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A Peek Through Portal's Walls

Posted by Zonk on from the i'm-telling-you-the-cake-she-is-a-lie dept.

John Walker, of Rock, Paper, Shotgun, had the chance to chat with some of the principal folks behind Valve's most excellent puzzle/shooter hybrid Portal. He comes away with the goods from lead designers Kim Swift and Jeep Barrett, who discuss their momentous hiring by Valve, the evolution of Portal from Narbacular Drop, and the origins of the Weighted Companion Cube. Walker also talks to Erik Wolpaw, who not only wrote Portal but was co-writer on Psychonauts and the site Old Man Murray (back in the day). From that discussion: "Valve talks a lot about 'collective design process this' and 'collective design process that' to the point where, if I were me before I worked here and stopped swearing so much, I'd be like, this is some fake-ass marketing-ass Bigfoot-ass legendary bullshit. But, honest-to-God, I've seen it with my own eyes. Valve is the most collaborative creative environment I've ever heard of much less experienced. So the [Team Fortress 2] shorts grew out of basically everyone at Valve's desire to see these awesome TF characters put through their paces outside the constraints of the game. We did the Heavy as a proof of concept, and kind of freaked ourselves out, and then immediately decided to move ahead with the other eight."

10 of 42 comments (clear)

  1. Cake by dintech · · Score: 4, Funny

    Wow, what a great summary. Both interesting and informative. Like having your cake and eating it, hmm?

    1. Re:Cake by PrescriptionWarning · · Score: 2, Funny

      I'd rather have my cake and then throw it at someone, preferably through a portal whose opposite end is directly on top of them :)

    2. Re:Cake by SuperKendall · · Score: 4, Funny

      The summary is a lie!
      The summary is a lie!
      The summary is a lie!

      --
      "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  2. RTFA this one is a must read! Very informative. by psychicsword · · Score: 5, Informative

    Very good informative article and even if you don't like to RTFA this one is a must. I also thought that the feminine tone tends to be lacking in most games and I just adds to the innovation of the game. It adds to the commentary from the game.
    I loved this game so much the ending song is my ringtone :)

    1. Re:RTFA this one is a must read! Very informative. by enderjsv · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The song is EVIL. I've had that thing stuck in my head for two days. Especially the part

      "And the Science gets done,
      And you make a neat gun,
      For the people who are still alive."

      This kind of catchiness can only be the work of dark powers.

    2. Re:RTFA this one is a must read! Very informative. by Guysmiley777 · · Score: 4, Funny

      I chuckle every time at

      "I've experiments to run
      There is research to be done
      On the people who are still alive"

      (Emphasis is mine)

      --
      Coding with assembly is like playing with Legos. Coding an application in assembly is like building a car with Legos.
  3. Bill and Ted's...wait by LameAssTheMity · · Score: 4, Funny

    Valve's most excellent puzzle/shooter hybrid Portal.
    Anyone else immediately think of Bill and Ted here?
  4. Moar Maps!! by robpoe · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I want more maps .. or even perhaps a good SDK so other modders can make good maps / etc.

    Better yet, get the Dystopia team into Valveworld ... http://www.dystopia-game.com/ -- heck Dystopia is probably a better put together game than either CS or DOD were (considering they were mods at one time). Some bugs, yes, but CS and DOD were (and sometimes still are) buggy as hell..

    Oh, and for the obligatory Portal joke ..

    Check out what happens when you're NOT playing in Portal ..

    The Turrets visit the Portal Cafe http://picasaweb.google.com/robpoe

    --
    = Grow a brain...
  5. Eric & OMM by theantipop · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Eric still gives some of the best interviews I've ever read.

    If you've never read any of his and Chet's stuff from back in the day on Old Man Murray, you owe it to yourself to check out some of their features and reviews.

  6. BTW by zsouthboy · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If you have beaten portal already, you owe it to yourself (especially if you're interested in game design) to run through it with the developer commentary ON!

    I love that feature! It's like watching a DVD, then turning on the commentary track.

    It's amazing how much work they put into this game that you won't even notice (as that was the point of the work).