Portal 2 Released!

[Sheepo]

Ugh, I was too eager to get playing and I think I failed to activate the game and only linked my Steam account with my friends PSN. Does anyone know what needs to be done after you've logged in to steam? Anyway, played about 90 minutes of split screen co-op, which was great.

 

[PorkPi]

cheers.

anyways:

Spoiler

I was a tad dissapointed with the ending- not epic enough, was upset it wasn't either a 'to be continued...' as all Half-lifes and Portal 1 were, or a epic ending that explained everything, we still have loose ends that may never be tied up, such as what exactly is going on in the world outside, how long has it been like this, where are the combine/humans etc.

Well I think

Spoiler

It was a pretty strong ending. In my opinion, if it wasn't a definite ending and was "to be continued..." I'd be mad that they're trying to make a Portal 3 instead of giving me an ending, but that's just me. I like how GLaDoS seems like she's your new friend but turns on you and just tells you to get out, tossing a companion cube behind you as a "no hard feelings" or whatever she meant. I reeeeeally liked "Lunacy".

 

[Warped]

I'm so stressed I haven't played it yet. went to bed super tired....got woken up by my girlfriend at 2:30 AM, fell back asleep at like 3:15AM woke up for work at lik 5:30....worked till 5pm, just came home and finally we're about to eat. once I play this game I think I'll be so happy but right now I'm tired, hungry and cranky....lol I was so hoping to play this game and have finished it by now. but waiting is waiting I guess

 

[Lucid]

Sure is nitpicking in here.
Complaining about textures look like crap up close? That's been evident in every single Source game ever.

Easily fixed by not walking up to surfaces and staring at them for prolonged periods of time.

 

[MJ12]

Easily fixed by not walking up to surfaces and staring at them for prolonged periods of time.

Except, you know, the game requires you to do that to read the hundreds of signs. Have you even played it yet?

 

[Darkside55]

Sure is nitpicking in here.
Complaining about textures look like crap up close? That's been evident in every single Source game ever.

Easily fixed by not walking up to surfaces and staring at them for prolonged periods of time.

Nitpicking? Complaining? I was trying to see if anyone else had the issue, or if I should be checking something with my settings. But, y'know, nice job turning my question into an attack on the game.

 

[bencanfield]

I have noticed that the Source engine is looking a bit dated, but nothing so bad that I'm like "get out of my face." It still looks good and the improvements that have happened through the Episodes and into this game are sufficient. It also helps it so it still runs on my computer that's not aging quite so well. Tonight if I finish the single player, I plan on starting some multiplayer action because I think that will be fun.

By dated do you mean it doesn't have superfluous amounts of bloom and motion blur and depth of field? I played about 2 hours of the game and I think the Source engine (more specifically VALVe's visual style) is absolutely beautiful and although it might not look realistic to you, I think that it feels more real. Most other engines spend so many resources trying to fake every last bit of realism which just seems pointless since you know it's a game. The opening scene of Portal 2 is absolutely beautiful, the physics are great, the objects feel like they're real objects.

 

[Hectic Glenn]

Really loved the singleplayer, memorable as my first time going through Portal 1. My favourite part was...

Spoiler

Going to back to old aperture with Cave, the old style chambers and cubes. What a great setting...

Shame the vents got cut but all the other new additions were super fun. I think the length was fine for a puzzle game, any longer and it would stretch out the pacing too far. Loved the ending, not a fan of the robot customisation shop rubbish...it feels wedged in to show off micro-transactions and I don't think people will be interested but I've been wrong before (Portal 2 unlock haw haw!).

Loved Stephen Merchant too, they let him run with his own persona and style that he uses in his own writing / podcasts & voiceovers (like Barclays). I was surprised, I thought the script would be set for him but it's quite obvious he's adapted it for himself (or Valve worked with him on it). Really helped Wheatley be a hilarious comic character.

Also I just heard that potato hunters who got the Valve pack & Portal 2 - the games are now giftable. Not played co-op yet, looking forward to it!

 

[Darkside55]

not a fan of the robot customisation shop rubbish...it feels wedged in to show off micro-transactions and I don't think people will be interested but I've been wrong before

Admittedly, some of those animations are rather tempting. I think the mtx stuff will be a big--but quiet--draw.

