Wes Ellis./ a personal notebook
Technology. Stories. Side projects.
A few things worth writing down.
SearchSubscribe
← Back to Game Reviews

Game Reviews

Portal 2: I'm Making a Note Here, Huge Success

By Wes Ellis3 min read
A ruined Portal 2 test chamber crossed by red laser beams and debris.
Format
5 / 5
Platform
Steam · 17 hrs
THE SHORT VERSION4 points
  • 5 out of 5. About seventeen and a half hours on record.
  • Sharp, funny writing with GLaDOS, Wheatley and Cave Johnson all at their best.
  • Puzzles that make you feel clever instead of stuck, plus a separate co-op campaign.
  • The only real flaws: it ends, there's no Portal 3, and there's still no cake.

"I'M MAKING A NOTE HERE: HUGE SUCCESS!" was my Steam review headline, with "For science, you monster" underneath. If you've played Portal 2, you already know. If you haven't, what are you doing reading this? Go buy it.

Still here? Fine. Here's the longer version.

What it is

You wake up in Aperture Science again, a lot later, with the place overgrown and falling apart. You have a portal gun: shoot one portal, shoot another, and walk (or fling yourself) through the gap. Everything else is test chambers, and a cast of characters who'd very much like you to keep testing.

A Portal 2 test chamber where a stream of blue gel pours through a portal.

What worked

The writing. Honestly brilliant. GLaDOS is back with her passive-aggressive charm, Stephen Merchant's Wheatley is hilariously out of his depth, and J.K. Simmons as Cave Johnson steals every scene he's in. Nearly every line is quotable, and the dark humor lands all the way through.

The puzzles. They take thinking, but they're built to make you feel smart, not frustrated. New ideas like the gels, light bridges and tractor beams show up gradually, and each one gets its own run of chambers before the game starts mixing them together. The difficulty curve is masterfully built.

Co-op. There's a whole separate two-player campaign with its own story and puzzles that genuinely require teamwork. It's four to six hours of making each other miserable in the best way.

Workshop. Community maps and a level editor mean there's always more to play.

The sound. Great voice acting across the board, an ambient Aperture hum that sets the mood, and dynamic music that follows your wins and failures. And yes, there's another song at the end. It's amazing.

Wheatley, a round robot with a single blue eye, hanging from his rail.

Try this

When you finish the single-player story, grab a friend for the co-op campaign. It isn't more of the same. The puzzles are built around two portal guns, and talking it through is half the fun.

What didn't

It's too short. Eight to twelve hours for the single-player. You'll wish there were more.

The ending. Some people may find the finale's tone different from what they expected.

Valve can't count to three. No Portal 3 in sight.

Minimal cake. Still no cake.

Technically, it runs like butter on practically anything. The Source engine is old, but the art direction more than covers it.

Who it's for

Anyone who likes puzzles, humor or just a really well-made game. It's fine for all ages, though younger players might need help on some of the trickier chambers.

Worth it?

It's one of the greatest games ever made. The only flaw that really matters is that you can't play it for the first time again.

If you like physics puzzles but want them sillier and floppier, Human Fall Flat is a very different kind of test chamber.

LINKED FROM1 note

Keep reading