Portal Series Alternatives and Similar Games

The Talos Principle not only excels in its puzzle design but also in its deep narrative. You play as a robot in 1st or 3rd-person view in a detailed world with diverse environments, which aren’t forced to be seen in a linear fashion. Throughout the game you’ll collect sigils used for unlocking various areas to progress forward. Puzzles may consist of drones and other threats you have to avoid or deactivate while you use objects and devices to find a solution. The philosophical story is told through terminals and other forms that differ from the Portal games, and there are optional puzzles to beat for those who want an extra challenge. If you’re looking for another quality puzzle title, then The Talos Principle won’t disappoint.

There’s no doubt that The Witness looks absolutely stunning with its charming visual style. Jonathan Blow, the maker of Braid, together with his team has certainly put a lot of effort into creating a fantastic 1st-person experience. The designer went so far into ensuring The Witness reaches the intended vision that he even went into debt to finish the immersive puzzler. In the end, it was all worth it; The Witness has you solve hundreds of different grid-based puzzles on a beautiful open-world island where you must figure out how they work in order to complete them. There’s no dialogue, but various audio recordings can be heard as you explore further into the island. Overall, The Witness is a challenging title that will test your thinking as you patiently try to solve the many puzzles it has in store for you.

In The Turing Test, you don’t use a portal gun, but you do use a tool that can acquire energy spheres and place them in specific parts necessary to progress forward through the sci-fi environments. You play in 1st-person as an engineer named Ava Turing who investigates a space station in search of the crew assigned there. Throughout the game, you’ll also get to interact with other machinery, which may let you see locations from a different perspective. Coupled with a philosophical narrative, The Turing Test is an enjoyable short puzzle game where, similarly to the Portal games, you are guided by an AI, but here, the character you control actually talks, unlike Chell.

The 1st-person sci-fi Q.U.B.E. games rely on using special gloves to control colored cubes, each of which has their own function in the environment. This unique puzzle-solving gameplay is even more improved in the 2nd title that also opens up with more distinct areas. The games are relatively short, so if you’re looking for interesting puzzle games that don’t overstay their welcome, then you should make sure to check out these puzzlers.

Antichamber will melt your brain. Its unique gameplay is best not to be spoiled. The things we take for granted in real life simply don’t apply to this atmospheric title that will have you scratch you head multiple times. Throughout the game you’ll find various tools necessary to solve certain puzzles. Overall, Antichamber is a 1st-person challenging experience that definitely doesn’t disappoint.

Quantum Conundrum is a humorous 1st-person puzzler with a cartoonish art style where you must use a device to switch between dimensions which alter the laws of physics. These dimensions can, for example, make objects lighter, allowing you to move them. There are 5 dimensions, and the environmental puzzles you get to solve as you search for your uncle are fun. In fact, you’ll most likely enjoy it, as the lead designer of Portal, Kim Swift, actually worked on this charming title.

This 1st-person puzzle game puts you in a world where advanced technology and the monsters of Cthulhu collide to give you an experience that gets more and more intense the further you progress. Puzzles are solved using a glove that allows you to mark objects with colors. Objects with the same color will draw near to each other, while objects without the same colors move away from each other. This magnetic style of gameplay makes for some interesting puzzles to platform your way through.

The Stanley Parable is not a game that will make you think like the Portal games or other puzzlers do. Instead, this 1st-person story-driven title is all about choices. As Stanley, you’ll explore environments and choose what you do and where you go, whether to listen to the narrator or not. Every move you’re supposed to do and are doing is excellently narrated by a great British voice actor named Kevan Brighting. There are a ton of endings, and while gameplay pretty much consists of walking around, the top-notch writing and voice acting is what makes this comedic game a joy to play through. If you’re looking for a funny game, then The Stanley Parable is one you don’t want to miss.

This sci-fi puzzler not only features amazing puzzle gameplay, but also unique graphics that do a superb job at bringing you an atmospheric 2D journey. The visuals are made using clay and various other materials that help provide a fantastic look to the game. As for gameplay, The Swapper’s main mechanic is a device that lets you clone yourself at a position you aim at. More than one clone can be created, and you can take control of them in order to progress through areas you couldn’t otherwise be able to reach. If you don’t mind the fact that it’s played in 2D then this eerie, atmospheric puzzle-platformer will certainly keep you hooked from start to finish.