 

[MJ12]

Darkside, if you ****ing buy one of those animations.

 

[morgs]

ENDING SPOILERS

Spoiler

I loved the ending. I was really hoping it was going to end in the way it did, instead of the usual ambiguous cliffhanger style. I think it's a great way to wrap up the story. In regards to not knowing unanswered questions, I don't think this is the sort of game that requires deep story explanation, it's just a puzzle game at the end of the day with a neat story attached to it. As far as answers to the Half Life universe go, I'm not surprised there weren't many (if any). The Half-Life/Portal relationship seems to be more of a cameo than anything.

 

[Inanimate]

Just made this video for people that might need help with Chamber 15:

Spoiler

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl9isjjZzNI

 

[DEATH eVADER]

Sure is nitpicking in here.
Complaining about textures look like crap up close? That's been evident in every single Source game ever.

Easily fixed by not walking up to surfaces and staring at them for prolonged periods of time.

I think its evident in the container ride when you look at the bed and microwave (very low texture), but other than that, the texture work is on par with Valve's other projects

Cannot believe how many load screens there are though, surely you can copy/paste seperate levels into a single level? Or is the new lighting an issue

Also is this the first project whereby they haven't released the level editor at launch?

 

[Laivasse]

Loved Stephen Merchant too, they let him run with his own persona and style that he uses in his own writing / podcasts & voiceovers (like Barclays). I was surprised, I thought the script would be set for him but it's quite obvious he's adapted it for himself (or Valve worked with him on it). Really helped Wheatley be a hilarious comic character.

Totally agree. Wheatley even uses a catchphrase or two that Merchant uses irl. I was skeptical of this at first, since straight off the bat it's almost impossible to distinguish the distinct in-game character from Merchant as a person. However, he puts so much into the performance and the delivery is so natural that it tips the balance and makes Wheatley a believable character, even for someone who's listened to hours and hours of Merchant babbling in a similar way alongside Gervais and Pilkington.

It even occurred to me to send him an email saying thanks and congrats for an excellent role in an excellent game - the first video game VO he's attempted afaik - but it seems he keeps his contact details fairly closely guarded these days.

 

[Inanimate]

I recorded the whole Portal 2 outro including cinematics. Major spoiler:

Spoiler

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yTDEIzKxOA

 

[StarBob]

Just made this video for people that might need help with Chamber 15:

Spoiler

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tl9isjjZzNI

I didn't find 15 all that difficult. I went to the otherside at first and just kind of stood there for a minute then it all came together. The last one was a tough one. It couldn't visualize the physics of the steps properly so I did it wrong a bunch and yelled "WHY!?" at my monitor in some desperate grasp for understanding.

 

[blackout]

I did lol a little at the outro

 

[DEATH eVADER]

If someone can confirm the timeline issues that I am having

Spoiler

The Borealis Drydock is in the 1971 part of the facility and all the old sites must of been condemned before GlaDOS used neurotoxin on the staff, so am I right in thinking that the incident with the Borealis occured long before the Resonance Cascase and the subsequent Portal Storm?

 

[blackout]

If someone can confirm the timeline issues that I am having

Spoiler

The Borealis Drydock is in the 1971 part of the facility and all the old sites must of been condemned before GlaDOS used neurotoxin on the staff, so am I right in thinking that the incident with the Borealis occured long before the Resonance Cascase and the subsequent Portal Storm?

how exactly are those two incidents related? but you're probably right.

 

[Shakermaker]

It is time to finish this game. I want to join in the discussion.

 

[hool10]

Just beat the SP game and it was the typical Valve game that gets GOTY. I gotta agree with the micro-transaction/low-res textures (not Crysis 2 bad though), and console stuff.

Spoiler

1. Wheatley and the other personality sphere are in space. Makes me sad for them but I'm scared the Combine could pick them up and ask them about the Borealis ship, etc.
2. Chell is now outside the facility and there will probably not be a Portal 3.
3. CJ mentioned time travel in an experiment and portals through space. So the Borealis had a time machine on it with a portal device?! Time travel as we are also aware is associated with the G-MAN. G-MAN was a possible Aperture Science employee?
4. I read a theory on the Steam forum a few months ago that CJ wife is Glados. Then we learn Caroline, a VERY close and married secretary for CJ is Glados. CJ was having an affair or was Glados/Caroline his wife?
5. Where is humans/Combine? At the start they had a "Collapse of Society" film at the start with "Animal Overlord" take over film.
6. Glados really hates humans and Chell especially. I wouldn't be suprised Glados had a hand with the Combine invading Earth.

