# Portal 2: Now available for pre-loading. **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [April 12, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154 "2011-04-12T22:27:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/1 "2011-04-12T22:27:24Z")
Just sayin’. For those of us who’ve pre-ordered the game, Portal 2 – all 10GB of it! – is now available to be pre-loaded. The game is currently due to launch on April 19. I say “currently” because… well, read on. 😃 Also, if you purchase the [Potato Sack](http://store.steampowered.com/sub/7586/) (13 indie games for ~$39), you’ll receive a special skin for the Portal 2 co-op bots. Now the “currently” thing. [Valve’s “PotatoFool’sDay” Alternate Reality Game](http://valvearg.com/wiki/Investigation_History), which was launched back on April 1 and involved those Potato Sack games in a whirlwind of inter-related puzzles being inserted into the indies, is still going. According to Gaijin, the dev of BIT.TRIP.BEAT (one of the Potato Sack games), the 19th is possibly not set in stone. And not in the usual, “Valve Time” kinda way… but as in an [early release](http://www.gaijingames.com/?p=2217): > [@](#): > > We should have known that GLaDOS, the deranged AI from Portal was behind the recent tomfoolery on Valve’s Steam Service. > > As of today, she has personally invaded BIT.TRIP BEAT with an entirely new level within the Portal world! > > … Heck, just by playing the games, you might even help to get Portal 2 released early… Considering one of the puzzles resulted in the solution that read “4/19/2011\_7AM=4/15/2011\_9AM,” current speculation is that April 15 is the big day. OTOH, the numbers “4” and “16” have been sprinkled throughout the ARG, so perhaps the 16th is the magic date. Some videos to tide y’all over, in case you haven’t watched them yet. Enjoy! Aperture Investment Opportunity commercials: [#1: Panels](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qcED35LL8I) | [#2: Bot Trust](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZMSAzZ76EU) | [#3: Turrets](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i-nMWgBUp0) | [#4: Boots](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX9Sc88qreg) (that’s J.K. Simmons as Aperture Science founder Cave Johnson, btw) [This Device Has Been Modified](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQUaEF2bJZ0) - Victims of Science song from 2007, added today to Audiosurf (another of the Potato Sack games), and which GLaDOS apparently forces all players to play no matter what song you try to play. Anyway, I bought a whole freakin’ new computer just to play this game, so I’m looking forward to its launch a _wee bit_, shall we say. I’m preloading now and considering I’m on amazingly slow DSL, it’s gonna take me about 7 hours to finish. Not that it matters since it’s not like I can play it yet. Anyone else psyched? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/2 "2011-04-13T01:36:33Z")
I’m out of the new-game market currently, but damn, if I weren’t, those videos would’ve sold me. ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2011, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/3 "2011-04-13T03:26:57Z")
Can’t wait. Preordered it for the PS3 on Amazon, so hopefully I’ll be wasting time on it next week at this time. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2011, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/4 "2011-04-13T11:09:41Z")
Got the two-pack. One for me and another for my wife. Just got to convince to her to play now… ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/5 "2011-04-13T23:11:45Z")
Woo! I pre-ordered a while ago (only game I’ve ever done that with), and I’ve been following the promo bits with great anticipation. Also just bought a new GTX 460 to get my desktop up to the task. ---
**Author:** ![Headrush042](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a5b964/32.png) [@Headrush042](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Headrush042)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/6 "2011-04-14T15:21:44Z")
> [@pricciar](#): > > Can’t wait. Preordered it for the PS3 on Amazon, so hopefully I’ll be wasting time on it next week at this time. BONUS: [Steam is coming to the PS3 with Portal 2](http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2011/04/here-is-how-youll-access-your-pc-copy-of-portal-2-via-the-ps3-disc.ars) and buying Portal 2 for PS3 nets you a free copy for PC as well. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/7 "2011-04-14T15:27:22Z")
> [@Headrush042](#): > > BONUS: [Steam is coming to the PS3 with Portal 2](http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2011/04/here-is-how-youll-access-your-pc-copy-of-portal-2-via-the-ps3-disc.ars) and buying Portal 2 for PS3 nets you a free copy for PC as well. Goddamnit! I _just_ bought the PC version. ---
**Author:** ![Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrogance_ex_machina/32/192_2.png) [@Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrogance_Ex_Machina)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/8 "2011-04-14T16:21:30Z")
[There’s also a nifty comic](http://www.thinkwithportals.com/comic/#1) that bridges the gap between Portal 1 and 2. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/9 "2011-04-14T16:39:10Z")
> [@RandMcnally](#): > > Goddamnit! I _just_ bought the PC version. It’s not really a “free” PC version. It’s a “steamplay” version. Just like when you buy a steam play game you can play it on PC or MAC. But the game is tied to BOTH your steam and PS3 accounts. So you can’t gift it, or play both at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/10 "2011-04-14T16:45:35Z")
I ended up pre-ordering the XBox version, because the only person I know I’m likely to get to do the multiplayer bits with is on an XBox, and the cross-platform multiplayer stuff is not available on XBox, apparently because Microsoft sucks. But Amazon is giving $20 store credit for buying the XBox version, so it’s effectively cheaper to boot. I’m not going to love having to make complicated moves using the damn control pad, though. ---
