Portal 2 Official Blog

Portal 2 Puzzle Creator Sneak Peek

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 22:44:00 +0000

After we released the Portal 2 Authoring Tools earlier this year, we were thrilled by how quickly over 700 player-created puzzles were released into the wild. As successful as that was, the feedback we got was that many aspiring puzzle designers were finding that because of the complexity of the tool set, becoming the next GLaDOS was much harder than they expected. On top of that, it was too tedious and time consuming to actually find and play the puzzles that players were creating.

We're going to fix all of that. The next major update to Portal 2 will make it far simpler (and more fun) to create and distribute your own Portal 2 puzzles.

The simplified puzzle creator will let players easily carve out their creations in a straightforward but powerful way. They'll then be able to immediately upload those levels to their Steam Cloud and share them with other players online. We're also building a community site to host all of these player-created puzzles. The site will allow players to quickly find new puzzles and add them to their game, ready to play, with a single click. Players will then be able to rate the puzzles they've played, leave comments for puzzle creators, and follow creators they like.

We're positive there are a ton of great puzzle designers just waiting for the right tools, and we're working hard to tap into all that creativity. We'll keep you posted as we continue to make progress with the update. For now, here are some screenshots of the puzzle creator to get the ideas flowing.

Win Stuff

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 00:11:00 +0000

Portal 2's "Peer Review" DLC is live and available everywhere, and to celebrate, some friends have decided they want to give you things.

First up is Dark Horse, who will be publishing "Valve Presents", a collection of comics from the Portal 2, Left 4 Dead, and Team Fortress 2 universes. Their contest? Recreate your favorite scene from any Valve comic in-game as machinima. If, like us, you not only don't possess the skill sets to do any of that, you don't possess the skill sets to know what any of the words in that last sentence meant, we've got two words for you: sock puppets. What can you win? Signed copies of "Valve Presents". Plus, the first place winner will also receive an original Michael Avon Oeming drawing. If all of this sounds like a complicated way to get a copy of a book, you can also just go to Amazon and give them pieces of paper for one.

On Jinx's blog you can post a link to your self-created Portal 2 art and win one of ten signed Portal 2 1970s Action Movie Posters and a $150 J!NX Gift Certificate. We're going to hazard a guess that screenshots aren't art, so be prepared to do some actual work (or at least put a Photoshop filter on your screenshot).

Steel Series needs some help picking out a Portal 2 mousepad. You can help them by visiting their site. Ten random participants will get a prize package made up of Steel Series peripherals. The Grand Prize winner, also chosen at random, will win a large format "Aperture's Requiem" Portal 2 print.

So there you go. As with all third party contests, we urge you to visit the sites linked above to learn more about each contest. We have no idea what the actual rules or legal requirements are for this stuff, and assume no responsibility if you accidentally get a keyboard lodged in your forehead while making machinima.

Free DLC out now for Portal 2

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:35:00 +0000

An all-new co-op adventure starring Atlas, P-Body and GLaDOS, the free DLC "Peer Review" takes place an unknown period of time after the events of Portal 2. You and your co-op science partner are once again awoken and assembled for a dangerous new mission. Did we say "dangerous"? We meant routine. Everything's fine. That slight note of terror you're hearing in GLaDOS's voice is probably just an audio calibration error. Anyway, on with your suicide mission. And when we say "suicide mission" we mean it would be suicide not to take this mission. Because it's so safe. Everything's fine.

"Peer Review" is being rolled out across all regions on Steam, Xbox LIVE and PSN as we speak. The free DLC is available to all owners of Portal 2 for download on PS3 and Xbox 360, and will be automatically downloaded via Steam on PC and Mac.

And if you're not an owner of Portal 2, don't sweat it, we've made it easier to become one: To celebrate the release of the free DLC, Portal 2 is on sale for 50% off on Steam through Thursday.

Songs to Test By, Volume Three

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:30:00 +0000

We were chatting with Portal 2 Lead Composer Mike Morasky the other day, and he casually mentioned that Songs to Test By Volumes One and Two have, to date, been downloaded close to two million times. We said that was nice, even though it didn't have anything to do with what we'd been talking about (bass fishing), and we asked him if we could go back to talking about that. Mike said okay. Then he asked us if we'd ever been bass fishing a million times, because if we had that would mean we'd fished for bass half as much as the Portal 2 soundtrack's been downloaded. This is why we don't talk to Mike.

