GlaDOS, Aperture and the rest: How does it all tie up?

[Polaris]

Food for thought: How did Aperture Science know about the HEV suit?

Industrial espionage or HEV was commercial product, even Marines knew about them and they had some commercial PCV-HEV rechargers.

 

[Chug a Bug]

This leaves many questions unanswered:

[*]Why did the Gman want the combine to loose their citadel.

He's shown no interest in the Combine. He's only interested in bidders for Gordan's contract.

Why does the Gman allow the resistance to launch a rocket to destroy the new super portal?

Why not? It's not like he needs a portal. He appeared at Black Mesa to Eli before the Resonance Cascade occured. He doesn't need Portals to travel anywhere.

Was the death of Eli orchestrated by Gman?

Why? What would be the point?

If above, is it then Gmans intention that the Combine becomes aware of the teleportation technology aboard Borealis?

We'll probably see more to Gman, if he wants the combine to get the teleportation technology, as Gordon Freeman would then be a danger for those plans.

Why would he want the Combine to have teleport technology? All the evidence we have so far shows he's uninterested in the Combine, or Earth for that matter. He's only shown interest in Gordan and Alyx and to a lesser extent, Eli.

 

[anthonyjd]

Since others have pointed out the significance of "Take your daughter to work" Day, I can't help but wonder if that is at all related to a comment GLaDOS makes about "donating organs to a girls group". I don't know the exact words she used but it was along those lines and she mentions it during the puzzle midway through the testchamber exercises where you have to teleport between the two raised platforms to open the gate using the pedestal buttons.

 

[specialguy92]

I've read this entire thread, and many of the theories have intrigued me. As such, i see it fit to introduce my two cents. In the aperturescience.com thing, when you log in as CJohnson, that might be the login for Clay Johnson, the man who went crazy. As such, the main character, Chell Johnson, could be Clay's daughter. I dunno, just a thought.

 

[Razoric]

Thoughts

It says so right here in your personnel file; 'Unlikable. Liked by no one. A bitter unlikable loner whose passing shall not be mourned.' SHALL NOT BE MOURNED. That's exactly what it says. Very formal. Very official.

This is after tossing morality and curiosity, and right before tossing logistics in.

So Chell was unlikable, bitter and a loner, as it is listed on her very file. She would not be missed, or mourned, by anyone at all.

What's that say? Seems a little strange for Chell to be at a 'bring-your-daughter-to-work day' if she wasn't liked at all, a loner and bitter. Especially if the deserting of the entire place happens then. A bit of a strange thing to change a file to, don't you think?

It also says you were adopted. So that's funny too.

If she was adopted, that means there was some interest either in acquiring her because she would not be missed (adoption by Aperture Science, let's say?) or because someone wanted a daughter (and thus, adopted her out of potential love).

You're not even a full-time employee.

GlaDOS specifies "full-time" employee. Would Chell have been a part-time at some point?

You're not a good person, you know that, right? Good people don't end up here.

Seems fitting they'd take someone who wouldn't be missed, or mourned, by anyone if 'good people' don't end up "here". Again, seems unlikely she was brought in as someone's daughter, then.

Well done. Remember, the Aperture Science 'Bring your daughter to work' day is the perfect time to have her tested."

Then again, maybe she is adopted by the company. Or maybe she's a neglected child who isn't actually loved by whoever adopted her.

Unbelievable! You, {SUBJECT NAME HERE}, must be the pride of {SUBJECT HOMETOWN HERE}

Throughout the entire test, Chell's profile isn't actually up. Either it's supposed to be inputed manually by the people behind the glass windows when it comes to be tested, or that it's another of GlaDOS' malfunctions.

It has been replaced with a live-fire course designed for military androids.

Well done, android.

Seems there's more to the enrichment facility than portal technology.
Ever notice how Chell takes no damage from extreme heights despite only wearing spring-braces? Even with rocket boots a fall from that height should hurt. Not to mention balance. Chell has extremely responsive reflexes, able to right herself no matter how short the fall when re-orienting herself out of a portal.

Android? Advancements? Cyborg? Or Gordon Freeman syndrome, where an unlikely MIT graduate (or a conventional girl) seems to have extensive military (and physical) training?

The difference between us is that I can feel pain. You don't even care, do you?

GlaDOS can feel pain - or at least, simulate the sensation of pain. But here it claims Chell cannot.

