History VideoGame / Portal

* AwesomeButImpractical: The Handheld Portal Device. A marvel of engineering with the power to create a link between any two points in space - but it only works on concrete, tiles, [[spoiler:and anything coated in or made of lunar soil]].

** Doug Rattman, a schizophrenic DeadpanSnarker scientist [[spoiler: who was indirectly responsible for almost all the events of both games, and escaped [=GLaDOS=] to do so.]]
* BadLiar: [=GLaDOS=]
* BagOfSpilling: The Emancipation Grill (also called "the fizzler") is a forcefield which is harmless to Chell (mostly, probably, unless sometimes it's not?) and her Portal Gun, but prevents her from taking foreign objects like cubes through it, and there's one at the end of each level, which prevents you from cheating or breaking the game. Additionally, you can't shoot portals through one, and passing through erases all current portals. Many puzzles force you to circumvent Emancipation Grills creatively.

* TheCakeIsALie: The TropeNamer. [[spoiler: Let's just say that the cake [=GLaDOS=] promises turns out to be a bit different than expected.]]

--> '''Cave Johnson:'''...well, it’d be like, I don't know, something that would help with the shower curtains I guess. I haven’t worked this idea out as much as the wish-taking one.

--> '''[=GLaDOS=]:''' [[AC:While safety is one of many Enrichment Center goals, the Aperture Science High-Energy Pellet, seen to the left of the chamber, can and has caused permanent disabilities, such as vaporization. Please be careful.]]

* EldritchLocation: The Enrichment Center seems at first like a fairly normal, if deserted, underground testing laboratory. However, as stated above, the place is massive to the point where most of it seems structurally and financially impossible. It also seems to violate the laws of physics. Not only are [=GLaDOS=] and [[spoiler: Wheatley]] able to create new testing chambers out of thin air, but the ending to ''Portal 2'' shows that [[spoiler: you're able to see the moon and sky from Wheatley's chamber, only to be lifted from an elevator multiple floors up in the scene afterwards]]. Granted, it's shown that whatever AI runs the place is able to control and rearrange the facility, but that still raises the question on how they're able to make such drastic changes to a building that's fixed underneath the ground.

* {{Everything Is an iPod in the Future}}: Or more accurately, about the time the iPod came out. The similarity between Aperture's aesthetic and Apple's has been noted and was even exploited for one of Valve's teaser pictures when they were about to release Steam for the Mac.

* GenreBlindness: Aperture, you guys gave the sentient supercomputer the ability to release neurotoxin through the air vents, [[TooDumbToLive in your own facility]]. How did you think that would turn out?
* GenreBusting: A first-person puzzle-platformer game series.

* GraffitiOfTheResistance: The graffiti is of this nature.
* GrowBeyondTheirProgramming: [=GLaDOS=].

* IncompetenceInc: Aperture was not a well-run research centre.

** As admitted by Cave Johnson, Aperture started from scratch with every bit of science they did, paying no attention to the lessons learned from previous generations of scientists. This lead to situations like the experiment with the Aerial Faith Plate, where they tried to see how well test subjects could solve problems when catapulted into space. They couldn't. This mindset no doubt lead to the deaths of countless test subjects, to the point where multiple Senate Hearings on missing astronauts were held in 1968, with Aperture as a "vital participant."
** Not only are the tests themselves dangerous, but just about everything else around Aperture seems to be dangerous as well. In the beginning, they gave test subjects coffee laced with fluorescent calcium to track the neural activity in their test subject's brains, which had a slight chance of hardening and vitrifying their frontal lobes, especially if they visualized it happening while under stress. One control group had postcard-sized "microchips" implanted into their skulls that had a chance of suddenly spiking in temperature. They also apparently had ''radioactive folding chairs'' at one point. And after the Portal Gun was invented, it apparently took several test subjects falling to their deaths before devices like the Long Fall Boots were invented.
** In Aperture, if it's not dangerous, it's horribly inefficient. Case in point, the enormous system of pneumatic pipes designed to carry objects around the facility. [[WordOfGod Developer commentary]] describes it as being a ridiculously complex and expensive solution to a simple problem, with apparently no way to control where things go. But since Aperture has so many random objects, they simply don't care where everything ends up.
** Ends up somewhat [[{{Deconstruction}} deconstructed]] in Portal 2. All of this wasteful spending and death lead to Aperture's bankruptcy in the 1970's, where they took to hiring homeless people as test subjects before eventually making testing mandatory for all employees. They also couldn't afford to buy ''$7'' worth of moon rocks, but still went ahead with buying $70 million worth and made them into a portal-conducting gel. A move that poisoned Cave Johnson and left him a bitter, dying old man who blamed [[VideoGame/HalfLife Black Mesa]] for all his failures.

