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Portal 2 Gets Release Date 110

Posted by Soulskill from the it's-been-a-long-time dept.
AndrewGOO9 writes "After what has seemed like an eternity since Valve initially announced a sequel to their lauded puzzle title Portal, a release date has finally been attached to the game. Originally slated to be released before the end of the year in time for the holidays, Valve instead opted to delay the game, citing reasons such as, 'making games is hard' as well as continuing their tradition of releasing games when they're finished as opposed to rushing them out the door. Either way, mark your calendars for February 9th, 2011, and in the meantime, brush up on thinking with portals." There's some new gameplay footage available, and Valve announced that Stephen Merchant will be lending his voice to the game.
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Portal 2 Gets Release Date More

Portal 2 Gets Release Date

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  • This will probably just make it more successful (Score:5, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:03AM (#33298008)

    The Release Date is a Lie! (I just had to ;)

    People will want this game so bad that once it finally comes out, it will be a very-hyped event, drawing more people to buy the game.
    That said, it's good to see that they are taking the time to make a worthy successor.

    • The Release Date is a Lie! (I just had to ;)

      More likely than I'd like to admit, unfortunately. [valvesoftware.com]

      IT'll be interesting to see if they make it.

  • So.. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by mikkelm ( 1000451 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:04AM (#33298014)

    .. where is Episode 3?

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Dyinobal ( 1427207 )
      My thoughts exactly. Don't get me wrong portal rocks but I think we have all been very patient with episode 3. Even getting some more info on it or a trailer or something would be nice.

    • Wehn it comes to Valve these days (Score:4, Informative)

      by Sycraft-fu ( 314770 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:16AM (#33298096)

      I think you have to just presume that they aren't going to release anything until it actually hits the street, or at least until they announce a firm date. The problem is that they make a ton of money on Steam, so they don't have to care at all about their games business. Now while that can be good, in that they don't have to rush things to make a publisher's deadline, it can be bad because they don't have to meet any deadline, unless they set on internally. Also they with regards to their games they seem to be a little defocused lately. I don't think they know what they really want to work on, and I think it changes. They have a goal, then decide "Nah, we'd rather work on this," and shift more resources to a new project.

      So, I wouldn't build up excitement for their games, just kinda take them as they come. When they release a game, see if you think you might like it, and if so pick it up. However don't get your hopes/expectations up on a game at a given time because it may well not happen.

      • Re:Wehn it comes to Valve these days (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Gordonjcp ( 186804 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:38AM (#33298194) Homepage

        The problem is that they make a ton of money on Steam, so they don't have to care at all about their games business.

        I don't know, I'd say that they make a ton of money on Steam, so they can afford to care *more* about their games business.

        Think about it - you've got Steam, people are buying games, the money is rolling in... so you can pay the developers to finish the games properly. If the release date slips, no biggie (until you get to Duke Nukem Forever timescales). The money is still coming in, the bills are still being paid. You're not under undue pressure to start shifting units. Yes, it would be nice to catch the Christmas sales, but if it takes another three months to make a game that doesn't suck and make the customers hate you, I'd rather wait.

        • I don't think Duke Nukem Forever-level time scales are a problem, either - unless you're referring to the forever bit. I mean, how long was Team Fortress 2 in development?

      • "Now while that can be good, in that they don't have to rush things to make a publisher's deadline, it can be bad because they don't have to meet any deadline"

        This isn't bad at all. I remember Black and White, which would have been amazing if they had given it another 6-12 months of testing. As released, it was amazingly frustrating. And I just picked B&W at random from my bin of bad videogame memories; it could have been any of a dozen other shoddy titles unceremoniously shoved out the door to meet an

    • Re: (Score:1, Insightful)

      by mustPushCart ( 1871520 )
      I am thinking the reason for the delay is: 1. They want to make it longer than the first 2 episodes, because the last 2 were short. 2. They are innovating, episode 1 had the new HDR and animation and stuff, ep 2 had lots of open spaces and foliage, hopefully episode 3 will be something new too. 3. They are trying to decide which way to take the half life universe, setting up half life 3. Half life IS their flagship and what put them on the map.