Which brings to mind her capable of falling at terminal velocity without hurting herself in the least, or falling over or anything.

Didn't we have some fun, though? Remember when the platform was sliding into the fire pit and i said 'Goodbye' and you were like 'NNOO WWAAYY", and then I was all "We pretended we were going to murder you", that was great.

While this has nothing to do with mixing Chell into the storyline, it's my favorite quote.

 

[Jintor]

I like your theories (especially the Chell =/= pain thing) but bear in mind that GLaDOS lies quite a lot.

 

[taiki]

I think Chell was a criminal. The kind of girl who was a trouble maker ever since she was a kid, given what GLaDOS says. What tipped me off? Like everything else that's tipped me off about Portal's storyline, ApertureScience.com's website. The Application form includes a section where if you forget your UID, they ask you for a CRIME only you have committed. Yes, GLaDOS lies, but I'd imagine being blunt and honest are more hurtful things than outright lies, and I imagine GLaDOS knows this.

 

[assault]

A GlaDOS is on board???

[/QUOTE]


I hate to make my first post quote someone else, but I felt this may have been overlooked:

Does anyone else notice that the Borealis is armed like a destroyer? Look closely. 20mm gun nests? .50 calibur AA guns? 5" guns on the flanks? Exactly where was this ship going to research that it needed the firepower to start mixing it up with frigates? Moreover, what was on it that needed that kind of protection, even before the portal storms (when we assume the boat itself was under construction?)

 

[Deh Stroya]

Just small anwser erm the Enrichment Center was not ABANDONED it was flooded with a neurotoxin gas by GLaDOS now she controls the enricment center and tests the gunon subjects she can get her hands on from the "bring your daughter to work day"
hope that anwsers anything

 

[ríomhaire]

A: There were still people in the centre after the neurotoxin incident. Otherwise no one would have been around to put in the morality core.
B: Your post is painful to the eyes. If you're going to use a custom font make sure that it's legible first.

 

[Mahalis]

I don't know the exact words she used but it was along those lines

"Did you know: you can donate one or all of your vital organs to the Aperture Science Self-Esteem Fund for Girls? It's true!"

 

[Doombringer]

You'll also note on those Borealis diagrams, "Material Emancipation Grid" ...

Perhaps we'll see some Portal play in Ep 3 if the grid is online and 'emancipating' your weaponry. And fillings.

 

[Razoric]

And teeth.

 

[Jintor]

I note that there's a lot of Steam and Valve mentions in the box on one of the Borealis planning sheets.

 

[Great Grizzly]

Why? What would be the point?

To shut him up. Eli knew things about the gman, so naturally Gman had to kill him.

Where does it say that the girls name is chell? When searching portals wiki, it doesnt give any links that prove thats her name.

 

[Great Grizzly]

On the other hand, Aperture Science already f***ed up with GLaDOS. The incident with that AI along with Eli's grave misgivings suggest that the Borealis disappearence was yet another accident caused by Aperture scientists..

How would Eli know of Aperture Science? He worked for blackmesa, their competitor. I think the who disapearance of the ship was due to Aperture trying to wow the government. They probably attempted to teleport the whole ship, and failed horribly.

We would have saw Universial Union forces at Black Mesa if this was the case. What purpose does infesting the BMRF with anti-Combine aliens serve in gaining local teleportation technology?

The Aliens where not under control of the combine, they were escaping from the Combine. Xen was the last stand for the species, and it just so happens that humans showed themselves during this intergalacted struggle and became the next target for the combine war machine.

Oops, sorry for the double post...

 

[piratebd]

it just occurred to me right now after reading this post...I think GlaDOS is linked to the Combine in a BIIIG way!

think about it...Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System...it implies a hybrid of organic matter and machinery.

What is Combine technology made up of?
Answer:Organic matter and machinery!

Maybe its a weird time-travel thingy or something...

Also...maybe the G-man consists of a small group of survivors of a once-powerful civilization?Maybe the advisors were once their slaves or something and the G-man race is just trying to bring back their once mighty empire (the true architects of the Universal Union?)

thoughts?

 

[Lightice]

Where does it say that the girls name is chell? When searching portals wiki, it doesnt give any links that prove thats her name.

It reads quite clearly in the end credits.

 

[Druckles]

No *spoiler* tag was put at the beginning of this thread.

