I'll be honest, I have no idea if this is going to make any sense. I just thought I would give it a try. Let me know what you think!
Portal 2, if the title didn’t tell you, is the sequel to the groundbreaking and highly regarded puzzle game, Portal. Portal was originally released as a part of the Orange Box and has since become a hit across in the industry for its wonderful sense of humor and gameplay mechanics. When Valve announced Portal 2 many wondered if Valve would be able to recreate the magic that made Portal so special.
Portal 2’s gameplay is very much the same as its predecessor. You still use two portals to traverse the game. The difference lies in how you get there. Portal 2 introduces a myriad of new “gameplay mechanics” in forms of light bridges, paint gels, lasers, and jump pads. All of which are fine and dandy, adding a great amount of originality to what I feared may have been a one trick pony.
The bread and butter of Portal 2 though is the story. While Portal had a decent story, it was short and not expanded upon much. Portal 2 gives you everything you could have wanted and more. The game immediately begins with wonderful humor in form of Wheatley, the resident personality sphere voiced by Stephen Merchant. His character is without a doubt one of the funniest in gaming I’ve ever come across.
Add to that the hilarity of J. K. Simmons as Cave Johnson, the founder of Aperture Science and the continued fun of Ellen McLain as GLaDOS and you’ve got yourself a start studded cast that shines from beginning to end. Even the ending, which you can see from a mile away, is fantastic.
When you play Portal 2, you’ll feel like a genius and an idiot within minutes of each other. One puzzle may seem incredibly easy while the other will have you frustrated for hours. The answer is always right in front you though, and you’ll yell at yourself when you realize how obvious the solution was.
The big difference between Portal 2 and other games is how it makes you feel. Sure, other games can draw emotion from you, but it’s rarely a lasting experience. Consider Uncharted 2 for instance, one of my favorite games. By the end of the game I’d felt accomplished and may or may not have had some relief by finally beating the final boss. When it was over though, it was over. I moved on.
Portal 2 was different. It was a game that had made me feel something special. The story it tells makes you feel beyond what normal games have strived for. You will laugh; you will feel sorrow, amazement, and wonder. The end is the culmination of all those feelings. As you rise, you’re serenaded by a batch of crazy turrets, and somehow that encompasses all you’ve done throughout the game. It makes you feel both happy and sad at the same time. Joy for our accomplishments, and sadness that it’s over.
Portal 2 is a game that will make you feel something. It isn’t particularly hard to play, but its fun and is something special. It’s worth experiencing.
And that’s all we want, right?
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