Anyway, the third and final volume of Songs to Test by is now available to download. We're not sure how many times the last two volumes were downloaded--five times, maybe, or six, if we had to guess--but according to the number currently being sky-written by a plane outside Valve's windows it was actually two million. Make it two million and one now.

Oh yeah, by the way, before we forget, the first Portal 2 DLC, "Peer Review" will be out next Wednesday. For free.

Visit the music site

Exile Vilify Music Video Contest Winners

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 17:16:00 +0000

The Portal 2 Music Video Contest for The National's Exile Vilify is over. Everyone who made a video is a winner, but here are the real winners.

Songs to Test By: Volume 2

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 20:48:00 +0000

Give your ears the gift of sound and let them relive the glory days of testing in full fidelity, without the distracting hisses and pops that accompany being submerged in acid. Songs to Test By: Volume 2 (of 3) is now available for download. Plus: Free!

Visit the music site

Summer Mapping Initiative Winners

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 20:37:00 +0000

The Summer Mapping Initiative has been completed and thinkingwithportals.com has selected the winners. There were 280 entries that took the 13 Judges over 140 hours to play.

Patent Pending was the overall winner with Infinifling grabbing second place. The voting was so close, we added an honorable mention for Edifice.

Since we all know that the appreciation of your fellow man is not a real prize, they will all also be receiving the following:

Jinx Portal 2 Gear

Gels and a Shirt from Think Geek.

Gear from Glitch

More Shirts than you can wear in a week, enough Posters to wallpaper your cell, and more from Valve.

Not pictured because we haven't even released them yet - the winners will also receive a Wheatley Laboratories Glow in the Dark T-shirt and the super cool 70s Portal 2 poster signed by the entire team.

Right now we know what you're thinking, "I'm an idiot. That's a ton of cool stuff! I should have entered that contest!"

First. You're right. Second, don't worry you still have a chance. This prize package pales in comparison to what Valve and The National have for the winners of the Portal 2 Music Video contest. Check the rules here and then get to work! You still have time to make your video, so no excuses - your wardrobe needs it.

In case you're not sure how to check out the winning maps, here are the instructions:

1) Download the map file from ThinkingWithPortals.com.
2) Open up the .ZIP file after it has downloaded.
3) Find the location of your Portal 2 installation on Steam. This is most typically found under:
Windows PC users: C:\Program Files\Valve\Steam\steamapps\common\portal 2\maps.
Mac users: ~/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/common/Portal 2/portal2/maps
Note that your installation location may vary, depending on your initial install directory.
4) Copy the .BSP file located in the downloaded file to the directory above.
5) Start Portal 2
6) In the game's main menu, select "Options->Keyboard and Mouse"
7) Set Allow Developer Console to Enabled
8) Press the tilde (~) key to access the console
9) Type map "mapname here"
10) Solve the puzzle!

The Portal 2 Music Video Contest

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 23:04:00 +0000
Sharp-eared music fans will have already found the haunting track "Exile Vilify" by The National in Portal 2. Clearly Rat Man is a big fan of of the song, based on some of the art decorating the walls of his dens. But as any museum fan can tell you, there's nothing a fancypants painting can say that a YouTube video can't say a hundred times better.

Visit the video contest site

Songs to Test By

Wed, 25 May 2011 17:47:00 +0000
With Aperture-brand turrets, boots, bots and panels flooding the applied science aisle of your local department store, you could forgive the up-and-coming test lab for taking a breather. Judging from their latest press release, though, their laurels remain untouched by backsides. Bolstered by recent breakthroughs in the field of jazz smoothing, Aperture announced today the first of three downloadable aural stimulus packages.

Whether you're a mega-science corporation with decades of test experience, or a young start-up liberating your first test subject from non-testing with a chloroform-soaked rag, Aperture guarantees results. Wake up your test subject, open the chamber door, and press play--let Aperture's patent-pending rhythmic compliance enhancers do the rest.

