![]() That's before you even consider co-op, which is a whole separate campaign on its own, starring the most endearing droid duo since C3PO and R2D2. ![]() It's the gameplay that really makes Portal 2 such a joy though and everything else is just the icing on the. It's funny, dark and tense in equal measure, as well as consistently entertaining from start to finish. To say any more would be a horrible spoiler, but suffice to say that Valve has crafted a narrative that really does have it all. ![]() Then the game throws Excursion Funnels into the mix, which enable you to float through the air to otherwise inaccessible plateaus, and it's combining all of these elements that makes Portal 2 so immensely and gratifyingly challenging.Īnd for a while, you'll be prodded from test chamber to test chamber, bending to GlaDOS's every whim, until everything predictably goes horribly awry. Soon, you'll come across blue Repulsion Gel that enables you to bounce off any surfaces painted in the stuff, orange Propulsion Gel that speeds up your running speed and white Conversion Gel that enables you to project portals on it. Things start off nice and simple then, once returning protagonist Chell experiences her rude awakening, and before you know it, you're back in the clean-walled confines of the Aperture Laboratories ready to be taunted and cajoled through increasingly testing experiments. Of course, there is a lot to learn in Portal 2, but Valve pitches the learning curve perfectly, slowly easing you into the various mechanics, gently laying things out for you so it all makes sense, even if you missed playing the first Portal. "Atlas and P-body are proper endearing, innit?" And after that complete feeling of hopelessness at your own cognitive shortcomings, the reward of a 'eureka' moment, when the solution is suddenly right there in front of you, is entirely worth it. Moments like these are hugely frustrating, essentially because they make you feel stupid for not being able to get into the right mindset. With the addition of Repulsion Gel, Propulsion Gel, Conversion Gel, Faith Plates, Hard Light Bridges and Excursion Funnels, Portal 2 kicks things up several notches, creating some of the most fiendish head-scratchers you're ever likely to come across.Īt certain junctures, we'd become seemingly, insurmountably stuck and curse the game design, the level design and everything while trying to formulate a solution to a particular obstacle or what appears to be a total impasse. You see, nothing beats the feeling of satisfaction upon solving one of Portal 2's expertly engineered tests, amid the taunts and barbs being dispensed by omnipotent AI, GLaDOS, who is back with a vengeance for the sequel. What follows is a blend of frustration, puzzlement, bewilderment and thankfully, a hefty dose of jubilation. Portal 1 feels like it was a dry run for this, the main event, which not only tells a killer story with more twists and turns than an Excursion Funnel (more on those later), but it takes the core portal concept and throws in a whole load of new mind-bending mechanics. So, the patented Aperture Science portal gun is back once again, and if you thought some of Portal's test chambers were convoluted, then you're in for a rude awakening with Portal 2, as there are some real brain-melting doozies awaiting in the numerous test chambers of Aperture Laboratories. "Taking a trip down the Funnel of Death."
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