Portal 2 Testchamber: Overall View Start Here Detail shots (when moderated) You can even actually play this course yourself, if you're into that sort of thing. LEGO Dimensions features new story content set in the Portal universe that takes place after the events of Portal 2. Speaking to IGN at Gamescom, WB Games producer Doug Heder explained that the story of LEGO Dimensions brings main characters Batman, Gandalf, and Wyldstyle through various worlds (from Doctor Who to Ghostbusters and beyond), including a stopover in Valve’s Portal universe. While that content ties into Dimensions’ main story and features test chambers with mechanics revolving around Batman, Gandalf, and Wyldstyle, a separate Portal Level Pack will also be available for purchase at launch. That expansion is designed specifically with Chell and her portal device in mind. “It's branded as Portal 2 Level Pack, and that's because we now have established that character in that world through the main game story, and now we pick up in the world where things have left off in that universe of Portal games,” Heder explained to IGN. “And, obviously Portal 2 being the most recent game to release, now things start to look a little bit more reflective of that state and where things kind of left off at the
end of Portal 2.” “In addition to that adventure world, you also have a bespoke new Portal story level,” he continued. “This is another nine plus test chambers, and now these, instead of being sort of focused around the Batman, Gandalf, and Wyldstyle powers and abilities from the main game, now these are specifically built around Chell and her portal device. So, you're getting a real, true LEGO Portal experience in that world.” According to Heder, this story content was written by Traveler’s Tales and while it’s not necessarily canon, it’s all been done with Valve’s approval. “We've worked really closely with Valve and all of our partners through this entire development process. It is definitely our story. Our writers created it, although it's all been done with Valve's blessing,” Heder said. “We don't make any pretense about what's canon and what's not. This is the LEGO universe, you know? Everything's done with a little bit of a tongue-in-cheek to it.
There's a little bit of a nod and a wink. There's a sense of humor in every LEGO game, right? So, we try not to take ourselves too seriously.” Heder says he sees the new Portal content as “sort of an unofficial continuation” of the events of the Portal universe. “The story has a lot of fun poking holes in itself, and sort of being self-referential and all that. But, yeah, anybody who's a fan of the Portal games and have played it, they're going to recognize things there, and kind of go, ‘Hmm, what if this is where that story led?’” The Portal story content will feature multiple returning voice actors from the Portal series, including Ellen McLain as GLaDOS, Stephen Merchant as Wheatley, and Nolan North as various spheres and cores, plus “a few more surprises.” “This is just so much fun,” Heder said. “We've got, between the main game and the level pack, eighteen unique test chambers. I hate to say this, because this is not trying to say anything, [but] that is more test chambers than in a single Portal game.
The skill for these test chambers is obviously a little bit different in comparison, but Valve has been a fantastic partner." "They've supported us all the way," he added regarding Valve. "They've been so excited to be a part of this project, and they've really opened up all the archives for us, and really been supportive on this. Working with their writers to kind of check and make sure the voices were all authentic-sounding, and everything really felt like it belonged in the universe.” The Portal 2 level pack will be available for purchase alongside LEGO Dimensions at launch and “you can dive right in without even playing the main game if you want,” according to Heder. LEGO Dimensions will be released on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Wii U, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on September 27. For more on its Portal content, read our hands-on impressions from E3, plus look out for new impressions of additional levels from Gamescom very soon. For more from Germany, be sure to visit our Gamescom hub, and find out everything there is to know about LEGO Dimensions in our Lego Dimensions wiki.
Andrew Goldfarb is IGN's executive editor of news and thinks the Chell LEGO figure is adorable. You can find him rambling about animals and Spelunky on Twitter.Portal has been among the most mind-blowing games for me, and I couldn’t get enough of it in two episodes. While we wait for Valve Corporation to come up with a third, we should entertain ourselves with hiqh quality LEGO creations. Evan skillfully sculpted Chell and a sentry turret over a very Portal-esque base. Crispy photography and an Aperture Laboratories logo really show off the model. Still, some fans expect to see the Companion Cube and maybe a piece of cake to go along with Evan’s work. Perhaps we’ll see them some other time! [Editor’s note: You might not notice this, but The Brothers Brick has contributors from all over the world — not just the US and Canada, but also the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Russia, South Africa, and Turkey. Tonight, our thoughts are with the author of this post, Ankara resident Cagri Yuz, his family and friends, and all his fellow citizens of Turkey during this tumultuous time.
Tell all your friends! Leonid An is running awesome building experiments on some of the new parts. The result is this gorgeous handheld portal device from the Portal video game. I am guessing this build started with the white large figure armour piece, which has the same shape as a part of the original portal gun. However, the rest of the weapon is no less excellent and features a couple of great building solutions including these three minifigure hammer pieces on the other end. Take a moment to appreciate the peculiar scale of the gun; it is not too large, but has enough details which make it instantly recognizable. I have to admit that I’ve never played the popular video game Portal or any of its sequels, but I like to think I know a good diorama when I see one. I’ve been entirely too verbose this weekend, so I’ll just let this lovely image by eldeem do the talking. I will say that I really like the lift-arms under the platform, and the placing of the various elements in this shot is perfect.
