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Aperture Science Personality Construct

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For other uses, see Sphere (disambiguation).

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Personality Construct composite.jpg
Personality Construct
General information
Faction

Aperture Science

Type

Configurable artificial intelligence

Usage
Used by
Game information
Entity
Designer(s)

Jeremy Bennett (appearance)

Voiced by
"The Enrichment Center reminds you that although circumstances may appear bleak, you are not alone. All Aperture Science personality constructs will remain functional in apocalyptic, low power environments of as few as 1.1 volts."
Announcer[src]

The Aperture Science Personality Constructs, also known as Personality Cores or Personality Spheres, are independent spheres containing artificial intelligence created by Aperture Science for a wide range of usage in the Enrichment Center. As the name implies, these robots have a personality of their own.

Alongside the Nanobots, they are the backbones of the facility.

Overview[edit]

Design[edit]

Personality Cores are typically stored within a case equipped with two handles, above and under, which fits around the Core itself. They have a large, single eye (supposedly a camera), with a color related to its function, a pupil varying in size, and a varying number of dots at each side of the eye. The Core can move in all directions independently from its case, allowing it to see in every direction not hidden by the case. In the back of the Core, a three pin plug to connect it to computer terminals can typically be found. Personality Cores also seem to be very solid and robust devices, as they do not seem to be affected by long falls, and at the end of Portal 2 it is demonstrated that they can function normally in a vacuum.

Wheatley while still attached to an arm on the Management Rail.

In Portal 2, Wheatley states that a Personality Core is never to disengage itself from its ceiling rail, otherwise it will kill itself. It proves to be untrue when Wheatley still functions after his fall. When Chell detaches all of GLaDOS' Cores in Portal, they also continue functioning and actually do not display their proper personality before being detached. While a detached core cannot move, it appears to have some sort of internal energy store that lasts a long time. The Aperture Science Apocalypse announcements indicate that in the event of the collapse of society, Aperture Science Personality constructs are designed to function on power sources as low as 1.1 volts for protracted periods of time.

As demonstrated by Wheatley, there is also a flashlight on the side of a Personality Core's case, seemingly for use if the Core ends up in a low-light environment. For unknown reasons, Cores were apparently told they would also die if they used the flashlight. It's unknown if there is actually any negative side-effect of using the flashlight or if this was just to prevent them from using it, although it appears that the latter is true.

When Chell detaches all of GLaDOS' Cores in Portal, the Cores are flung to different locations once GLaDOS is hit with a rocket. Despite no longer being physically attached to GLaDOS, they appear to be still linked to her somehow with a greenish, semi-transparent beam/thread. It is only when grabbed by Chell and destroyed in the Emergency Intelligence Incinerator that their effect on GLaDOS stops (In Portal 2, the Personality Cores only affect Wheatley when attached to it). GLaDOS is also equipped with four discs and four servers installed in the entrance of her chamber. These may be related to her Personality Cores, but it is unknown to what extent. The The Orange Box Prima Guide states that these four discs "represent each aspect" of her Personality Cores, but it is unknown what that means exactly.

Cores are not foolproof and can become corrupted. Using these corrupt cores to control another will also corrupt that core in the process. Several of these corrupted cores were seen in Portal 2: the "Space Core," a yellow core with a rapidly dilating pupil who speaks enthusiastically and disjointedly about space; the "Adventure Core" (who also claims his name is "Rick"), a green core with a cat-like pupil and highly macho personality who attempts to flirt with Chell; and the "Fact Core," a pink core with a large round pupil who spews random (and often very inaccurate) trivia while also claiming to be superior to the other two corrupted cores. Wheatley himself had already become partly corrupted prior to his fight with Chell. The Space Core puts him on 50% corruption, the Adventure Core on 75% and the Fact Core on 100%, effectively preventing him from doing any further actions without shutting him down fully in the process.

All cores appear to have a built-in failsafe that prevents them from telling the Test Subjects how to solve a test, as when they attempt to do so, they receive a jolt of pain, as GLaDOS partly explained and Wheatley demonstrated in one test chamber.

