Portal 2′s Cooperative Testing Initiative

As PAX began Friday morning at 10 AM sharp, my first stop of the day was Valve’s Portal 2 Co-Op Demo. Up until this point I had only seen single player video and pictures, so I must admit, I was a bit giddy at the prospect of what I was about to see.  The door opened, and we were ushered in at a casual pace, seated in the front row, and readied our pens and paper. What happened next was nothing short of magical.

The screens lit up with images of two robotic drones being constructed, with the familiar digital voice of GLaDOS explaining her logic behind the Cooperative Testing Initiative.  The tests are designed for teamwork; hence no human has ever passed them. That’s where our two likable drones come in. One reminiscent of an automated turret, and the other of one of GLaDOS’s A.I. modules, the pair quickly set off on their first task, which was to simply meet up on the same side of a wall as opposed to opposite sides. Through this exercise, Valve explained a new feature they’ve added for Co-Op play. The new Ping ability allows one player where they would like the other player to place their portal. Again, with this feature, team work and communication is a must.

As the first scenario played out, I couldn’t help but notice the environment in the game. It was familiar, yet alien all at the same time. There was just enough of the old atmosphere mixed in with a fresh take on the Enrichment Center to keep it intriguing and shiny.

Our automated companions soon faced their second obstacle. A bright red laser beam shone through a hole in the corner of the room. Strewn about the floor were a few cubes with lenses or mirrors built into them. The objective here was to position the beam so that in intersected with a sensor in another location in the room. The task was effortlessly pulled off, and the two continued on their way.

All during these training exercises, we were informed as to why Valve had decided to include Co-Op play in their new addition to the Portal family. They had observed that most people were playing the first Portal game Co-Op even though it wasn’t. That is to say, one person was playing, and the other was kind of over the shoulder, offering tips and advice, or a fresh perspective to the person playing. Through this observation, they decided to add a second controller to the mix.

The third challenge of the demo was soon laid out before our clockwork cohorts. A steady beam of flat light was shining on the side of the room from one end to the other. We were quickly told that this was a light bridge, and the only way to succeed was to use both sets of portals to extend the bridge out of the room, around a corner, and on to the finish. After a bit of pinging and maneuvering, the task was completed. In addition to the completion of each challenge, GLaDOS would chime in her two cents about which of the drones is doing better, though in her words “Not to drive a spike between the two of you or anything.”

The last challenge of our demo was now being explained to us.  With the benefit of two separate portal guns, the original concept of the Infi-Fall was put to good use.  The Infi-Fall is when you put one portal above your head, and then open another below your feet, causing you to fall through an infinite loop. With the portals being controlled by an entity other than the one that’s falling however, this method of speed building can be used to travel as if being shot out of a canon. On the first attempt, the exiting portal was misplaced, and one of our drones was accidentally destroyed. Upon the return of his replacement the Hug-It-Out interaction was used; just a quick hug between automatons to say sorry, with no other purpose than entertainment. With a correctly placed portal, the first robot made it across to the destination, and with his help, the second soon followed.

I can honestly say I left Valve’s demonstration wanting more. There are so many more puzzle element they didn’t even touch on that were being displayed outside in the main exhibition hall, like repulsion gel, excursion funnels, aerial faith plates, and propulsion gel.  The detailed environments, new characters, quippy GLaDOS comments, and perplexing puzzles are enough to make this game one to watch in the coming months. I’m extremely glad that the first Portal title did so well, and that this series is still alive.

For more information on Portal 2, visit the site here.

Portal 2 is targeted for release on Feb 9, 2011