Portal 2

The first portal was a brilliant surprise hidden in the orange box. Without a doubt it stole the show and was always going to have a seqeul. Portal 2 had a lot to live up to especially since it was going to be sold on it's own this time. The only problem with Portal 1 was it was a bit short. Portal 2 certainly has this covered with a much longer campaign and a just as enjoyable (if not more so) split screen or online 2 player co-op mode. The puzzles themselves are a bit better and some new types of puzzles add some more variety. The story is brilliant and hilarious. I've never laughed out loud at a game intentionaly being funny before. Glados is just as funny as before and her voice is a lot clearer aswell and Stephen Merchant as new character Wheatley is absolutely brilliant. Those of you who remember the amazing song at the end of portal1 will be thrilled to know there are TWO equally amazing songs in portal 2 and the rest of the music is good throughout. This is a game for anyone who has a soul and has soared above all hopes and expections. You couldn't ask for any more.

What a refreshing change this game is. For those who've never played portal, it's basically a puzzle game. You have a gun that shoots portals onto surfaces that accept them, one blue and one orange. So say you have to reach a higher level, you shoot a blue portal at the higher level, and shoot an orange portal at the level you're on allowing you to travel to the higher level. You have to solve puzzle rooms like this, getting cubes onto buttons that raises platforms or open the exit, using bridges of light etc. It's a simple premise, but extremely enjoyable.

Anyway, having played Portal on the Orange Box, I decided to give this a go as I quite enjoyed it. Boy, am I glad I did. The game itself is extremely fun to play, with a really good, driven storyline. I don't want to spoil the plot for anyone, so I'll just say that at the beginning of the game you awake to find that the Aperture Testing Facility has gone to hell since you destroyed GLaDOS, who was the insane A.I. overseer of said facility. Cue Wheatley, an A.I. sphere who is as smart as a ZX Spectrum, who tries to help you escape. His well-meaning yet slightly inept persona is an immediate source of laughter that consistently delights throughout the game.

In this sequel you'll find out the background of Aperture Science and how GLaDOS came to be, including the CEO of Aperture Science, Cave Johnson - brilliantly voiced by J.K. Simmons. Which brings me to how utterly sublime the script and voice acting is in this game. Ellen McClain is again on top form as GLaDOS, but Stephen Merchant who voices Wheatley is something else. It just may be the best voice acting I've ever had the pleasure of hearing while playing a game.

The game itself will probably take an average of 10 Hrs to complete. It may sound short, but it is such an enjoyable experience, and the scripting, story and voice acting so good, it doesn't matter. For people looking for a decent game that doesn't leave you feeling empty once it's completed, you can't go far wrong than Portal 2.

Portal 2 is awesome, fun to play, great graphics and the story is awesome, even the co-op. The puzzles are really great . The whole game is great :d. Recommened buy it know!!

Portal was new, different and very entertaining, but that's just about everything it was. Portal 2 is all that, but also delivers an engaging story, colourful and memorable characters (I'm in space!) and even more of the cheery/dark humour that made its predecessor so unique.

I thought the games learning curve was very smooth, which is very nice since its gameplay can get very complex at times. I remember that I had a much harder time playing through some of the original Portal's levels, and that usually ended with frustration rather than perseverance. This time the puzzles are not easier, but they are better thought out and designed. Most are challeging and very satisfying to solve.

The main story is not that long, but offers just enough depth to suck you in without disturbing you from your task and from the simple pleasure of watching and listening to your robotic friends/foes. Portal lacked that depth and that made it definitely less enjoyable, but Portal 2 offers a really nice balance.

Humour still plays an important part of the interactions between characters. GLaDOS doesn't pack as much punch, but Wheatley, Cave Johnson and some other minor characters more than make up for it. It has been a while since any game made me laugh this much. The writers really put a lot of work and creativity in the dialogue, and for that I'm grateful - hats off to Valve.

The visuals are standard (using the original engine) but unlike some other games, it doesn't affect the game in any way. Portal 2 is the kind of game that does not need sophisticated visuals or music to be good. It's gameplay is so effective and intuitive that you won't even notice what it lacks in visual style. There are also some discreet jokes that pop up throughout the single player (a great Half-Life reference earns you an achievement) plus the environment contributes well to set the tone of the game.

Co-operative testing is a big novelty and is just as enjoyable as the single player mode. Of course, it doesn't benefit as much from the story and the humour, but the new challenges and experiences it offers are so entertaining that you will have just as much fun (if not more) playing with a buddy.

Portal 2 has an interesting replay value. I had a lot of fun hunting down achievements, and co-op with a mate will make you crave for more. There has also been an official announcement from Valve that FREE downloadable content will be coming to Xbox Live soon, can't go wrong there can you?

Portal 2 is more than a game; it's an experience. It can't even be defined as a genre. It is unique, and for that it deserves to be played by everyone.

Well that's it... a five star game. For me 5 stars isn't something to just give to a game you like, five stars means something, that it is flawless, its perfect and nothing could have been done better... well that's not the case, no game I have played is perfect but this is very close. If I could rate it out of 10 it would get 9.8 but there still room for improvement... or maybe I'm just being too picky.