Visit the music site

Channel Your Inner Supervillain

Tue, 24 May 2011 18:50:00 +0000
If entertainment has taught us anything—be it films; TV shows; or films for people who hate fights and explosions, books—it's that at some point in every story, the villain will tell the hero, "You know, we're a lot alike, you and I." It always sounds like a really smart thing to say to somebody, even though it's never actually true.

But now, for the first time, thinkingwithportals.com is giving you the opportunity to make it true. Show them that not only are you like GLaDOS, you're better than GLaDOS, by designing your own diabolical test chamber.

From now until June 6th, thinkingwithportals.com is accepting entries for their Summer Mapping Initiative. Test chambers will be judged on their puzzle complexity, visual appeal and tonal fidelity (50s design, contemporary design, etc.), so steeple those scheming-fingers, write some nasty passive-aggressive insults on index cards for easy reference, and show GLaDOS how it's done.

Portal 2 - The Final Hours now available on Steam

Wed, 18 May 2011 21:06:00 +0000
If you don't own Apple's dedicated "Portal 2 - The Final Hours" reading device, you're in luck. It's now available on the PC and Kindle. The PC version features interactive elements, exclusive photos, insider movies, timelines, and more. The Kindle version, on the other hand, is handsomely bound, assuming you bought a leather carrying case for it. You read that right - the PC version is now available on Steam.

PC Version
iPad Version
Kindle Version

Authoring Tools Beta Release

Tue, 10 May 2011 21:21:00 +0000

Today we're opening up the beta of the Portal 2 Authoring Tools to everyone! It's available as a free download for all owners of the PC version of Portal 2 and can be found under the "Tools" tab in Steam.

The Portal 2 Authoring Tools include versions of the same tools we used to make Portal 2. They'll allow you to create your own singleplayer and co-op maps, new character skins, 3D models, sound effects, and music.

Here's what's included:
- Updated version of Hammer, the Source level editor
- Updated Faceposer
- Example maps and instances to help build new maps
- Updated suite of command-line compiling utilities

If you want to get started on the beta, we suggest joining two mailing lists:
Portal 2 List
General Source List

This is beta software, so if you have any problems or issues, please send them to the p2mapper email list.

Get out there and show us what devious puzzles you've all been brainstorming!

Review Wrap-Up

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 19:04:00 +0000
We feel like we've talked enough about Portal 2 the last few months. Luckily, now that it's been released, other people have started talking about it, including the people who pick Time Magazine's Person of the Year, Time Magazine, which gave Portal 2 "our first perfect 10."

It's also being called "one of the best games of this generation" by 1up.com, "one of the best games ever made" by Destructoid, and "as good as entertainment gets" by the Boston Herald. Still not convinced? What if we said all that stuff again, but with a pumping soundtrack?

Collaborative Disposition Test

Fri, 15 Apr 2011 23:15:00 +0000
The following personality test was developed by Aperture scientists in the late seventies as a way to determine test subject compatibility for cooperative testing initiatives. The test was categorized UNSAFE by Aperture Laboratories in 1977, after every test subject who took the test became immediately insane from having so many unassailable truths and gut-wrenching personal secrets about themselves revealed at once. The test was placed in a locked strong box and secured in an abandoned sub-basement. This sub-basement was then filled with cement, and the doorway bricked over.

Upon rediscovery of the document last month, Aperture scientists felt the results were "inconclusive." A further round of testing has been requested. And you can help!

GLaDOS@home

Fri, 15 Apr 2011 16:08:00 +0000
Well, the end is definitely near. Thanks to the efforts of a dedicated group of ingenious test subjects, we've located enough potatoes to generate the required power to start the GLaDOS reboot process. It's not too late to participate, though. The more CPU power dedicated to the process, the faster it will finish. What does that mean? From now until release, play any or all of the Potato Sack games to expedite the launch of Portal 2. Your efforts will be tracked on the official GLaDOS@home page.

The Potato Sack games are all great, and each one has also received a massive Portal-themed update. So why not get a taste of Portal 2 now while you help launch it?

