Updates:

I'm trying to get gold medals in all of the challenges. Goodness, some of them are tough. But do-able.

Something interesting... I'm pretty sure there's a way to do Challenge 13 with ZERO portals. First, watch this. Then, understand that the first two portals he used were unnecessary: It's possible to jump off the button just right and be able to barely grab the cube from below without using any portals (illustrated here, I was able to replicate it after a few tries). Edit: Now that I think about it, I'm not sure how one would get up to the ledge without a portal. Maybe it can't be done.

Another fun one is the "use the camera to jam the door open trick" shown here. I discovered that trick very early on (I alluded to having done it in my very first post on this thread). But this guy takes it a step further and succesfully flings the security camera into the doorway from a distance, whereas I had to carefully balance the camera against the door seam then hop up to the button.

Finally, Vixy and I have come to a conclusion about the game's setting and how it fits into the HL2 universe. Take the following quote from GLaDOS at the end:

Quote:
Are you trying to escape? *warped laughter* Things have changed since you last left the building. Whats going on out there is going to make you wish you were back in here. I have an infinite capacity for knowledge, and even I'm not sure what's going on outside. All I know is that I'm the only thing standing between us and them. Unless you have the parts to build a new supercomputer, this place isn't going to be safe much longer. Nice job on that, by the way.

Clearly, you were in the stasis chamber during the Black Mesa incident, and GLaDOS has been managing to keep the various Xen baddies out of Aperture labs the whole time.

Vixy realized this morning that certain lines in the Coulton song hint to this as well:

"When I look out there it makes me glad I'm not you."
...
"While you're dying, I'll be still alive."


Can't wait until Episode 3.