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Live-action Portal fan film explores the birth of GLaDOS
GLaDOS is widely considered one of gaming's finest antagonists, but like all malevolent robots she too was once a child - A brutal, sadistic child with no sympathy for terrified scientists. That's the basic premise behind Portal: Survive!, a new live-action fan film which explores the violent early moments of GLaDOS. Despite being an amateur production, Portal: Survive! proves surprisingly well-crafted. Colin and Connor McGuire, the duo behind the short, claim that the total budget for their project was less than $500. The claustrophic interiors you see in the vignette are almost certainly a compromise made for monetary reasons, but the film's creators did an excellent job of making these limitations work toward the short's advantage. Instead of feeling cheap, these small sets lend an appropriate level of tension to the rise of GLaDOS.
Jump at the chance for a real Portal 2 jumpsuit
NECA is beginning a bold new behavioral experiment, to determine whether the addition of a logo will render plain orange jumpsuits desirable enough for consumers to purchase them in high quantities and for $100 each. The company's hypothesis is that it will, and we tend to agree.In order to get one of NECA's official Portal 2 Chell Jumpsuits (in women's and men's sizes) from ThinkGeek, you need to get on a mailing list. ThinkGeek will alert its "Test Subjects" about the product's availability when it arrives in October. This is the only way the retailer plans to sell these, so if you want that testy look go sign up now.Pre-orders are available from a variety of other retailers, some of which have their own restrictions – like only offering reservations during the weekend of Comic-Con (i.e. now). Given the response to other Portal memorabilia, you're better off pre-ordering immediately from your retailer of choice.
The importance of playtesting: What Portal 2 could have been
When Erik Wolpaw and Chet Faliszek first sat down to write Portal 2, they went mad. It certainly appears that way now, when the final version of Portal 2 that shipped in 2011 was such a resounding success, especially for a highly anticipated sequel. The first iteration Wolpaw and Faliszek envisioned got rid of three important mechanics in the Portal universe: Chell, GLaDOS and, as we knew and are still reeling over, portals. In a talk at GDC, Wolpaw and Faliszek explained why they thought that was a good idea, and how they learned it was pretty much the dumbest thing ever.The original Portal 2 had three new things in place of the classic ideas: F-stop (the new portal mechanic), Cave Johnson (antagonist replacement) and Betty (GLaDOS substitute). Betty was a knee-high personality sphere on wheels, a piece of concept art showed, and she spoke in quick legalese, "like those ads for medicine where they show puppies while they talk about the rectal bleeding you're going to have," Wolpaw said.
Portal's Chell and GLaDOS get along much better in real life
Chell and GLaDOS may not share much love for each other in the Portal series, but GLaDOS voice actress Ellen McLain (left) and Chell face model Alesia Glidewell (right) certainly seem to get along swimmingly, as evidenced in this photo tweeted by Ashley King.
Portal 2 trailer reveals the magic of Chell's 'Long Fall Boots'
"But how does Chell survive all of those incredibly violent spills in Portal 2," you ask? "That's impossible," you add. Firstly, impossible? Really? This is a game about teleporting through holes in the fabric of space-time. Secondly, watch the trailer below. We promise all shall be elucidated.
This post about Portal 2 concept art is free of Portal jokes
As a safe haven for all the world's thinking people, we'd like to happily announce that though this post is about a new look for Portal protagonist Chell in the upcoming Portal 2, you'll find no sly, winking references to the original game anywhere in sight. We're fresh out of good ones, and we just respect you too much to toss up dreck. With that now behind us, you may read on in confidence. Game Informer has some concept art for Portal 2 and it appears that Chell is undergoing a makeover. We guess her old outfit was a lie ... uh, we mean, a lie-ttle bit too comfortable. Yeah, that's the ticket. Nice save, huh? In fact, we'd say it was a trium-- No! A triumvirate. Yep, that's it -- a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals. Think about it. Now, let us never speak of this again.
Video: Portal gun replica hands-on
You didn't think we'd let this one go without a followup, did you? Portal gun replica creator Harrison Krix was gracious enough to invite us to his workshop and get some hands-on time with it. Let's get the two most common inquiries out of the way first: no, it's not photoshopped and no, it doesn't actually "work" (as in, it doesn't create portals). The armament weighs between five or ten pounds, and all color shifting is done via a switch inside the back end. The middle tube, interestingly enough, is an acrylic plunger handle with a clear matte. The 26-year old graphic designer and graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design estimates he spent 150 hours and $350 in parts, although later models should take much less time. He's had offers to create more iterations from employees at Bungie and Infinity Ward, and he's thinking of making one to give to the Penny Arcade crew for their Child's Play charity. For a look at it both in action and disassembled, check out the video after the break. Next up? A BioShock Big Daddy costume, with arm extensions and a working drill, just in time for next August's Dragon Con in Atlanta. Galleries Hands-on with the Portal gun replica Portal gun replica (work in progress) Portal gun replica build images and wiring
Replica Portal gun is an absolute triumph
We've seen some Portal-inspired gadgets before, but this one takes the cake, as it were. The Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device is made from florist foam, and wonderflex, among other parts, and uses a 9V battery to power blue and orange LEDs around the nozzle. On the back of the gun is a bit of splattered blood -- y'know, since we're not all quick enough to avoid the turrets. Hit up the read link for more pictures. Can somebody please throw in some Wiimote circuitry so we can use this thing to play the actual game? [Thanks, everyone!] Read - Notes from the creator Read - Hi-res Flickr gallery
