Zero Punctuation: Portal 2
- Thread starter Yahtzee Croshaw
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I disagree. I thought Portal 2 was better than Portal 1. I've re-played it several times on "Single Player", because I can't stand playing with other people. But that's the thing about opinions isn't it? Everybody has one and everybody thinks everyone else's opinions stinks.
So this is why the site is so slow this afternoon: the ZP Portal 2 review. Good reason.
I would have to agree that the replay value of this game is pretty low.
It would?ve been nice to have a test chamber building tool on the consoles like with Little Big Planet or Echocrome but I also wont be surprised if they update the game with something like that.
The only reason I can see them NOT doing something like that is maybe because (even with the additions) there are limited options and they don?t want the fans to exhaust the options before they have a chance to sell us another sequel.
If they keep sending us free gameplay dlc, I wont care either way.
I would have to agree that the replay value of this game is pretty low.
It would?ve been nice to have a test chamber building tool on the consoles like with Little Big Planet or Echocrome but I also wont be surprised if they update the game with something like that.
The only reason I can see them NOT doing something like that is maybe because (even with the additions) there are limited options and they don?t want the fans to exhaust the options before they have a chance to sell us another sequel.
If they keep sending us free gameplay dlc, I wont care either way.
Heresy, Yahtzee, Heresy!!!!!!! Just kidding... =)
The truth is I loved Portal 2 more for the story than for it's gameplay. The gels freshed up the puzzles, but they are soooooooo easy and quick-to-solve on this games that it is laughable...
But I wonder the hole time what connections with HL 3 was going to appear around the conner, and how tragic was the history of Cave Johnson (who change the concept of 'art for the sake art' to 'science for the sake of science') and Carolyn and Glados... The mysterious origin of Chell and so much more.
I can say I am satisfy with the overall product. No mind blowned... Just satisfy.
I would give a score 9.999 out of 10.000 because I hate loading screens.
The truth is I loved Portal 2 more for the story than for it's gameplay. The gels freshed up the puzzles, but they are soooooooo easy and quick-to-solve on this games that it is laughable...
But I wonder the hole time what connections with HL 3 was going to appear around the conner, and how tragic was the history of Cave Johnson (who change the concept of 'art for the sake art' to 'science for the sake of science') and Carolyn and Glados... The mysterious origin of Chell and so much more.
I can say I am satisfy with the overall product. No mind blowned... Just satisfy.
I would give a score 9.999 out of 10.000 because I hate loading screens.
i have to say that portal 1 was better, the "wow-factor" was so imense, and the puzzles was new and creative, it was something that had never been done before, so you really had to wrap your head around to get it. portal 2 on the other hand, even though it had sevral new and creative additions, didnt have the same inpact. and was infact made easier so that more people could join the Hype of this AAA title.
if you've listened to some of the devolelpers commantaries, you'd know that they had to chance some chambers, because they were "too hard" but thats just stupid, a puzzle game can't be too hard, if there is a clear sulution, thats the puzzle part of the game.
also i miss "advanced chambers" it was fun to play the chambers you knew again, exept they were much harder the second time.
if you've listened to some of the devolelpers commantaries, you'd know that they had to chance some chambers, because they were "too hard" but thats just stupid, a puzzle game can't be too hard, if there is a clear sulution, thats the puzzle part of the game.
also i miss "advanced chambers" it was fun to play the chambers you knew again, exept they were much harder the second time.
Valve actually knew that would be the first thing to be missed, so they are releasing an update sometime this summer to give more Co-op puzzles and put back in challenge mode, which includes the time trials, advanced chambers, etc. (Possibly more but Valve wasn't very specific.)Xariat said:
I don't know about that one. The Sonic fanbase seems a lot worst considering we complain about green eyes and trying to support some one shot character who's too cliche. Not to mention we getting Sonic Generations as Sega's excuse to pander to the crowd. >.<Sudenak said:
Anywho this review was pretty good as expected of Yahtzee. It makes want to pick up Portal 2 now but I still can't because I really don't have money. D: I've heard its a good sequel and if Yahtzee himself said so then that's something.
Awesomely. With Lazers.AssassinJoe said:
Oh wait, Portal 2 had lazers already. Hmm... well, they'd find a way, I'm sure.
Also good review, Yahtzee.
I respect Yahtzee all the more for this review; he knew by saying it wasn't as good as the first would send some people batshit as it's the sequel to one of the most critically acclaimed titles of all time, but he's upright and honest about it. I personally disagree and think the second one is much better in nearly every way, but then each to their own.
This was probably one of the more anticipated ZP's, though now we can all look forward to the Duke Nukem Forever review!
This was probably one of the more anticipated ZP's, though now we can all look forward to the Duke Nukem Forever review!
I really don't buy the cherries-and-sawdust analogy. It's more like Portal 1 was three nice, plump cherries, and Portal 2 is five nice, plump cherries and four juicy strawberries, even though Yahtzee (and lots of other people, apparently) didn't want any damn strawberries, thank you very much.
No, it wasn't eight hours of the first game's Spartan minimalism, but who said that it had to be? The fans whom Yahtzee hates? It's something different and, I think, something consistently surprising and delightful.
I'll agree that a few too many rough edges seem to have been sanded off in the name of playtesting and accessibility, and everyone agrees that robot hats are silly, but as for the rest... eh. This isn't Assassin's Creed 2; the idea wasn't to make the first game again, but better. The idea was to make something bigger, weirder, and more ambitious.