 

[Jintor]

Because it's a *SPOILER!* forum.

 

[Great Grizzly]

It reads quite clearly in the end credits.

I see it now. I was just curious if Chell was a real name, or just a placeholder name for a charector that doesnt have a name, like Gman.

Considering that Chell wasnt mentioned by name at all in game, it might be that she doesnt have a name and the model was just named Chell.

 

[Narvi]

I see it now. I was just curious if Chell was a real name, or just a placeholder name for a charector that doesnt have a name, like Gman.

Considering that Chell wasnt mentioned by name at all in game, it might be that she doesnt have a name and the model was just named Chell.

It's on her tube.

 

[Razoric]

At the end of the credits, there is "We thank the following people for use of their likeness in the game:" and it lists some lady with "- Chell" for it. Considering the protagonist is the only person you can see the face of (and the only person at all), it stands to presume that Chell is thus the protagonist.

 

[kriztov]

Anyway, I'm pretty sure that GLaDOS is still there, in the Borealis, but I have a different idea.

I think that Aperture, still in contention for the portal technology grant money, decided to move their portal technology to a bigger scale. By the time of the events at black mesa, they were nearing completion of what was essentially a bigger version of the ASHPD. The unfortunate side effect that they could not forsee was a slight time gap that existed with the original ASHPD was magnified along with the size of the portal. Thus a test run ended with the Borealis disappearing for what Aperture employee's believed was for good. This however was not the case, as it reappered sometime between the time Gordon goes into stasis, and returns. Presumably after the 7 hour war.
As For Aperture itself, after the disappearance of the Borealis, and essentially all of their research save the backups kept with the original GLaDOS, they returned to their research facility. After funding cuts they are then forced to liquidate some of their personell. Including the person manning the red phone in the GLaDOS chamber (you'll hear about the red phone if you listen to the directors commentary) incapable of comprehending or handling unsupervised operations, she floods the Enrichment Center with a deadly neurotoxin, thereby killing all of the enrichment center employees. This scandal causes Aperture to lose all of their funding, and the company is sent into bankruptcy. As it is too dangerous to attempt a deactivation of GLaDOS, they simply install an inhibitor (morality core) to force GLaDOS to cease releasing neurotoxin. Around this time, the 7 hour war occurs. As such, Aperture's enrichment Center, a small self powered, abandoned facility gets forgotten. The Combine, upon discovering a derelict factory, dismiss the Enrichment center as nothing to concern themselves with. Then portal happens.

I'd say more, but I cant really think of anything else

 

[Razoric]

There's a whole lot of 'useless' pistons, jamming in and out of walls, floors and ceilings.

What if they're engines?

What if GlADOS blowing up is what causes the Borealis to disappear?

 

[Druckles]

There's a whole lot of 'useless' pistons, jamming in and out of walls, floors and ceilings.

What if they're engines?

What if GlADOS blowing up is what causes the Borealis to disappear?

If you remember... you "wake up" on land when you "kill" GLaDOS. On land. And I don't recall it being near a dock.

 

[Micta]

GlaDOS
First, starting with GlaDOS and her Final Battle speeches... which are largely lies right? But what of:


Is this just more bluffing on her part, or does it allow us to date the events of Portal? Is the change on the outside the Portal Storms or Combine Occupation? Us could presumably refer to the Combine... so is the destruction of GlaDOS instrumental in the arrival of the Combine? Or aliens from Xen?

Portal takes place while Gordon is in Stasis.
Among other things, thats explained at: http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/User:AndrewNeo/Analyzing_ApertureScience.com

Its well worth the read.
=]

 

[Druckles]

Wonder how the Combine didn't get to them though...

 

[Red]

Okay, just a few things:

Cjohnson = Cave Johnson, it's written on the aperture Homepage.

The G-man works for the "Combine"? No, why did he gave Eli warning of the experiment which causes the resonance cascade if he would work for the "Combine". Eli told us after we saved White Forest, that the G-man told him ... .

Why did Aperture bought/built the Borealis? My theory is, that they needed a big testobject for testing their portal technology. On international strech of water, you can do research without state controle. Im not sure about laws in the USA, but I think that you are not allowed to kill people for doing some research.
In my point, the incident with the Borealis and with GlaDOS also are the reasons why BMRF got the support of the state instead of aperture.


Sorry for my really bad english.