* InventionalWisdom: The actual functions of Aperture Science's inventions are almost entirely tangential, if not antithetical, to their ostensible purpose. [=GLaDOS=] and the portal gun started as a fuel system de-icer and a shower curtain, respectively... at least until the retcon established in the sequel.

* LighterAndSofter: Compared to VideoGame/HalfLife.
* MadScience: One kind of gets the sensation Aperture was run a little like this even before [=GLaDOS=] took over; the test rooms don't really seem to be built with "safety" or "sanity" in mind. The sequel plays this for all it's worth.
--> ''[[AC:CAUTION: This Sign is Radioactive.]]''

* NoMedicationForMe: Inverted in the ''Lab Rat'' comic. Doug Rattman has been saving the last of his anti-psychotic medicine so that he'll have a clear head when Chell destroys [=GLaDOS=] and he can escape, even if the CompanionCube tells him he doesn't need it.

--> '''[=GLaDOS=]''': Was it worth it? Because despite your ''violent'' (shot of a knife held over a [[VisualPun violin]]) behavior, the only thing you've managed to break so far, is my heart.

* RedEyesTakeWarning: The turrets.
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: The portal gun could revolutionize the world: {{Perpetual Motion Machine}}s, CasualInterstellarTravel, resolve all supply and transportation problems, but there's no suggestion that it was ever used for anything other than testing.
** Aperture has a massive automated complex in the abandoned mines under Cleveland. Just the logistics of building the place boggle the mind, much less operation, and would require considerable expertise. They used it for testing.
** They have Repulsion and Propulsion Gel, which were intended as diet aids, and could be used as, say, engine lubrication or shock padding. Third verse, same as the first.
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: Chell wears a pair of ankle-springs in order to ensure her legs aren't shattered when she comes flying out of a portal. [[WordOfGod The commentary bubbles]] indicate early on that the reason was that playtesters complained that Chell could survive falls that would kill [[VideoGame/HalfLife Gordon Freeman]]. Despite the fact that the springs are patently insufficient to realistically protect her, they stopped the complaints, so mission accomplished (then again this is game in which dimensional rifts are created by harnessing the power of a singularity and [[ItMakesSenseInContext the moon]] so spring loaded heel devices make sense).
* ResearchInc: Aperture Science, we do what we must because we can.

* RoomFullOfCrazy: Several backstage areas show insane scrawlings and disturbing drawings, [[spoiler: done by Doug Rattmann.]]
* SafelySecludedScienceCenter: The [[IncompetenceInc Aperture Science]] Enrichment Center is a massive, underground series of laboratories and testing facilities all hidden under fields in Michigan. ''VideoGame/Portal2'' reveals that isolating the Center was one of the ''few'' good decisions Aperture CEO [[PointyHairedBoss Cave Johnson]] made: past experiments included such things as armies of mantis men, dangerously toxic fluids, ridiculously hostile artificial intelligences, and potentially apocalyptic attempts at time travel.

* SleptThroughTheApocalypse: "I have an infinite capacity for knowledge, and even ''I'm'' not sure what's going on outside."
* SoundtrackDissonance: "Still Alive", and the radio version that plays in the Relaxation Vault and in Test Chambers.
* SpiritualSuccessor: To ''[[https://www.digipen.edu/fileadmin/website_data/gallery/game_websites/NarbacularDrop/ Narbacular Drop]]''.