      • Re:So.. (Score:5, Insightful)

        by eln ( 21727 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:44AM (#33298222)

        They want to make it longer than the first 2 episodes, because the last 2 were short

        That's all well and good, but the stated reason for releasing episodic content was so they could get shorter games out more frequently. Instead, we get shorter games that take forever to come out just like the longer games did. I get the feeling that Valve is fantastic at game development and unbelievably shitty at project management.

        • Maybe episode 3 = HL3. Or maybe they have some wicked new ideas for Ep3/HL3, but they are waiting for technology to catch up...

          • EP3 does take place in the Arctic, that means quite different environments. Maybe they are making the snow truly crunch, or having problems deciding how to handle footprints properly. Blizzards are difficult to make realistic I understand. There are many things that they can do to make it better. If this needed a spoiler warning, I apologize, but if you haven't beaten ep2 yet, I am sorry for you.

        • Re:So.. (Score:4, Informative)

          by imakemusic ( 1164993 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @04:05AM (#33298866)

          I get the feeling that Valve is fantastic at game development and unbelievably shitty at project management.

          Maybe it's the lack of management that makes their games good? From what I've read about Valve the people that work their don't have specific job titles, they just work on what needs to worked on or what they want to work on. Which would mean people only work on games that they actually care about, which would mean they actually try to make them good rather than just throwing them out of the door.

          Also, it's worth remembering that Valve is a relatively small company. There's been no news on Ep3 because they've been busy making Left 4 Dead 2, Portal 2, Steam for Mac (and working on Steam for Linux or so I hear) and updates for Team Fortress.

          • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

            by Kugrian ( 886993 )

            There's been no news on Ep3 because they've been busy making Left 4 Dead 2, Portal 2, Steam for Mac (and working on Steam for Linux or so I hear) and updates for Team Fortress.

            From an interview with Doug Lombardi [gamesindustry.biz] (login required)

            Final question, and one I'm sure you're not super-keen to answer, but I promised one of our tech guys I'd ask it. What truth is there to rumours that you're also working on a Linux version of Steam?
            Doug Lombardi: There's no Linux version that we're working on right now. ...

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by geekoid ( 135745 )

          Your are leaving a factor ot: Quality. Quality takes time, and there quality is always more impressive.

          I get the feeling you ahve no clue about game development. By the way, Date slipping is NOT a sigh of shitty project management. More often the not, it's a sign of good project management.

          Things will slip for a variety of reasons, and forcing game development to an arbitrary dead line is stupid and leads to fewer customers.

          Of course, never finishing anything isn't any good either.

          Bear in mind I'm talking a

          • I get the feeling you ahve no clue about game development. By the way, Date slipping is NOT a sigh of shitty project management. More often the not, it's a sign of good project management.

            Things will slip for a variety of reasons, and forcing game development to an arbitrary dead line is stupid and leads to fewer customers.

            Of course, never finishing anything isn't any good either.

            So how's did you enjoy Nukem Forever? It must be reeeally good by now, I'm really jealous!

            It's one thing to give sufficient time

        • That's all well and good, but the stated reason for releasing episodic content was so they could get shorter games out more frequently. Instead, we get shorter games that take forever to come out just like the longer games did. I get the feeling that Valve is fantastic at game development and unbelievably shitty at project management.

          Or it's possible they changed their mind and decided that the whole episodic content thing was a bad idea for them (for whatever reason). Maybe they just suck at doing things with a known time frame, but honestly I'd rather get a good game late than an unfinished game early (Star Trek Online, I'm looking at you).

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by SpryGuy ( 206254 )

      Seriously. Episode 2 was ridiculously late. Episode 3 is beyind ridiculous. I've pretty much given up at this point.

      Heck, I'm half expecting Portal 2 to be delayed again, and then canceled, and then released in "Orange Box 2" with Episode 3.