 

[Laivasse]

Spoiler

1. Where is humans/Combine? At the start they had a "Collapse of Society" film at the start with "Animal Overlord" take over film.

Haven't got anything to say about your other points but I just realised something amusing about that one:

Spoiler

The giant turret with a crown in the ending, providing the low notes to the (superb) turret choir, appears in that short clip representing the 'animal king'.

 

[Darkside55]

I gotta agree with the...low-res textures

I'm glad to hear someone else is getting this, because I thought it was something with my settings. I mean there are some signs I just literally can not read and have to approximate what they're saying. I took some pictures of the issue but I don't have them uploaded to steamcloud and I'm on my work comp. But things like the posters, for example the "My boss is a robot," the text that says "Robots are smarter than you, better than you," etc. I pretty much had to guess what those were saying, because it's incredibly blurred. A lot of the small print on posters I can't see.

 

[hool10]

Haven't got anything to say about your other points but I just realised something amusing about that one:

Spoiler

The giant turret with a crown in the ending, providing the low notes to the (superb) turret choir, appears in that short clip representing the 'animal king'.

Spoiler

Yeah after coming back from the Moon and then seeing that my brain was fizzled. Idk I kinda think it's robot Heaven as there is a "robot hell" Glados mentioned in Portal 1. I do think the Animal Overlord was very much Combine related though. Also was it just me or did I hear a war going on outside? It could have been the facility falling apart as well.

I'm glad to hear someone else is getting this, because I thought it was something with my settings. I mean there are some signs I just literally can not read and have to approximate what they're saying. I took some pictures of the issue but I don't have them uploaded to steamcloud and I'm on my work comp. But things like the posters, for example the "My boss is a robot," the text that says "Robots are smarter than you, better than you," etc. I pretty much had to guess what those were saying, because it's incredibly blurred. A lot of the small print on posters I can't see.

I'm running it maxed out and I have taken some really great pictures. The Source engine looks pretty good in this game. However they still keep stuff dating as far back as 2004. You got some foliage clipping, the black lines acting as cables, the 2D foliage. Certainly looks far superior than the textures in Crysis 2:

 

[sixteenth]

I didn't find 15 all that difficult. I went to the otherside at first and just kind of stood there for a minute then it all came together. The last one was a tough one. It couldn't visualize the physics of the steps properly so I did it wrong a bunch and yelled "WHY!?" at my monitor in some desperate grasp for understanding.

Chamber 16 was the one that got me for about 1/2 an hour.

 

[Darkside55]

I'm running it maxed out and I have taken some really great pictures.

I'm running mine at maxed out as well, 16x AF 8x AA, on a 5770, and while a lot of the game looks really beautiful when you're not scrutinizing it, things like text, man, hard as all hell to read. Like

Spoiler

the ticket machine in the old waiting room in chapter 6, the only reason I knew it said "Take a ticket" is because it's a ticket machine. If I hadn't known that it'd be impossible to read. Literally impossible. There's not even enough to go on to guess, the texture is so blurred out.

Also the textures on things like the lift look blurred. Makes 'em look like the textures were lifted straight out of HL1.

 

[hool10]

You know what I kinda think as well:

Spoiler

Chell was repeatedly taunted by Glados about her adopted family. There was a section of a science fair with Aperture daughters who made reports about volcano's, etc. Was Chell one of these kids? More importantly is CJ, Chells adopted dad and is Caroline/Glados, Chells adopted mom? Maybe that part of Glados is erased about having an adopted daughter making her way less human. *Others are saying this as well:

 

[<RJMC>]

I guess

Spoiler

the relations whit halflife storyline are not canon anymore as valve said it themselfs

also in one time the announcer mentions something "return to your tribe" that maybe hints people still exists but in a uncivilized way,though I guess that part was not important to the storyline,but it would have been nice to see how the world ended up

also I think is very obvius that caroline was the basis for glados,and since in one of the recorded messages of cave he says that if he is dead before his mind is transfered to a machine he wants his wife to be transfered instead,and forcedly is she refuses so I thought that might explain the murderous tendencies of glados,thought it still left me wondering how aperture recovered since it seemed that it was going badly on the 70's part

also I would have liked to see the body of the guy of the comic

 

[MFL]

Er...

