Portal 2 Review

[Susan Arendt]

Interesting that people don't think it's easier. The first third - the story mode is definitely chopped into thirds, btw - is mind-numbingly easy. Perhaps not if you didn't play the first game, though...so maybe it was intended as an introduction for complete newbies?

Easier than the first half or portal? The two serve the same function of an extended tutorial, so is the first third of Portal 2 easier than the first hald of Portal?

The first third of Portal 2 is easier than the first half of Portal, yes. It's just too easy to go on as long as it does, though, again, I say that as someone who played the first one. Ideally, you should be able to skip it, but if you did that, you'd miss out on some fun moments and Wheatley shenanigans. Maybe should've just made it a few levels shorter. For me, the game doesn't really start to become interesting until the middle third, when you meet Cave Johnson (so to speak).

 

[Slycne]

Wait...so Portal 2 gets 4 stars, but DAII got 5 stars?

What the hell happened here?

Money dear boy.
Valve doesn't strike me as the type of company to threaten/bribe a website for a good review.
EA does.

Otherwise, the footage looks nice, might pick this one up.
I'll have a look at a few more reviews first though. Not sure I can trust the Escapist anymore for honest reviews.

Besides the fact that we've never sold a review. EA is the retail distributer for Portal 2, so you're kind of defeated by your own statement on that one.

 

[Dr Snakeman]

"Reviewed with Xbox360 version"

What? No, no no no no no no no. You fucked up already! The 360 version is the WORST version you could buy! I was playing it last night (and I'm gonna continue playing it when I get back home) and while I do agree that there is WAY more loading, it took no more than 10 seconds at a time for me. I only went 30 minutes in before it was 1:30 in the morning and decided to go to sleep, and I love it already!

Why? Can someone please tell me what is so terrible about the 360 version? I mean, that's the version of the original Portal I own. Are the PC and 360 versions actually different games, or is this just another PC gamer bias about how console controls are inferior to keyboard or some crap like that?

Honestly, I don't really give a flying fornication if I have to wait five seconds longer in the console version; that doesn't make it inferior.

 

[JustJuust]

did he really say that he doesn't know what happened to the aperture lab? This guy shouldn't review Portal 2 without even playing Portal 1

 

[Xman490]

I think that the puzzles are just difficult enough, as in slightly harder than the original's.

 

[Quellist]

Looking forward to the gibs flying when Yahtzee reviews this...

What is it with people recently assuming Yahtzee's going to hate everything (that is what you were implying right?)

Well its just Yahtzee loved portal so much, and knowing his general opinion of sequels all i can say is it better be Really good...

 

[Beryl77]

I started playing it today and haven't finished it yet. I can't say anyting about the coop mod because I want to finish singleplayer first but the singleplayer is great! I pretty much love everything about it, I guess I sound like a fanboy. I'm actually having more fun playing Portal 2 then Portal 1.

 

[PurplePlatypus]

I wouldn?t like to say the puzzles are easier, it?s really difficult to judge, we are not going in fresh in the same way we did with Portal. We?ve probably all played Portal and some of us have gone on to the advanced maps and fan made mods.


You?re probably going to have an easier time with this game but I don?t know if it?s because it is actually easier. I think, for the main story, the difficulty is about right. If you?re a more seasoned player looking for a really difficult challenge, I think that?s best left to the advanced maps and modders catering to that.


As for the length, it took me just over 5 hours for the single player. That was semi-taking my time and with a bit of head scratching. Other people have taken longer, some will have steam rolled through it.


Don't let this review put you off, Portal 2 is a fantastic game.

 

[Assassin Xaero]

Three acts as long as the original? So the game is about four and a half hours now, and with less challenging puzzles? I'll wait for a sale. And before someone quotes me to say that there is coop, like someone always does, I don't care. L4D taught me two things about coop: most random people in coop match making are douche bags, and coop is only fun with friends. Seeing how all my friends are poor and our schedules are so weird, I'd probably never touch coop.

 

[Rayansaki]

I must ask, why review the 360 version of the game when its a primarily PC version, or even the new PS3 version to see how it stacks up?

OT: I expected the loading times thing because it happens with every Valve game

Judge a product by its weakest link, this case being the 360 version.

Then everyone would call The Orange Box a steaming pile of #$%& because of the PS3 version.

You should review the game on the platform it was made for, in this case the PC, or if you want the console version, review on the complete one, not the gimped one.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

You use the term 'indie' a lot when describing Portal.

Portal isn't an indie game nor a 'pseudo-indie' game. In fact it was made by one of the largest studios in the PC market.