Function[edit]

GLaDOS and the Cores plugged onto her.

In Portal, the Personality Cores are introduced on GLaDOS, who is dotted with four of these types: the Morality Core, a purple core with a rather dilated pupil and two dots installed onto her to stop her from flooding the Enrichment Center with neurotoxin; the Curiosity Core, an orange core with an average size pupil and four dots that is insatiably curious about everything around it (it even recognizes Chell as "the lady from the tests"); the Cake Core, a blue core with a very dilated pupil and six dots that gives a twisted cake recipe, and the Anger Core, a red core with a rather small pupil and eight dots that emits angry growling sounds.

According to GLaDOS in Portal 2, the cores restricted her by injecting their thoughts into her process. She stresses that after she regains the awareness of her Genetic Lifeform component, Caroline, that it was a very different feeling to hear her own voice expressing these morals instead of the voices of the Cores. She also mentions that when Wheatley was originally attached to her prior to the events of Portal, he was a Core that would force her into doing the dumbest ideas as a means of controlling her.

Whenever the Cores are not connected to the Central A.I. system or are one themselves, they are confined to ceiling rails dubbed as Management Rails, allowing traveling around the facility. They can be linked to computer terminals to reposition a test chamber's panels, accessing mainframes, or to activate breaker-room elevators. While some Personality Cores have very basic functions like in Portal, some are capable of being sentient independently, and are able to learn from their experiences and display human-like traits. Wheatley and GLaDOS would express various feelings such as enthusiasm, fear, or anger, in an advanced way. The cores also are able to simulate the feeling of pain and will react to surges of electricity running through their circuits as displayed by Wheatley. One of GLaDOS' taunts in Portal also mentions that the difference between her and Chell in Portal was that she could feel pain.

Other purposes[edit]

The Rocket Turret firing a rocket at Chell through a portal.

Sometime during the events of the singleplayer campaign in Portal 2, ATLAS and P-body, two robots made out of scraps are used in couples in Testing Tracks as part of the Cooperative Testing Initiative by GLaDOS. One of them, apparently with masculine personality (ATLAS), was built from a modified Personality Core.[2] Although, the other with feminine personality (P-body), upon blueprints seen during game loading times implies that the interior of its eye is very much similar to a Personality Core. Apparently, it was later confirmed that they are both Cores when GLaDOS stresses on them on how their Cores were based on "basic calculators".

The Rocket Turret, the fifth known type of a basic Core, also appears to be a Personality Core mounted on a moving arm and equipped with a rocket launcher. Instead of talking, it emits beeps before projecting its rockets. It also has three colors instead of only one, related to its different modes (green: idle, yellow: locked on target; red: firing). The size of its pupil is similar to that of the Anger Core.

Storage and disposal[edit]

At the end of Portal, numerous Personality Cores stored around the promised cake and a Companion Cube can be seen waking up. During the time that elapsed between Portal and Portal 2, these Personality Cores carved out sections of the neglected Enrichment Center as their own, while traveling around the facility via the laboratory ceiling rails they are confined to.[2]

At the conclusion of Portal 2, a large bin of corrupted cores is discovered before the final encounter with Wheatley, three of which are used as a means of corrupting him and forcing a core replacement.

Notable cores[edit]

Since almost all sentient machinery in the Enrichment Center are generated from Personality Cores, including Sentry Turrets, Rocket Turrets, and both ATLAS and P-body, there are only few cores that were designed to handle the more operational duties in the facility.

Their names are either given by other characters or in the sentence names from the subtitle files. They are listed by their order of appearance.

Portal[edit]

GLaDOS[edit]

GLaDOS in the Portal 2 Central AI Chamber.
Main article: GLaDOS

Appears in: Portal, Portal 2, Poker Night 2, Portal Pinball, Lego Dimensions

The main antagonist of Portal and the first half of the single player campaign in Portal 2, she is a murderous sentient computer system and is a yellow-eyed core that is significantly different in shape from other cores, being of a "half-cylinder" shape and without any coating. She was primarily designed to handle the Central Core body, therefore handling all responsibilities for the Enrichment Center. Once in the body, she loses all memories she had from her Genetic Lifeform component, Caroline.

