black Mesa"

actually, what time does Portal 2 take place in? In Portal 1 Black Mesa is mentioned but is this before or after 7 hour war when the Combine take over?

" In Portal 1 GLADOS mentions "Black Mesa" "

The ties to Half-Life are really tenuous and exist only to support the Half-Life universe (especially the Borealis stuff). Portal and Half-Life really feel like different universes, at least to me. Portal is more crazy and over the top.

Portal 2 takes place a few months after Portal, so Chell could escape Aperture around ten years before HL/HL2, during HL/HL2,ten years before or a few years after BLACK MESA INCIDENT...

Half Life 2 takes place 20 years after Half Life, which takes place around 2009- 2012. Portal takes place ten years after GLaD0S kills everyone in Aperture with Neurotoxin, except Doug Rattmann and Chell, who Rattman saves (See Portal 2 Comic: Lab Rat. Portal takes place around 2009-2012 also.)In theory, Portal 2 ends anywhere between HL and HL2, or During HL or HL2. Chell could basically meet up with Gordon Freeman, Alyx Vance, Eli Vance (DEAD after HL2 E2), Isaac Kleiner, Judith Mossman, Wallace Breen (DEAD since HL2 episode 1 or 2), GMAN, Barney Calhoun, anyone in the Half Life games...

@Mastersparx said:

Portal 2 takes place a few months after Portal...

I believe Portal 2 is set 100 years after Portal.

@SerHulse said:

@Mastersparx said:

Portal 2 takes place a few months after Portal...

I believe Portal 2 is set 100 years after Portal.

Where does it say that? As far as I know, no one can tell how much time has passed between the ending of Portal and beginning of Portal 2.

Portal 1 and 2 ARE Half Life 3!!!!

@valrog said:

@SerHulse said:

@Mastersparx said:

Portal 2 takes place a few months after Portal...

I believe Portal 2 is set 100 years after Portal.

Where does it say that? As far as I know, no one can tell how much time has passed between the ending of Portal and beginning of Portal 2.

It never explicitly states the amount of time in-game. It is implied that a long period of time has passed. It was probably done to avoid crossover with the Half Life universe. It is mentioned in the "Final Hours of Portal 2" ebook that at least 50,000 years had passed, but that's probably not canon.

@MattyFTM said:

@valrog said:

@SerHulse said:

@Mastersparx said:

Portal 2 takes place a few months after Portal...

I believe Portal 2 is set 100 years after Portal.

Where does it say that? As far as I know, no one can tell how much time has passed between the ending of Portal and beginning of Portal 2.

It never explicitly states the amount of time in-game. It is implied that a long period of time has passed. It was probably done to avoid crossover with the Half Life universe. It is mentioned in the "Final Hours of Portal 2" ebook that at least 50,000 years had passed, but that's probably not canon.

I recall one of the developers in the Portal 2 Spoilercast mentioning around 100 years had passed.

@SerHulse: It does imply ingame that not much time has passed, due to the fact that the earth was perfectly fine where Aperture was, so the whole game might take place even before HL or HL2... I was not really sure about my theory, but I just guessed that maybe since Aperture's exit in the end of Portal2 was in a field in the sun, that the game probably ends around before or the same time of HL2, because there are still fields somewhere on Earth in HL, even though the COMBINE took over...

@Mastersparx: And, yes it states that it takes place 100 or more years later. The fact that Aperture could not exist for 100+ years and be the same it was in Portal, just repaired like it was in the beginning, means that either GLaD0S was able to completely fix Aperture, or that only a small amount of time has passed, since Life Support was in backup mode, according to the LAB RAT comic, and Rattmann had to turn backup support on before he too, went into one of the pods. The life support would not last that long, mostly because GLaD0S hated Chell for killing her, and would have killed her before she woke up, even thought after Portal2, GLaD0S let her go because she didn't care about it that much anymore. Rattmann and Chell would be dead if it was 100+ years, backup life support was damaged, GLaD0s had the intent to kill Chell and Rattmann anyway, and its just a theory, but those kind of sound like plotholes of a sort. The creators said that is was 100+ years, yet there are signs that maybe they were wrong? (AND THE CAKE CAN BE FOUND IN THE 1ST GAME, AND 2ND, BUT IN THE SECOND IT IS THE SAME CAKE, ROTTING... CAKE DOES NOT LAST 100+ YEARS...)

STILL JUST A THEORY =P

Chell is actually Gordan Freeman from the future after his sex change

Reading about the Borealis, and seeing videos of the missing content mod, made me wish it had come out with HL2. It looked really cool and original, before Cryostasis came out and satisfied my "horror game on a frozen boat."

And then they bring back the Borealis and it relates to Aperture Science and it'll be in HL3/Episode 3... mind blown

Portal 1 happens when chell is 13ish, on bring your daughter to work day. The in the beginning of portal 2, you see her stasis room, first scene after recovery of her body, then again, 9999 days later, 27.4 years later you see the same room. 13 plus 27, chell is 40, looking great.. . Even glados tells her she only gets another 60 years, hence humans only live to be about 100.