Brainstorming!

[willbedone.livejournal.com]

Brains! Storming! Much like the rain outside only it's more brainy than watery and more about creative ideas than puddles. Can you have puddles of creative ideas? Who knows? Maybe this is the sort of thing to brainstorm about?

BUT NOT BEFORE THE OCD IS UP OR I CUT YOU.

Also LJ, which is being a total jerk today.

OCD is up! Storm away! Don't forget to check out previous ideas should you wish to.

Comments

Re: Specific Stuff

[brat_inslayage]

I actually do have a specific idea! But it could stand to be a lot more specific, and so I'm finally going to throw it out here.

For a long, long time I've been wanting to figure out a way to make Portal into a BDE-type event. (We sort of did this in a Laser Tag Adventures class once.) My basic idea was that GLaDOS, the narcissistic, passive-aggressive, pleasantly cheerful-sounding yet murderous AI antagonist of the games, takes over the Danger Shop and turns it into Aperture Science 2.0, and somehow kidnaps a bunch of students with the intent of running them through the tests a la Chell in the games.

The secondary idea was this: what if GLaDOS gets the idea to use -- and therefore abduct -- some of the island's powered students as test subjects, because that presents a whole new realm of challenge to SCIENCE? (Or because it defies SCIENCE! and therefore must be rationalized/explained away. Hashing out specific motivations is a secondary concern right now.) That way, it falls on the unpowered kids to get through the test chambers and rescue the kidnapped students, using nothing but portal guns, the long-fall boots that keep test subjects from landing on their heads/breaking anything, and their own wits. Co-Op Mode in Portal 2 exists now, so there's more basis for structuring this as a team rescue event.

Now, in the games, the test chambers have little hidden areas, usually full of creepy graffiti and evidence that someone was hiding out in there; I'm thinking this can translate pretty well into places the abductees can be kept. There's also the opportunity for multiple challenge levels depending on what people feel their participating characters can handle: the basic puzzle chambers, the ones that involve a lot of jumping, and the ones with the laser turrets shooting at you (and since this is the Danger Shop, I can think of a couple of ways that can be glitched so the turrets are non-lethal). One team per test chamber, looking for a specific number of abductees.

Alternately, for people who don't want to do the finale team thing, there's always the option of just blundering into test chambers alone or in groups for one-off fun.

Here's where I run into problems, or can't decide on things:
- How does GLaDOS get to the island, and into the Danger Shop computer?
- Using the obvious reference, is it connected to Portalocity somehow?
- Does that present an opportunity for building some fun Portalocity-related backstory, or open a can of worms we probably shouldn't?
- Once she gets to the island and into the computer, how is she going to kidnap students? She's still just an AI, after all, and doesn't have control of the entire island. I'm thinking something along the lines of hacking into the computer systems somehow and luring people/getting them to lure other people into Aperture Science the Danger Shop. Not sure on that point though.
- Is there a way we can expand this beyond the Danger Shop somehow, so it's not so highly localized, and therefore people might have more reason to accidentally blunder into a test chamber for random portal-shooting fun?
- Going off the idea of Nemesis Island and the island's subterranean travel machinery, could there be some kind of alternate Fandom that was Aperture Science's super-sekrit backup facility?

This is where my idea breaks down, basically. I think it would be a lot of fun if done right; I just can't quite connect all the dots as to how to do it right.

Re: Specific Stuff

[bat-spawn.livejournal.com]

No answers here yet (though I will ponder) but Joss Whedon's Astonishing X-Men comes to mind, where the Danger Room becomes sentient and tries to kill the X-Men. I'd have to reread the story to remember the specifics, but possibly we could steal elements from that for a Portal plot?

Re: Specific Stuff

[gladigotburned.livejournal.com]

Become sentient and try to kill people? Who does things like that? I'd only be trying to help you.

Re: Specific Stuff

[bat-spawn.livejournal.com]

Perhaps that's why your dormant AI would take over the Danger system at that time. No reason to waste perfectly good test subjects. (Unless they're disobedient, of course.)

Re: Specific Stuff

[gladigotburned.livejournal.com]

Oh, I like you. You say what I'm thinking.

[[Oh dear god, that's terrifying.]]

Re: Specific Stuff

[mouthy-merc.livejournal.com]

Does this mean Ender's Jane and Tony's evil suit of armor need to be jealous?


Portal - Still Alive (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3abz2_portal-still-alive_news) by kezox (http://www.dailymotion.com/kezox)

Or point and laugh at the inevitable demise?

Re: Specific Stuff

[brat_inslayage]

DIGITAL POPCORN ALL AROUND.

Although getting the AIs involved somehow might be highly entertaining.

Re: Specific Stuff

[endsthegame]

Oh god, if GLaDOS snagged Ender, Jane would make sure there was hell to pay.

SHE IS SLIGHTLY PROTECTIVE.

...THE WAY GLaDOS IS SLIGHTLY PSYCHOTIC.

Re: Specific Stuff

[bat-spawn.livejournal.com]

Also, Portalocity is perhaps the result of technology stolen from Aperture Science. (By Black Mesa? I don't know Half Life canon well enough to know if that works.)

Re: Specific Stuff

[batwaffles.livejournal.com]

I was thinking something along those lines! There's also plenty of space in the backstory fleshed out in Portal 2 for that sort of thing (disgruntled ex-employee of Cave Johnson's, maybe?) but I hesitate to be too spoilery about the second game yet.

Re: Specific Stuff

[brat_inslayage]

Oh, I should probably note (for the benefit of anyone who hasn't played the games) that while going through the test chambers, you'd be subjected to constant, biting commentary from GLaDOS.

She likes to taunt test subjects. A lot.