According to the Ryan you can even actually play this course yourself, if you’re into that sort of thing. The Companion Cube featured in this diorama was designed by Gaelen Mibeck (MooseBot) and used with permission by the builder. As always it has been a pleasure being your weekend DJ here at TBB. Until next time, the long distance dedication line and the first time caller line remain open. We could fill pages and pages here on The Brothers brick with excellent LEGO models inspired by the Portal universe. In fact, we have. Joining the ranks of wonderful LEGO Portal builders is Gabe Umland, whose dilapidated Portal 2 test chamber includes some excellent technological decay — something hard to do well in LEGO. Speaking of GLaDOS, I quite enjoyed seeing Pacific Rim last week, and I’m surprised we haven’t seen more LEGO creations inspired by giant robots fighting giant sea monsters from another dimension… Despite heroic contributions from Xbox friends like Tyler, I never quite managed to get all the way through co-op mode in Portal 2.
Still, it was really really fun, and I always enjoy seeing LEGO renditions of the paired test subjects Atlas and P-Body. This version by Ryan H. (eldeeem) is at a larger scale that enables him to add plenty of detail and color contrast. I’m rarely a fan of rubber bands as critical structural elements in LEGO models (yes, even in official sets), but by adding them around other bricks, Ryan has softened the corners of several blocky areas rather nicely. Alex Kobbs of Kooberz Studios posted his LEGO Portal video back in December, but it looks like we only featured the behind-the scenes video. I recently finished Portal 2 again, and Alex posted about the video on Flickr, so now seems as good a time as any to highlight the main video. Since this is Part 1, I wonder when Part 2 will be out. Alex Kobbs (Kooberz) is no stranger to LEGO stop motion films. His works have been featured here in the past. His latest film based on the Portal 2 video game has just become public. If you like it, be sure to cast your vote in the Machinima Interactive Film Festival.
Be sure to check out his Youtube Channel for his other films. I have seen a lot of discussion with respect to CUUSOO, in particular in terms of licenced themes, but generally about feasability of the entire program. Everyone obvioulsy has their own opinions, but personally I think the program is brilliant. We have to keep in mind that this is all in Beta right now and obvioulsy the kinks will be worked out over time. I think the true success of CUUSOO will be through highly thought out projects that are designed with the program in mind…just throwing any given LEGO model on there won’t work in most cases. Now with all that being said, Team Jigsaw, made up of Five X Five, Brickthing, Lego Junkie, and Arkov have just published a new project based on the hugely popular Portal video game series. I have to be honest, I have never played the games, but I am familiar with the design and aesthetic of it, and one thing is very clear with this project…these guys put a tonne of thought and effort into all aspects of the design!
The thing that really stands out with this for me, is that they have really designed it with different types of possible sets in mind. This wouldn’t be restricted to just a simple building set. One of my favourites is the LEGO boardgame version. Be sure to check out all the details and ideas. If nothing else, these guys deserve a pat on the back for their planning and development. I think they have set the bar rather high for the design effort of future projects. This had previously been denied by the CUUSOO team, but their perseverance got it reconsidered and approved for voting.I really do think that this is a project that could be a huge success! These two recent Portal 2 test chambers by Haypro (above) and [LJ] (below) shows off the dilapidated testing environment that many players of the game found memorable. We’ve taken a look at the top LEGO news stories of 2011, but The Brothers Brick is really about the great LEGO creations built by LEGO fans all over the world.
Let’s take a look back at the ones that proved most popular over the course of the year. Plum B’s LEGO Gears of War Lancer assault rifle with firing action and motorized saw blade Nick Jensen’s life-sized LEGO Halo sniper rifle Marshall Banana’s 10,000 piece LEGO Star Wars Jawa Sandcrawler Will Page’s Portal turret Michael Thomas’s LEGO Settlers of Catan design Nathaniel Shields’s LEGO Halo grunt OneLug’s 7-foot LEGO Tower of Orthanc from Lord of the Rings Ben Caulkins’s life-size LEGO Halo Master Chief armor Chris Malloy’s LEGO Minecraft diorama Tyler (Legohaulic) built Chell and a companion cube from Portal 2 to go along with his Lego Atlas and P-Body. Obvious Portal references aside, I was drawn to this ship by Jack McKeen (madLEGOman), because of the interesting shapes I saw in a thumbnail. The cockpit shape is really quite beautiful, even if it can’t actually fit a fig inside. It reminds me of a compound eye, as it’s covered in various facets.