Summary
- Portal: Revolution is a fan-made mod for Portal 2, offering a new prequel experience with 40 unique puzzles.
- Fans have been creating mods to keep the Portal franchise alive.
- The mod takes place in a decaying Aperture Science testing center and introduces a new personality core named Sterling.
A group of fans is releasing a mod for Portal 2 known as Portal: Revolution, which serves as a prequel to Valve's iconic sequel. This makes it a brand-new experience for fans, containing 40 brand-new and unique puzzles for players to solve, derived from Portal 2's mechanics. While the Portal franchise hasn't had a fully-fledged sequel in years, fans have been breathing life into the franchise with endless amounts of fan-made mods, which all take advantage of the timeless puzzle mechanics.
Some popular mods include a remaster of Portal that adds RTX for improved graphical fidelity and a Portal 2 expansion mod that tells a new story while upgrading the game's graphics to something comparable to Valve's Half-Life: Alyx. Portal: Revolution is similarly another mod that aims to enhance the original Portal 2, featuring mechanics from the original game along with new features that completely reinvent the existing ones.
The original trailer for Portal: Revolution shows off how the game takes place in Portal 2's derelict Aperture Science testing center, which has started showing signs of decay. The test subject the player gets control of is accompanied by a new personality core named Sterling, who gives them the task of getting the place back up and running. Shortly after this brief interaction, the trailer shows off gameplay regarding some of the puzzles players will need to solve, which include redirecting lasers with cubes, using the portal gels to take out certain turrets in the player's way, and many more. Players will need an official copy of Portal 2 to play this mod.
While the original trailer released in November gave a release date of January 5, 2024, the mod isn't available for download yet. According to a recent update video by Stefan Heinz, the director of the mod, this Portal 2 mod is completely playable from start to finish and would normally be available for fans to try out, but Valve didn't review and approve their mod in time for their targeted release. As such, this mod release has been slightly delayed, as Valve has to review it first before it can be put up for download, with Heinz estimating it will take possibly a week or longer.
The Steam page for Portal: Revolution gives out specific details, such as puzzles that only use the blue Portal gun, along with a new laser cube variant. The difficulty is also described as being similar to the levels seen in the endgame of Portal 2, with all its new mechanics and difficulty being accessible for players of all skill types to solve. Once the team gets the approval from Valve, this should be another fun way to revisit Portal 2.
Portal 2
WHERE TO PLAY
Portal 2 draws from the award-winning formula of innovative gameplay, story, and music that earned the original Portal over 70 industry accolades and created a cult following.
The single-player portion of Portal 2 introduces a cast of dynamic new characters, a host of fresh puzzle elements, and a much larger set of devious test chambers. Players will explore never-before-seen areas of the Aperture Science Labs and be reunited with GLaDOS, the occasionally murderous computer companion who guided them through the original game.
The game’s two-player cooperative mode features its own entirely separate campaign with a unique story, test chambers, and two new player characters. This new mode forces players to reconsider everything they thought they knew about portals. Success will require them to not just act cooperatively, but to think cooperatively.
