Should I play Portal?

The long and short of it: Yes
When was it made: 2007

Portal was developed by one of my favorite companies, Valve, and follows the adventures of a nameless protagonist and her very special gun. It is a beautiful game with backgrounds that are simple yet expressive. Honestly, I had heard so much about this game by the time I finally got around to downloading it that I was certain there was no way for it to live up to my expectations. Not only did it live up to them, it exceeded them in every way. The game is very short, I'll give that to you, but would you rather have an ounce of gold or a pound of copper? The portal mechanic is done incredibly well, and the game guides you in such a way that it remains intuitive.

I heard about this game entirely through hype. Around the time of its release, I was inundated with companion cubes and bogus cakes from sites that had never before even mentioned video games. It has received critical acclaim for its gameplay and for its story. For a game with zero exposition and only one speaking character, the story is very enjoyable. If someone has quoted a scene from a video game to you in the last two years, there is a good chance it is from Portal.

The game, originally only available through the Orange Box, is now available for PC and XBox, so if you don't game on either of those, find a friend who does so you can play this game. It is a bit short, but the challenge maps adds on a bit of time, albeit without the story and without GLaDOS. It does have some moments that get a little fast and hectic, so if you suffer very easily from motion sickness you may want to play this at an appropriate distance from the screen. If you're looking for a fun game that's well written and designed, go for it. If you hate video games or hate even the simplest of puzzles, you are the only people I wouldn't recommend this to.

I personally think this game is awesome. I did get stuck really bad once, but in this modern age of youtube there is no excuse for not beating the game and enjoying it immensely. Ellen McClain did a fantastic job as the facility AI, and has some of the best lines in any video game. They did it right by hiring an actual voice actor and writers instead of having coders write crappy dialogue and plugging it into a voice program. The mechanics are great, but they establish a great atmosphere. Because the game is so short, it is hard to discuss my favorite moment without ruining a surprise for you, but one I like occurs when you have received the portal gun and GLaDOS nonchalantly mentions how the gun is now worth more than the lives and possessions of everyone in your home town. This game is so different that I don't think it should be the first game you ever play, but if you've played any other video game before the next game you play needs to be Portal.