"Do NOT plug that little idiot into MY mainframe."
― GLaDOS, on Wheatley[src]

When Wheatley takes control of the Central Core body in Portal 2, he opts for installing her into a potato battery. From there, until she was plugged back into her body at the end of the game, she was known as "PotatOS".[3]

"'Yes, sir, Mister Johnson...' Why did I just-Who is that? What the HELL is going on he----?"
― PotatOS[src]

Morality Core[edit]

GLaDOS' Morality Core.

Appears in: Portal, Portal 2: Lab Rat

This purple-eyed core was installed onto GLaDOS to control her from flooding the Enrichment Center with neurotoxin. It neither speaks nor moves around, even when held. However in Portal 2, GLaDOS comments about hearing the voices of others giving her morals. This means the Morality Core was merely instructing her programming. In the Portal 2: Lab Rat comic, Doug Rattmann notes that, even with a moral awareness, a human being can still ignore its own morals and doubted that the Morality Core was enough to keep GLaDOS under control. His doubts in the core were well-founded.

"Good news: I figured out what that thing that you just incinerated did. It was a Morality Core they installed after I flooded the Enrichment Center with a deadly neurotoxin to make me stop flooding the Enrichment Center with a deadly neurotoxin."
― GLaDOS[src]

Curiosity Core[edit]

GLaDOS' Curiosity Core.

Appears in: Portal

Named as such in Portal 2: The Official Guide and the Portal subtitles, it is an orange-eyed core with a very inquisitive mind. It constantly looks around, repeatedly questions about things it sees, people it meets and pretty much everything else in a high-pitched, child-like voice. According to GLaDOS, she only kept Chell alive out of curiosity until the Curiosity Core was destroyed.

"Who are you? What is that? Oh, what's that? What's that? What is THAT? Ooh, that thing has numbers on it! Hey, look at THAT thing! No, that other thing. Ewww, what's wrong with your legs? Where are we going? Are you coming back? Oh hey, you're the lady from the test! Hi! What's that noise? Is that a gun? Where are we going? Oh, what's in here?"
― Curiosity Core[src]

Knowledge Core[edit]

GLaDOS' Knowledge Core.

Appears in: Portal, Lego Dimensions

Named as such in Portal 2: The Official Guide, it is also known as the "Crazy Core" in the Portal subtitles and sometimes referred to the "Intelligence Core" by the community, its first in-game name, "Cake Core", was given in Lego Dimensions. Its eye is light blue and has a heavily dilated pupil. When held, it lazily rolls around and around in its shell, reciting a long cake recipe (hence its Lego Dimensions name) containing dozens of unusual and often inedible ingredients. When the core's voice is pitched up by about 20 percent, it becomes GLaDOS' voice. This could be part of the reason why she was obsessed with cake. It is also, therefore, possible that the destruction of this core was the reason why GLaDOS makes no direct mention of cake in Portal 2.

Given its name, it seems likely that this core became corrupted, causing it to spout out a disjointed cake recipe.

"Fish shaped organic compounds and sediment shaped sediment."
― Knowledge Core[src]

Emotion Core[edit]

GLaDOS' Emotion Core.

Appears in: Portal, Portal 2: Lab Rat, Lego Dimensions

Named as such in Portal 2: The Official Guide, it is also referred to as the Anger Core in the Portal sound files and end credits and the Aggressive Core in the Portal subtitles, it is a red-eyed sphere with a shrunken pupil that twitches and shakes around madly, growling and snarling incoherently like a wild animal all the time. This core may be the source, or at least part of the source, of GLaDOS' fury.

"*GROWL*"
― Emotion Core[src]

Party Escort Bot[edit]

The Party Escort Bot.
Main article: Party Escort Bot

Appears in: Portal, Portal 2: Lab Rat

This Construct brings Chell back into the Enrichment Center at the end of Portal. Originally absent from the end of the game, it was added in the game as a retcon during the Portal ARG.