Valve doesn't have a publisher, that's what an independent studio is. A studio, that is not dependent on a publisher.

They do have a publisher for retail (EA at the moment, Vivendi Universal before). They are not _owned_ by a publisher. Thirdly, Valve is an oddball, as they also act as a Publisher through Steam.

But I would not call them an Indie developer[1] though, as the "indie group" of game developers is usually associated with small developer groups with finite resources.

[1] Although its strictly true.

That's why the article says "pseudo-indie".

 

[chris11246]

I wouldn?t like to say the puzzles are easier, it?s really difficult to judge, we are not going in fresh in the same way we did with Portal. We?ve probably all played Portal and some of us have gone on to the advanced maps and fan made mods.


You?re probably going to have an easier time with this game but I don?t know if it?s because it is actually easier. I think, for the main story, the difficulty is about right. If you?re a more seasoned player looking for a really difficult challenge, I think that?s best left to the advanced maps and modders catering to that.


As for the length, it took me just over 5 hours for the single player. That was semi-taking my time and with a bit of head scratching. Other people have taken longer, some will have steam rolled through it.


Don't let this review put you off, Portal 2 is a fantastic game.

I pretty much agree with everything you said. The puzzles arent impossible but I did have to think about them sometimes and it took me about 5 hours to complete. Although even if you dont find the story mode challenging the story itself is interesting enough to warrant playing it.

 

[internetzealot1]

Is the Xbox version able to play user-gen content made by PC gamers?

 

[Wicky_42]

Is the Xbox version able to play user-gen content made by PC gamers?

I really doubt it - Microsoft doesn't like those sort of shenanigans. Could be wrong though...

 

[Everian]

Is the Xbox version able to play user-gen content made by PC gamers?

heh heh, no.

 

[internetzealot1]

Is the Xbox version able to play user-gen content made by PC gamers?

heh heh, no.

Even though, according to this site, Valve said so?

 

[prouler]

wow fail. half of the clips you used to show act 1 were from act 3, and the funnel only appeared in act 3. Did you even play the game!? seriously, that is just fail! and yeah, don't want to give spoilers except for the MASSIVE SPOINLERS, you know, like the screens that who the "AI controlling aperture" is. hate to tell you, but that is a massive spoiler giving away a major plot point. The potato is okay because seriously, who is gonna guess that, but you are showing a major character's long term development there Mr. Pitts! I will agree on the other points, that the loading screens were badly mismanaged, and that some puzzles were lackluster. heck some were just plain deceptive and moronic, while others were pure strokes of genius. it's not a perfect game, and no it's not portal 1, but that you can give DA2 a perfect score and give portal 2 a 4/5 is just wrong. the game is less than $60 (50 retail, 45 if bought on steam at the moment), and co-op adds a massive amount of play time and replay value. the game is amazing, and deserves that 5 star rating, because, let's face it, saying that there are only 5 degree's of good or bad game is a pretty faulty system to start with, and giving an amazing game like this 4 stars means anything from 70%-90% and giving portal 2 anything below 90% is an injustice to the game, and all of the work that the valve team put into it.

 

[AgentNein]

Wait...so Portal 2 gets 4 stars, but DAII got 5 stars?

What the hell happened here?

Money dear boy.
Valve doesn't strike me as the type of company to threaten/bribe a website for a good review.
EA does.

Otherwise, the footage looks nice, might pick this one up.
I'll have a look at a few more reviews first though. Not sure I can trust the Escapist anymore for honest reviews.

1) Two very different games, I don't see the point in comparing their review scores

2) Two different reviewers.

3) Don't know if you realize how insulting and/or rude it is to accuse a website of money hatting or taking bribes with absolutely nothing backing that up other than you not agreeing with the scores they gave to a couple of games. Has the escapist given you any real reason to attack it's integrity?

 

[DarkTenka]

Pff .. "loading screens too long?" wth .. no loading screen was longer than 10 seconds.

 

[omegawyrm]

Just finished the single-player mode, haven't touched the co-op yet, but already Portal 2 is better in every way than Portal 1, with the possible exception of being more expensive in a relative way. The puzzles are more fun and clever. The new characters are hilarious and their interactions add what I felt was the most critically missing part of the first game. There are a lot of moments of awe at the scale of the things you see. Traveling through the "behind the curtain" areas is far better integrated into the mood and narrative of the game. And the conclusion is amazing. Haven't touched the co-op yet, but if you liked the first game, and have some extra cash, I would highly recommend buying this game.