Spoiler

I guess that's why they added even more Half Life allusions?

1 Wheatley and the other personality sphere are in space. Makes me sad for them but I'm scared the Combine could pick them up and ask them about the Borealis ship, etc.
2 Chell is now outside the facility and there will probably not be a Portal 3.
3 CJ mentioned time travel in an experiment and portals through space. So the Borealis had a time machine on it with a portal device?! Time travel as we are also aware is associated with the G-MAN. G-MAN was a possible Aperture Science employee?
4 I read a theory on the Steam forum a few months ago that CJ wife is Glados. Then we learn Caroline, a VERY close and married secretary for CJ is Glados. CJ was having an affair or was Glados/Caroline his wife?
5 Where is humans/Combine? At the start they had a "Collapse of Society" film at the start with "Animal Overlord" take over film.
6 Glados really hates humans and Chell especially. I wouldn't be suprised Glados had a hand with the Combine invading Earth.

1. Portal 2 is set an indeterminate amount of time after the events of Portal 1/Half-Life 2, but it is AT LEAST one hundred years past the date, and probably much more, given from the speech at the beginning in the relaxation chamber, "You have been in stasis for 9999... days".
2. Chell is now outside the facility, however, "that's what she's counting on."
3. I doubt that the G-Man is in any way affiliated with Aperture Science, but I don't really have a lot to back that up[.
4. Personally, I think that CJ and Caroline were in a relationship, if not married, and that they had a daughter named Chell. Then Caroline had her mind uploaded into GLaDOS. Maybe CJ died, maybe he didn't, who knows. Maybe he's still lost in the facility somewhere on some hard drive. Who knows. Then Chell was taken to work on take your daughter to work day, taken in the AI uprising, assigned as a test subject, analyzed and kept in the facility until the events of Portal 1.
5. All or an extreme majority of the test subjects are dead. It appears as if anyone who knew about ApSci have long since died and that the facility has been completely forgotten about. Not many people wandering around in abandoned salt mines I guess. Who knows where the Combine are. Maybe Gordon went to their universe and beat some ass before they could get to ApSci tech.
6. I SERIOUSLY doubt that. If the Combine knew about Glados, her tech would have just been incorporated into the Combine, and I don't see many of the Elite's walking around with pulse rifles with portal gun attachments.

 

[morgs]

Spoiler

When the relaxation chamber says 9 so many times it's because it malfunctions and keeps repeating, I suspect it was supposed to say 9 years, judging by the change in the room.

 

[hakojo]

Spoiler

When the relaxation chamber says 9 so many times it's because it malfunctions and keeps repeating, I suspect it was supposed to say 9 years, judging by the change in the room.

Spoiler

It's because counters usually max out at 9999...(however many digits the counter holds) and the period of time was beyond the maximum recordable length. Like how if you play Minesweeper, the clock stops at 999 because it just can't count any further.

Also, re: the very final scene,

Spoiler

either Aperture Science is absolutely MASSIVE to allow Chell to have traveled all the way to an area with plains, or Valve still has no idea what Northeast Ohio looks like; the Enrichment Center parking lot had MOUNTAINS in the background in the first game, for heaven's sake! As a Clevelander myself, nothing would have made me happier than to see Chell emerge blinking into a cloudy, rainy day and then look around and find herself in the flats, with some seagulls staring at her. Oh well.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

Well with an unknown amount of time into the future, Ohio could look very different

 

[hakojo]

Well with an unknown amount of time into the future, Ohio could look very different

Spoiler

Our weather is unchangeable, though - the endless field of grass I can accept with some suspension of disbelief, but there's no way it would have been sunny, no matter how many apocalypses the world had been through

 

[hool10]

Spoiler

My theory about not seeing the Combine or humans is that they all moved to fighting with Gordon somewhere in Russia. The only true way I see the series progressing would have to involve the Borealis ship and another HL.