 

[Moonraker]

i dont know i thought GLaDOS was going insane because of the morality module that was detached from it as well as maybe being damaged from other sources. the spherical modules are not GLaDOS but part of its programming. if you think about how she reacted to removing the modules in portal. one was the morality core (it was broken) , one was curiousity core (she said she kept you alive because she was curious about you till you removed it), one was the cake core??? (cake wtf... after its gone she stops with the cake and party thing), and then was the agressive core (when thats the only one left she gets real nasty). since there are plenty of GLaDOS cores left i can see why she is 'still alive'. GLaDOS said she did not understand what was happening outside, so maybe she doesnt even know what has happened to the ASL staff. maybe its the war + anything afterward that caused her to activate or even to be damaged.

as far as a date goes, its worth noting that not only do the images and the cakes and such all say something about the early 80s, the website runs on

GLaDOS 1.07a (c)1982 Aperture Science, Inc.

yet afterwards its says it was not developed until 1986

 

[Pygmytyrant]

this was not made by me but i think that it is well thought out (the page that i found it on is here http://ripcompanioncube.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7 )

1. What are some dates given in Portal / pertinent dates to the story?

Most of these dates were retrieved from www.aperturescience.com

LOGIN : CJOHNSON
PASS : TIER3
ADMIN -> NOTES

1953 - Aperture Science Founded
1979 - AS Founder Carl Johnson contracts Mercury Poisoning
1981 - Development of Portal technology beings
1983 - Seen on a "Girls of Aperture Science" calender
1986 - GLaDOS research started
1994 - Seen on blueprints from the ship Aperture Science ship "The Borealis"
1998 - GLaDOS brought online
2001 - Portal Storms begin, Combine invades
2006 - The last referenced date. Seen written on a cake on GLaDOS's montior.

Also notable is that if you noclip into the room with the PowerPoint presentation before fighting GLaDOS, you notice some clipboards top-down. While there are only two different models of clipboards, one of them is reveals that Aperture Science knows about the Hazardous Enviroment Suit Mark V.

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/676...a150008eo9.jpg

The Mark V edition of the HEV suit was only introduced in Half-Life 2 [you use the Mark IV suit in the first Half-Life], meaning that the Aperture Science meeting was being held after the Portal Storms.

2. Who / what are the characters / objects in the game Portal

a) Chell. She's the main character of the game, the character you play as. When the game starts, she's just waken up from statis in a "Relaxation Vault".

GLaDOS mentions some specifics on Chell's employment status and background at Aperture Science.

"You're not smart. You're not a scientist. You're not a doctor. You're not even a full time employee. Where did your life go so wrong?"

Chell also has heel springs surgically added to her legs, so that she can fall an infinite distance and survive.

b) GLaDOS. GLaDOS stands for Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System. She was activated a few years after 1998, during "Bring Your Daughter To Work Day". She claims she'd previously flooded the center with a "deadly neurotoxin". Keep in mind this information was revealed after her morality core was removed, meaning she could then tell lies. It's evident however that she does have possession of Neurotoxin, as it is seen flowing out of vents on the final level.

c) "The Unknown Character". He / she / it is an entity that has left messages on the walls of the Enrichment Center. There are messages left in areas only reachable by portals, indicating that this character had access to the portal gun. Also notable is that there are messages after the pit of fire, although this may simply mean that the character had maintainance access.

d) "The Companion Cube" is a device created on the Sixteenth Chapter. It's purpose originally served as a deflector towards energy balls, although in it's final iteration it serves as a companion to the main character, who has been without human contact presumably since the Enrichment Center was flooded.

In one of her lines, GLaDOS mentions:

"The symptoms most commonly produced by Enrichment Center testing are superstition, perceiving inanimate objects as alive, and hallucinations. The Enrichment Center reminds you that the weighted companion cube will never threaten to stab you and, in fact, cannot speak."

e) The Enrichment Center is the setting for the game. A large, sprawling area [seen with train tracks, large rooms many hundreds of feet tall, large machinery, and it's own FM radio station], the Enrichment Center is one of the areas of the Aperture Science headquarters. Its goal is to teach test participants the usage of the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device.

f) The Borealis is an Aperture Science research ship that was teleported, along with part of the dock, to an unknown location, perceived to be in the Antarctic. While no mention of it is made in Portal, it's become a plot line of the Half-Life 2 story arc, mentioned in Episodes One and Two.

g) The Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device is a weapon with three functions : open a blue portal, open an orange portal, and pick items up. It appears to be the fourth Portal gun made, as markings on the gun indicate.