There's also still time to collect all 36 potatoes. Anyone accomplishing this feat by the time Portal 2 launches will receive a very special, non-hat-based reward.

Almost There

Thu, 14 Apr 2011 00:02:00 +0000
We're closing in on an exciting time here at the Portal blog. At 7AM PST, April 19th, we will officially stop being the people chummily reminding you to pre-order Portal 2, transforming phoenix-like before your eyes into the people cheerfully suggesting you regular-order Portal 2. Here's hoping the transformation is instantaneous and doesn't involve gestation or fluids.

At any rate, with the big release almost upon us, we thought it'd be fitting to take a look back at all the amazing community content that's cropped up around the original Portal in the last three years. (Just a few weeks ago, for example, a Danish group named Basix released an a capella version of Still Alive.)

Our Facebook page is filled with images, and YouTube's bursting with all of your inventive covers and videos. Heck, we're not even sure we've seen them all. Post your favorites on our Facebook page so we can all check them out.

Portal 2 goes live on Steam 7AM PST, April 19th

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 17:05:00 +0000
The calendar experts at Valve were pretty "steamed" at us this morning, even after we broke out that great pun you just read. According to them, Portal 2 is actually getting unlocked on Steam at 7AM PST, not EST. According to us, they told us 7AM EST and are now backtracking to cover their butts. Either way, there's a chance the game might be delayed by three hours while we work this out.

Aperture Investment Opportunity #4: "Boots"

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 16:25:00 +0000
Over the last few weeks, we've gotten quite a few enticing reasons to pre-invest in Aperture Laboratories: from the planks of tomorrow, to test-optimized bots, to the last word in pre-emptive defense, the Home Safety Turret. Today marks Aperture's fourth and final Investment Opportunity video, and if it doesn't get you reaching for your special investment wallet, you wouldn't know a can't-miss opportunity if it was staring you in the face, yelling at you about boots.

Now, as CEO and founder of Aperture Cave Johnson explains, there've been a few hiccups getting the years-in-production Long Fall Boot out of R&D and onto the assembly line. But now that we're seeing these boots in action, we're convinced that's it's among one of Aperture's safer products.

Aperture's documentary video game, Portal 2, will be available for purchase on Steam 7:00AM EST, April 19th, but savvy consumers might want to invest in game futures by pre-ordering Portal 2 now.

Portal 2: Lab Rat Conclusion

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 01:12:00 +0000
Like words? Ore are you more a fan of pictures? Don't worry, there's something for everyone to enjoy in the conclusion of Valve's new comic, Portal 2: Lab Rat, which is now available for your reading and/or picture-looking pleasure.

Also of note for time-keeping enthusiasts: the calendar experts here at Valve have crunched some numbers, and have conclusively decided on 7AM EST, April 19th, 2011, as the exact moment that Portal 2 will be available on Steam. That means you've got a finite and rapidly shrinking window for being able to tell your friends, "Oh, is Portal 2 out now? I wouldn't know. Because I pre-ordered it." Look us in the eye and tell us this isn't something you'd like to be able to tell your friends. You still can.

Portal 2: Lab Rat

Sat, 09 Apr 2011 02:35:00 +0000
Part 1 of Valve's new comic, Portal 2: Lab Rat, is now available! It bridges the gap between the events of Portal and Portal 2! What are you waiting for? CLICK HERE!

Wait, hold on: There's also an interview about the making of the comic that you can visit after you read the comic, which you should be doing right now instead of reading the rest of this sentence which is only leading to another link to the comic.

Aperture Investment Opportunity #3: "Turrets"

Tue, 05 Apr 2011 16:54:00 +0000
This week's reason to pre-invest in Aperture Laboratories: CEO and founder Cave Johnson's announcement that the applied sciences company is making its military-grade turret line available to consumers. The first, last and most scientific word in personal defense, the Home Safety Turret should be a hot seller when Aperture goes public April 19th.

Aperture was kind enough to send us a prototype Home Safety Turret in an effort to "sweeten the pot" (Cave's words) for any potential investors here at Valve. We're still leafing through its 33,000-page instruction manual, most of which seems to be "hold harmless" clauses releasing Aperture from any responsibility in the use, unpackaging, cleaning, reloading, holding or entering the proximity of its product.

