Portal

Voices of: Ellen McLain, Mike Patton, Alesia Glidewell
Developer: Valve
Directed by: Kim Swift
Rating: T
Genre: Puzzle-Platform
System: Playstation 3, Xbox 360
2007

Times Completed:
Tim: 1

Summary: A woman wakes up in a testing facility run by a psychopathic AI system named GLaDOS. She must try to escape the deadly tests, armed only with a gun that can make portals.

Review:
Tim: I love almost everything about Valve's Portal. When I think about the best video games of all time, this one comes to mind. It's a brilliantly constructed puzzle platformer that takes a cutting-edge concept, overloads the whole thing with humor, creating a genius playing experience. This is one of the most fun games I've ever played. It's one of the few games where I felt both delight and awe as I played through puzzle after puzzle. It's a short game, but an absolute masterpiece.

You play as Chell, a woman who wakes up in an Aperture Science testing facility. You are given a portal gun (one of the coolest "inventions" of all time) and are given a series of deadly tests by the deranged artificial intelligence known as GLaDOS. The way this premise is used- leveraging kinetic energy, the sci-fi wondrous quality of stepping in one portal and out another at another location, my goodness, it's brilliant. The puzzles will test you. My usual play through felt like this- "Okay, what is going on here?" "Okay, I think I see what I need to do." "Nope, that's not quite it." "Oh! I get it. You have to be kidding me, that is unbelievably cool!" and then a huge grin as I perform whatever ridiculous feats are required to make it through the next level. The challenge puzzles are all brilliantly constructed, teaching you various skills and ways to use the portal gun in incredible ways. You feel such a blazing sense of accomplishment as you figure out one of GLaDOS' puzzles.

Now, as amazing as the puzzles are, it's the worldbuilding that really sets this game apart. GLaDOS is one of the all-time great antagonists. "Her" taunting, her ridiculous statements, her ludicrous promise of cake at the end- it's all so odd, off-putting, hilarious, and engaging. I can't remember the last game I laughed so continually throughout the process. I mean, just imagine- you are using a portal gun to defeat a series of deadly traps sprung on you by a homicidal A.I. system who taunts and berates you while clearly pretending that something else is going on. It's a video game experience unlike anything else. The graphics are great, leveraging the power of the Playstation 3 to really make you feel like you're moving through these levels.

I completed all 19 missions on Standard, and I also completed all 14 Still Alive Missions. I don't think I ever looked online for any hints/solutions? The game is tough, but not tough if you invest the time to examine the levels. That's part of the brilliance of the game- you can figure everything out, if you just think through it carefully. I absolutely adored my time playing this game.

I do need to talk about the ending and while I'll try to be vague, I do want to write about it, so (SPOILER ALERT) if you haven't completed the game. I believe Portal has perhaps the greatest ending in video game history. The final level is a wonderful challenge and I loved that climactic battle, trying to get everything right as the time ticked down. It was a great challenge. And then, when you complete the game, you're treated to (SPOILER AGAIN) a song. I'll try not to say too much, except that this is one of the greatest things humanity has ever done in the world of entertainment. Seriously. It's absolutely perfect. The music, the artificial singing, the way the lyrics start out beautifully and then slowly take on a more menacing quality, the way it perfectly pulls the rug out from underneath you... there's this moment where you're rocking out to it and go, "Wait...what? What did she say? Oh...no..." It's just genius. I ended this game happier than any game I've ever played. You just listen to this song and you cannot help but laugh and smile. I've never done that like this in a game before. Absolutely brilliant.

Portal is one of my favorite games. GLaDOS, the portal gun, the puzzles, the promise of cake, the lunacy of the entire game- my goodness, it's so perfect. This is a masterpiece.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Game, We Recommend: Portal 2, Half-Life