"Thank you for assuming the party escort submission position."
― Party Escort Bot[src]

Portal 2[edit]

Intelligence Dampening Core (Wheatley)[edit]

Wheatley.
Main article: Wheatley

Appears in: Portal 2, Portal Pinball, Lego Dimensions

A blue-eyed Intelligence Dampening Core, it is one of the main characters of Portal 2. Wheatley helps Chell escape the facility for the first half of the game, then turns against her to replace GLaDOS as the antagonist of the game. According to GLaDOS, he was one of the cores put onto her to see how she would react. It worked by putting foolish thoughts into her head, preventing intelligent thoughts.

GLaDOS stressed how moronic this core was, having been created to be the biggest moron known to mankind and described his stupidity as like a tumor. Oddly, despite his lack of intelligence, he is quite logical on occasions, but often is quite blunt on his resolutions and doesn't think things through thoroughly.

"Don't worry, I'm absolutely guaranteeing you 100 percent that it's this way... Oh it's not this way."
― Wheatley[src]

Space Core[edit]

The Space Core.

Appears in: Portal 2, Lego Dimensions

Named by the Fact Core, the Space Core is a yellow-eyed corrupt core who lets off sparks as it twitches. It speaks rapidly and endlessly about space and space-related activities. At the end of Portal 2, when it is floating in space with Wheatley, it repeats "I'm in space! So much space! We're in space!" It does not however seem to know much about space, despite being obsessed with it.

"Dad! I'm in space! [low-pitched 'space' voice] I'm proud of you, son. [normal voice] Dad, are you in space? [low-pitched 'space' voice] Yes. Now we are a family again."
― Space Core[src]

Judging from the available voice samples and subtitles, it appears the Space Core becomes fearful of space after a while. Once that happens, it decides that it wants to go back to Earth.

"Earth. Wanna go to earth. Wanna go to earth wanna go to earth wanna go to earth wanna go to earth. Wanna go to earth. Wanna go home. Wanna go home wanna go home wanna go home wanna go home. Earth earth earth. Don't like space. Don't like space. It's too big. Too big. Wanna go home. Wanna go to earth."
― Space Core[src]

However, the lines were cut from the final game but are present in the game files.

Adventure Core (Rick)[edit]

Rick.

Appears in: Portal 2, Lego Dimensions

Named "Adventure" Core by the Fact Core and calling himself "Rick", it is a green-eyed corrupt core whose iris appears pixellated, rather than a solid light like the other cores. Its pupil is rectangular in shape. Besides having a proud and boastful male voice, it claims its name is "Rick," and that it enjoys thrills and danger, and even attempts to flirt with Chell during the final battle. When "Rick" is first seen, it is hanging and swinging on a wire, in a manner not unlike that which would be expected from an archetypal adventurer coming to the rescue. At the conclusion of the battle, "Rick" is the first core to be sucked into Space, though he is not seen with Wheatley and the Space Core after the credits.

"I'll tell ya, it's times like this I wish I had a waist so I could wear all my black belts. Yeah, I'm a black belt. In pretty much everything. Karate. Larate. Jiu Jitsu. Kick punching. Belt making. Taekwondo... Bedroom."
― Rick[src]

If the Player, during the final boss fight, holds onto Rick for long enough, He will mention "Saying a good line". He then tells the Player to get Wheatley to say "You've been a thorn in my side for long enough". Upon saying this, after the Fact Core is attached, Wheatley will yell this line at the Player, causing Rick to answer "Yeah? Well this thorn is about to take you down! Man that sounded a lot better in my head"

Fact Core[edit]

The Fact Core.

Appears in: Portal 2

Also named by itself, it is pink-eyed corrupt core who speaks like a stereotypical know-it-all, rapidly rattling off multiple historical and scientific facts of varying reliability. It also boasts about its own intellect and appearance while dismissing the other two cores.

