An update has been released for Portal 2. Improvements:   - Implemented a Vulkan render backend (currently accessible through the -vulkan command line parameter).   - Improved compile time for Perpetual Training Initiative puzzles.   - Improved advanced video settings descriptions.   - Made the game Hi-DPI aware.   - Smarter default video settings.   - Improved resolution of player avatars throughout the game.   - Players can now be invited to play co-op on controller.   - Button text contrast and padding has been improved when using a controller.   - Implemented a 360° Spin action.   - The portalgun is now correctly affected by dynamic lights (projected textures) in the scene.   - Improved client-side prediction for coop play.   - Added the ability for workshop levels to pack particles into their map with a particles/map_manifest.txt   - Misc. rendering optimizations.   - Added an icon to the game on Linux.   - Removed the "Trading Coming Soon" button. Bug Fixes:   - Fixed a crash on startup that could happen on Linux.   - Fixed a crash that could occur in some community test chambers using BEEMod on Linux.   - Fixed the credits being corrupted on Linux.   - Fixed the intro videos for acts 2 and 3 not playing on Linux.   - Fixed the game starting in the top left corner of the screen on Linux.   - Fixed a crash in the PeTI if you placed a light strip above a laser catcher on the floor and linked it to a fizzler.   - Fixed the fizzler not playing the retract animation when turned off in new PeTI maps.   - Fixed being able to copy 'uncopyable' items in the PeTI leading to invalid/broken levels.   - Fixed some items in PeTI not maintaining their portalability state when expanding the chamber boundaries.   - Fixed a crash if PeTI avatars could not be retrieved.   - Fixed Cave Johnson's lines not progressing when playing queued workshop levels.   - Fixed a memory leak that could occur when changing levels.   - Fixed a bug where you could no longer ping/taunt via mouse/keyboard if you have ever used a controller.   - Fixed the ping menu being visible when quick pinging on controller.   - Fixed the game instructor not respecting input types for respective players in split-screen mode.   - Fixed rumble not being respected for respective players in split-screen mode.   - Fixed the wrong avatar being used if playing coop after playing a workshop level.   - Fixed the OnFiredPortal2 output not firing.   - Fixed some text being duplicated on the screen multiple times.

An update has been released for Portal 2 Authoring Tools. - Fixed the Publishing Tool failing to display any workshop item with an ID too large to fit into 32 bits.

An update has been released for Portal 2. - Fixed issue with recent workshop maps that prevented voting on them or advancing past them in the quick queue. - Fixed workshop map thumbnails not loading in the community map voting dialog. - Removed workshop map download limits for subscribed maps introduced in the last update, and increased the limit for the history queue to 500 by default. The history queue size is also now a convar, cm_max_history_chambers, so it can be increased if desired.

An update has been released for Portal 2. - Fixed controller input bugs in Puzzlemaker. - Fixed a graphics bug on some DirectX 10 level hardware. - Updated localization strings.

An update has been released for Portal 2. - Fixed a potential RCE exploit when processing voice data. Reported via HackerOne. - Fixed some controller input bugs in authoring tools. - Updated localization strings.

An update has been released for Portal 2 Windows - Fixed an issue where in-game audio caption language would use the system language setting instead of the Steam language setting. Controller support - Improved camera control through Steam Input – the sensitivity scale has changed so you may need to increase your configuration’s sensitivity. - Add local coop support for one controller player and one Mouse/Keyboard player. - Add local coop support from the community coop map queue. Quickplay is still not supported. - Fix XInput related options being hidden when connecting a Steam Input enabled controller using a Gamepad configuration. - Fix the challenge mode screen not having enough footer buttons available through Steam Input. - Fix several more bugs where the incorrect action set could be set in Steam Input. - Fix several cases where having a controller connected but not active would affect the glyphs and settings screen options.

LEGO Dimensions is available now and features a ton of Lego-ized Portal content. Chell once again matches wits with GLaDOS and Wheatley inside Aperture Labs, only this time she teamed up with Batman and Gandalf.

Check it out here.

It seems Dota 2 and Team Fortress 2 have launched Merchandise Workshops, where the community can submit, vote on and sell their own non-virtual, actually real t-shirts and posters. And so far, the response from their communities has been overwhelmingly positive. So we thought: What if we applied that same idea, but to a good game, with a smarter, more attractive community? Introducing the Portal Merchandise Workshop, where you can heroes can bravely design their own Portal universe concepts.

"But what if my ideas are bad and I don't have any talent?" you ask. Don't sweat it, you're still covered.

Are you sitting down? If not, you should sit down. Okay, are you sitting down now? Because you should probably actually be lying down for this: As of right this moment, we are giving all current owners of Portal 2 a 75% off Portal 2 coupon. If you're standing back up, dusting yourself off and wondering why you'd want another copy of a game you already own, lie back down real quick because here's the lie-down part: We just added co-op to the Perpetual Testing Initiative.

That's right: Puzzle creators can now design and publish co-op maps, which puzzle players can now greedily consume. Well, as long as they have a co-op partner. Which the 75% off coupon should help them (i.e.: you) find. We've also added a "Quick Play" feature that creates never-ending, auto-generated playlists of the top-rated maps in a variety of categories. It has literally never been easier to figuratively jump in and literally play some Portal.