    • Maybe it'll be included as an afterthought at the end of the Portal 2 disc?

      • Maybe it'll be included as an afterthought at the end of the Portal 2 disc?

        Disc? What is this "disc" you speak of?

    • Re:So.. (Score:5, Funny)

      by washort ( 6555 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:31PM (#33304938) Homepage
      shut up, don't distract them from adding more totally sweet hats to Team Fortress 2
    • Hey, at least it hasn't been canceled. I was really enjoying the Penny Arcade games, when they officially announced that episode 3 was dead after we waited 2 years for news of it. Fuck episodic gaming, from now on I'm only buying complete games. Once bitten, twice shy and all that.

  • i'm looking... (Score:1, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward

    where's the walkthru to find the portal to february 9 2011?

  • Portal 2! (Score:4, Informative)

    by DrugCheese ( 266151 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:14AM (#33298086)

    Portal was one of the funnest games I have played in a long long time. Very creative and original. And Funny. And free! (I got it on the Steam free weekend giveaway)

    • Re:Portal 2! (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday August 19, 2010 @01:49AM (#33298246)

      That "free" stuff got me too. I downloaded it without charge, surcharge, tariff or tax. And you know why it was free?

      Because now I can't wait to open my coffers for the next game. They have called this one a "full" game, and "the best game we have ever made". From the makers of TF2.

      Open my coffers? Open my veins. DO WANT. (Damn you, free. That's the first taste, you clever bastards.)

      (DO WANT)

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Warll ( 1211492 )
        You both have ben duped, it may have been free as in beer but you had to wait TWO YEARS! Jokes on you, the rest of us have been promising non-existent baked delicacies for ages

      • I downloaded it for free as well, and I'm glad, I would have been pretty pissed had I paid money for it.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by h4rr4r ( 612664 )

          Not our fault you're not good at these kinds of games.

          • I downloaded the game for free, thanks Valve!, but I don't think the original poster is talking about the "hardness" of it all. While it was fairly challenging, particularly in the later levels, it didn't really start getting good until after the final level.

            I think the OP is talking about how it was short, VERY short. I finished the game in two hours. Had I paid the full 60+ dollar purchase price I'd have been pretty pissed off too. I only hope that Portal 2 is going to be a much longer, with a more in

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by Winckle ( 870180 )

              The didn't cost "$60" you fruit, it cost just over half that as part of a bundle with 5 other great games called The Orange Box.

    • Re:Portal 2! (Score:5, Interesting)

      by txoof ( 553270 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @02:17AM (#33298408) Homepage

      Portal was one of the funnest games I have played in a long long time. Very creative and original. And Funny.

      Part of the huge enjoyment for me was the twisted and black humor. GLADOS' accumulating lies and unhinged personality were a huge part of the enjoyment. The addition of an unhinged and slightly psychopathic computer added a great story to what would have otherwise been a puzzle/platformer.

      The game mechanics and physics were a treat too. Along with great level design, Portal has to be one of the most unique and engaging games I've played in a long time. I really enjoyed that it was a FPS experience, but with limited 'S'. It's not often that my wife will see me playing a game and stop to watch more. Usually with the first explosion, she's lost interest. The clever puzzles and feats of wonder, like falling through the floor, attracted even her.

      I'm inclined to give Valve as much time as they need; I've yet to be disappointed with one of their titles. I'm ok waiting for it to be done than paying a fortune for a half finished piece of junk.

      • Part of the huge enjoyment for me was the twisted and black humor. GLADOS' accumulating lies and unhinged personality were a huge part of the enjoyment. The addition of an unhinged and slightly psychopathic computer added a great story to what would have otherwise been a puzzle/platformer.

        On a semi tongue-in-cheek note, semi paranoid (android?) note, aren't all computers by definition psychopathic? From Wikipedia:

        Psychopathy is characterised by an abnormal lack of empathy combined with strongly amoral conduct but masked by an ability to appear outwardly normal.

