Every once in a while there comes along a game that is a true joy to play. Relying on nothing more than the strength of its own design. Weighed down by neither epic themes, heart stopping action or deep emotional connection to character. Games like Bejewled, or Minesweeper, or good old Solitaire. But in this age of intense, gut wrenching, sociopolitical commentary, those games are few and far between. Sure, we have a whole slew of games aimed at the so called casual market, especially notable on the Nintendo platforms. Brain Training, the Imagine series, PAIN! on the PSN, A Kingdom for Keflings on the X-Box Arcade. And they are all great, simple games. They focus heavily on that pick up and play factor, whilst still having enough substance to make the time spent playing them to feel like an investment.
But then, sometimes, along comes a game like Portal.
On the surface, this is nothing more than exactly what it was originally intended to be. It’s a tech demo for an ultimately unused Half-Life 2 weapon. Though weapon is a bit of a misnomer. The portal gun, for lack of a better name, can be used as a weapon after a fashion, by making holes for people to fall through, or boxes and other objects to fall on their heads, but those are lateral uses and not what it is ostensibly intended to be used for. But hey, call it a weapon, I’ve used it to dispatch enough gun turrets (which are so adorable ^^, I so totally want one as a pet) for me to let that one slide. But anyway, the point is, that’s all that Portal really is. A series of test chambers that will stretch your ingenuity. And believe me, they really do. It’s such a simple concept, but play the game and you will rapidly see just how versatile a concept it really is. It’s a game breaker, even within it’s own game.
It’s getting a little long in the tooth now for some people, the Source engine in particular is showing it’s age graphically. Things have moved on a fair bit since the Orange box first hit, but it still stands the test of time. And the tentatively confirmed Portal 2 looks poised to be a runaway hit. Sometimes, all that hype you hear, it isn’t just hype. Some things can never live up to their hype, and sometimes, just sometimes, the hype can never live up to the reality. And Portal falls into the latter. I could go on for hours about it, but there really is no need. The game, if it can be called that, really does speak for itself. And now that Steam have made it available for free throughout this May (2010) for all Steam users (Steam accounts also being free) I cannot recommend to you strongly enough. If you have not yet had opportunity to play it, do it now. I mean seriously, right now. Stop reading this and go download it. I’ll still be here when you come back. It’s all of four megabytes. Go on I tell you, shoo. What are you still doing here?
Well, it’s about time. Now, whilst you are doing that I’m going to sing a little song.
I am the very model of a modern Major General
I have information, vegetable animal and mineral
I know the Kings of Eng…
Ahh, you’re back. I told you it wouldn’t take long. Now, take just a moment to read the scores and then go and play it. I’m sure you can put aside a few hours. Sure, it’s a fairly short game. The main chunk of it can be done in around three to five hours, and that’s if you’re taking your time. But there are a number of extra maps now available, and a nifty little time trial mode that gives it a rather significant replay value. And, dude, good news, the cake isn’t a lie after all 
Graphics: 8/10
Gameplay: 9.5/10
Audio/Music: 9.5/10
Plot/Scripting: 9/10
Overall: 9.5/1o