Aperture Science
||||||||||||||04

h) Unknown Test Participant #1

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/1...e010000wv9.jpg

It is immediately noticed that this participant does not consist of a humanoid frame.

i) Unknown Test Participant #2

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/2...a150003kl5.jpg

Note that this participant did not fail the test, unless the Enrichment Center was flooded with neurotoxin before the proctor could note stamp "FAILED".

3. When does Portal take place?

After the Portal Storm / Combine Invasion, as dates are mentioned that come after this time period [someone want to back me up on this?]. Also worth noting are two GLaDOS quotes.

"Are you trying to escape? Things have changed since you last left the building. Whats going on out there is going to make you wish you were back in here. I have an infinite capacity for knowledge, and even I'm not sure what's going on outside."

"All I know is that I'm the only thing standing between us and them. Unless you have the parts to build a new supercomputer, this place isn't going to be safe much longer. Nice job on that, by the way."

4. What is "The Cake"?

When mice are put through lab tests, scientists use rewards [such as food, rest, other mice, etc] as an incentive for the mice to finish. The Cake is an incentive for you to finish the tests.

However, it is noted that you never physically see this cake, with the exception of the cutscene at the end of the game. It is therefore uncertain if the cake actually exists or not.

There are many references to the cake throughout the game.

Some quotes of this are,

GLaDOS - "Cake, and grief counseling will be available at the conclusion of the test. Thank you for helping us help you help us all!"

GLaDOS - "The Enrichment Center is required to remind you that you will be baked, and then there will be cake."

GLaDOS's first sphere - "One 18.25 ounce package chocolate cake mix. One can prepared coconut pecan frosting. Three slash four cup vegetable oil. Four large eggs. One cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. Three slash four cups butter or margarine. One and two third cups granulated sugar. Two cups all purpose flower. Don't forget garnishes such as: Fish shaped crackers. Fish shaped candies. I like fish. Fish shaped solid waste. Fish shaped dirt. Fish shaped ethyl benzene. Pull and peel licorice. Fish shaped organic compounds and sediment shaped sediment. Candy coated peanut butter pieces. Shaped like fish. One cup lemon juice. Alpha resins. Unsaturated polyester resins. Fiberglass surface resins. And volatile malted milk impoundments. Nine large egg yolks. Twelve medium geosynthetic membranes. One cup granulated sugar. An entry called 'how to kill someone with your bare hands.' Two cups rhubarb, sliced. Two slash three cups granulated rhubarb. One tablespoon all-purpose rhubarb. One teaspoon grated orange rhubarb. Three tablespoons rhubarb, on fire. One large rhubarb. One cross borehole electro-magnetic imaging rhubarb. Two tablespoons rhubarb juice. Adjustable aluminum head positioner. Slaughter electric needle injector. Cordless electric needle injector. Injector needle driver. Injector needle gun. Cranial caps. And it contains proven preservatives, deep penetration agents, and gas and odor control chemicals. That will deodorize and preserve putrid tissue."

Wall Graffiti - "The cake is a lie. The cake is a lie. The cake is a lie."

Wall Graffiti - "The weighted companion cube DOES speak. Superstition, percieving inanimate objects as alive, and hallucinations. I'm not hallucinating. You are. The companion cube would never desert me. Dessert. So long... Cake. Ha ha, Cake. A lie. The companion cube would never lie to me. NEVER."

5. What are some external references in Portal?

a) Level Fifteen has an area that has four broken security cameras and writings of the unknown character. One of the writings is a poem which says,

"Not in cruelty
Not in wrath
The Reaper came today
An Angel visited
This grey path
And took the cube away!"

This is a parody of the poem, "The Reaper and the Flowers", by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

"O, not in cruelty, not in wrath,
The Reaper came that day;
'Twas an angel visited the green earth,
And took the flowers away."

http://www.obscure.org/~vlad/lit/poetry/reaper.html

b) The movie "300" is referenced in a GCF file found in your Portal directory, under:

materials/models/props_facemovie/wetfloorsign/

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/4...oorsigntm8.jpg

c) The non-canonical Half-Life game "Opposing Force"'s main character is mentioned in this easter egg. If you check your keyboard, you'll notice that the letters "A", "D", "R", "I", "N", "S", "H", "E" and "P" are colored yellow. This spells out the characters name, "Adrian Shephard".

