Review: Portal 2

So it’s been a while since my buddy and I did our co-op run for Portal 2 on my Twitch stream. We had our fun and solved the puzzles all while we gathered achievements even though I’m not the biggest fan of them. I also had my fair share of screwing my buddy over by flipping a switch or not and getting rid of portals at the “right” time. Fun was had (at my buddy’s or my personal expense) and I figured I should now probably tackle the single player campaign.

I can't count how many laughs I got out of playing Portal 2 with a bud after making a mistake. Trial and error with friends is fun.
I can’t count how many laughs I got out of playing Portal 2 with a bud after making a mistake. Trial and error with friends is fun.

The story carries over from the first. You’re the same woman (Chell) and I believe you’ve been in stasis for 50 years. You still look as good as you did when you killed GLaDOS those many years ago. The story wakes you to a new player in the Portal universe: Wheatley. Wheatley is hilarious! I love the banter that goes on (I would say between you and him, but you don’t really talk) as he “narrates” the goings-on.

Warning: the rest of the review contains what someone could consider a spoiler even if it’s a mild one (just in case you’re like me and up to this point haven’t actually played Portal 2 yet).

Lasers! Pew! Pew! Pew! Seriously though, who doesn't like playing with lasers?
Lasers! Pew! Pew! Pew! Seriously though, who doesn’t like playing with lasers?

The story evolves and you eventually come to the realization that GLaDOS was killed, but she wasn’t erased when you accidentally bring her back online thanks to Wheatley’s “help”. What then ensues is a back and forth comedy, loads of puzzles, and a few great twists and realizations that, while not Earth shattering, is very interesting Portal trivia to know. The story was very fun and if you don’t feel the need to get through it, I can’t understand where you’re coming from.

They introduce a few new elements as well to help differentiate Portal 2 from the first. There a gels that get splattered around certain levels that can help the player run faster, jump higher or even create new surfaces to put a portal on. This really added a new level of thinking for the sequel. Also, there are tractor beams (as shown in the picture below), light bridges (which were super fun in co-op) and laser redirection cubes to, you know… that redirect lasers and such (or kill a buddy).

There were some people that said that the ugly, fat and orphan jabs were a bit harsh. They didn't hit me that hard, but I can see where some people are coming from if the pain is still there. The game isn't talking directly talking to them even if they feel it is though. Like most media, you should take everything with a grain of salt since it's almost all fiction anyway.
There were some people who said that the ugly, fat and orphan jabs were a bit harsh. They didn’t hit me that hard, but I can see where some people are coming from if the pain is still there. The game isn’t talking directly talking to them even if they feel it is though. Like most media, you should take everything with a grain of salt since it’s almost all fiction anyway.

The co-op is as fun as the single player. You miss out on the banter between Wheatley and GLaDOS, but if you feel the need to be called not as good as your friend and then have GLaDOS sing your praise and tear down your friend or sometimes just both of you at the same time, co-op has it all! That, and the puzzles require more thinking than normal since the two of you both have portal guns and you’ll have to work them in tandem with the usual timing and well thought out plans.

Portal 2 is the perfect evolution from its' predecessor. The puzzles are about on par with the first game as far as difficulty where some you'll just walk through while others will have you scratching your head for a while. In case you love them Portal 2 has enough achievements for those hunters (and enough for people like me to just give up getting them all). With the fantastic humor in the solo campaign and the very well thought out puzzles for co-op, Valve did a great job with this sequel. The only lament that I've got is that Valve doesn't tend to make trilogies (even if I couldn't figure out how they would progress from this point). I guess they could do something with more of the co-op stuff...
Portal 2 is the perfect evolution from its’ predecessor. The puzzles are about on par with the first game as far as difficulty where some you’ll just walk through while others will have you scratching your head for a while. In case you love them, Portal 2 has enough achievements for the hunters (and enough for people like me to just give up on getting them all). With the fantastic humor in the solo campaign and the very well thought out puzzles for co-op, Valve did a great job with this sequel. The only lament that I’ve got is that Valve doesn’t tend to make trilogies (even though I can’t figure out how they would progress from this point). I guess they could do something with more of the co-op stuff… four player Portal anyone?

Love it or hate it, let me know!