365 Games To Play Before You Die
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#85: Portal
Platform(s): PC, Xbox 360 and PS3Release: 2007
Developer(s): Valve
Best Quote: 'Remember, the Aperture Science 'Bring Your Daughter to Work Day' is the perfect time to get her tested.'
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Portal was game that people had the lowest expectations for going into The Orange Box as it was a new IP and little was known about it. That turned out to be a good thing as people were blown away by what a great game it was.
The concept is ingenious. You have a gun which is able to shoot to portals: blue and orange. The portals are linked to each other so as you go through one you come out of the other, keeping all the momentum you had at the time of entry. Your only real objective is to get to the end of the level in anyway you can think of. It's sound simple but the puzzles can end up getting pretty complex and engaging.
Guiding you ( Chell) through the Aperture Science Enrichment Center is GLaDOS, a passive aggressive AI who at first seems quite harmless but becomes more sinister as the game progresses. GLaDOS is easily the best part of Portal and her lines are some of the funniest dialogue I've heard in a game. In a strange way she drives you to keep going forward (even though she actually wants you dead) because her voice is the only one you hear and I became slightly attached to it.
Portal encapsulates what people want from games, a great story and and enjoyable gameplay. It doesn't sacrifice one for the other and instead uses them together in a way that few other games do. It's been two years now so Valve hurry up and release Portal 2.
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