Portal 2

1. Chapa9dj

   Apr 19, 2011

   10

   Another wonderful masterpiece brought to you by VALVe. This is A+ quality, well worth the $50 bucks.
   Everything looks so good in this game,Another wonderful masterpiece brought to you by VALVe. This is A+ quality, well worth the $50 bucks.
   Everything looks so good in this game, the source engine seems to have evolved, it looks prettier than ever.
   If you liked the first installment of Portal, i'm sure you'll love Portal 2 with passion.… Expand

   • 53 of 61 users found this helpful
2. DaringOne

   May 19, 2011

   10

   It's rare in our sequel filled world that anything equals the original, let alone surpasses it. Portal 2 accomplishes this without losingIt's rare in our sequel filled world that anything equals the original, let alone surpasses it. Portal 2 accomplishes this without losing sight of what made the original great, an even rarer feat.
   
   Portal 2 puts you back in the shoes of the original speechless protagonist from the first game. For those that didn't have the patched PC version that explained a bit more of the ending from the last one, you were recaptured at the end of the game, setting up the beginning of Portal 2.
   
   You're greeted by a friendly AI core named Wheatley as the place is falling down around you. After making your escape from danger, you and Wheatley set out to find a way out of the facility. Much like GLaDOS from the first game, the game is absolutely made by the interaction between you and this character. The voicing of this character couldn't be more appropriate. The dialog at the ends of levels, as well as some of the little quips in between were on occasion laugh out loud funny. Of course, GLaDOS makes her appearance in this game as well, and is every bit as hilarious and sadistic as the previous game. The story is very intriguing, and you'll get to learn a lot of the background behind Aperture Science. For a game that in it's first incarnation started with no story at all, they've managed to wrap a great piece of fiction around the brilliant game mechanic that gave life to the series. Whoever is doing the writing for this series is worth every penny that Valve pays them. The gameplay differs very little from the first game until roughly half way through the game. The same two portal mechanic is still used to solve puzzles, but a curveball from a mechanic standpoint as well as a story standpoint gets thrown at the player with the introduction of gels. There are three different types of gel that it turns out Aperture was working on: a bounce gel, an acceleration gel, and a portal gel. The first two are pretty self explanatory. The third though, allows you to place a portal on any surface. This is a very interesting twist to the game mechanic, especially given how the gels are dispensed. I was worried in early previews when the gel was revealed that this would change the game drastically, and not for the better. However, I couldn't have been more wrong. The gel mechanics add another layer to the puzzles, but are never the absolute focal point of the puzzle. Every puzzle still maintains the portal mechanic as the primary means of getting the job done. I like to maintain my reviews as spoiler free, so I'll leave it to you to see what I'm talking about. Suffice to say, it's a welcome addition to the game.
   
   The only criticism I can level at the game are the load times. This seems to be more distracting later in the game than earlier. (Trying to avoid spoilers here) You'll find that the game will stop suddenly and take significant amounts of time to load the next section. I'm not a programmer, nor do I play one on TV, but I would think at this point that programmers should be able to find an intelligent way to seamlessly load the next section of a game unbeknownst to the player.
   
   This edition of the game introduces a co-operative experience with it's own stand alone story as well. I would strongly recommend finishing the single player version of the game before beginning the co-op. There's two reasons for this. First, completing all the puzzles in the single player mode will prepare you for the challenge of co-op. Co-op is a different beast entirely when it comes to difficulty. Though I only have about three hours in the co-op at this point, I would say that it is more difficult than single player. Secondly, the co-op contains a very minor spoiler for the single player game right out of the gate. It's not much, but if you like to be surprised as much as possible by story elements, you'll want to finish the single player first.
   
   Pros:
   
   * More of the same great puzzles
   * Voice acting is outstanding, and the story is both engaging and laugh out loud funny in some instances
   * Enough new mechanics added to keep the game from feeling stale, while keeping the focus on using portals to solve puzzles
   * Co-op mode extends the play time of the game and gives a completely new experience, complete with its own stand alone story
   
   Cons:
   
   *Load screens between sequences can take you out of the flow of the game
   
   
   Score: 5 out of 5 stars - Must Own… Expand

   • 1 of 1 users found this helpful
4. BrawlerO

   Sep 15, 2011

   10

   Fantastic game and a relief from all the generic FPS games out today. Well designed, funny and very clever execution. I loved the firstFantastic game and a relief from all the generic FPS games out today. Well designed, funny and very clever execution. I loved the first Portal game and this takes the idea and converts it into a stand-alone A class title. Just the right length, certainly didn't feel robbed, and replay value from Co-Op mode. Excellent.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
5. ghostcat

   Apr 25, 2011

   10

   Portal 2 is a fantastic game. Those who are complaining about the short length (it's about 7-8 hours without rushing) are neglecting toPortal 2 is a fantastic game. Those who are complaining about the short length (it's about 7-8 hours without rushing) are neglecting to mention that those 7-8 hours are pure excitement. There is never a dull moment. No item finding, no leveling up, no fetch-quests. Without all the fluff common in other games, it leaves an incredibly well-written narrative coupled with mind-bending puzzles and jaw dropping set-pieces. Could it have been longer? Sure. But what you get is a fully satisfying experience, and it'll be easy to go back and play it multiple times. This one will be hard to beat for GotY.… Expand

   • 2 of 2 users found this helpful
6. sinadoom

   Sep 7, 2012

   9

   The controls are clunky as hell compared to the PC version, but at least setting up a split-screen co-op game is quick and easy. The puzzlesThe controls are clunky as hell compared to the PC version, but at least setting up a split-screen co-op game is quick and easy. The puzzles in co-op weren't as difficult as I was expecting; Chapter 7 in the main story was much more challenging but the co-op is still fun. Solutions aren't instantly apparent, but they don't require hours of thought either. I would highly recommend this game to virtually anyone. The most astonishing achievement isn't the accomodating puzzles which vary in difficulty, the perfectly paced progression, the humour or fun co-op, but the ability to play cross-platform with PC with no problems at all, and no lag whatsoever.… Expand

   • 0 of 0 users found this helpful
7. G3Du

   Apr 24, 2011

   9

   £33 is not much for any PS3 game, never mind one of this calibre. I did finish the single player campaign in a fairly short£33 is not much for any PS3 game, never mind one of this calibre. I did finish the single player campaign in a fairly short amount of time but I must admit to having watched the walkthroughs online (mainly for the story, but I did remember quite a few of the bigger solutions). It's a great game, it's just a shame that amazon sent it 2 days late and PSN is acting up, but I will hopefully play through the Co-op on split screen later today. Great game, slightly short but doesn't need to be longer. Not ten as little replay value, blah blah blah.… Expand

   • 3 of 4 users found this helpful
8. nodifferent

   Apr 27, 2011

   0

   I don't know what happened there, from Portal to Portal 2, but what I experience is not what I expected. GLADOS lost her uniqueness. "HelpingI don't know what happened there, from Portal to Portal 2, but what I experience is not what I expected. GLADOS lost her uniqueness. "Helping you help us help you help us all" compared to fat and "your parents don't love you" jokes speak a clear language. Graphically there is nothing to complain, but the audio work is extraordinary great! Still, the gameplay has flaws! Not the puzzles! They are great! But that world just doesn't fit in. Glados beeing an idiot? WTF were you thinking? GLADOS is a passive aggressive machine ffs. Why is it human all of a sudden? Who cares about a human? It's all about an uncontrolled machine that wreaks heavoc over human habits. 0 compare to a flawless 10 from Portal.… Expand

   • 0 of 15 users found this helpful

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