Let's face it: the first Portal game was really just an hour and a half tech demo to see what Valve could do with their Portal gun. And it was effing awesome. Despite being an incredibly short game, it has great puzzles that are challenging, but not frustrating, a surprisingly good story, an amazing sense of humour, and it brought us GLaDOS, one of the funniest and best game villains of all time. Now Portal 2 has come out after a HUGE amount of hype. Does it live up to expectations? I've played it, and here's my review of it.
Keep in mind that I'm reviewing MY copy of the game, and the PS3 version of it. Your copy may not have the same issues mine did.
Story
Once again, you take control of Chell, a young woman who was put through a series of tests, and was the target for death of GLaDOS, in the first Portal. She has been in chryostasis for over 100 years, and wakes up once again in Arpeture Science labs, which has been in serious decay over the years. You are greeted by a small core named Wheatly, who tries to help you escape. Unfourtunately, GLaDOS ends up getting powered on again, and she is not happy over you killing her so long ago.
So much like the first Portal, you really wouldn't expect much of a story from a puzzle game. However, that's where you would be wrong in making assumptions. Portal 2's story is powerful, hilarious, an cultimates to one of the most amazing endings to a game I have seen in a long time. It helps too that the characters you meet, ableit few of them, are all interesting and complex with various motives that made them who they are. Better yet, there may be a total of 4 voice actors in the game, and this has some of the best voice acting you will ever hear in a game.
Gameplay
Of course, what makes a game is NOT its story, but how it plays. And Portal 2 is an incredibly fun game. At first glance, it may appear to be an FPS. However, you are armed with only one tool: the Portal Gun, a weapon that makes two portals, allowing you to traverse through one and go out the other, no matter how far away they are. You will spend most of your time trying to solve puzzles using your handy Portal Gun and any tools you are provided with along the way.
So you might by asking, "So what does Portal 2 offer that's new?" Well, it offers several things. First are light bridges, which you can use your portals to create long beams of light for you to traverse over deadly gaps, and block gunfire coming from the adorable turrets. You also have a gel-like substance that allows you to jump higher or run faster depending on which you use. There are several other things as well, but those are the stand outs.
One thing that Valve has been heavily promoting is the co-op campaign. You and a friend take control of two robots named Atlas and P-Body, and are put through a series of tests by GLaDOS, taking place after Portal 2's single player campaign ends. What makes this so great is that you NEED your partner, and they need you. This isn't Halo co-op. If your buddy just sits around and lets you do all the work, you're going to go nowhere. Communication is required, and the game allows you to do so without the need of a microphone. Overall, it's just amazing.
For the Playstation 3 version, you can actually use a Steam account to play the game on your PC or Mac if you buy it new. I'm not much of a guy to play games on PC so I might not use it, but that's still pretty cool, and adds a reason to purchase the PS3 version: you get 2 systems to play it on.
Presentation
Portal 2 looks great. It's not the best looking game you will find graphic-wise, but you can tell it has its own unique style, even if you can't figure out what makes it so unique. The game actually runs on the same engine Portal and Half-Life 2 did, and amazingly, they made the game look pretty good by today's standards.
The ONLY flaw with this game, is the length. While longer than Portal 1 (which doesn't take much effort, since it wasn't even 2 hours long), Portal 2 will only take you about 6-7 hours to beat, which is short by today's standards. Even if you beat the co-op campaign as well, that will only add another 4-5 hours, creating a short experience. And the puzzles will always be the same, so there's not much incentive to play is again once you're done. While a short-lived experience, you will enjoy every minute of it.
Verdict
So I give Portal 2 for the Playstation 3 a:
9.5/10
The story, the gameplay, the characters, the humour, EVERYTHING about this game succeeds. While the game is unfourtunately short, I can guaruntee that this will be the best money you have spent so far this year. Pick it up immediately if you haven't already.
So, do you have Portal 2 for the PS3, 360, or PC? Was I too harsh or too leniant? Were there any points that I left out? Let me know.
