Hello fellow Giant Bombers, I hope you’re well. I should probably warn you that the following blog has some Portal 2 spoilers within. Most of what I’m about to say isn’t anything that concrete and there are a lot of vague statements about the nature of the game, but if you’re determined to experience Portal 2 as untainted as possible and haven’t yet reach the games conclusion, this may be a blog to skip. This is also a shorter and admittedly slightly more rushed blog than usual, due to my ongoing university work, and for that I apologise. All good? Okay, let’s begin.

SPOILER WARNING: Click here to reveal hidden content.

I really could gush about my love of this game for just about any length of time and to some extent I already have. I haven’t found a game that’s excited me in the way Portal 2 has in a very long time, and it was really the single-player that did it for me. There are a lot of games out there that have given me hours of great experiences but Portal 2 has been a truly mind-blowing adventure and like many others when I reached the end of the game I was met with a distinct sadness, not just because of the events within the games closing but because I knew I’d seen everything this fantastic game had to offer.

I loved the original Portal and still do, but in many ways Portal 2 makes it look positively primitive by comparison. Part of the shock I experienced when first playing wasn’t just a product of the level of quality the game presented, but also a result of seeing how fresh, varied and complex the game was. In the three and a half years since the original Portal first appeared on The Orange Box it felt as though the world of Portal had evolved to an extraordinary level.

Through their unique mix of AAA production, extensive product testing and adoption of indie game mechanics and developers, the Portal games have managed to deliver experiences that are not only of a high quality but also produce an overwhelming level of uniqueness rarely seen from the mainstream games industry. It makes me happy that the game has been so well received by consumers, because it proves that originality can thrive within the mainstream market and at least to a small extent it’s encouragement towards other publishers and developers to try and create something more innovative themselves.

I know one or two aspiring games developers read my blog occasionally and if there’s anyone out there who is interested in games design or writing, then I’d certainly encourage you to take a look at Portal 2, the detail, uniqueness, and quality makes it a joy to deconstruct. To any of you who are interested in any kind of games development the developer commentary may very well be of some interest too. For some unknown reason you can’t save during the commentary, meaning you have to take it one chapter at a time, and it’s not appropriate for your first playthrough, however it’s surprising the level of detail the commentary nodes go into. They’re a little few and far between but where they can be found they’re very interesting to listen too.

It’s a shame to hear that Wolpaw seems too modest to dissect his work and look at the underlying components and influences, because he and the other developers at Valve have certainly worked towards creating an amazing narrative. With so much backstory now satisfyingly filled in and the effective conclusion of the stories of all the major characters (save for possibly Doug Rattmann but I’ll keep that for another time), it seems almost impossible for there to be a Portal 3 and it’s rather shocking to hear Wolpaw say that he believes there could be a Portal 2 sequel, but if there’s a developer that has proved it can do amazing things with sequels it’s definitely Valve.

For now I think I’ll let up on my torrent of praise for Portal 2, but hopefully I’ll be back next week with some more constructive Portal 2-type ramblings. Thanks for reading, good luck, have a different kind of Portal.

-Gamer_152

Hello fellow Giant Bombers, I hope you’re well. I should probably warn you that the following blog has some Portal 2 spoilers within. Most of what I’m about to say isn’t anything that concrete and there are a lot of vague statements about the nature of the game, but if you’re determined to experience Portal 2 as untainted as possible and haven’t yet reach the games conclusion, this may be a blog to skip. This is also a shorter and admittedly slightly more rushed blog than usual, due to my ongoing university work, and for that I apologise. All good? Okay, let’s begin.

SPOILER WARNING: Click here to reveal hidden content.

I really could gush about my love of this game for just about any length of time and to some extent I already have. I haven’t found a game that’s excited me in the way Portal 2 has in a very long time, and it was really the single-player that did it for me. There are a lot of games out there that have given me hours of great experiences but Portal 2 has been a truly mind-blowing adventure and like many others when I reached the end of the game I was met with a distinct sadness, not just because of the events within the games closing but because I knew I’d seen everything this fantastic game had to offer.

I loved the original Portal and still do, but in many ways Portal 2 makes it look positively primitive by comparison. Part of the shock I experienced when first playing wasn’t just a product of the level of quality the game presented, but also a result of seeing how fresh, varied and complex the game was. In the three and a half years since the original Portal first appeared on The Orange Box it felt as though the world of Portal had evolved to an extraordinary level.

Through their unique mix of AAA production, extensive product testing and adoption of indie game mechanics and developers, the Portal games have managed to deliver experiences that are not only of a high quality but also produce an overwhelming level of uniqueness rarely seen from the mainstream games industry. It makes me happy that the game has been so well received by consumers, because it proves that originality can thrive within the mainstream market and at least to a small extent it’s encouragement towards other publishers and developers to try and create something more innovative themselves.

