Flinging Myself Toward The Portal Bandwagon
Everyone I know, meaning Adam, Andre and Andy, has recently mentioned a new videogame called Portal. Even though my name does not start with an A, and my website does not end with a .org, I do not want to be left out of the conversation on this topic. Unfortunately, my pals have said pretty much everything I’d like to say: Portal is awesome, it is a big step forward for the whole first-person-shooter genre AND for the puzzler genre, and it is expertly designed, scripted and programmed.
In Portal, you are given a “gun” which allows you to create physics defying portals on the walls, ceiling or floor. You can then jump through one portal and come out of the other. My favorite part of the game involves the fact that your momentum is retained as you travel through the portal. You can shoot a portal high above a pit, and one down at the bottom of the pit so that when you fall down into the bottom portal, you come shooting out of the top portal across the pit.
My second favorite part of the game is that the robotic gun turrets that appear in some of the levels have Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy-style Genuine People Personalities. They have cute little squeaky voices, and say things like “Hello? Are you still there?” when you duck around a corner. And then they shoot at you.
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