"To make a photocopier, simply photocopy a mirror."
― Fact Core[src]

Lego Dimensions[edit]

Amorality core[edit]

The amorality core

Appears in: Lego Dimensions

A red-eyed core installed on GLaDOS inbetween the levels "GLaD to See You" and "The End is Tri." It replaces the Morality Core and causes her to attempt to kill Batman and Gandalf without hesitation, but she is forced to stop once Wyldstyle removes the amorality core and plugs the Morality Core on her once again.

"Help? Ha. Ha. Ha. Tell it to my morality core. Oh that's right - it was removed and replaced with an *amorality* core instead. Which will make what I am about to do to you so much easier."
― GLaDOS[src]

During the ending, once the song "You Wouldn't Know" ends, the amorality core can be seen coming out of a portal and falling in front of GLaDOS.

Cave Johnson core[edit]

Appears in: Lego Dimensions

A much more primitive core with a yellow eye resembling the old Aperture logo which Cave Johnson managed to transfer his consciousness into before dying of Moon rock-poisoning. He ended up locking himself in the depths of Aperture Science, however, and stayed there unbeknownst to everyone else.

"Hey. Hey you. Test Subject? Caroline? Anyone? It's me, Cave Johnson. This is NOT a pre-recorded message. Being the genius I am, I managed to get myself in to a shiny core body and I've been locked in here ever since. I think I'm hungry but I can't really tell."
― Cave Johnson core[src]

Once freed, he states he would thank whoever helped him if it wasn't a test subject who should be undergoing tests instead of being there.

"I would say thank you... but the very fact you're here means you're slacking off! Get back to testing."
― Cave Johnson core[src]

Technology demos[edit]

Virtual Reality Assistance and Education Core[edit]

Appears in: SteamVR Tutorial

Hosts the tutorial of SteamVR, Steam's virtual reality feature.

Calibration Cores[edit]

Appear in: The Lab

32 in total, they are used in the Core Calibration Unit used in the Slingshot minigame. Unlike the other talking Cores, their components are static, they have no handles, and their body is split into 6 domes. Instead of the "eye" usually moving and blinking when other Cores talk, they instead use colored PPMs at the base of 2 of their domes that move when they talk.

Their names are either in the subtitle files or are stated in-games by themselves.

  • Auction Core
  • Big News Core
  • Boring Hard-Boiled Core (Wilson)
  • Butter Core (or "Ate a Butter" Core)
  • By the Book Core
  • Calibration Core
  • Climate Change Awareness Core
  • Convict Core
  • Emergency Preparedness Core
  • Executive Core
  • "Feels Right" Core
  • Fruit Punch Core
  • Heavy Core
  • Hellmouth Core
  • Horror Story Core
  • Investigation Core
  • Magic Core
  • Mourning Core
  • Pilot Core
  • Plague Core
  • Respect Core
  • Retirement Core
  • Reverse Psychology Core
  • Rhythmic Core
  • Rookie Core (Gil)
  • Skeptical Core
  • Snuggle Core
  • Soup Core
  • Spider Core
  • Supervillain Core
  • Tracer Core (Said to be an experimental core, it is given when hitting blue cubes and shows a trail, allowing an easier targeting. It is also the final boss of the hub side of the minigame Xortex 26XX.)
  • Work-From-Home Core (Trevor)

Fetchbot[edit]

Main article: Fetchbot

Appears in: The Lab

A dog-like robot, Fetchbot is an Item Retrieval Core used by Test Travelers.

Hand Cores[edit]

Appear in: Aperture Hand Lab

  • Angry Core (Alan)
  • Boss Core (Bill Cunningham)
  • Deceptive Core (Devin, or Deceptive Devin)
  • Friendly Core (Frank, or Friendly Frank)

Grady[edit]

Main article: Grady

Appears in: Aperture Desk Job

A core assigned to greet and instruct new employees at Aperture.

Other games[edit]

Paranoia Core[edit]

Appears in: Poker Night 2

The core is a bounty prize offered by GLaDOS in the non-canonical video game Poker Night 2. He speaks much like a stereotypical paranoid person, quickly and nervously. He is also identical in appearance to Wheatley.