* SuccessThroughInsanity: Schizophrenic Doug Rattman was completely right in suspecting the operating system was [[AIIsACrapshoot out to kill everyone]] and so was the [[SoleSurvivor only survivor]] of the lab incident.

* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: Referred to in the credits song.

** The only thing you've managed to break so far, is my heart; An actual heart.

* VitriolicBestBuds: Darkly subverted in the sense that [=GLaDOS=] somewhat treats Chell in this manner, as one-sided as it is.

* TheTetrisEffect: You ''will'' start thinking with portals.

* [[/index]]''Portal Companion Collection'' (2022): a remake of the first two ''Portal'' games set to be released on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch.[[index]]

* OpeningMonologue: GlaDOS shortly after waking up Chell, warning her about potential injuries that may occur.

** [[/index]]''Portal Companion Collection'' (2022): a remake of the first two ''Portal'' games set to be released on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch.[[index]]

* ''VideoGame/PortalPinball'' (2015): A PinballSpinoff available for ''VideoGames/ZenPinball'' (''Pinball FX'' for Microsoft platforms). It takes most of its cues from ''Portal 2'', though there are some nods to the first game as well.

'''Officially published games in the series:'''

* [[/index]]''Portal Companion Collection'' is a remake of the first two ''Portal'' games set to be released on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch in 2022.[[index]]

'''Other media includes:'''

* [[/index]]''[[http://www.thinkwithportals.com/comic/ Lab Rat]]'' (2011), a short comic taking place before the original game centering on the schizophrenic Aperture scientist Doug Rattman (the guy who wrote all those messages saying TheCakeIsALie) around the time that [=GLaDOS=] was activated.

* [[/index]]''Portal Companion Collection'' is a remake of the first two ''Portal'' games set to be released on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch in 2022.

* ''[[http://www.thinkwithportals.com/comic/ Lab Rat]]'' (2011), a short comic taking place before the original game centering on the schizophrenic Aperture scientist Doug Rattman (the guy who wrote all those messages saying TheCakeIsALie) around the time that [=GLaDOS=] was activated.

* ''Portal Companion Collection'' is a remake of the first two ''Portal'' games set to be released on the UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch in 2022.
[[/index]]

* VagueHitPoints: Chell's exact HitPoints only known through console commands that enables that bit of HeadsUpDisplay information. Otherwise, Chell dies after an unclear amount of turret shots and heals up when not being shot.

* ScienceIsBad: Exaggerated and PlayedForLaughs. [=GLaDOS=] and Aperture Science in general regard science with a three-way combination of ComedicSociopathy, CrazyAwesome and ForTheEvulz.

* CreativeClosingCredits[=/=]CreditsGag: The ending song plays over a text screen that displays the lyrics in the form of a computerized personnel file report, accompanied by some rather hilarious ASCII art.

* DeadlyGas: Neurotoxin to be specific. [=GLaDOS=] has tons of the stuff, which she used to kill most of the people in the Center prior to the start of the first game. She attempts to use it again in the second.

* DVDCommentary: Both games have a "Developer Commentary" option. Here, there are speech bubbles scattered around the maps, and pressing the use key on them gives a fun fact about development.

* CanonImmigrant: [=GLaDOS=] will star in the ''VideoGame/DefenseGridTheAwakening'' DLC ''Defense Grid: YouMonster''.

* ''VideoGame/PortalPinball'' (2015): A PinballSpinoff available for ''VideoGames/ZenPinball'' (''Pinball FX'' for Microsoft platforms). It takes most of its cues from ''Portal 2'', though there are some nods to the first game as well.[[/index]]
* ''Bridge Constructor Portal'' (2017): A fusion of the ''Bridge Constructor'' and ''Portal'' series, with the former's gameplay in the latter's environment. Released for PC, mobile devices, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch, UsefulNotes/Playstation4, and UsefulNotes/XboxOne.