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/4...a150000ic3.jpg

6. What are some facts that are often overlooked?

a) Not everyone died when / if GLaDOS flooded the center with Neurotoxin. GLaDOS mentions...

"Good news. I figured out what that thing you just incinerated was. It was a morality core they installed after I flooded the enrichment center with a deadly neurotoxin to make me stop flooding the Enrichment Center with a deadly neurotoxin."

This implies that "they" survived her flooding of the Enrichment Center.

Not only this, but "Aperture Science" is made up of multiple facilities. The Enrichment Center, a testing course, could theoretically be flooded with minimal casualities.

7. What is Aperture Science's relationship with Black Mesa?

Aperture Science and Black Mesa are competing for Government funding. This is backed up by both information from www.aperturescience.com and a powerpoint seen shortly before confronting GLaDOS.

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/9715/ppt1nv9.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/1637/ppt2kq5.jpg

http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2746/ppt3xc5.jpg

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/1381/ppt4ko5.jpg

As mentioned earlier, the Mark V suit is mentioned, further indicating Aperture Science's knowledge of Black Mesa.

 

[Pygmytyrant]

any one see the faint drawings in some of the offices? Theres one that looks like an owl, you that one just after you get out of the test maze. the other is just befor the first rocket drone you meet and that one looks like a wanted poster. theres writing too but i dont know if i got it right. i think it says THE BIG BAD ????? (i think there might be some more words here) WANTED (this is underneath the big bad). i havent seen anyone talk about them and i dont know the Half Life story very well i just started looking in to it because of Portal i think the second picture looks like a head crab. if someone could get the screen shots of them to prove me worng or right ill be happy.

 

[kacation_man]

I think that as far as story lines go, A lot of inspiration for it comes from us, the community. Many times have I read in interviews with those big brains at valve that they dont always know exactly how to tie certain things up. I just read in the latest EGM interview over the orange box, one of the questions was ( not word for word ) How do you plan to tie in Portal with EP3? They responded by saying they arnt entirely sure just yet and are considering a lot of suggestions from the community such as GLaDOS being in EP3 or Gordon getting an ASHPD. I think we as a community help a little bit in shapping the story line... so keep up the interesting stuff guys! maybe something will stick! you never know!

 

[Broklynite]

Some thoughts:

1. We know Johnson went crazy. We know the guy who left the messages in portal behind the scenes is crazy. And it seems a bit much to expect that someone would have snapped from only the beginning stuff that you are exposed to. Plus, how would the crazy guy (note, when I say guy I don't necessarily mean male) know Johnson's login and password?

2. Bit of an out there thoguht, but we don't see any test chambers or anything after the end of the credits, only the pistons and such. Crazy idea ot throw out here, but what if the bit with the cake is actually onboard the Borealis?

3. Addressing a couple of earlier qustions abotu the energy balls, in a recent interview with Kim Swift (level designer) and Jeep Barnett ( (programmer) in this months Games for Windowws, I thoguth you might like to hear this:

GFW: I'm hardcore. How do you explain the Combine energy orbs in Apeture's labs?
JB: Hre's my explanation: within the Half-Life universe, pure forms of energy just happen to form into balls.
KS: Perhaps the Combine stole it from Apeture. You never know.

This issue also has an interesting intyerview with Gabe Newell where he talks abotu Portal a bit, including Chell.

3. You?re an orphan- that?s funny. Well, would it be funny, bringing her for daddy daughter day? Also note: ?perfect time for her to get tested? Whoa- as in, bring in your daughter, and get her stuck in the portal test chambers? Because, odd as it sounds, that?s the ONLY test you hear about throughout the whole game.

4. We assume that GLaDOS killed everyone- but then why are there no bodies? We also know from the Apeture website that there was a lockdown...

5. Also, the red phone, I know the idea they talk abotu in the commentary- but why is the wire cut?

6. Also, I get the DOS end of GLaDOS, but what about the beginning? Genetic Lifeform? That?s an odd way to describe a computer AI, isn?t it? I'm not suggestin gthat GLaDOS IS the Combine. I'm simply saying it's odd. For that matter, we don't really know anything about the Combine. Those soldiers we see- are they combine? I dunno. How would Barry be able to pretend he was one then? I always assumed that they were people who were working with the Combine...