We'll be sure to give you an update the second we get it up and running. In the meantime, why not pre-invest today?

Aperture Investment Opportunity #2: "Bot Trust"

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:12:00 +0000
Another week, another unassailable argument why scrappy applied sciences company Aperture Laboratories is the place to put your investment dollars this April 19th, 2011. In this week's informational video, CEO and founder Cave Johnson explains why robots'll get you the biggest bang for your testing dollar.

We here at Valve are pretty excited about the implications of non-human test subjects. We do a lot of playtesting, so this should give us a better idea of how to market and sell directly to robots. Let's face it: robots don't need houses. They don't eat food. Heck, they don't even pay taxes -- they're not people! That's a lot of disposable game-buying income just sitting there in giant metallic wallets. Wallets that themselves transform. Into even more money.

Speaking of money, invest yours today in Aperture Science. Why? Watch and find out.

If you like what you're seeing, don't wait until April 19th to get in on the ground floor. Invest in documentary game futures today!

Aperture Investment Opportunity #1: "Panels"

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 18:31:00 +0000
Normally when we check our email in the morning, we quickly delete the appeals for money from deposed Nigerian princes; amazing deals on off-brand Canadian pharmaceuticals; and poorly spelled requests for our Steam passwords from Gabe Newell's Russian freemail account. So we almost ended up missing this latest investment opportunity from up-and-coming applied sciences company Aperture Laboratories.

According to their press release, you'll be able to find out more about them April 19th, when they go public with their documentary video game Portal 2. Until then, though, and every week leading up to April 19th, they'll be sending out informational videos for potential investors like you, showcasing the many lucrative products they have in development. We've posted the first of four below.

If you're like us, you've gotten burned in the past on shady panel investments. But judging from that clip, this one's the real deal. Call your broker, and don't forget to check back next Tuesday for another step in obtaining your Aperture Science license to print money.

Portal 2 drops some science on PAX East

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 21:18:00 +0000
Maybe you hate crowds. Possibly you dislike air travel. Maybe you've got a thing about people dropping the "r" sound at the ends of their syllables. Whatever your reasons, you might not have made it out to Boston this past weekend for PAX East, and so didn't get a chance to drop by the Portal 2 booth and check out all the exclusive new game footage and announcements.

"Announcements?" you ask, your eyebrow arching slightly. That's right. This past Friday, we announced the addition of the incredibly talented J.K. Simmons (who you might know better as J. Jonah Jameson in Spider-Man, or as Juno's dad in Juno) to the cast, as Aperture Science founder and CEO Cave Johnson.

Want more details? The gaming press can help.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/11/j-k-simmons-to-voice-aperture-science-founder-cave-johnson-in-p/

http://kotaku.com/#!5781796/portal-2s-newest-character-is-hilarious-and-possibly-malevolent

http://www.g4tv.com/games/xbox-360/63787/portal-2/articles/73845/Portal-2-Preview-Meet-Cave-Johnson/

http://www.shacknews.com/article/67800/portal-2-preview

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/115/1155076p1.html

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/03/13/j.k.-simmons-to-lend-vocal-talents-to-portal-2.aspx

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/pax-east-portal-2/711820

The perfect Valentine's gift

Mon, 14 Feb 2011 18:01:00 +0000
Last Friday, we guaranteed you a Valentine with our Aperture-brand "Classy Romance" cards. We solved that problem for you--but now you've got an even bigger one. It's Valentine's Day, and you owe your newly-special someone a truly special gift.

Don't worry, we've got you covered. We don't want to give it away, so we'll just say that you'd better hand-sanitize your lips, because they're in for a lot of smooching, and FACT: mouths are filthy.

Watch the video!

Portal your way into their hearts (figuratively)

Thu, 10 Feb 2011 03:29:00 +0000

In just seventy-two short hours it'll be Valentine's Day, and that means pressure: finding a girlfriend or boyfriend, for one, then figuring out the perfect romantic gift to give them.

We're going to help you with the "perfect romantic gift" part Monday, but first things first: let's bag you a Valentine!

Download your DIY Valentines cards, here.