Valve Opens The Portal 61
Via Joystiq, an IGN story giving some background on the Portal project, the interesting FPS/Puzzler that Valve has planned to go out with Half-Life 2: Episode 2. The article interviews the team behind the technology, and gives some insight on what it must be like to have the best senior year of college ever: "Along with the other members of the Portal team, we were students at DigiPen Institute of Technology located in Redmond, WA, next to the Nintendo of America campus. During our senior year, the seven of us created a game called Narbacular Drop, which was an early test of our ideas about portal-based gameplay. Every year, DigiPen puts on an expo for graduating seniors to show their game projects to prospective employers. A couple of Valve people attended, and they asked us to come to the Valve offices and show it to Gabe Newell. Gabe watched our demo and basically hired us on the spot. It was kind of shocking. We stood around in the parking lot afterwards gibbering to ourselves for about 20 minutes."
Re:The aliens are coming... (Score:2)
Pay no mind of the hands on either side that hold the portal wide! This way to the egress!
Re:The aliens are coming... (Score:1, Funny)
Was that a Goatse joke?
Re:The aliens are coming... (Score:2)
Re:The aliens are coming... (Score:2)
>
> Was that a Goatse joke?
It's a Goatse joke and a P.T. Barnum joke and a FPS joke, all in one tasty package!
For inspiration, see the screenshots of the Q2 [wikipedia.org] and UT2K4 [wikipedia.org] mods
Re:The aliens are coming... (Score:2)
Re:In Related News PC Gaming Continues To Die... (Score:1)
Played Narbacular drop. (Score:2, Troll)
Re:Played Narbacular drop. (Score:1, Informative)
Re:Played Narbacular drop. (Score:2)
Re:Played Narbacular drop. (Score:1)
I'd say that they were hired PRECISELY for their coding skills, as well as their ideas. So they made a few mistakes. Didn't stop me from playing and beating ND about 7 times when I first played it.
Re:Played Narbacular drop. (Score:1)
Re:Played Narbacular drop. (Score:1)
It's honestly amazing to see what a group of Digipen Students can make. Consider the following: 1) A Digipen Project is completed in its entirety by a group of roughly 5 *students*, give or take. 2) Most projects are developed from concept to completion in roughtly 9 months. 3) During this 9 months, they are also balancing a truly murderous load of other coursework. 4) There is essentially no "budget" beyond what the team members are willing and able to chip in for to
You sir know nothing (Score:4, Funny)
With only 1 four credit class, that I had previously taken but initialy failed. I had a blast.
I didn't even mind it too much when one of my friends informed a Freshman I was chatting up that when she started middle school, I had been starting college...
Wow! (Score:4, Funny)
Oh well - back to my 1950s science fiction books....
Re:Wow! (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Wow! (Score:4, Interesting)
Even if this game isn't as good as it looks, i'm sure it will spawn a whole generation of FPS titles with new portal weapons/devices.
How about a FPS multiplayer game, a runner can go ahead to setup the portal to beam his teammates in.
It would make ambushes and capturing strategic locations cool, especially if your opponents could do it too.
How about the ability to minaturize/enlarge items, a 'other dimension' storage for carried weapons or vehicles. Open your portal garage and drive out in your T180 Tank etc.
Science fiction is as much innovation as it is invention. No, reversing the polatity on the main deflector doesnt count.
Re:Wow! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Wow! (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Wow! (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Wow! (Score:2)
near the enemy flag...
Maybe they could add "classes", such that the Engineer constructs portals (maybe even, say, sentry guns), Medics could heal
their teammates, etc, so as to encourage teamplay. Of course, level design and balance would be made easier if all the levels
were symmetrical, with each team having their own fortress.
What would really seal the deal though, is if they gave this "team fortress" mod away for
Re:Wow! (Score:1)
their teammates, etc, so as to encourage teamplay. Of course, level design and balance would be made easier if all the levels
were symmetrical, with each team having their own fortress.
Then they could call the portal a spawn point, set it in a jungle, add 60's music, and call it Battlefield Vietnam.
Re:Wow! (Score:1)
Re:Wow! (Score:2)
Re:Wow! (Score:2)
Re:Wow! (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Wow! (Score:2)
Looney Toons' portable hole, of course.