7. Why would they not get money grants? This is odd. Yes, I know the arguments you folks made before about worldwide teleportation tech. But on the other hand, why would the military NOT be interested in man-sized portal tech for soldiers? Also, I'll point out that at least on that level it?s a functioning teleportation device without any side effects (as we know from GLaDOS). Whereas Black Mesa hasn?t actually been able to prove anything. What were they doing in the first game? They were looking at a rock. Whoopie. Apeture had a freaking GUN! The portal gun actually genuinly works. And say what you will, it works wihtout killing you or anything horrible. You don't accidentally get teleported to the wrong place at any point. The only shortcoming is its mysterious inability to adhere to certain surfaces. But are you telling me that the DoD wouldn't be interested in something like that? That seems odd at best.

8. "Maybe Black Mesa. That was a joke, ha ha, fat chance." Curious choice of words. I mean, it sounds kind of like she's saying that Chell isn't good enough to work there. But considering the time line, it seems odd at best. Maybe I'm reading into that too much.

9.Why the borealis incident? I dunno. We know that Glados likes to kill humans. Why wouldn?t she team up with the Combine to kill people? But we know that portal tech is stable at man-size. Is it unstable at ship-size? Here's a thought. Borealis as a messed up publicity stunt? The whole dissapearing ship thing is an old idea- but consider how much money would be literally thrown at them if they could teleport a ship safely?

10. Consider that there?s talk of a Portal 2 (as well as the portal gun in further HL but ignore that for the moennt). I?d think that that would be something like Chell waking up and heading into civilization- or maybe finding her way onto the Borealis or something (who iknows?). But what I mean to say is that I think that means that she?s woken up after the 7 Hour War, but not after the fall fo the citiadel. I know people keep saying about her waking during Gordon's stasis, btu the problem si that we never had any kind of firm date, period. We got that it was sometime during THIS decade that the Black Mesa incident occurred. Apparently the Apeture facility went into lockdown in 2002 (if we read the "{20 year old tech" comment as being exact). In that case, we could assume that the lockdown happens during the war or the portal storms at least. Giving us 2002 as a date. Fine. But there's ~20 years that have passed while Gordon was in stasis. What does Chell do in the meantime?

11. It's a little thing, but the leg braces. I noticed the thigns when I was playing and could not for the olife of me figure outwhat the hell they were. I only foudn out what they wer after hearing the commentary and reading up on wikipedia. I know they said it was to expalin her ability to survive the jumps, but come on- they're strips of metal. What the hell use are they really? None. They don't look like anything useful.

Alright, I wrote out a lot of babble, sorry about that. Also apologies for typoes. I can't find my glasses, and am having some difficulty reading my screen (and am too lazy to down the resolution).

 

[ríomhaire]

1. We know Johnson went crazy. We know the guy who left the messages in portal behind the scenes is crazy. And it seems a bit much to expect that someone would have snapped from only the beginning stuff that you are exposed to. Plus, how would the crazy guy (note, when I say guy I don't necessarily mean male) know Johnson's login and password?

How canon Tier3 is is very questionable. I aslo doubt that Johnson lived to see the portal gun or GLaDOS being created. He was dieing 20 years prieviously.

2. Bit of an out there thoguht, but we don't see any test chambers or anything after the end of the credits, only the pistons and such. Crazy idea ot throw out here, but what if the bit with the cake is actually onboard the Borealis?

If the cake was on the Borealis that would be the most insignificant plot detail ever!

3. You?re an orphan- that?s funny. Well, would it be funny, bringing her for daddy daughter day? Also note: ?perfect time for her to get tested? Whoa- as in, bring in your daughter, and get her stuck in the portal test chambers? Because, odd as it sounds, that?s the ONLY test you hear about throughout the whole game.

What about the live-fire training course for military androids?

4. We assume that GLaDOS killed everyone- but then why are there no bodies? We also know from the Apeture website that there was a lockdown...

Apeture Science installed the morality module in GLaDOS after she flooded the Enrichment Centre with a deadly neurotoxin, so obviously there were people left alive.

