“Portal 2: Community Edition” and how It could revive the 12-year-old game
Quite a bit ago, I received a Steam key to the closed beta of an exceptionally unique mod for Portal 2 called “Portal 2: Community Edition” or P2:CE for short. I always knew P2:CE wasn’t your typical mod. However, it was only recently that I finally took the time to install it and fully explore the tools it has. Now, I can’t contain my excitement for this amazing project, and I’m eager to share how I think it’s going to help keep the Portal universe fresh with all of you!
Calling P2:CE a “mod” could even lead to some misconceptions, as it doesn’t quite fit the conventional mod expectations. Unlike other Portal 2 mods that typically introduce new stories and campaigns along with some additional features, P2:CE does include a campaign and numerous fresh elements. However, its primary focus is on developers that work with the Portal 2 engine.
For those who are unaware of the process for developing Portal 2 mods, let me provide a brief explanation. When you go through the process of creating a “mod” for Portal 2, you’re essentially expanding upon the existing content within the game. This means you utilize the resources and assets already available in Portal 2 to craft something fresh and one-of-a-kind within the game itself.
P2:CE is different in a significant way. It has the advantage of accessing the underlying source code for the Portal engine, allowing the developers to establish a kind of foundation for other mods to build upon. This exciting capability means you can create your own mod that relies on P2:CE as its foundation, incorporating many of its features that were previously unattainable for Portal mods. Now, let’s delve into some of these incredible features and explore how they can greatly improve the quality of upcoming mods.
Physically Based Rendering support, PBR for short, is a feature that significantly enhances the visual appearance of materials within the game world. With PBR, you can design surfaces that render in a way similar to the real world, making them look significantly better. This means you can create materials that convincingly simulate the look of metals and other realistic textures, adding a whole new level of visual immersion to worlds created inside P2:CE.
Greatly improved level editor. In the conventional Portal setup, you use a tool called “Hammer” for level design, but it comes with limitations as it cannot be customized according to your specific needs. However, since the P2:CE developers have the means required to change it any way they wish they have found ways to modify and adapt the functionality of the level editor to a higher extent. While their version of Hammer may not be that different now I’m willing to bet it will be greatly improved by the official release of P2:CE
Cut content reimplemented. Portal 2 had its fair share of unused features, and the P2:CE developers recognized their potential and perfectly integrated them into the engine. As a result, mods built on P2:CE now have the privilege of utilizing these once-discarded gems, including the Paint gun, Adhesion Gel, and Schrodinger’s Cube. This gives mods the chance to instantly stand out and have interesting gameplay from the start.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! P2:CE boasts an impressive array of planned and already implemented features and as much as I wish I could talk about every last detail you’ll just have to learn more on your own. For instance, the team has a whole new scripting language in the works, enabling you to modify and customize far beyond what’s currently possible. The sheer scope of these features makes me so excited, representing fantastic improvements that could potentially place the full power of Portal into the hands of the community. With such remarkable advancements, P2:CE is set to empower creators to unleash their creativity and take the Portal experience to unimaginable heights.
Imagine a world where every upcoming Portal mod has the same capabilities of independent games, granting creators full control over mechanics, visuals, features, and every aspect you can dream of. Just the thought of it fills me with excitement, and I hope you share that excitement as you read along. If you’re as thrilled as I am, I highly recommend visiting the P2:CE website (currently down but will be up again soon!) or checking out the Steam page for more information. Embrace the anticipation of what this remarkable project holds in store for the future of Portal modding!