The Greatest Creative Thinking Game Ever
Lo and behold, the greatest creative thinking game ever created has been released, and if you are trying to be a more creative thinker it should be on your hard drive right now, and you should have already played it several times through and learned all the tricks, and applied them metaphorically in your professional life.
For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, the game is called Portal.
Portal ships with the mega-popular Orange Box from Valve Software but is available as a stand-alone product for about $20. It is unlike any game ever produced save the freeware game that inspired it, Narbacular Drop.
In a nutshell - you are a test subject in a multi-level experiment facility, and you have to navigate through the levels with the help of your portal device. Rather than try to describe it in detail, I provide a teaser video that introduces the gameplay:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wb7aDZeO_MQ]
The basic game provides many interesting problems for you to solve. But it’s not until you reach the advanced bonus levels that you find the true value of this game.
The advanced levels provide additional challenges - like how to navigate an already-solved level in the fastest time, or using the fewest portals, or using the least steps. “The first time I did this it took 12 portals - how might I do it using only two?”
In solving these challenges, you see how the game designers set up the levels to deceive you - you assume that certain level elements are necessary for success, only to find that they are mere distractions.
A level that you had previously solved in minutes with a variety of moves and tactics might only take seconds once you have to refocus on minimizing portals or steps. Refocusing on specific problem areas provides the perspective needed to create better solutions.
You cut out the stuff that’s not necessary and focus on the stuff that really matters (that’s a Level 4 change for those paying attention).
Portal provides a near-perfect metaphor for real-life creative problem solving.
What are you waiting for? Go get this game. Now.
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[...] is the greatest creative thinking game of all time. Solve puzzles creatively in order to survive. Focusing on minimizing moves, portals, and time [...]
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