Let's face it: the first Portal game was really just an hour and a half tech demo to see what Valve could do with their Portal gun. And it was effing awesome. Despite being an incredibly short game, it has great puzzles that are challenging, but not frustrating, a surprisingly good story, an amazing sense of humour, and it brought us GLaDOS, one of the funniest and best game villains of all time. Now Portal 2 has come out after a HUGE amount of hype. Does it live up to expectations? I've played it, and here's my review of it.
Keep in mind that I'm reviewing MY copy of the game, and the PS3 version of it. Your copy may not have the same issues mine did.
Story
Once again, you take control of Chell, a young woman who was put through a series of tests, and was the target for death of GLaDOS, in the first Portal. She has been in chryostasis for over 100 years, and wakes up once again in Arpeture Science labs, which has been in serious decay over the years. You are greeted by a small core named Wheatly, who tries to help you escape. Unfourtunately, GLaDOS ends up getting powered on again, and she is not happy over you killing her so long ago.
So much like the first Portal, you really wouldn't expect much of a story from a puzzle game. However, that's where you would be wrong in making assumptions. Portal 2's story is powerful, hilarious, an cultimates to one of the most amazing endings to a game I have seen in a long time. It helps too that the characters you meet, ableit few of them, are all interesting and complex with various motives that made them who they are. Better yet, there may be a total of 4 voice actors in the game, and this has some of the best voice acting you will ever hear in a game.
Gameplay
Of course, what makes a game is NOT its story, but how it plays. And Portal 2 is an incredibly fun game. At first glance, it may appear to be an FPS. However, you are armed with only one tool: the Portal Gun, a weapon that makes two portals, allowing you to traverse through one and go out the other, no matter how far away they are. You will spend most of your time trying to solve puzzles using your handy Portal Gun and any tools you are provided with along the way.
So you might by asking, "So what does Portal 2 offer that's new?" Well, it offers several things. First are light bridges, which you can use your portals to create long beams of light for you to traverse over deadly gaps, and block gunfire coming from the adorable turrets. You also have a gel-like substance that allows you to jump higher or run faster depending on which you use. There are several other things as well, but those are the stand outs.
One thing that Valve has been heavily promoting is the co-op campaign. You and a friend take control of two robots named Atlas and P-Body, and are put through a series of tests by GLaDOS, taking place after Portal 2's single player campaign ends. What makes this so great is that you NEED your partner, and they need you. This isn't Halo co-op. If your buddy just sits around and lets you do all the work, you're going to go nowhere. Communication is required, and the game allows you to do so without the need of a microphone. Overall, it's just amazing.
For the Playstation 3 version, you can actually use a Steam account to play the game on your PC or Mac if you buy it new. I'm not much of a guy to play games on PC so I might not use it, but that's still pretty cool, and adds a reason to purchase the PS3 version: you get 2 systems to play it on.
Presentation
Portal 2 looks great. It's not the best looking game you will find graphic-wise, but you can tell it has its own unique style, even if you can't figure out what makes it so unique. The game actually runs on the same engine Portal and Half-Life 2 did, and amazingly, they made the game look pretty good by today's standards.
The ONLY flaw with this game, is the length. While longer than Portal 1 (which doesn't take much effort, since it wasn't even 2 hours long), Portal 2 will only take you about 6-7 hours to beat, which is short by today's standards. Even if you beat the co-op campaign as well, that will only add another 4-5 hours, creating a short experience. And the puzzles will always be the same, so there's not much incentive to play is again once you're done. While a short-lived experience, you will enjoy every minute of it.
Verdict
So I give Portal 2 for the Playstation 3 a:
9.5/10
The story, the gameplay, the characters, the humour, EVERYTHING about this game succeeds. While the game is unfourtunately short, I can guaruntee that this will be the best money you have spent so far this year. Pick it up immediately if you haven't already.
So, do you have Portal 2 for the PS3, 360, or PC? Was I too harsh or too leniant? Were there any points that I left out? Let me know.
baylaust out.