6. Also, I get the DOS end of GLaDOS, but what about the beginning? Genetic Lifeform? That?s an odd way to describe a computer AI, isn?t it? I'm not suggestin gthat GLaDOS IS the Combine. I'm simply saying it's odd. For that matter, we don't really know anything about the Combine. Those soldiers we see- are they combine? I dunno. How would Barry be able to pretend he was one then? I always assumed that they were people who were working with the Combine...

I have no idea how you just connected "genetic lifeform" with Combine. It must take incredibly mental agility to make such huge jumps in logic. You also don't understand the nature of Civil Protection and the Overwatch.

The Civil Protection officers (metrocops) you see are humans who have volunteered to join the police force. They are unmodified humans, so Barney (Not Barry)could have entered their ranks without having to pretend to be a robot. That said, abuse is pretty much encouraged and to get a high-ranking position a "memory-replacement" process is required.

The Overwatch soldiers on the other hand are modified transhumans. They have had body parts removed, replaced and altered. They also seem to have been lobotamised (you can see this on a soldier on a screen in Nova Prospekt who is not wearing any armour or a helmet). None of them are aliens.

7. Why would they not get money grants? This is odd. Yes, I know the arguments you folks made before about worldwide teleportation tech. But on the other hand, why would the military NOT be interested in man-sized portal tech for soldiers? Also, I'll point out that at least on that level it?s a functioning teleportation device without any side effects (as we know from GLaDOS). Whereas Black Mesa hasn?t actually been able to prove anything. What were they doing in the first game? They were looking at a rock. Whoopie. Apeture had a freaking GUN! The portal gun actually genuinly works. And say what you will, it works wihtout killing you or anything horrible. You don't accidentally get teleported to the wrong place at any point. The only shortcoming is its mysterious inability to adhere to certain surfaces. But are you telling me that the DoD wouldn't be interested in something like that? That seems odd at best.

Black Mesa had been travelling to another universe! They had not only successfuly teleported to Xen, but brought back alien lifeforms and weaponry! Were you not paying attention during Questionable Ethics or Lambda Core?

9.Why the borealis incident? I dunno. We know that Glados likes to kill humans. Why wouldn?t she team up with the Combine to kill people? But we know that portal tech is stable at man-size. Is it unstable at ship-size? Here's a thought. Borealis as a messed up publicity stunt? The whole dissapearing ship thing is an old idea- but consider how much money would be literally thrown at them if they could teleport a ship safely?

What the hell do the Combine have to do with it? Borealis was probably an accident or sabotage. Teleporting away a very expensive ship filled with your most advanced technogy is about the stupidest publicity stunt I can think of.

11. It's a little thing, but the leg braces. I noticed the thigns when I was playing and could not for the olife of me figure outwhat the hell they were. I only foudn out what they wer after hearing the commentary and reading up on wikipedia. I know they said it was to expalin her ability to survive the jumps, but come on- they're strips of metal. What the hell use are they really? None. They don't look like anything useful.

Shock absorbers.

 

[Psofus_HffK]

Anyone seen this?

Sorry if this has already been commented. I have been tryin' to read all the topics but they are quite a few.

http://photos1.hi5.com/0015/727/685/VN9S6U727685-02.jpg

 

[ic0dy]

Sorry if this has already been commented. I have been tryin' to read all the topics but they are quite a few.

http://photos1.hi5.com/0015/727/685/VN9S6U727685-02.jpg

That gman sigthing scared me shitless tbh.

 

[Van Kayne]

Sorry if this has already been commented. I have been tryin' to read all the topics but they are quite a few.

http://photos1.hi5.com/0015/727/685/VN9S6U727685-02.jpg

Wrong thread!

 

[Combine_Advisor]

My theory about Chell:
-It was a regular day at Aperture Labs, until GLaDOS realeased the neurotoxin.Everybody died.Exept Chell.GLaDOS wanted to learn more about Chell so she spared her.
(Theory 2)
-While GLaDOS was killing everybody in ApLabs,Chell seeked shelter inside the relaxation vault.Unfortunately some of the neurotoxin got in and Chell lost some of her memory...
Please tell me what you think about these theories!

 

[Blackthorn]

First one can't be right, since everybody didn't die from the neurotoxin, since they installed the morality module.

The second one may have some truth to it. The relaxation vault is totally sealed, so it would be a perfect place to escape the gas. The shock absorbers on the legs and orange uniform contradict things a bit though.