        Are computers moral? Can they experience empathy (or rather, as in Asimov's laws, simply are coded to never hurt a human, whether indirectly or not)? How can we tell from the outside if a computer behaves normally or not?

        We've already seen scams where fake antivirus scanners look exactly "normal". How do we define that something looks normal, in a culture where change is the hottest

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by txoof ( 553270 )

          Are computers moral? Can they experience empathy (or rather, as in Asimov's laws, simply are coded to never hurt a human, whether indirectly or not)? How can we tell from the outside if a computer behaves normally or not?

          That's a good point, but the big difference between a human and a computer is self motivation. Our current computers can be programed with the appearance of self motivation, but they lack real, self directed action. I suppose a virus has the beginnings of rudimentary self preservation and life, but that's more of a philosophical argument. Our computers may appear outwardly normal, but cannot act any more amorally or morally than their programers; they are just tools acting on behalf of their users. It's

        • Psychopathy is characterised by an abnormal lack of empathy combined with strongly amoral conduct but masked by an ability to appear outwardly normal.

          Are computers moral? Can they experience empathy (or rather, as in Asimov's laws, simply are coded to never hurt a human, whether indirectly or not)? How can we tell from the outside if a computer behaves normally or not?

          I don't consider computer's lack of empathy to be abnormal. A non-lack of empathy in a computer would be abnormal. There is also no 'outwar

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by geekoid ( 135745 )

        Valve knows how to keep things in their world.
        HL/TF2/Portal. All different levels of tech..yet they all feel like they could have been in the same world.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by ledow ( 319597 )

      Maybe it was just me but I found it a bit lacking. I'd heard all the hype, which I avoid paying attention to, and then when the free giveaway came around, I thought "Why not?".

      There's a 100-something games on my Steam account and I got through Portal in about 3.1 hours (at least one hour of which I'd left it running trying to get the falling-far achievement while I had dinner) - that's probably the least I've invested in a Steam game, with the possible exception of some of the free stuff that's thrown at m

      • I didn't see it as a "puzzle" game at all - it was usually obvious what you needed to do and just a matter of doing it.

        Maybe you and I are just more intelligent than most people. I've watched a number of my friends try to play it only to get stuck on the most basic levels.

        Unfortunately that's the only part of your comment I can agree with. I thought it was original (both the portal idea and the idea of having what is basically an FPS in which you don't have to kill hundreds of people), funny (in a nicely twisted sort of way). Yeah, it was a bit short but it was enjoyable and (if I recall correctly) didn't cost as much as a

        • I'm pretty sure the "multiply connected spaces" idea was used in Prey several months before Portal came out. At least, that's what the demo lead me to believe, anyway...

          IIRC, Prey also had a very interesting variable gravity-direction concept.

          • Actually.. IIRC, multiply connected spaces existed in Duke Nukem 3D several years before that, but you couldn't change the connections on the fly.

        • Portal is not difficult by any means. People who have no experience with FPSs may get disoriented at first, but, beyond that, all the initial chambers are really, really easy. Just the last two chambers provide some kind of real challenge. But I think that actually adds, rather than detracts, to the gameplay. The "rythym" of the game is just right as it is, it blends the right amount of curiosity about the puzzles with an excellent story. They complement each other nicely. Portal is one of my favorite games

          • Portal is not difficult by any means.

            That's what I thought!

            People who have no experience with FPSs may get disoriented at first, but, beyond that, all the initial chambers are really, really easy.

            I've watched experienced FPSers breeze through the first few levels and then get stuck, jump through an endless loop for a while and then give up with a headache!

            High hopes for Portal 2.

            Very much agree! I'm just disappointed it isn't still coming out in October, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised!

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by geekoid ( 135745 )

          IT's a different way of thinking about a game. It's expectations is a pretty new way of gaming.

          I loved the game. For me the game maintained that 'new game' feel through it's entirety. Something that's hard for any game to do. Even one as short as Portal. Which was fine based on it's price.

        • Unfortunately, while it cost less it was still a pretty big rip-off for the initial price. $20 is WAY too much to ask for 2-3 hours of gameplay.

