Portal

Many of the novelties of “Portal” on its release wouldn’t render it unique today—brief puzzle titles with metanarrative elements aren’t rare these days. Time has also been unkind to the lesser parts of “Portal”, and while a superfan could attest the worst puzzles are better than the best puzzles in many adventure titles, the bad ones slow a game moving at breakneck speed to a half and stand out in the worst way. “Portal” isn’t escaping without a hearty recommendation, though. It’s still funny, the central mechanic is still amazing, and it ends right before it risks becoming stale.

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