First off, I haven't played the first one and secondly I am not a puzzle gamer by any stretch of the imagination (although I was strangely addicted to Mario vs Donkey Kong on DS!). However, Portal 2 has got to be one of my all time favourite games and I've played plenty in my lifetime!

It is wonderfully addictive and satisfying - you will get such a sense of achievement when you finally figure out the solution to a puzzle. The brilliant thing is that the answer is not hidden. All it takes is awareness of your surroundings and how the traps work, a bit of lateral thinking, experimentation and good observation. Some levels are more challenging than others but it doesn't take long to figure something out that works. More importantly, it's fun, it's enjoyable and not in the least bit frustrating. The gameplay is all about figuring it out.

I thought that I wouldn't have the patience for games like this but believe me it is addictive and immersive as any other game and you will soon find yourself absorbed in the gameplay and atmosphere. The game pulls you in without you realising. It's such a rare and amazing feat for a developer to create a game like this.

You must experience it for yourself and as I said I'm not a puzzle gamer by nature (shooters and racing is more my thing). But from now on if has Portal written on the box then count me in. All the reviews are correct 9.5/10 (deducted half a point because the graphics wonderful as they are, could be a teeny bit better).

Without going into spoiler territory, Portal 2 is the greatest game I have ever played...and I've played a lot.

+ Points
+Lovable characters.
+Fantastic voice acting by Ellen McLain and Stephan Merchant.
+Remarkable universe.
+Diverse level design.
+New toys to play with, that work remarkable well.
+The ending will make you cry...and laugh.
+Hilarious dialogue, may actually be the funniest game I've ever played that doesn't use playground language and easy jokes to get there.
+Just amazing

- Points
-Loading times...
-Dated engine.
-No co-op matchmaking.
-No challenge rooms (DLC inbound)

In a industry saturated with over the top military shooters, pushing death and destruction in our faces, it is nice to see a game released that is funny, witty, charming, and a joy to play.

Well done Valve. If you can only afford to buy one game this year, get Portal 2. It has GAME OF THE YEAR written all over it.

Okie i must admit when this game was been talked about i was thinking , ahhh mabye ill get it mabye i wont butfew mnths later without hesitation i got it for pc and 360 and wow i was just amazed. This game has got to be the best ive ever played and ever will play, reasons why, well many many reasons, main 1s are, Its Hilarious, you will litrelly cry with laghter at some of the quotes said by wheatly (Played By stephen Merchant) Glados (Ellen Mclain) and the mysterious cave jhonson :). if youve played portal 1 , then i 100% recomend you play this, cause in this you find out the true story to apeture science and GLaDOS. Okie Okie people may think this game is short and i agree but comparing with portal 1 it is 5x as longer with 8 chapters and very challlenging levels. and another thing the ending to this came actually brought atear to my eye because i was just amazed on how great amazing this game was. johnathon coulten has once again created an amazing credit song which is just as memroable as "Still Alive".

Conclusion my Video game friends,
- Amazing
- Hillarious
- Fantastic
If you liked portal 1 you will be blown away with portal 2 i seriously recomend you buy this game, and hope you get a tear to your eye asell xD.

Happy Gaming :)

Having been a fan of the original Portal game this purchase was a must have for me. Very rarely do you get to play a game which actually makes you feel clever when you go through the challenges. Stephen Merchants voice acting in this is genuinely laugh out loud and the return of GlaDOS is great too.

If you haven't played the original I would advise you to purchase the first one just so you can appreciate the story and it will also act as good training for this game, the first one can be found as part of the "Orange Box" Half Life 2 pack or can be downloaded from Xbox Love "Portal - Still Alive".

The original Portal may have only lasted about five hours but it is is quite rightly considered a classic by almost anyone that played it. Portal 2 is therefore in an awkard position. Change too much and you risk ruining what made the first so special, change too little and it makes a sequel pointless. Fortunately Portal 2 gets the balance pretty much spot on.

As with the original the star of the show is the portal gun itself and Valve have again managed to craft a number of challenging but fair puzzles that require the gun to be exploited in increasingly clever ways. The first couple of hours of the single-player campaign play out in a similar fashion to the original (with the addition of the very funny Stephen Merchant on voice over work) before the game adds a few new features, such as light bridges and repulsion goo to keep things fresh without overcomplicating matters. Taking around eight hours to complete the single-player is again a joy to play through despite the fact that a large part of the original games charm was its originality. The only slight gripe for me was the fact that some of the sections outside the regular testing zones lose the focus that kept my interest throughout the original, but this is only a very minor issue and I am sure not everyone would agree.

Perhaps the biggest new feature added for this sequel is the Co-Op play, either via XBox live or split screen. This opens up a whole new set of puzzles that require intelligence and teamwork to complete, coming in at around four hours it is a great addition to an already very good game.

If you were a fan of the original or you are simply bored of the endless FPS game released on consoles recently you could do a lot worse than picking up a copy of Portal 2.