Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[The importance of playtesting: What Portal 2 could have been]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/08/the-importance-of-playtesting-what-portal-2-could-have-been/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/08/the-importance-of-playtesting-what-portal-2-could-have-been/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/08/the-importance-of-playtesting-what-portal-2-could-have-been/#comments When Erik Wolpaw and Chet Faliszek first sat down to write Portal 2, they went mad. It certainly appears that way now, when the final version of Portal 2 that shipped in 2011 was such a resounding success, especially for a highly anticipated sequel. The first iteration Wolpaw and Faliszek envisioned got rid of three important mechanics in the Portal universe: Chell, GLaDOS and, as we knew and are still reeling over, portals. In a talk at GDC, Wolpaw and Faliszek explained why they thought that was a good idea, and how they learned it was pretty much the dumbest thing ever.

The original Portal 2 had three new things in place of the classic ideas: F-stop (the new portal mechanic), Cave Johnson (antagonist replacement) and Betty (GLaDOS substitute). Betty was a knee-high personality sphere on wheels, a piece of concept art showed, and she spoke in quick legalese, "like those ads for medicine where they show puppies while they talk about the rectal bleeding you're going to have," Wolpaw said.

Continue reading The importance of playtesting: What Portal 2 could have been

JoystiqThe importance of playtesting: What Portal 2 could have been originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>chellchet-faliszekErik-Wolpawgdc-2012GLAdOSmicrosoftpcplaystationportal-2portalsps3valvexboxThu, 08 Mar 2012 20:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Minecraft to get portals between servers, eventually]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/minecraft-to-get-portals-between-servers-eventually/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/minecraft-to-get-portals-between-servers-eventually/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/minecraft-to-get-portals-between-servers-eventually/#comments Minecraft maestro Markus Persson recently updated his blog with a progress report on his new studio, Mojang Specifications, and news about the upcoming Halloween update for the game. He notes that Mojang has found a building and now includes six employees: three programmers, a pixel artist, a CEO and a business developer.

As for the Halloween update, Persson says it will include six new block types, five of which have "unique abilities." There will also be a new monster, "a new dimension" and portals. Persson explained later in a tweet that these portals will eventually be able to link between different Minecraft servers, though this functionality won't be implemented anytime soon.

So, can monsters use portals? If so, we totally would not build a transdimensional monster funnel leading directly inside of another player's meticulously crafted fortress. So, feel free to invite us to a game and leave us alone in the back room for a few minutes ... okay?

JoystiqMinecraft to get portals between servers, eventually originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>macMarkus-PerssonMinecraftMojang-SpecificationspcportalsWed, 20 Oct 2010 18:40:00 EST<![CDATA[The best of WoW.com: June 9-16, 2009]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/17/the-best-of-wow-com-june-9-16-2009/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/17/the-best-of-wow-com-june-9-16-2009/http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/17/the-best-of-wow-com-june-9-16-2009/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Joystiq's sister site WoW.com covers the most popular MMO ever, World of Warcraft, every day of every week. Want to know what's new in Azeroth? Here's our biggest stories from the last seven days.

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JoystiqThe best of WoW.com: June 9-16, 2009 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 17 Jun 2009 00:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battle-botsblizzardchangese3flame-leviathanjoystiqmmomountain-dewmountspatch-3.2portalsscamssister-sitetipswow-casuallywow-comwow-playersyogg-saronzeppelinWed, 17 Jun 2009 00:10:00 EST<![CDATA[Portal only open four hours]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/14/portal-only-open-four-hours/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/14/portal-only-open-four-hours/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/03/14/portal-only-open-four-hours/#commentsFiled under:


Kim Swift, Valve's level designer stated that Portal clocks in at around four hours to complete. As a standalone retail game, that would be quite disturbing, but given that it's accompanied by four other titles in the Half Life 2: Orange, we're a little more forgiving. Still, the game promises to be a bit of a mind-frack, though Swift promises that the difficulty curve isn't going to be overwhelming as the game teaches you to "think in portals". So, are you going to put into the better part of an afternoon into this when you pick up Orange later this year, or are you going to stick with Half Life 2 and its episodes with a side of Team Fortress 2?

JoystiqPortal only open four hours originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 14 Mar 2007 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>H L 2Half Life 2Half Life 2 Episode 1Half Life 2 Episode 2Half Life 2 OrangeHalf Life 2 Orange BoxHalfLife2HalfLife2Episode1HalfLife2Episode2HalfLife2OrangeHalfLife2OrangeBoxHL2PortalsTeam Fortress 2TeamFortress2Wed, 14 Mar 2007 10:15:00 EST<![CDATA[First trailer of Valve's Portal released]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2006/07/18/first-trailer-of-valves-portal-released/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/07/18/first-trailer-of-valves-portal-released/http://www.joystiq.com/2006/07/18/first-trailer-of-valves-portal-released/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

One of the announced games to be featured alongside the upcoming PC and console versions of Half-Life 2: Episode Two is one that promises to obliterate your concepts of traditional level design and generally assault your brain with a large rolling pin. It's called Portal and, should the name not be explanatory enough, it deals primarily with gaping holes in time and space which magically transport you to different locations. Where Human Head's Prey took you for a wacky ride through these portals, Valve's title equips you with a sterile looking gun and urges you to make your own entry and exit points with wild abandon.

The trailer (embedded in the second part of the post) aptly demonstrates the powers of the portal gun, the dangers of getting caught in an infinite loop and, of course, how using rampant teleportation can enable you to solve puzzles involving crates of some kind. As they say, hilarity ensues.

[Thanks Easy_G!]

Continue reading First trailer of Valve's Portal released

JoystiqFirst trailer of Valve's Portal released originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 18 Jul 2006 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>FPSGabe NewellGabeNewellHalf-LifeHalf-Life 2Half-life2HL2PCPortalportalsPreyPS3Team Fortress 2TeamFortress2ValveXbox-360Tue, 18 Jul 2006 17:45:00 EST