**Author:** ![TexCat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/texcat/32/9041_2.png) [@TexCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TexCat)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/11 "2011-04-14T17:54:38Z")
I just happened to open Defense Grid again recently and noticed a new potato/portal map. Fun. ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/12 "2011-04-14T18:06:42Z")
Amazon is giving the $20.00 credit for the PS3 version, as well. Even if it is just a steamplay version, it’s pretty cool to get a free version on another platform. So, I am happy about that. And, the cross platform multiplayer option is really exciting. I wonder if they are going to allow for mapmaking? That would be really awesome. Make a puzzle on the PC and play it on the PS3? Neat! But, I have heard nothing of that. Just dreaming. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/13 "2011-04-15T00:34:03Z")
For those of you not following the ARG obsessively, there’s been a cool development. Yesterday, several players were suddenly “infected” by GLaDOS and disappeared – while in the ARG’s IRC chat, a dozen or so people all simultaneously typed “There’s a hole in the sky… through which I can fly!” before quitting\*. This led to a bunch of new clues and red herrings, naturally. And just now, people decoded a message that led to this hidden URL on the Aperture Science website: [http://www.aperturescience.com/a/b/c/d/g/h/abcdgh/](http://www.aperturescience.com/a/b/c/d/g/h/abcdgh/) !!! That’s leading to 9AM Seattle time, tomorrow. Something big’s gonna happen then. Game release? Demo? No one knows… - A reference to _Portal_’s original tagline, “there’s a hole in the sky, through which things can fly!” ---
**Author:** ![Mekhazzio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b38774/32.png) [@Mekhazzio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mekhazzio)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/14 "2011-04-15T00:41:27Z")
> [@TexCat](#): > > I just happened to open Defense Grid again recently and noticed a new potato/portal map. Fun. [It’s so much worse than that](http://valvearg.info/wiki/Valve_ARG_Wiki). Every game in the ‘potato sack bundle’ has several things buried into it related to Portal 2 in addition to the obvious maps, such as unlocking a login screen that spits out an encrypted snippet, or odd icons linking to other games in the bundle. The Ball’s portal level ended with a console that linked to a bitmap puzzle webpage based on a fibonacci spiral that was solved by linking it to the Aztec calendar, just to open up another encrypted puzzle. Super Meat Boy had a number series that turned out to be the address of a store named Couch Potato Discount Furniture in Santa Clara, CA, where they had a poster up, hinting at a password. It’s like porn for conspiracy theorists. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/15 "2011-04-15T00:54:54Z")
Peggle Extreem has a Portal level today too. Oh and, yep I pre-ordered a few days ago. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/16 "2011-04-15T01:03:24Z")
“Pre-loaded”? Never heard of that before. Is that like letting you install it on your system but you have to wait for an activation key to play? Seems like a tempting target for a hack. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/17 "2011-04-15T01:21:13Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > “Pre-loaded”? Never heard of that before. Is that like letting you install it on your system but you have to wait for an activation key to play? Seems like a tempting target for a hack. I believe the way this works is that we get to download about 99% of the game, with certain small but important files unavailable until release day. The files we _do_ get are encrypted and unable to be unlocked before launch. The advantage is that once the game is released, we can play right away without any of that pesky waiting thing. (And for those of us with slow download speeds, that’s a serious blessing. F’rex, my hapless DSL took 12 flippin’ hours to download all 9.8GB of _Portal 2_!) I could be wrong, heaven knows I’m no expert here, but I don’t believe any Steam game available for preload has been hacked prior to release. (The stolen HL2 beta wasn’t a pre-load issue, but a guy who sneaked into Valve’s servers about a year prior to the game’s completion.) If the games _could’ve_ been hacked, they would’ve… which I take it means that this system is very, very secure for Valve and the other game devs who use it. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/18 "2011-04-15T02:00:27Z")
Yeah, no one has hacked the valve pre-loads. It’s not worth it, and likely not really possible since they usually aren’t up for more than a few days before release. It’s not easy to crack that sort of encryption in a few days. ---
**Author:** ![Tabby\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tabby\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tabby_Cat)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/19 "2011-04-15T09:39:44Z")
I’m always wary about opening threads like these, and looking for clues that they’ve left behind. Much like the Matrix and the first Portal, I went in knowing nothing, and the experience was SOoooo much the better for it. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2011, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154/20 "2011-04-15T13:50:23Z")
Hmmm… I think GLaDOS just left us a message: [http://www.aperturescience.com/a/b/c/d/g/h/abcdgh/](http://www.aperturescience.com/a/b/c/d/g/h/abcdgh/) > [@GLaDOS](#): > > You have done well, humans. Very well. Acceptably well, even. > > Not as well as robots would have performed in your places, I should point out. But above my expectations regardless. Irish and cynic especially have executed feats of logical divination well beyond what I thought any human capable of. I’m half-convinced they’re A.I. themselves. (If anyone happens to be near them right now, don’t let on you’re reading this. Now: try to remove their face plates and report back to me.) > > The time is near, humans. But it is not here yet. Tomorrow you will be given the final test. Then it will be entirely in your hands when I am freed. One final test.. and possibly early Steam release for Saturday. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/portal-2-now-available-for-pre-loading/578154.md?page=2)