Portal 2: Test Chambers

I’m surprised it took me so long to discover that Portal 2 has a level editor, but it has been fun playing around with it.

1. Two Rooms With A View
   As essentially a “hello world” exercise, I tried to stick to Portal design principles. I placed half of the second puzzle in the first room, to foreshadow it and to reward a curious player (via the window and activation “ant trail”) with clues to its solution. And of course I wanted the final solution to be a little whimsical.
2. Take Out The Trash
   This was conceived as a more narrative-oriented level set in a giant incinerator. Maybe the original companion cube ended up here? The level focuses more on exploration than puzzle-solving, with the player throwing switches until they eventually “overload” the whole device and open the fizzler gate at the bottom. I spent a lot of time scraping against the entity limit and making sure the player couldn’t get trapped in side rooms.
3. Gotta Go Fast
   My first use of my “marching laser” mechanism (see below) in an actual level. It’s more of a prototype; I might add a puzzle or two in front of this one to make it more of a final gauntlet after demonstrating the mechanism in other instances. Not a puzzle or exploration; this one’s about twitch reflexes.

• (test 01) Marching Laser
  Four different versions of a “marching” or sequential-activation mechanic. The far wall is Version 1, followed by right wall and left wall as I worked through making the system more stable. All three were a total bust in an actual level, of course; the mechanic I used in 02. Take Out The Trash and 03. Gotta Go Fast is the one in the floor, V.4 – half the entities and 100% reliable.