Portal: The First Slice

[Taem]

Alright, so I downloaded Steam and Portal: The First Slice to play before purchasing this game. I beat the first 11-levels in about 15-minutes, but now I read on the net that this game only has 23 level?!? Why on earth would I buy a game I can beat in 25-30-minutes? Is there more to this game I am missing? Is it worth $20.00 to download off of Steam? I was seriously considering getting The Orange Box, but I never played Half-Life 1 and am not sure if the story or game is any good and $49.99 is a bit much for me right now. Oh, they lowered the price to $39.99; still about $20.00 was the most I wanted to spend right now.

[Chesspiece_face]

Alright, so I downloaded Steam and Portal: The First Slice to play before purchasing this game. I beat the first 11-levels in about 15-minutes, but now I read on the net that this game only has 23 level?!? Why on earth would I buy a game I can beat in 25-30-minutes? Is there more to this game I am missing? Is it worth $20.00 to download off of Steam? I was seriously considering getting The Orange Box, but I never played Half-Life 1 and am not sure if the story or game is any good and $49.99 is a bit much for me right now. Oh, they lowered the price to $39.99; still about $20.00 was the most I wanted to spend right now.

You beat 11 levels in 15 minutes? I don't think it's possible to walk through the first 11 levels in that time, let alone solve any puzzles. That said, it is a fairly short game. I played throught the whole thing in between 4 to 5 hours. The level number is a bit sketchy as it isn't as clear as the game goes on.

The game is Fabulous though. I don't know if i would pay $20 for it when you can get the entire Orange Box for 40 though. $40 for the content on Orange Box is a win-win. I would point you in that direction.

[FoxBat]

The last 4-6 levels are much longer than the rest, but yes the game is rather short. (5 hoursish?) It's a unique game that still isn't really worth $20 in my opinion. Got it bundled with a video card though. Look for bundles like Orange/Black box for a better value.

[Jester]

Alright, so I downloaded Steam and Portal: The First Slice to play before purchasing this game. I beat the first 11-levels in about 15-minutes, but now I read on the net that this game only has 23 level?!? Why on earth would I buy a game I can beat in 25-30-minutes? Is there more to this game I am missing? Is it worth $20.00 to download off of Steam? I was seriously considering getting The Orange Box, but I never played Half-Life 1 and am not sure if the story or game is any good and $49.99 is a bit much for me right now. Oh, they lowered the price to $39.99; still about $20.00 was the most I wanted to spend right now.

Portal is absolutely worth buying. It is a remarkable game that is more than worth a small investment. It is short, it's true, but it's pure quality, as far as I'm concerned.

However, if it's too large an investment, it's not going anywhere, and it's not a game that will get worse with age. It's an instant classic.

-Jester

[The Gnu]

The last level is about as big as the rest of the game put together. Don't bother counting, and just enjoy the ride. I think I've played through the whole thing four or five times by now! :D

[Occhidiangela]

Portal is absolutely worth buying. It is a remarkable game that is more than worth a small investment. It is short, it's true, but it's pure quality, as far as I'm concerned.

However, if it's too large an investment, it's not going anywhere, and it's not a game that will get worse with age. It's an instant classic.

-Jester

My son loves the game. Got it for his birthday. My daughter bought it for him, but could only find it in the Orange Box, with Half Life 2 and Team Fortress something or other.

WIfe not keen on FPS.

Portal may be all he gets out of that box. He is content with that.

Occhi

[kandrathe]

Alright, so I downloaded Steam and Portal: The First Slice to play before purchasing this game. I beat the first 11-levels in about 15-minutes, but now I read on the net that this game only has 23 level?!? Why on earth would I buy a game I can beat in 25-30-minutes? Is there more to this game I am missing? Is it worth $20.00 to download off of Steam? I was seriously considering getting The Orange Box, but I never played Half-Life 1 and am not sure if the story or game is any good and $49.99 is a bit much for me right now. Oh, they lowered the price to $39.99; still about $20.00 was the most I wanted to spend right now.

Half-Life is not an easy 30 minute win, and is a pretty involved story. It is a combo of battles against alien badness, and puzzles. I've played thru all the HL related games (Blue Shift, HL1, Opposing Force, Uplink, Decay), and some of the HL2 content. HL1 is worth $20 of play time. I mean, I nearly soiled myself a few times playing it. For example, the terror of being trapped in a giant round room with giant blind tentacled beast that attacks wherever it hears you make a sound.

I'd consider Half-Life, the original, as a must play game. :) It is probably one of the most influential and important video games of all time.

