OMG Portal
Posted on October 21, 2007
Whoaaaa… I almost forgot how to log onto this thing!!!
I’ve been away making comics hardcore in preparation for SPX ( spxpo.com ). The show is over now and things have calmed down a bit. Had a wonderful week long visit with Jacie.
During that week I had the pleasure of playing through Portal. What an experience! I thought it’d be a kinda cool game with lots of levels that eventually got boring, but man was I wrong. It’s nice and short and has just enough subtle story telling to keep the player completely engaged. I think games are getting to the point where designers can include little details effectively that really help to reinforce the story and atmosphere.
It fees like games, first person shooters especially, are really good at creating a setting and dropping you into it. What I think most games lack, or do poorly, is creating an good story. What a good story really needs are characters. Characters shape and move through a plot by making decisions, and what makes games so awesome (or potentially awesome) is the idea that YOU get to be the one making those decisions. Unfortunately most games are designed so that the plot advances itself, regardless of characters (the player or otherwise) to help keep the game moving.
The only real character in the game, besides yourself, is this computer, really just a voice until the very end. And man, what an awesome character. It hints at the story just a little bit during each map, but it also reveals more of it’s character as you go along. So it’s not like you are just going through each of these levels solving puzzles, but you are being teased along by this wonderful character who keeps trying to get you to make these decisions… and when you finally make the decision to upset it (or her?), that’s when everything goes to shit!
I really loved this game and hope there will be more like it. Now it’s on to Half Life 2 and of course more Team Fortress 2 (best 45 bucks I’ve ever spent!). Gotta get all that stuff finished before CoD4 hits. Whew! So many games!!
Oh, last note. The credits for Portal, best credits EVER!! hah.
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Hell yeah! JP Updated!
Also, portal was freakin’ great. I’m glad you liked it. It seems many doubters are being pleasantly surprised with it (I’m not saying you were one oof the doubters, I’m just saying it’s getting more attention that people previously thought it would).
You’re going to love the pants off Episode 2. It’s so amazing.
I don’t understand the picture, because the character you are playing as in the game is a girl, not a guy.
Oh, and when you walk through the thing at the end of each level the reason it screws with the gun is because it is erasing your old portals.
haha.