Update - January 7: Portal: Revolution is out now as a free installation on Steam. All you need is a Portal 2 copy.
Update - January 6: Portal: Revolution has been delayed, mere hours before the conversion mod was supposed to be unlocked on Steam.
Modding team Second Face Software published a blog post to clarify that "the game is done" and could "ship at any moment, but Valve has yet to review and accept the game for release." Second Face attributes the long wait to the holiday period that has Valve running with a skeleton crew, although the wait shouldn't be too much longer since the storefront is supposedly reviewing the mod now.
- Valve adds "all the Team Fortress 2 client and server game code" to its Source mod tools, letting modders "build completely new games based on TF2" and publish them on Steam
- Splitgate 2 improves on the FPS' intoxicating blend of Halo and Portal: "You no longer have to get hung up on which button you meant to press"
Original Story: Portal: Revolution is the newest community-made mod for (arguably) the best puzzle game in existence, and the best part is that it's out today.
Portal: Revolution serves as a prequel to Portal 2, set in the same crumbling Aperture Science ruins with greenery growing over concrete and clinical wall tiles. But it’s essentially an entirely new game with over 40 test chambers, fully-voiced original characters, and a unique story delivering around 8-hours of content.
According to the mod’s storefront description, the "puzzle difficulty starts where Portal 2 stops" - so you might want to finish Valve's twisting comedy before jumping into the unofficial prequel. You need to own Portal 2 on Steam to access the mod either way.
Despite starting on the tougher side, Revolution will still teach you about all its new toys and tricks before throwing you into the deep end with the deadly test chambers. New elements include a laser cube variant, rain that cleanses gel, and over 15 puzzles that somehow only use the blue Portal gun.
Revolution certainly looks like a worthwhile few hours for Portal fans. Even though Glados’ searing, passive-aggressive jabs will be missed, the prospect of more mind-mending head-scratchers is definitely an exciting one. I'm far from the only one who's pumped for more puzzles, though, as the project's most recent trailer surpassed a million views on YouTube. There's clearly an appetite for more portalling - don't say it - if only Valve could count to three.
For now, check out the best puzzlers that remind us of Portal and Portal 2. Or see how Portal speedrunners are ripping through records with the help of a coffee mug.
