Game review: Portal 2

Published on Wednesday 20 April 2011 12:01

While the first Portal was something of a testing ground for developer Valve, with its untested mechanics and wild new ideas, the follow-up is very much a complete experience.

It's not just one of the best games to launch this year, it's destined to become a classic that will be recalled fondly years from now.

It follows unwilling lab rat Chell as she awakes in the confines of the Aperture Science portal testing facility.

It doesn't take long before maniacal AI GlaDoS reanimates and torments and heckles the player at every turn. Her scathing, sarcastic wit, coupled with clumsy robot sidekick Wheatley's quips, make for a hilarious experience from start to finish.

This is a refreshing experience, using a first-person shooter perspective but remaining entirely devoid of shooting; navigating fiendish lab tests and mindbending puzzles is worlds away from the sea of military shooting games flooding the market.

Using the laws of physics, players can manipulate gravity, pass treacherous terrain and bend the environment to their will.

It's a tad daunting for first-time players, but the best moments of Portal 2 are when the rules suddenly click and you manage to overcome a devious puzzle all by yourself.

In this respect, the experience is one of the most rewarding out there today, and combined with a stellar co-op mode, makes for an exemplary package that deserves glittering praise.

Portal 2

44.99, Mac/PC/PS3/Xbox 360

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This article was first published in The Scotsman, 30 April, 2011