First issue of the Portal 2 comic is now online

Just as you were warned, "tomorrow" has come, heralding the arrival of Portal 2: Lab Rat. The first issue has been posted over on IGN, spanning 14 total pages.

The comic is more than a prequel than anything else. Actually, we don't want to give away too much, but we will leave you with this little nugget: Companion Cube kills Dumbledore. We know, we know -- who woulda thunk a cube could wield a wand, let alone gain admission into Hogwarts?!

View the Original article

Portal 2 promo puts artificial trust to the test

It doesn't take science -- let alone Aperture Science -- to know that people can't be trusted. Thankfully, Cave Johnson and company built some robots, and then some "better robots," in an effort to overcome the unreliability of human companionship.

The result, Atlas and P-body, is the robotic duo best suited to overcome the perilous panels and heaps of deathtraps laid out in the Portal 2 co-op campaign. The only problem? They'll have to be controlled by you and a human "friend."



View the Original article

Steam Voice chat upgraded with Skype's SILK codec, just in time for Portal 2 co-op

You know communication is of paramount importance while playing Portal 2's co-op mode and, to ameliorate that experience, Valve has upgraded the quality of Steam's voice technology. In place of that busted old junk is the SILK audio codec, the same one developed by (and used in) Skype -- those cats should know a little something about internet-based voice tech. While the older Steam Voice required a steady 15 kbps of bandwidth, SILK dynamically adjusts its bandwidth demands, from 8 to 30 kbps.

During a brief test, we found the audio quality to be a notable improvement from the likes of Xbox Live, PSN, and even Steam Voice, but not quite "Skype-quality." Today's Steam client update brings the new codec, along with some other improvements, exactly one month before Portal 2 will require you to use it. We're hoping Steam users test it out before then, so Valve can iron out any pulls in its SILK stockings before Portal 2 day.

View the Original article

GLaDOS puts robots to the test in first Portal 2 commercial

It was just this morning that we were reporting on Valve's plans to handle all of Portal 2's advertising in-house, and now here we are, watching the first TV commercial for the game. It stars Atlas and P-body, the robotic co-op characters, who quickly learn how seriously GLaDOS wants to play.


View the Original article

Valve making Portal 2 ads on its own

Who knows how to communicate Portal 2's gameplay and tone better than Valve? Certainly not some ad agency, the company is asserting. Marketing VP Doug Lombardi told MCV that the company is going in-house for its Portal 2 ads, not just because it knows the material, but because it's easier to tinker that way.

"With the Portal 2 ad," Lombardi said, "we playtested it and were able to make changes during production. With an agency, those types of tests are too often left to a post-mortem – at which point, the value of those realisations is pretty close to worthless."

It's solid advice for anyone with the money lying about to create its own ad division. And good news for people who like to see actually funny things on TV.

View the Original article