Thanks to an anonymous tech at NASA, Wheatley is actually going to actual space. This Friday at 10:06 EST, the Japanese HTV-3 resupply craft to the ISS will launch the above panel into space. Though mankind will surely regret giving Wheatley a celestial perch to plot his next move, we here at Valve are mostly just impressed with NASA's bold, unprecedented resupply craft numbering scheme. And please note that when we mentioned an "anonymous tech at NASA" we weren't kidding: NASA in no way officially endorses secretly laser-engraving characters from Portal onto their spacecraft. Believe it or not, they don't even officially endorse Portal 2, despite the fact that it's a really excellent game.

You can watch the launch here beginning at 9:15 EST / 6:15 PST.

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html

The Perpetual Testing Initiative (PeTI) is live! Even though most of you will be getting your first sweet taste of test chamber construction today, a lucky few of you have already been beta testing for the last couple of months. An unfair head start? You bet. But it's thanks to this massive injustice that you have a ton of great test chambers to solve on launch day.

In fact, one of the beta testers made so many great maps that we've decided to award him the first ever Aperture Science Employee of the Moment Certificate for his provisional excellence in the field of test chamber construction. Congratulations, Mevious! Enjoy it while it lasts.


Those of you interested in checking out Mevious' terrific maps can get them all at once by subscribing to them at this collection page. Make sure to also Follow Mevious on his Workshop author page so you can keep track of what he makes in the future.

Remember, the next employee of the moment could be YOU! That's right: transient fame and fleeting fortune could be yours. Dethrone the tyrant Mevious! He's been on top for too long. He's getting soft, and you're hungry. Be like Rocky in all the Rocky movies. Except for Rocky I, where he lost (unless you're counting victories of the heart, which won't win you any awards from us). Or Rocky VI, where it was a show fight and didn't count. In fact, just focus on Rocky IV. The last half.

Dun.

Dun dun dun.

Dun dun dahhhhhhh...

TO: All Aperture employees
FROM: Cave Johnson

COMPANY MEMORANDUM

Cave Johnson here. Your boss. It's come to my attention that some of you are concerned after receiving my all-staff memo yesterday ("You: Design Test Chambers or You're Fired"). So to put your minds at ease, let me clarify: You are not mentally ill and you did read the memo just fine. It was real. You should be designing test chambers, right now and at all times, or by God I will fire you.

Having said that, let's be honest: Some of you are incapable of designing a test chamber, whatever the motivation. You're only getting marginally better results than a dog would. Worse, actually. A dog designing even a substandard test chamber'd be pretty damned impressive, let's not kid ourselves.

But don't worry, you're not fired yet. It turns out there's an even better job you can do instead of being fired: Getting launched into an infinite series of alternate Earths to evaluate all the test chambers your smarter coworkers are making.

Wait, it gets better: I'll be right there with you. Every step of the way, whether the tests work or not, Cave'll be by your side, facing whatever life-threatening dangers we might run into out there. And even better, I won't actually physically be there. I'll be here, talking into a microphone, from complete and total safety. That way the people who'll be monitoring whether you're still alive won't have to split their focus worrying about me.

So there you have it. Everyone's useful in the Perpetual Testing Initiative. Except Peter Jenkins, which brings me to the point of this memo: Pete, you're fired.

Alright, that should wrap it up. Everybody except Pete get back to work when this sentence finishes... now.

The gaming press have chimed in on our new free Puzzle Maker, available May 8th, and the verdict is unanimous: It is NOT complicated to make your very own Portal test chambers. "Easy to use," says IGN's Charles Onyette. "Satisfying and easy," adds 1UP's Chris Pereira. "Possibly the easiest level editor known to man," claims NOW Gamer's Adam Barnes.

Wow! Is our Puzzle Maker really this easy to use, or are these guys just bald-faced liars? Let's find out, and try to make a playable map in only FIVE STEPS.

Here's the basic map template you start with. Note: This is not step one. On the left, you can select from any of the puzzle elements from Portal 2.



Okay, now we're at Step One. If you have a friend helping you count, tell them to start now. Let's choose a big red button and place it somewhere on the map.



Step Two: Connect the button to the door.



Oh, man, we're already up to two steps. We better get moving. Seriously, we might have over-promised on this.

Step Three: Surprise! We're throwing this step away. That's how confident we are.

Step Four: Now we're looking at this picture of Gabe someone made in the Puzzle Maker.



Step Five: Now we're going to rebuild our map to see it in action.



Seconds later, it works! We did it. The gaming press are not liars.*

Here we are solving the puzzle:



So we built a test chamber: Now what? It's time to publish it to the Steam Workshop. You can share your puzzle with everyone, or just share it with friends, or even keep it private until you think it's ready.


This is obviously a very, very, very, simple map. But don't worry: the Puzzle Maker is as powerful as it is easy to use. You'll be designing complex brain-busters in no time, trust us. In fact, you don't even have to trust us.

The Perpetual Testing Initiative's still in beta, and people have already been hard at work making great science.





* About this specifically.

Three months ago Skyrim unleashed the Creation Kit on Steam. Not only did it let users create amazing mods for an amazing game, it allowed them to browse, download, and share those mods using the Steam Workshop.

Now we're introducing the Perpetual Testing Initiative (PeTI), which combines a powerful, easy-to-use Puzzle Maker with full Steam Workshop integration, and will be available free for the PC and Mac on May 8th.

The Steam Workshop, which lets users publish and download custom mods, is now available for Skyrim. To celebrate, Valve and Bethesda have teamed up to bring you a mod called "Fall of the Space Core, Vol. 1", which'll let the aggressively space-centric little robot tag along on your adventures in Tamriel.

Also, since Skyrim was the only major release of 2011 without Nolan North in it, you should consider this mod a patch to fix that problem. You can now feel free to include Skyrim in the "Nolan North" section of your video game library, which is to say, your video game library.