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by Phantasmagoria ( 1595 )

        By turning off the sound and music, you ruined part of the experience. A lot of what people appreciated about the game WAS the story. The way it starts out as a simple puzzle game, but then as you play you realize that there actually is a story, especially with the hidden rooms that you find. If you just rush through a game without looking around or appreciating the full experience, you'll get a distilled, boring, output, as you did.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by fprintf ( 82740 )

        I agree the game was too short and except for level 16 (I think, it is very long and requires good timing for half-stepping through a portal to press a button) I got through it in a few hours.

        I disagree with everything else, I really thought it was a fantastic game. For an added challenge, download the Flash Mappack. That will provide a few more hours of fun and there are some really challenging puzzles in there. That is, ones I absolutely could not figure out until I looked at an online walkthrough.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by EvanED ( 569694 )

          I agree the game was too short and except for level 16 (I think, it is very long and requires good timing for half-stepping through a portal to press a button) I got through it in a few hours.

          I think that if you think that 16 (the turret level) was harder than the others, you didn't go about it the best way. As long as you stay out of the advanced version of that chamber* and aren't trying to speed run it, you can easily knock down all of the turrets while barely exposing you at all. Many of the puzzles fro

      • And, frankly, the whole plot/story/background/character got so annoying that I switched off all sound after about 2-3 puzzles - I always switch off music, I've never had to switch off the sound before.

        Perhaps this is the problem with your enjoyment of the game? I'll bet you got baked into a cake too. You missed the incredible character the GLaDOS turns out to be.

      • I always switch off music

        Why?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by geekoid ( 135745 )

        It was too short? Based on what metric? too short for a 60 dollar game? too short for a 20 dollar game? 10 dollar? free?

        "I know that there are a lot of extra puzzles and other achievements"
        and
        "plot/story/background/character got so annoying that I switched off all sound after about 2-3 puzzle"

        It's like saying you find Consonant boring so you removed them from a book and then complaining the book was nothing but a bunch or random vowels.

        You didn't enjoy the game, fine. Don'tr care, but I would argue the game

  • ... but cake still nowhere in sight.

    • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

      by Kireas ( 1784888 ) *
      That said, the developers have stated in no uncertain terms that they will not be dragging the cake joke back. They are fed up with it, and rather hope the internet is now too, at this point.
      Hah! I pity them.

      • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

        by Anonymous Coward

        Damn. It just isn't the same game if there is no cake. I feel like I have been lied to.

      • Look, I thought it was abundantly clear that Portal was presenting the player with a choice between cake or death [youtube.com]. And I have to admit between those choices I'll go with cake.

  • Now I know what the first officially announced missed release date will be. Call me when they're past #2.

  • February, they say? Here's a guide to help you translate from what Valve says to what Valve actually means: http://developer.valvesoftware.com/wiki/Valve_Time [valvesoftware.com]

  • Pro:
    It is coming out!

    Con:
    Stephen Merchant is lending his voice Lending? Can we get him to shut up? Watching the video he blathers on and on and on. And for some reason I don't find his voice very pleasant while I liked GladOs' voice.

    Graphics look superb though and I will definitely be getting it.

    • Con: Stephen Merchant is lending his voice Lending? Can we get him to shut up? Watching the video he blathers on and on and on. And for some reason I don't find his voice very pleasant while I liked GladOs' voice.

      The original Glados voice was in the teaser trailer presented at E3, so it's looking good that it will be back just as in the first one (yay). Stephen Merchant, if I'm not mistaken, was brought on board to voice a droid character you will meet along the way.

  • The real question is... (Score:5, Funny)

    by jockeys ( 753885 ) on Thursday August 19, 2010 @08:08AM (#33300240) Journal
    when will it be out of beta? Will it be releasing on-time?

  • From that video I hope that's the only doom3 type lighting that in the game.

  • So is there going to be a Portal the Flash version [newgrounds.com] sequel as well?

  • it's been a long time.

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