Finding Doorways to Fun With Portal

Welcome to Aperture Labs, an interactive experimentation laboratory where groundbreaking new experiments are conducted, some of which are definitely not in your best interest.

An amazing new item called the Portal gun has been invented, giving you the ability to make portal openings that can automatically be traveled between, regardless of how much distance involved in the journey.

The game of Portal was first released on October 9th, 2007 with the Orange Box that also contained four other games.

The set was released on PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, but the game of Portal is now available as a stand-alone disc and also as a downloadable game on the gaming service Steam.

Valve's commitment to original and enjoyable games resulted in a creative and quirky game that has spawned a highly successful sequel and a large cult following.

Read on as we point out why Portal is among the most popular of video games of all time for those who love a good puzzle challenge.

Portal is a first-person puzzle game that involves using your imagination in tandem with a strong sense of location inside its puzzles.

Much of the game is guided by your computer overlord, an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system named GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System).

This mechanical sounding AI is hell-bent on breaking you emotionally but sarcastically promises you cake and counseling if you happen to make it through the experiments alive and with some of your sanity intact.

The object is to simply press on through the game and complete each room in order to leave the center of the puzzle.

Eating the cake is not recommended.

The experiments of Portal take place in Aperture Laboratories, where you are tasked with various objectives that involve the use of an Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device, more simply called the portal gun.

This portal gun has the capability to create a blue and orange portal in different places, giving the player the ability to enter one portal and come out through the other portal.

Each gate can be used as an entrance and an exit, so navigating through the experiments aren't defined by entrance and exit portals. A sense of momentum control and item transportation is also introduced, making the levels more complicated as the game goes on.

Portal uses the ingenious portal concept to create a game that is original and highly addictive for anyone with an interest in puzzle games.

The game is chock full of witty comments from your AI buddy GLaDOS, and the story progression is amusing and inventive. With only a few downsides like occasional difficult levels to master and a small sense of monotony at times, it shapes out to be a very good game with plenty of addictive factors to keep you busy for hours on end.

The greatest part of the entire experience is the unexpected humor and story twists that involve GLaDOS and your rebellion against her sinister plot that has been perpetrated against you. The cult following behind the game is most attracted to the crazy mechanical lady that often says things that are unexpected and sometimes downright mean. But in a funny way.

Portal comes recommended with a rating of 8/10.

With a highly original game design and hilarious character dialog, this game is a must-have for anyone who enjoys a good laugh and a great puzzle game.