Portal

I completed Portal three nights ago and emailed my friend Stephen who has also finished the game:

Dear Steve,

I don't know whether I tore through Portal or Portal tore through me. The song is perfect. My favourite part of the game is when you first set foot in those offices, and you look through the frosted glass at past levels. But then there's the bit where you are shooting through that glass tube along with the cubes, and it feels somewhat like the part in 2001: Space Odyssey when Dave is careering through space and time.

I feel different after this game. I know exactly what you mean now about the economy of the game's story. It actually goes beyond that. It's more an experience than a story. When you move the camera around, your're not seeing level architecture, you're simply in a test facility, and you know you need to get out.

You actually know something is wrong very early in the game, but I can only say that now, because the feeling I had in the early stages was more subconscious dread than a sense of danger.

I could talk about this forever, but I need to go to bed now.

Yannick

Stephen's reply:

Really glad you enjoyed Portal. I love that song because it captures the quite complex range of emotions that you feel for GlaDOS very well. Although Portal cuts very close to 2001 in as much as GlaDOS is very reminiscent of HAL, I don't think it matters because she's just as interesting a character, and drawn equally well.

I think my favourite moment is... well I have a few. I ~really~ like the euthanising of the cube. You know then that things are going really, really wrong. I also really enjoyed the final boss battle, and the stuff that GlaDOS says. I also have quite strong feelings for the gun turrets. Amazing.

In retrospect, it was probably good that you played it through by yourself. I was just thinking that you would have felt much more self conscious if there had been someone who had finished the game at your shoulder, which might have severely reduced the level of immersion that you could enjoy in the situation. You are right, it is a situation, beautifully evoked, rather than a story. But its the little touches.

Stephen