Portal is Valve Software's first commercial puzzlegame, to be released in a package
along with Half-Life 2: Episode Two and Team Fortress 2, in (at time of writing)
Summer 2007. Portal is developed by a new batch of Valve employees, Digipen graduates
led by Kim Swift who made an innovative puzzle game called Narbacular Drop as their
final project. Portal takes the ideas and gameplay of Narbacular Drop and expands
upon it - a spiritual successor of sorts. It's been confirmed by Valve that it takes
place in the Half-Life universe, but beyond that, details concerning the storyline
are largely unknown in relation to the HL saga.
Portal places you in the shoes of a test subject for the company Aperture Laboratories, tasked with testing an experimental weapon called the "Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device," or ASHPD (prompting a plethora of rumours that "Opposing Force" protagonist Adrian Shepard is involved). This gun creates portals on any surface, an ability the player must use to get to the end of the level, avoiding obstacles such as machinegun turrets. The ASHPD is also capable of gravity gun-esque physics manipulation, so that you can pick up objects and throw them through the aforementioned portals. The game presents myriad interesting puzzle opportunities, given that any horizontal or vertical plane can be used to create a portal, resulting in somewhat mind-bending possibilities.
Only single-player mode has been confirmed at this time, but Swift has mentioned that there are a lot of interesting multiplayer possibilities, leaving speculation open to the fans. The game is purportedly three to four hours long, which is not shabby given the fact that it's a simple puzzle game. Several trailers and gameplay videos have been released if you wish to see this gameplay in action.
Portal is out now available only as part of Valve's 'Orange Box' package. This is available on PC, Xbox 360 and soon to be Playstation 3.
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Portal places you in the shoes of a test subject for the company Aperture Laboratories, tasked with testing an experimental weapon called the "Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device," or ASHPD (prompting a plethora of rumours that "Opposing Force" protagonist Adrian Shepard is involved). This gun creates portals on any surface, an ability the player must use to get to the end of the level, avoiding obstacles such as machinegun turrets. The ASHPD is also capable of gravity gun-esque physics manipulation, so that you can pick up objects and throw them through the aforementioned portals. The game presents myriad interesting puzzle opportunities, given that any horizontal or vertical plane can be used to create a portal, resulting in somewhat mind-bending possibilities.
Only single-player mode has been confirmed at this time, but Swift has mentioned that there are a lot of interesting multiplayer possibilities, leaving speculation open to the fans. The game is purportedly three to four hours long, which is not shabby given the fact that it's a simple puzzle game. Several trailers and gameplay videos have been released if you wish to see this gameplay in action.
| Play The Game |
Portal is out now available only as part of Valve's 'Orange Box' package. This is available on PC, Xbox 360 and soon to be Playstation 3.
