After wowing gamers who purchased Orange Box last year, Portal finally saw a solo release on PC in April. Gamers that passed up the incredible value that is Orange Box, waiting on the release of Portal, should know this—the buzz is true; the game is fan-friggin-tastic.
The puzzle element introduced by Portal is hard to comprehend without seeing it in action. Ultimately, there is a blue portal and an orange portal, both of which the player can eventually control. Going in either allows the player to pop out of the other. It’s a simple mechanic that is put to increasingly complex situations. Momentum becomes a factor (“speedy thing goes in, speedy thing comes out”), and numerous obstacles make the tasks progressively harder.
The story is that the player is helping test the portal technology in the Enrichment Center of Aperture Science Laboratories under the direction of a computerized voice. And though the game’s unofficial catch phrase has permeated the internet, it would be unfair to spoil the plot but to note that the game’s story is brilliantly scripted with an awesomely wicked humor. That’s a lot of modifiers, but they are well-deserved by Portal.
The only real gripe one can make about Portal is that the experience is so damn short (just a few hours, depending on how quickly one grasps the concept). The later areas of the game are also not quite as aesthetically pleasing as the early stuff. Still, the minor flaws are easily overlooked by the revolutionary gameplay and humor, and extras such as “advanced” levels and a commentary track extend the fun.
For anyone interested in even one other game in Orange Box, it would be better just to purchase the entire collection, but for those that haven’t yet got their fix of Portal, the game is one of the freshest gameplay experiences to be created in the last few years.
Portal
Portal review!
by: William Jones
Posted on Jul 03, 2008 - 4:29 pm | Comments (0)
Portal (PC) [T]
Publisher: EA – Developer: Valve Corporation
Rating: 9 out of 10
After wowing gamers who purchased Orange Box last year, Portal finally saw a solo release on PC in April. Gamers that passed up the incredible value that is Orange Box, waiting on the release of Portal, should know this—the buzz is true; the game is fan-friggin-tastic.
The puzzle element introduced by Portal is hard to comprehend without seeing it in action. Ultimately, there is a blue portal and an orange portal, both of which the player can eventually control. Going in either allows the player to pop out of the other. It’s a simple mechanic that is put to increasingly complex situations. Momentum becomes a factor (“speedy thing goes in, speedy thing comes out”), and numerous obstacles make the tasks progressively harder.
The story is that the player is helping test the portal technology in the Enrichment Center of Aperture Science Laboratories under the direction of a computerized voice. And though the game’s unofficial catch phrase has permeated the internet, it would be unfair to spoil the plot but to note that the game’s story is brilliantly scripted with an awesomely wicked humor. That’s a lot of modifiers, but they are well-deserved by Portal.
The only real gripe one can make about Portal is that the experience is so damn short (just a few hours, depending on how quickly one grasps the concept). The later areas of the game are also not quite as aesthetically pleasing as the early stuff. Still, the minor flaws are easily overlooked by the revolutionary gameplay and humor, and extras such as “advanced” levels and a commentary track extend the fun.
For anyone interested in even one other game in Orange Box, it would be better just to purchase the entire collection, but for those that haven’t yet got their fix of Portal, the game is one of the freshest gameplay experiences to be created in the last few years.