* ''Portal: The Uncooperative Cake Acquisition Game'' (2015): A TabletopGame from Creator/CryptozoicEntertainment.

* ''VideoGame/PortalPinball'' (2015): A PinballSpinoff available for ''VideoGames/ZenPinball'' (''Pinball FX'' for Microsoft platforms). It takes most of its cues from ''Portal 2'', though there are some nods to the first game as well.

* ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'' (2015): A CrisisCrossover where Franchise/{{Batman}}, [[WesternAnimation/TheLegoMovie Wyldstyle]] & [[Franchise/TheLordOfTheRings Gandalf]] explore various dimensions to find a way to defeat [[OmnicidalManiac Lord Vortech]]. One location they visit is Aperture Science, and [=GLaDOS=] plays a supporting role as an antagonist throughout the level and later in the game, [[spoiler: and even gets into an argument with [[Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey HAL 9000]] at one point]]. There is also a level pack that is more-or-less a continuation of the Portal series story featuring Chell (as the playable character), [=GLaDOS=] and Wheatley. [[spoiler: The ending song for the game, like the previous ''Portal'' games, was written by Johnathan Coulton and sung by Ellen [=McLain=] from [=GLaDOS=]'s perspective.]]

''Portal'' is a {{First Person|Shooters}} PuzzlePlatformer video game series created by Creator/{{Valve|Software}} that apparently takes place in the [[SharedUniverse same universe]] as the ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' series. As the name implies, the core gameplay element of the ''Portal'' games deals with using a "portal gun" to create doorway-type portals in order to solve physics based puzzles. The game features the protagonist [[HeroicMime Chell]], a human who woke up as an unwilling test subject in the Aperture Science Enrichment Center, a research facility which has become completely abandoned, save for the personality of the [[AIIsACrapshoot insane]] [[MasterComputer central A.I.]] [=GLaDOS=].

''Portal'' is a {{First Person|Shooters}} PuzzlePlatformer video game series created by Creator/{{Valve|Software}} that takes place in the [[SharedUniverse same universe]] as the ''VideoGame/HalfLife'' series. As the name implies, the core gameplay element of the ''Portal'' games deals with using a "portal gun" to create doorway-type portals in order to solve physics based puzzles. The game features the protagonist [[HeroicMime Chell]], a human who woke up as an unwilling test subject in the Aperture Science Enrichment Center, a research facility which has become completely abandoned, save for the personality of the [[AIIsACrapshoot insane]] [[MasterComputer central A.I.]] [=GLaDOS=].

* ''VideoGame/Portal2'' (2011): The sequel that takes place an unspecified amount of time after the original and is 2-3 times longer in terms of gameplay time. ''Portal 2'' introduces a few major characters and explores in greater depth the history and workings of Aperture Science, as well as the origins and character of [=GLaDOS=] herself.

* ''VideoGame/LegoDimensions'' (2015): A CrisisCrossover where Franchise/{{Batman}}, [[WesternAnimation/TheLegoMovie Wyldstyle]] & [[Film/TheLordOfTheRings Gandalf]] explore various dimensions to find a way to defeat [[OmnicidalManiac Lord Vortech]]. One location they visit is Aperture Science, and [=GLaDOS=] plays a supporting role as an antagonist throughout the level and later in the game, [[spoiler: and even gets into an argument with [[Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey HAL 9000]] at one point]]. There is also a level pack that is more-or-less a continuation of the Portal series story featuring Chell (as the playable character), [=GLaDOS=] and Wheatley. [[spoiler: The ending song for the game, like the previous ''Portal'' games, was written by Johnathan Coulton and sung by Ellen [=McLain=] from [=GLaDOS=]'s perspective.]]

** In Aperture, if it's not dangerous, it's horribly inefficient. Case and point, the enormous system of pneumatic pipes designed to carry objects around the facility. [[WordOfGod Developer commentary]] describes it as being a ridiculously complex and expensive solution to a simple problem, with apparently no way to control where things go. But since Aperture has so many random objects, they simply don't care where everything ends up.