Portal 2 is just on the brink of its official release, which is set for the 21st of April. Just one week more! I’ve been talking a lot about this game lately on this blog. It’s among my “Top 5” list of the Most Anticipated Games of 2011.
I’m sure we’ve been waiting impatiently for this launch. It’s going to be huge. going to give the gaming industry a high for a short period of time. Obviously. Portal 1 was excellent. It was the sort of game we’ve never seen or played before. Well, of course you have a gun in your hand. But that gun doesn’t shoot bullets. It shoots portals. And you’re the only human character in the game, namely, a female called Chell. The other is a computer AI, GLADOS, who successfully manages to manipulate, demotivate, threaten, or humor you throughout the game. And mind you, Chell never uttered a single word in the game. All the words and dialogues in the game belong to GLADOS, who manages to be sarcastic and humorous throughout the game.
So Portal left us with lots of anticipation for its sequel, and now that its release is not so far away, it release is generating a lot of buzz around the world wide web. Valve, the developer and publisher of the game, has now gone public with the basic details of Portal 2, and this is what this post is all about. No spoilers here, just some over-the-top details.
Portal 2 is not as short as Portal 1. Well, Portal left us wanting for more since it ended so fast. That’s the thing with all these smart and amazing games, they just last too damn short! Well, according to Valve, Portal 2 is going to be roughly two and a half times longer than Portal 1. Honestly, this is a welcoming bit of news. It’s a fun game that is not repetitive, and every level is unique in its own way, so being longer is very good.
The villain in Portal 2 will be GLADOS, again! Amazing! And Valve says she’s as nuts and as hilarious as ever. And she frequently threatens your life.
Portal 2, apart from a single player campaign, is also going to offer a co-op campaign with an entirely different storyline, characters (you play as robots), and puzzles. So with two players and the ability to open up four portals, expect total insanity! Other new additions to the sequel include springboards, which bounce you around stages, spreadable gel, which increases movement speed and causes surfaces to become springy. Apart from these, there are many other additions that, in Valves words, “might make your brain come out of your ears.”
Also, there are many celebrities involved in the voice acting for the game. And I never expected this, and this came as a positive surprise. I introduce to you, ladies and gentlemen, Stephan Merchant! I’m a huge fan of everything put forward by Ricky Gervais and Stephan Merchant. Who can forget the classics The Office, Extras, and The Ricky Gervais Show! Stephan Merchant provides the voice for Wheatley, a friendly robot. There are other celebs in the game, J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man, Juno) provides the voice for Aperture boss Cave Johnson, and Ellen McClain also returns as the voice of GLaDOS.
Portal 2 will be launching on the 21st of April on the PC, XBOX 360, and PS3.
