“Oh, it’s you”
“It’s been a long time. How have you been? I’ve been really busy being dead. You know…after you murdered me? Okay look, we both said a lot of things that you are going to regret. But I think we should put our differences behind us. For science. You monster”
Portal 2
An Unexpected Triumph.
When Valve approached a team of students from the nearby DigPen institute of Technology with job offers and the opportunity to flesh Drop – back in the summer of 2005, it did so cautiously. Measured steps were taken to minimize risk. The team was kept small. Art assets were refused, drawing heavily from prefabricated pieces of the Half – Life universe. Then the final product, Portal was released as part of the Orange Box.
The investment paid off. With over 70 industry honors, and 30 Game of the Year awards, it’s impossible to deny Portal’s success Portal was, and still is, unlike anything else in Valve’s stable of action-centric titles. Valve knew it had something special, but didn’t anticipate the degree to which fans would gravitate forward the budding franchise. Their only complaint? They wanted more.
“
Portal was so short because it was a trial”, explains Doug Lombardi, vice president of marketing at Valve. “
We paired it with [Half – Life 2] Episode 2 and team Fortress 2, which were recognizable and safe. Then we had this Portal thing, and we had no idea if people would dig it, even though we thought it was a cool idea. So it was put out there safely in the Orange Box, and the results came back wilder than we could have even imagined.”
It didn’t take long for legions of Valve fans to embrace it. Within months, “the cake is a lie” memes were all over the web. Valve started receiving videos of high school choirs singing “
Still Alive,” and the song even found its way into the Rock Band catalog.
“
There was no way we could have planned for it,” says Lombardi. “So we knew we had to double down and give them more. Portal was s test bed. Portal 2 is a game.”
The trial by fire is over – the safety net removed. Portal’s endearing antagonist, quip-filled dialogue, and mind-altering gameplay are proven commodities. A rabid fan base is established. Now it’s time to up the ante, instead of merely hoping for the best, Valve is now banking on Portal 2’s successes. The fiercely independent studio is investing more time, more capital, and more risk into standalone, full-price retail release.
Ñòð.51
Party Submission Position
“
We are pleased that you made it though the final challenge where we pretended we were going to murder you,” chirps GlaDOS, the homicidal computer and antagonist of Portal, adlibbing after Chell sees through her shallow attempt at encouraging self-incineration. “
We are very, very happy in honor of yours tremendous success. Place the device on the ground then lie on your stomach with your arms at your sides. A party associate will arrive shortly to collect you for your party. Make no further attempt to leave the testing area. Assume the party escort submission position or you will miss the party.”
In the original Portal, GlaDOS casual disregard for Chell’s safety was a constant. For many, however, this moment was a memorable one; it was at this instant Chell took back control over her destiny.
This exchange has recently come into new relevance, providing a bridge between Portal and Portal 2 through a retroactive update Valve released on the sky. Astute fans may have noticed that a patch for Portal launched recently with no press release or fanfare. Several cosmetic updates play second fiddle to a short but significant change to Portal’s ending.
“
The thing is interesting for us is we’ve never really had a game that’s been focused on single player and narrative that released so close together,” explains Erik Johnson, senior project manager at Valve. “
Half-Life and Half-Life 2 were obviously about 15 or 20 years apart, or that’s at least what it left like [laughs], but now we have Steam, and Portal was only released in 2007. So we still have a really strong tie to the first game. The update seemed to be the perfect way to re-energize Portal and link the game together.”
The seemingly dismissive reference to a ‘party associate’ now provides a perfect segue. In the most subtle of alterations, Chell is now thanked by a disembodied voice for assuming the party escort submission position as she lays passed out in the Aperture Science parking lot, seconds before. This definitive chain of custody over Chell makes it possible for her to resume her role as a lab in Portal 2, despite an extraordinary change in circumstance between games.
It doesn’t take an Aperture scientist to piece together that GlaDOS resumes her role as the omnipresent antagonist in Portal 2. The lark-like melody “
Still Alive” at the end of Portal was evidence enough. Chell’s fate, however, remained a wildcard until the aforementioned update. Previously, we saw Chell catapulted to freedom following GlaDOS’ demise. Assuming she avoided any grievous injuries, her escape was fathomable. Now we know better. She’s back in captivity once again.
