Crusher
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| Crusher | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Faction | |
| Type |
Hazardous testing element |
| Usage | |
| Used by | |
The crusher, also known as the masher, is a testing element with the sole purpose of killing or destroying Test Subjects.
Contents
Overview[edit]
Crushers consist of a thick spiked plate and an optional driving mechanism in the form of one or more pistons, a robotic arm, or a combination of both. In Portal 2's singleplayer campaign, only dynamic crushers are encountered, and any contact with them results in immediate death. In addition to those, the co-op mode also includes stationary spiked plates which deal either 2.5 points of damage every 0.5 second (10 points of damage if the subject is pressed into them via an Excursion Funnel) or destroy their victim instantly.[1]
Appearances[edit]
Portal 2[edit]
Crushers can first be spotted in the singleplayer campaign chapter The Courtesy Call. After GLaDOS is reawakened, they're seen during the fall from the Central AI Chamber to the Incinerator Room where they appear to serve as defective product smashers.
They are then formally introduced by Wheatley after he assumes power in the Enrichment Center in a death trap against Chell and GLaDOS. He claims to have invented them after deciding that flat steel plates weren't deadly enough. He also notes that he would like them to eventually shoot fire moments before crushing their victim. After the duo escapes the first death trap, Wheatley repeatedly attempts to use crushers to kill them and even tries to persuade Chell to jump into one located at the end of a conveyor belt.
When GLaDOS regains control over the Enrichment Center, she adapts crushers into the Cooperative Testing Courses. They appear in every Testing Course except for Hard-Light Surfaces.
Peer Review[edit]
Only a single crusher is encountered in the Art Therapy Testing Course. It unexpectedly smashes into the floor in front of ATLAS and P-body at the beginning of Test Chamber 01 while GLaDOS comments on its artistic value.
Lego Dimensions[edit]
Crushers appear in the GLaD to See You level of the game's campaign. Of note is their utilization in the boss battle, both by GLaDOS and the player.
The Lab[edit]
Crushers can be seen at the end of The Lab's Robot Repair experiment in a testing chamber the player is sent to when they eventually fail to perform their task.
Related Achievements[edit]
| Portal 2 | |
|---|---|
|
The Part Where He Kills You (20G) |
| This is that part. | |
Behind the scenes[edit]
Although it was not originally named, a moving ceiling with spikes was demonstrated in the earliest Portal trailer. It can also be seen in Portal: The Flash Version, remade by fans for Portal as Portal: The Flash Version MapPack. The first official title in which it is included and in which its name is revealed is Portal: Still Alive as it features some maps from The Flash Version MapPack.
Crushers are discussed several times in Portal 2's in-game commentary mode. Cayle George stated that there were to be several levels utilizing crushers in ways that made the test chambers more dangerous. After showing some of these levels in press demos, Valve received the feedback that viewers were getting the impression that Portal 2 was going to be too difficult since players would have to time events such as running or falling through a portal without getting hit by a deadly crusher. The team decided to save these for the escape when Wheatley tries to hold the player off.[2]
According to former Valve programmer Kutta Srinivasan, one of Wheatley's planned attacks during the final battle was to involve crushers. It wasn't implemented as it proved too punishing; players were focused on what Wheatley was doing and would often get hit by a crusher they weren't paying attention to.[2] Crushers can be seen in the concept art for the final battle and in a diagram by the boss fight's designer Phil Co.
Andrea Wicklund remarked that the co-op mode was to include an elaborate death animation for the crusher, showing its victim being slowly crushed under it. It proved to be too repetitive and therefore punishing and preventing players from taking risks, so the developers decided to work on creating a quick but nevertheless satisfying animation instead.[2]
An unused icon for the crusher can be found in the Perpetual Testing Initiative game files.
Trivia[edit]
In the Aperture Investment Opportunity #1: "Panels" promotional video, CEO Cave Johnson states that Aperture Science sells crushers. The crusher sequence here was animated and lit by Valve animator Joe Han.[3]
Gallery[edit]
Portal: Still Alive[edit]
Crusher sign.
Crusher in the map
stillalive_11.
Portal 2[edit]
Pre-release[edit]
Concept art showing crushers in Wheatley's lair.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Ditto.
Chamber full of crushers, concept from The Final Hours of Portal 2.
Early Propulsion Gel testing chamber with crushers.
Ditto, running pass with the speed from Propulsion Gel.
ATLAS and P-body facing crushers and lasers in the Portal 2 co-op trailer.
Having crushed ATLAS in Aperture Investment Opportunity #1: "Panels".
Ditto, being lifted up.
Retail[edit]
Crusher sign.
Crushers seen during Chell's fall to the Incinerator Room.
Crushers in Wheatley's death trap.
Wheatley using a crusher in subsequent attempts at killing Chell.
Crusher gauntlet in Test Chamber 07 of the Mass and Velocity Testing Course.
Crusher maze in Test Chamber 08 of the Excursion Funnels Testing Course.
Crushers in Test Chamber 05 of the Mobility Gels Testing Course.
Unused crusher icon in Perpetual Testing Initiative.
Other[edit]
Level 11 of Portal: The Flash Version, featuring a crusher.
Stationary crushers in Lego Dimensions.
GLaDOS using a crusher against the player.
Crushers destroying a neurotoxin tank.
Crushers at the end of the Robot Repair experiment.
List of appearances[edit]
Main games[edit]
- Portal 2
- Peer Review
- Perpetual Testing Initiative (Game files only) (Non-canonical appearance)
Other[edit]
- Portal: Still Alive (First appearance) (Non-canonical appearance)
- Lego Dimensions (Non-canonical appearance)
- Robot Repair
- The Lab
References[edit]
- ↑ Portal 2 Collector's Edition Guide, page 11
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Portal 2 commentary
- ↑ Joe Han Animation Demo Reel 2013 on Vimeo