When the Portal 2 DLC comes out this summer, "Are these new levels as good as the core ones?" will be a valid and useful question. But I just don't think that "Is Portal 2 as good as Portal 1?" is all that interesting a thing to ask. You're not comparing two different cuts of the same meat here. If you boot up Portal 2 in expecting Portal 1 again, then you will be disappointed, and more to the point, you would have been disappointed with whatever Valve had released.
No, it wasn't eight hours of the first game's Spartan minimalism, but who said that it had to be? The fans whom Yahtzee hates? It's something different and, I think, something consistently surprising and delightful.
I'll agree that a few too many rough edges seem to have been sanded off in the name of playtesting and accessibility, and everyone agrees that robot hats are silly, but as for the rest... eh. This isn't Assassin's Creed 2; the idea wasn't to make the first game again, but better. The idea was to make something bigger, weirder, and more ambitious.
When the Portal 2 DLC comes out this summer, "Are these new levels as good as the core ones?" will be a valid and useful question. But I just don't think that "Is Portal 2 as good as Portal 1?" is all that interesting a thing to ask. You're not comparing two different cuts of the same meat here. If you boot up Portal 2 in expecting Portal 1 again, then you will be disappointed, and more to the point, you would have been disappointed with whatever Valve had released.
Portal sort of reminds me of Ico actually. I thought Portal 1 was a bit overrated exactly because it was more or less just a puzzle game, and I also feel similarly about Ico. And both Portal and Ico both are extremely good games, but the thing is, the thing that I think makes both the games good is the way the world and characters take the focus. The actual gameplay is mostly just filler even if a lot of it is very interesting, the "story" is very minimal outside of the character interaction, and so on. So if Portal 2 wants to have less focus on puzzle solving and more on said character interaction, I don't see the problem with this.
I mean yeah, puzzles are fun and all, but a linear sequence of puzzles no matter how well designed is still a linear sequence of puzzles. Personally I would rather it start as a linear sequence of puzzles, and suddenly about a quarter of the way in shift to more of a open exploration based game with a bit more action, and maybe some more weapons, while still keeping puzzle elements that pop up from time to time. But that's just me and many others would think that would "ruin" the game. Still from what I have seen Portal 2, does a good job of mixing things up without ever going so far as to suddenly shift it's core gameplay in that way. But I think it's getting a bit silly at this point. If there is a Portal 3 I think it will probably have to expand beyond simple puzzle solving eventually.
Really though I would like to see the technology used in the Portal games used for different things, like possibly cross-dimension portals which introduce an Eversion-like mechanic. Or use of world portals to construct really strange levels. I think there are a lot more uses for the basic technology then puzzle solving.
I mean yeah, puzzles are fun and all, but a linear sequence of puzzles no matter how well designed is still a linear sequence of puzzles. Personally I would rather it start as a linear sequence of puzzles, and suddenly about a quarter of the way in shift to more of a open exploration based game with a bit more action, and maybe some more weapons, while still keeping puzzle elements that pop up from time to time. But that's just me and many others would think that would "ruin" the game. Still from what I have seen Portal 2, does a good job of mixing things up without ever going so far as to suddenly shift it's core gameplay in that way. But I think it's getting a bit silly at this point. If there is a Portal 3 I think it will probably have to expand beyond simple puzzle solving eventually.
Really though I would like to see the technology used in the Portal games used for different things, like possibly cross-dimension portals which introduce an Eversion-like mechanic. Or use of world portals to construct really strange levels. I think there are a lot more uses for the basic technology then puzzle solving.
100% agree with the Co-op. Me and My friend did it in about 3 1/2 hours (just after he completed singleplayer with me watching).
Disappointed they didn't put Split screen in the PC version (I managed to hack it in, there's tutorials around).
The Singleplayer game was exactly what I expected to be honest, more story, more humour. A good meme (Spaace!), good characterization but too much of it. Half of Portal 1 was mystery and non-vocal narrative. Needed more of that in the sequel.
Definitely a worthy sequal IMO, not much is going to live up to the originals rise from nowhere (Minecraft??)
Disappointed they didn't put Split screen in the PC version (I managed to hack it in, there's tutorials around).
The Singleplayer game was exactly what I expected to be honest, more story, more humour. A good meme (Spaace!), good characterization but too much of it. Half of Portal 1 was mystery and non-vocal narrative. Needed more of that in the sequel.
Definitely a worthy sequal IMO, not much is going to live up to the originals rise from nowhere (Minecraft??)
I was a bit confused by this review,although it was a thorough one.
Portal 1 was quick and fun and Portal 2 seemed a bit too stretched out with the gaps between tests which were too long.
Portal 1 was quick and fun and Portal 2 seemed a bit too stretched out with the gaps between tests which were too long.
I mean, we all kind of knew that Portal 2 would never have the same impact as Portal, it's beyond impossible. As for Portal being great because it was short, i never understood that argument. To me, Portal was just a really good game, its length didn't figure in my fondness of it. Portal 2 was really just more puzzles in the vein of the first game with some new mechanics. There is no quantity/quality here: It always had quality, so when you just make more of it you get a 8-hour game with fun gameplay as opposed to a 3-hour game with fun gameplay. The sequel wins by simple math, really, unless you adopt some sort of arcane Minimalist approach.
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P.S. How are Wheatley and Cave Johnson 'pie-to-the-face' funny?
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P.S. How are Wheatley and Cave Johnson 'pie-to-the-face' funny?