Take a simple game concept of portals, combine it with FPS elements, and add Valve's historic magical touch to it and you get the recipe for one of the greatest games ever: Portal. Portal puts you in the shoes of Chell, who wakes up in a contained facility controlled by unseen observers and narrated by a critical robot named Glados. I don't want to ruin the story, but things get a little creepy and crazy, and manages to keep you interested all the way to the end. The puzzles start out as easy as putting a box on a button to open up the door to the next level, but get more intense over time as different methods get elaborated on such as the infinite fall. Eventually there are hazards such as turrets and energy balls that easily can kill you, and you need to use your portals to control these hazards such as having the turrets shoot each other. A few times you can get stuck and frustrated, but you will always find a way out to the next level. If the game proves too easy however, there are challenge levels that are near impossible. A few times I feel like I cheated because of how ridiculous the method to solve the puzzle was. The best part of the game though was the atmosphere. As soon as you feel that the white tiled surroundings may look boring, the game changes it up a bit and keeps it looking fresh. For fifteen bucks, this eight-hour memorable masterpiece will hopefully get you as excited as I am for Portal 2.
The Good:
+ Great story-easy to follow yet keeps you interested and entertained by the mystery of your surroundings.
+ Innovative gameplay-portals are a very simple concept, but made into a game, you will never forget the first time you walk through a portal and see yourself on the other side. Incredibly entertaining and perfectly executed. The combination of puzzle and reflex elements is excellent.
+Good difficulty-advanced levels will satisfy anyone looking for serious challenges, but if they are too difficult there is no real reward for beating them. The main levels are easy enough for anyone to eventually figure out.
The Bad:
- Only real downside is the ending is somewhat of a let down and doesn't satisfy the curiosity and only makes you want a sequel. The story seems like a demo for the upcoming Portal 2, which will hopefully follow up on these questions.
Final Verdict: 8/10. I would recommend purchasing if you are looking for a new game to keep you busy for a while, but the lack of replay value makes me suggest that you rent it or borrow it from a friend.
Ah, Portal! Now THAT'S a game! Yes, I too look forward to the sequel!
ReplyDeleteI don't think Valve has ever let me down I love them
ReplyDeleteThe cake is a lie!
ReplyDelete,,,,nice point of view dude..keep posting this kind of stuff
ReplyDeleteThe ending is a letdown? With THAT song??
ReplyDeletePortal is a complete joy from head to toe. The gradual peeling back of the fourth wall, as you discover the grafitti and the various scrawled messages, hidden behind the pristine facility walls. GLaDOS, willing you to continue, mocking you when you fail, daring you to push past where you should. I can remember how dizzyingly brilliant that ending was, the first time i played through it. For me, it never occured there would even BE a sequel; the game stands alone quite nicely as it is.
But really, the song encapsulates the feeling you get from playing it, in it's opening line:
"This was a triumph...i'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS"
you think the portal gun will appear in Half Life 3? I think so!
ReplyDeletejust wait, there is a lot of new tech coming...
ReplyDeleteI cant wait HL3!
ReplyDeleteIt's true it's kinda like that!
ReplyDeleteportal is a great game cannot wait for two.
ReplyDeletehttp://operationaloptional.blogspot.com/
this is amazing
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for Portal 2!!!
ReplyDeleteI don;t know why everyone loves portal
ReplyDeleteI liked Portal, but it was kind of shallow in terms of storyline. Like you said, I don't really care about a continuation because I don't feel like it's continuing anything.
ReplyDeletehahaha... portals..
ReplyDeleteI love gmod + portal. I swear i could play those game for hours and never get bored.
ReplyDeletevery informative thanks
ReplyDeleteLOL! Nice post!
ReplyDeletePortal is my God.
ReplyDeletePortal is one of the most inventive puzzle games I have played in a while, complete with an interesting storyline... it's great!
ReplyDeleteChad: try it and see dude, it's friggen great :)
ReplyDeletecannot wait for it
ReplyDeletehave to play it
ReplyDeleteI've been replaying the orange box. After I beat episode 2, I'm going to play through portal again. It's a great game.
ReplyDeleteI've really been wanting to play this game.
ReplyDeleteGood review. Though I thought the ending was great.
ReplyDeleteMy review of Portal can be summed up by the facts that I pre-ordered Portal 2, and I think Portal is good enough to give to my father as a present.