One new detail complicates Vavve’s carefully implemented continuity – Portal 2 takes place hundreds of year after the original game. We assume the party associate stashed Chell in some sort of stasis chamber in which she’s quietly passed time.
While Chell appears relatively unscathed, the Aperture Science facilities haven’t tired ad well. Centuries after the explosion, no one has been around to repair the sprawling campus. Overgrown areas are interspersed with cold and clinical test chambers, now in various stages of decay. As far as we (and Chell) can tell, no one has stepped foot in the derelict labs for decades. But loneliness won’t overtake you, as a cast of slightly less organic characters has thrived in GlaDOS absence.
At the end of Portal , illuminated by a bickering candle atop the fabled cake, rows upon rows of personality cores were awakened. These spheres are the same as those Chell ripped from GlaDOS’ breast as she incinerated her new “
speces” allows Valve the chance to integrate unique AI personalities without introducing human peers. It also addresses the concern that returning to an isolated GlaDOS and Chell relationship would feel too much like released.
Migrating from their sublevel confines throughout the centuries, these spheres have carved our sections of the neglected facility as their own. Wheatley, one such personality core, proves to be the perfect tour guide to lead us through our first glimpse or Portal 2 gameplay. Concerned about the building’s deteriorating conditions and tired of his limited mobility (personality cores are appendage-less and thus confined to rails on laboratory ceilings). Wheatley ponders his odds of surviving a jump from his lofty position, ultimately deciding that wouldn’t go unscathed. Instead he awakens Chell from her slumber and propositions her for help. Promising to share his knowledge of an escape route, Wheatley hesitantly puts his faith in Chell to catch him. His fears become justified when Chell fails the simple task.
Quick to forgive – and fueled by self preservation – Wheatley navigates Chell throughout the facility from his new station in her hands, all the while blabbering incessantly. He proves useful for more than a laugh, however. Chell can plug Wheatley into various ports throughout the labs, allowing him to access the mainframe and bypass obstacles. Wheatley’s a bit gun-shy, though, making clear that he can’t perform with Chell watching.
As the duo make their way through the defunct facilities, the extent of the damage becomes clear. Debris often blocks the path ad they traverse a massive cylindrical room populated with that only the switch to power the escape pod should be flipped – or else. When Chell can’t spot the switch amongst hundreds, she instead pops Wheatley into another port so he can do the dirty work himself. Almost instantly, the neglected equipment malfunctions, and the floor below them reveals itself as an elevator that deigns ascending, flipping all the switches on the periphery in the process. Acutely aware of the damage that’s been done, Wheatley scrambles to find an abort password, forgoing a practical algorithm for a sequential brute-force strategy,”
AAAAAA? NO, that’s not it. AAAAAB? No? AAAAAC? You’ve got to be joking!”
The climb halts as the platform comes flush with the floor of a chillingly familiar location: an overgrown courtyard now housing the soulless shell of GLaDOS. Having no luck with the password. Wheatley trembles in fear at first rumblings of a returning foe. We all knew the GLaDOS-less repite wouldn’t last long. Slowly reborn in a bath of sparks and debris, GLaDOS awakens. Recognition crests immediately.
“…oh, it’s you,” accuses GLaDOS in the throaty, sultry voice she first slipped on at the end of Portal. She continues, punctuating each short sentence with a drip of venom. “It’s been a long time. How have you been? I’ve been really busy being dead. You know..after you murdered me?” Collecting her thoughts with another brief pause, an exaggerated and very human exhalation follows. The menace dissipates and she cames on. “Okay look, we both said a lot of things that you are going to regret. But I think we should put our differences behind us. For science. You monster.”
The short exchange is chilling, even after GLaDOS makes it obvious that she’s more interested in resuming your relationship than revenge. With Chell once again a pawn in Aperture Science’s grasp, the tests recommence. Even though the playing field is drastically different this time around, the odd couple falls back into routine old lovers.
Ñòð.52-53