Oh and this isn't uncommon for Valve to screw up on simple things like not knowing what Ohio looks like. I think one time they stated Bull Fighting came from Portugal or something in a TF2 blog. Complete retards when it comes to basic knowledge but they can really make great games. *Referring to the Scout update: http://www.teamfortress.com/scoutupdate/force-a-nature.htm

 

[blackout]

I think one time they stated Bull Fighting came from Portugal or something in a TF2 blog. Complete retards when it comes to basic knowledge but they can really make great games. *Referring to the Scout update: http://www.teamfortress.com/scoutupdate/force-a-nature.htm

I think they were joking, I've never met someone that stupid :|

 

[Hectic Glenn]

Er...

Spoiler

I guess that's why they added even more Half Life allusions?

1. Portal 2 is set an indeterminate amount of time after the events of Portal 1/Half-Life 2, but it is AT LEAST one hundred years past the date, and probably much more, given from the speech at the beginning in the relaxation chamber, "You have been in stasis for 9999... days".
2. Chell is now outside the facility, however, "that's what she's counting on."
3. I doubt that the G-Man is in any way affiliated with Aperture Science, but I don't really have a lot to back that up[.
4. Personally, I think that CJ and Caroline were in a relationship, if not married, and that they had a daughter named Chell. Then Caroline had her mind uploaded into GLaDOS. Maybe CJ died, maybe he didn't, who knows. Maybe he's still lost in the facility somewhere on some hard drive. Who knows. Then Chell was taken to work on take your daughter to work day, taken in the AI uprising, assigned as a test subject, analyzed and kept in the facility until the events of Portal 1.
5. All or an extreme majority of the test subjects are dead. It appears as if anyone who knew about ApSci have long since died and that the facility has been completely forgotten about. Not many people wandering around in abandoned salt mines I guess. Who knows where the Combine are. Maybe Gordon went to their universe and beat some ass before they could get to ApSci tech.
6. I SERIOUSLY doubt that. If the Combine knew about Glados, her tech would have just been incorporated into the Combine, and I don't see many of the Elite's walking around with pulse rifles with portal gun attachments.

With regard to point 5...

Spoiler

Go and play the co-op, there is a story...it's not just for the fun of it!

 

[Lobster]

I think one time they stated Bull Fighting came from Portugal or something in a TF2 blog. Complete retards when it comes to basic knowledge but they can really make great games. *Referring to the Scout update: http://www.teamfortress.com/scoutupdate/force-a-nature.htm

The joke is that the 100% genuine tag isn't genuine at all.

Spoiler

Also the Ohio location appears on the blueprints for the borealis in Episode 2, however it is not unreasonable to believe they were based out of multiple locations, an object can be designed in one place and built in another. In Portal 2, a framed newspaper headline in the 1960's part of old-aperture, refer to the location being an abandoned salt mine in Massachusetts.

 

[Schru]

Spoiler

It's because counters usually max out at 9999...(however many digits the counter holds) and the period of time was beyond the maximum recordable length. Like how if you play Minesweeper, the clock stops at 999 because it just can't count any further.

Also, re: the very final scene,

Spoiler

either Aperture Science is absolutely MASSIVE to allow Chell to have traveled all the way to an area with plains, or Valve still has no idea what Northeast Ohio looks like; the Enrichment Center parking lot had MOUNTAINS in the background in the first game, for heaven's sake! As a Clevelander myself, nothing would have made me happier than to see Chell emerge blinking into a cloudy, rainy day and then look around and find herself in the flats, with some seagulls staring at her. Oh well.

I think those were just groups of tall trees, or hills at best.

The joke is that the 100% genuine tag isn't genuine at all.

Also the Ohio location appears on the blueprints for the borealis in Episode 2, however it is not unreasonable to believe they were based out of multiple locations, an object can be designed in one place and built in another. In Portal 2, a framed newspaper headline in the 1960's part of old-aperture, refer to the location being an abandoned salt mine in Massachusetts.

It says it's in

Spoiler

upper Michigan,

actually.

 

[Lobster]

Spoiler

It says it's in upper Michigan, actually.

Ah my bad, but still not Ohio though.

 

[Darkside55]

http://www.thefinalhoursofportal2.com/