Portal 2

The original Portal might very well be one of the best and most creative puzzle games ever created. It was fresh, original and filled with a whole lot of dark and sarcastic humor. It felt like an indie game despite being made by one of the biggest studios around; Valve. However, despite being a great game in it's own right it did end up feeling like a little side project that Valve decided to throw out there to test their technology, making the game feel a lot like a tech-demo with a lot of soul. The other big problem I had with it was that it was a very short game and I finished it in just under four hours of gameplay. Sure, one can argue that it was priced fairly with four other games in The Orange Box but I would have exchanged all the other games in that box for more Portal.

Valve appears to be in the process of fixing all the things I just complained about with Portal 2. The ambition has really been pulled up a few notches, they are making a full-fledged game this time around, the technology seems to be really impressive with levels being built around you, the art design is awesomely sci-fi, the puzzles that have been shown have made the ones from the first game appear like grade school level, the gameplay and envirmonets are also looking much more diverse compared to the first game, and with the introduction of co-op gameplay this has quickly climbed up in my top five most anticipated games list and is looking out to turn out to be the most ambitious puzzle game that anyone has ever made. Simply put, Portal 2 is looking like a big budget indie game and that is amazing! I really can't wait to get my paws on this game next year.