Game Industry (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Game Industry (Score:1)
How do I own a copy? (Score:3, Insightful)
But 'episodic gameplay' sounds suspiciously like 'recurring monthly charge' or whatnot.
Can I walk into a store and buy a copy? How do I get and play just this 'portal' game?
I don't have half life 2, or valve or steam or whatever. And I'm not willing to sign up for any sort of we'll-give-you-a-new-game-every-month-try-it-you'
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:3, Informative)
Having said all that, you are not obligated to buy anything by setting up a Steam account. I've had a Steam account for over 4 years (early beta tester was not fun
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
So, basically, you can get it without having Steam but you can't actually get Portal as a standalone game. Unless I'm reading the page wrong.
This is a shame, really, as there are people (myself being one of them) who have no interest at all in standard FPS games who would like Portal - as it's not a standard FPS. But without a way of buying it on its own, the fact that you also have to buy it with HL2:E2 is pretty much a dealbreaker.
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
Actually, I would. I like short, pick-up-and-play puzzle-based games. (I like RPGs mostly, but they're less use for a quick burst of gaming, and puzzlers fill that niche)
This is exactly what Portal looks like, and hence something I would want on its own.
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
I hear ya there, but I think Portal is honestly the tech demo and we're going to see a more complete version coming out later. What I'm actually thinking more about in terms of the puzzle aspect is user-created puzzles. If the portal gun is fun and moddi
Integration into HL2? (Score:2)
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:1)
but spending $20 on an innovative title, a revisioned old game and an expansion to a new game is a bad deal?
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
Yes, very much so, and for two definite reasons that I have against game bundles in general. (Although if it's a really short game I'd prefer a slightly cheaper price - but it's the bundling not the price that I'm really talking about here)
One, having to buy buy a game (or games) I don't want to get one that I do is annoying. I'd rat
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:1)
nope you'll need Steam (Score:2)
You will need a Steam account to install the game. The Steam account does not cost you anything to setup or charge you a monthly fee but you do need to have one in order to install and play the game.
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:1)
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2)
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:1)
However, you will probably still need to sign up for a Steam account (it's free) since that functi
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:2, Informative)
Yes, yes you can. This "episodic content" is essentially in the form of (small) self-contained games which are published in a serialized manner, to be bought either through stores or through Valve's downloading service.
Sort of like a series of novels. You don't actually have to buy the former novels to read the new ones, though you might miss out on something if you do.
Re:How do I own a copy? (Score:1)
Download the Steam client and set up an account. It sounds like Portal is bundled with HL: Ep 2, so then you need to buy that. It will definitely be available on Steam, and probably in stores as well. If you buy it in a store, you will enter a CD-key that gets tied to your Steam account.
Steam then magically unlocks a key for you to play the game. You now have to agree to a license that says you will be a good little consumer, and never try to fool their "protection" measures or disassemble the
One-zee? (Score:2)
Excuse me, but when did a "onesie" become a "one-zee"?
Does it come from that PBS series with Queen LaBiblia kidnapping Miss Reader to teach her blue-haired alien subjects how to make imaginations grow with Earth children's stories with the help of her ship's computer, 1Z2Z? (Why can't I remember the name of that show, and why isn't it listed on IMDb or anywhere else on the net?
Re:One-zee? (Score:1)
Source: http://www.rickstv.com/tvo/feedback.html [rickstv.com] (Control+F "1Z2Z")
"Back in the early-mid 70's, NBC had spent a load of dough to convert their classic "Peacock" logo to a streamlined looking "N". However, NBC forgot to take into account that the Nebraska Public Television Network had a nearly identical logo for years. NBC managed to avoid a messy lawsuit by paying NPTV some money in an out-of-court settlement, as well as donating a bunch of state-of-the
Re:One-zee? (Score:1)
Damn. Now I want to see those shows...
You don't know how long I've been racking my brain trying to recall the names of those shows. The images from them are burned into my brain, and bits of the music from them, little folksy tunes:
"But now Queen LaBiblia won't let Miss Reader go / Until she's taught the Queen to make imaginations grow."
For the longest time the only search results I could get on them were my own requests for
Is Valve the new id Software? (Score:2)
Re:Is Valve the new id Software? (Score:1)
YouTube Vid (Score:3, Informative)