[Rictor]

...that the games industry has to compete with Valve. Whenever you think they're done with innovating, they come up with something really cool out of left field.

Case in point, Valve upcoming game "Portal". I just watched the trailer, and it strikes me as Prey, made by Apple, except with more advanced technology. With all the stuff that's going to be bundled with Episode 2, namely Team Fortress 2, Portal and the actual Episode 2, I doubt it's going to be a $20 game, but who the hell cares.

FileFront is probably the fastest mirror right now, so that's the best bet.

/corporate shillery

[Ghostavo]

I have to admit, it looks wicked.

[vyper]

Coooooooooooooool.

[Edward Bradshaw]

WOW> that trailer was funny AND cool!  Shows how bad my graphics card is though

[pecenipicek]

if thats what ep2 ships with, i'm going to actually go and buy it. instead of piratising it.


ooops, did i just say that out loud?

[Unknown Target]

I'd get it, but then I'd have to use Steam. And I vowed never to buy another Valve product because of that damn thing.
Still, looks pretty cool

[Edward Bradshaw]

Steam works great here, I dont know why some people have problems with it.

[Ransom]

I couldn't help noticing the portal technology wasn't as seamless as Prey's. Not to mention the fact that Valve just shamelessly ripped the idea and turned into a gun.

It does look like a fun puzzle game, though. I might even buy Episode 2 because of this. But Valve just lost even more of my respect for their blatant 'Source can do it too!' attitude.

[Mefustae]

So, because Source has excellent physics, no other game can have excellent physics, because that would be stealing? Because Max Payne has bullet time, no other game should have bullet time, because that would just be stealin? Because Far Cry has a boat, no other game should have a boat, because that would just be stealing? Because... etc.

See how utterly retarded that mindset is? Valve took a really, really cool thing from another game, worked on it, and made it better. Isn't that sort of how the entire industry works?! You'll see that they probably put a lot more work into this, as having a player-made portal system is probably just a little bit harder to get working than a static system, so I think they've earned at least some respect. Anyway, are you saying that they shouldn't have done this, and we shouldn't have what looks to be an awesomely entertaining game?

[Ransom]

My problem with it is the timing. I doubt it was revealed so soon after the release of Prey due to sheer coincidence. It's a low business tactic timed deliberately to feed off Prey's hype, and that's what pisses me off.

[Mefustae]

Well, I disagree, but I get where you're coming from and respect your opinion.

[Ransom]

*tips hat*

[Descenterace]

Portal effects are technically very simple to implement, especially in modern game engines. Prey's foundation was laid down sometime in 1997, IIRC.
The portal is rendered in the same way as a mirror; a surface that is rendered with a different view matrix generated by transforming the player's view matrix. I'm very surprised Source didn't have this from the beginning; it already had the ability to render the world to texture using a matrix bound to an object, as the dynamic video cameras demonstrate.
Player movement through the portal is simple too. On collision with the portal surface, the player position matrix undergoes the transformation represented by the portal.
Gravity effects seem to be done with the event system. Events triggered by invisible collision boxes or surfaces apply a transformation to the player's gravity vector. Which is why you have to walk onto a wallwalk and can't just jump onto it from a different orientation.

So yeah, chances are Valve saw what Prey was going to be capable of, made Source do the same thing, and planned to release it just after Prey. They could've stolen Prey's thunder if they wanted, too.

[achtung]

DooM still wins.

[WMCoolmon]

I would probably have more sympathy if I had even heard of Prey before this...

[Falcon]

There is a mod which alters the wrench alternate fire in Prey to make portals instead. From here: http://forums.3drealms.com/vb/showthread.php?t=19335

It also works in the demo.

[aldo_14]

I'm surprised no-one has mentioned that Portal isn't actually by Valve, but is a pseudo-sequel to Narbacular Drop

[Roanoke]

meh, my "new pc" savings are but a distant memory 

not that I really care for a new pc nowadays.....

[vyper]

One comment about portals and their relation to valve/prey. HL1 had portal technology, you just couldn't really see where you were going, as it were. In fact it was rather key to the plot. OP4 took it a stage further with far greater use of existing portals and puzzles.

[NGTM-1R]

I would probably have more sympathy if I had even heard of Prey before this...

You been hiding under a rock, son? We even had a thread in the forums here about the demo and how awesome it was.