[the Langolier]

I was seriously considering getting The Orange Box, but I never played Half-Life 1 and am not sure if the story or game is any good...

Just noticed this. The orange box contains Half-Life 2, not Half Life 1. You don't need the story of the original to pick up the second as the stories are independent. Also FYI HL:2 has been called one of the best games of all time more than once and has respectively scored the highest rating ever given by at least four different game reviewers (including an 11 out of 10).

Whether or not you would call it the best game you have ever played, if you like the FPS genre then it's hard to find fault enough with the game to regret buying it. If you don't have any of the titles in the orange box then it would be a steal at $50 let alone $40.

[kandrathe]

Just noticed this. The orange box contains Half-Life 2, not Half Life 1. You don't need the story of the original to pick up the second as the stories are independent. Also FYI HL:2 has been called one of the best games of all time more than once and has respectively scored the highest rating ever given by at least four different game reviewers (including an 11 out of 10).

Whether or not you would call it the best game you have ever played, if you like the FPS genre then it's hard to find fault enough with the game to regret buying it. If you don't have any of the titles in the orange box then it would be a steal at $50 let alone $40.

Yeah, I never bought the Orange Box. HL2 was fun, and cool. But, it didn't give me the fun that HL1 gave me. I think the "reality" kept me on the edge of nausea so that sick to my stomach feeling stole a bit from the game fun. I get psychologically immersed into the character in FPS games, so games like CS, HL, Quake, Doom make me a little queasy because of the lack of obvious motion.

It started to get a bit more fun again once you get to the dune buggy, and the swamp boats since outdoors there are more reference points on the horizon. It was more fun for me to think about how to arrange for "interesting" accidents for the combine soldiers using the environment, and the gravity gun.

[RTM]

Yeah, I never bought the Orange Box. HL2 was fun, and cool. But, it didn't give me the fun that HL1 gave me. I think the "reality" kept me on the edge of nausea so that sick to my stomach feeling stole a bit from the game fun. I get psychologically immersed into the character in FPS games, so games like CS, HL, Quake, Doom make me a little queasy because of the lack of obvious motion.

It started to get a bit more fun again once you get to the dune buggy, and the swamp boats since outdoors there are more reference points on the horizon. It was more fun for me to think about how to arrange for "interesting" accidents for the combine soldiers using the environment, and the gravity gun.

I cannot play the HL games without getting sick to my stomach after a short period of time. Heck, just watching back videos of it does it to me. I did a bit of Googling on the issue after I picked up the Orange Box and found out that I wasn't alone. The issue is that the field of view is slightly different in HL than in other FPS games- a bit more "zoomed in", if you will. I found the following code (entered by hitting the ~ to bring down the console):

sv_cheats 1
default_fov 90
fov 90

That did the trick. I can now play for extended periods of time without getting sick.


Incidentally, I bought the Orange Box at full price and it was worth every penny. Portal was the most fun I've had with a game since my paladin (named Paladyr!) was plopped into Candlekeep in the original Baldur's Gate.

[kandrathe]

I cannot play the HL games without getting sick to my stomach after a short period of time. Heck, just watching back videos of it does it to me. I did a bit of Googling on the issue after I picked up the Orange Box and found out that I wasn't alone. The issue is that the field of view is slightly different in HL than in other FPS games- a bit more "zoomed in", if you will. I found the following code (entered by hitting the ~ to bring down the console):

sv_cheats 1
default_fov 90
fov 90

That did the trick. I can now play for extended periods of time without getting sick.
Incidentally, I bought the Orange Box at full price and it was worth every penny. Portal was the most fun I've had with a game since my paladin (named Paladyr!) was plopped into Candlekeep in the original Baldur's Gate.

I tried this tonight and it worked great. Thanks!

P.S. I also breezed through the Portal Demo. It was interesting, but I can see how one would suspect that since levels 1-10 were such a breeze that 11+ might be more of the same.

[gekko]

I tried this tonight and it worked great. Thanks!

P.S. I also breezed through the Portal Demo. It was interesting, but I can see how one would suspect that since levels 1-10 were such a breeze that 11+ might be more of the same.

It definitely gets trickier. Even the last few levels, though, never become what I would call "difficult." They do add a bit more complexity and length, as well as a requiring a bit more "out of the box" thinking.

And, of course, if you have yet to experience it, the ending credits are a real treat. Actually, the personality of the game is what really set Portal apart for me. And that comes through more and more the deeper into the game you get.