"North Dakota officially seceded from the Union in 1997, but the airplane carrying the paperwork mysteriously disappeared over Lake Michigan, leaving the 39th state in perpetual legal limbo."
― Paranoia Core[src]

Wardcore[edit]

Appears in: Dota 2's Portal Pack

Core transfers[edit]

"To initiate a core transfer, please deposit substitute core in the receptacle."
― Aperture Science Announcement System[src]

When the cores become damaged, they usually develop problems. Some include a feedback loop, which causes them to have the same thoughts or processes over and over again, or multiple personalities, where a core will constantly switch between the personality of someone else and its own, or try and make sense of random data. When a core experiences these symptoms, the Aperture Science main computer (usually GLaDOS or Wheatley) cannot function properly; Therefore, a core transfer is needed. If an alternate core is present in the main computer chamber, the Aperture Science Announcement System will detect it and note that a core transfer may be needed and ask that an associate plug the replacement core into the Aperture Science Core Transfer Receptacle. It will then ask the cores if they would like to proceed with a core transfer. If both cores agree or disagree then the transfer will either continue or stop; However, if one core disagrees with the other, then a stalemate occurs and it is up to a qualified Stalemate Associate to decide if the core transfer procedure should continue or stop. To continue the transfer, the Stalemate Associate needs to press the Stalemate Resolution Button in a room just off the main computer chamber. Once pressed, the core transfer will proceed and the new core will be installed onto the main computer system. However, in one instance, the button did blow up when Wheatley tried to kill Chell. Defective cores are then taken to a storage space, most likely awaiting incineration or destruction.

(It should be noted that the button itself did not explode, but that Wheatley had concealed several bombs behind raised panels opposite of the Resolution Annex entrance, which he then detonated when the button is pressed. The bombs can be seen for only an instant when the panels are lowered just before being thrown backwards into the main chamber.)

Behind the scenes[edit]

The "Birth of Venus"-like GLaDOS with blue Cores.
  • The Personality Core went through several design iterations. At some point during development, the Cores were simple grey spheres attached to a large ring with an undetermined blue glowing matter, with GLaDOS being a large sphere above the ring. Later in development, they were glowing light blue spheres, hanging to a "Birth of Venus"-like GLaDOS,[4] until they were given their more detailed design with the different colors, reminiscent of a webcam design.
    • Interestingly, the first Ratman Den in Portal 2 contains a mural of GLaDOS's activation in which the the early light blue cores are attached to her.
  • Personality Cores play a more important role in Portal 2, as they appear to have rebuilt and transformed to Aperture Laboratories themselves. A Personality Core even fills the role of Chell's sidekick during the first part of the game, in the role of Wheatley.[2]
  • The Personality Core model is much more advanced in Portal 2, an example being the animation of Wheatley's model. While the Core itself is still independent from its case, the "face" has more unique plates that turn on themselves when the Core is achieving a task or has a particular emotion, and the eye is dotted with mock eyelids.[5]
  • The Final Hours of Portal 2 states that the inspiration for the Space Core came from a commercial for Oregon Coast Aquarium. Its striking similarities can be seen in the YouTube Video Oregon Coast Aquarium commercial.
  • The core with its flashlight stuck on above the pile of corrupted Personality Cores in sp_a4_finale4 reuses the Adventure Core's eye texture.
  • When Valve began working on the Peer Review DLC for Portal 2, they invisioned several ideas for a new single-player story. One was to include the Adventure Sphere teaming up with one of ATLAS and P-body, and a segment of this was to be set in outer space, following the Space Core. On the way this new duo was even to meet Cave Johnson's AI. However, they eventually decided to focus on a new story involving ATLAS and P-body instead, leaving the cores be.[6]

Gallery[edit]

Portal[edit]

Pre-release[edit]

Retail[edit]

Portal 2[edit]

Pre-release[edit]

Retail[edit]

Aperture Desk Job[edit]

Other[edit]

List of appearances[edit]

Main games[edit]

Other[edit]

References[edit]

Aperture Science Personality Construct
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Aperture Science Personality Construct
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