I know one or two aspiring games developers read my blog occasionally and if there’s anyone out there who is interested in games design or writing, then I’d certainly encourage you to take a look at Portal 2, the detail, uniqueness, and quality makes it a joy to deconstruct. To any of you who are interested in any kind of games development the developer commentary may very well be of some interest too. For some unknown reason you can’t save during the commentary, meaning you have to take it one chapter at a time, and it’s not appropriate for your first playthrough, however it’s surprising the level of detail the commentary nodes go into. They’re a little few and far between but where they can be found they’re very interesting to listen too.

It’s a shame to hear that Wolpaw seems too modest to dissect his work and look at the underlying components and influences, because he and the other developers at Valve have certainly worked towards creating an amazing narrative. With so much backstory now satisfyingly filled in and the effective conclusion of the stories of all the major characters (save for possibly Doug Rattmann but I’ll keep that for another time), it seems almost impossible for there to be a Portal 3 and it’s rather shocking to hear Wolpaw say that he believes there could be a Portal 2 sequel, but if there’s a developer that has proved it can do amazing things with sequels it’s definitely Valve.

For now I think I’ll let up on my torrent of praise for Portal 2, but hopefully I’ll be back next week with some more constructive Portal 2-type ramblings. Thanks for reading, good luck, have a different kind of Portal.

-Gamer_152

lol why did you choose that first screenshot? Nothing is happening in that screenshot.

" lol why did you choose that first screenshot? Nothing is happening in that screenshot. "

Since I can't read this due to not having played Portal 2, let me ask this: is Portal 2 like sex? That's what I'm getting from this blog.

Finished the game last night, hopefully I have time to start on replaying it all with commentary today.

I felt the same way when I was finished. I didn't want to leave that world since I'd enjoyed being in it so much.

" Since I can't read this due to not having played Portal 2, let me ask this: is Portal 2 like sex? That's what I'm getting from this blog. "

This must be the the 50th time I've said this in the GB forums but here I go again. Stephen Merchant and J.K Simmons give in my opinion the greatest voice performances in all of games, so very nuanced and every line delivered with perfect comedic timing and they just sound so right in the world. Its also a testament to Valve developing as a uh...Developer to see how fantastic and pixar-like the animation is and how well it works with the voices. God I love this game.

" Finished the game last night, hopefully I have time to start on replaying it all with commentary today. "

" I felt the same way when I was finished. I didn't want to leave that world since I'd enjoyed being in it so much.

I turned on the Director's Commentary mode and played through the chapters where I'd missed Achievements. The unfortunate thing is that because it's a puzzle game, it's not really the same going back to it. I enjoyed listening to Wheatley again, but I didn't get that much out of returning, even with the commentary on.

I'm glad the co-op's there because at least there are some more puzzles to tackle."

" This must be the the 50th time I've said this in the GB forums but here I go again. Stephen Merchant and J.K Simmons give in my opinion the greatest voice performances in all of games, so very nuanced and every line delivered with perfect comedic timing and they just sound so right in the world. Its also a testament to Valve developing as a uh...Developer to see how fantastic and pixar-like the animation is and how well it works with the voices. God I love this game. "

I loved Portal 2 , im glad we are over the left for dead thing ( I hated it) cant hardly wait for the next installment of Hal Life . I too felt a few tears in my eyes after the turret opera , something about that song that strikes the soul , also this showcases why I believe Valve games are the closest to art that videogames can be . Also this shows that single player experiences are the best .... down with online multiplayer !!!!!! >:3

Yeah, I love it so much too.  My own reaction to finishing the game was as if I'd just come to the end of a big meal:  satisfied and full because the ingredients were so delicious but also wholesome and nutritious.

About half way through the game when it was already clear that Portal 2 was a nailed-down amazing game I couldn't help but think what I was experiencing was exactly what I wanted to out of so many more games.  I want more games where it feels like I'm on this big adventure in an amazing fictional world that's like nothing I've ever experienced before with a colourful, detailed fiction with loads of nuance and interesting characters that engage me.  And all without guns.  I don't mind guns but I think I'm often just bearing with using one in order to enjoy the story and world and hopefully characters.  I understand that many developers often struggle where to pull the content from that's going to take up the majority of the player's time if there is no combat but I want to see what they come up with when they try.  Portal 2 did it all so well.

" Since I can't read this due to not having played Portal 2, let me ask this: is Portal 2 like sex? That's what I'm getting from this blog. "

" Since I can't read this due to not having played Portal 2, let me ask this: is Portal 2 like sex? That's what I'm getting from this blog. "

" @Video_Game_King said:

" Since I can't read this due to not having played Portal 2, let me ask this: is Portal 2 like sex? That's what I'm getting from this blog. "

Speedy thing goes in, speedy thing comes out. It's almost exactly like sex. "