The Games Like Portal 2 Worth Playing: 14 Steam Picks

The best games like Portal 2 give you the same click of understanding: you stare at a room that seems impossible, try something odd, and suddenly the whole chamber makes sense. Portal 2 pairs that feeling with sharp writing, a sinister lab full of character and a co-op campaign that makes two players think as one. The picks below chase those strengths in different ways, from story-heavy puzzlers to games that bend perspective itself.

What makes Portal 2 so special?

Portal 2

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Before picking games like Portal 2, it helps to name what you’re actually after, because the game does several things at once. Valve built the whole thing around one tool: a gun that places two linked portals on suitable surfaces. Walk into one, step out of the other, and keep your momentum, which turns falling into flinging. Portal 2 then layers new toys on top, including lasers, light bridges, tractor-beam funnels, launch plates and paint-like gels that make you bounce, speed up or let portals stick to new surfaces.

The second ingredient is personality. The single-player campaign sends you back through a decaying Aperture Science lab with GLaDOS, the occasionally murderous computer from the first game, plus a new cast that keeps the jokes and the dread coming. The third is co-op: a completely separate two-player campaign with its own story, chambers and two robot characters, where each player has their own portal gun and the solutions only work if you plan together.

Steam lists Portal 2 (Valve, April 18, 2011) with single-player, online co-op, shared/split-screen co-op, Remote Play Together, full controller support, a level editor and Steam Workshop support, on Windows and Linux. Remote Play Together lets a friend join your local co-op over the internet without owning the game.

No single game matches all three ingredients, so the lists below are grouped by which part of Portal 2 they scratch: the story-driven test chambers, the brain-bending spatial tricks, the Aperture universe itself, and co-op.

Story-driven puzzle games like Portal 2

These are first-person puzzle games built around test chambers, a single tool or a handful of devices, and a voice or presence that keeps you asking who set all this up. If the mystery of Aperture kept you going as much as the puzzles did, start here.

The Talos Principle

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Of all the games like Portal 2 on Steam, Croteam’s philosophical puzzler is the one most often named first, and for good reason. You wake in a world of ancient ruins and advanced technology, and a creator figure sets you puzzle after puzzle. The store promises more than 120 of them, using drones, laser beams and even recordings of yourself to solve rooms you couldn’t handle alone.

Where Portal 2 makes you laugh, The Talos Principle makes you think: its story questions what you are and why you’re being tested, and it leaves you to draw your own conclusions. The world is non-linear, so you choose which puzzles to tackle. Steam lists it as single-player with a level editor and Workshop support, on Windows, macOS and Linux. It suits players who loved GLaDOS’s menace but want quieter, more reflective writing.

The Talos Principle 2

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The sequel moves to a city of robots in a world where biological humans are gone, then sends you toward a mysterious megastructure. It keeps the original’s puzzle tools and adds new abilities such as gravity manipulation and mind transference, which is a good match if you enjoyed how Portal 2 kept adding gels and bridges to a familiar core.

It also handles difficulty well: you can finish the story without solving everything, or chase metapuzzles and especially tough Gold puzzles. Choices and alliances shape how events play out. Steam lists it as single-player with a level editor and Workshop support, on Windows. Play the first game before this one if you want the themes to land.

Q.U.B.E. 2

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You play Amelia Cross, an archaeologist stranded among the ruins of an alien structure, guided over the radio by another survivor. Manipulation gloves let you change the architecture around you, extending blocks and reshaping rooms to make a path. The store lists eleven puzzle areas and more than 80 puzzles.

The fit with Portal 2 is that guided-through-a-maze feeling: clean, readable puzzle rooms and a distant voice whose motives you start to question. Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support and VR support, on Windows. It’s a good pick if you want something a little gentler than Talos.

The Turing Test

Set on Jupiter’s moon Europa, this one casts you as Ava Turing, an engineer sent to find out why the station’s ground crew vanished. The station’s AI, Tom, tells you the puzzles ahead can only be solved by a human, which is exactly the kind of setup that will make any Portal fan suspicious.

Your Energy Manipulation Tool moves power between machines to open the way forward, and later puzzles have you switch between perspectives. The story leans into the blurry line between people and machines. Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support, on Windows. If the relationship between Chell and GLaDOS was your favourite part of Portal 2, this is the closest match on the list.

Magnetic: Cage Closed

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A prisoner in a trap-filled facility, you survive by mastering one tool: a magnet gun that creates positive or negative fields. You use it to move boxes, change the environment and launch yourself through the air, and a Warden keeps reminding you there’s always a way out.

It mixes logic with skill-based movement, much like Portal 2’s flinging sections, and your choices change which path you take next. Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support, on Windows. It suits players who enjoyed the platforming side of portal puzzles as much as the thinking side.

Mind-bending perspective puzzlers

Part of Portal 2’s magic is that it breaks your sense of space: a door on the floor leads to a wall on the far side of the room. These games build their whole design on that kind of rule-breaking, each with its own trick.

Superliminal

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Superliminal is a first-person puzzler built on forced perspective and optical illusions. Pick up a small object, hold it close to the camera, set it down against a distant wall, and it becomes enormous. You’re trapped in a dream-therapy program, with Dr Glenn Pierce trying to guide you out and his AI assistant having other plans, which will sound very familiar.

The fully voiced guide and the gently sinister AI make it one of the most natural games like Portal 2 for players who came for the humour. Steam lists single-player plus online co-op and online PvP among its features, with a level editor and Workshop support, on Windows, macOS and Linux. There’s also an extensive developer commentary, a nice touch for anyone who enjoyed Valve’s own commentary tracks.

Viewfinder

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Viewfinder hands you an instant camera and lets you bring pictures to life by placing them into the world. Photos, paintings, sketches and postcards become real space you can walk into, so a picture of a bridge becomes an actual bridge. It’s the same “wait, I can do that?” moment as your first portal.

You explore several hub worlds, and the story is there for players who want it but never forced on those who just want to solve puzzles. Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support, on Windows. It suits players who liked Portal 2’s creativity more than its difficulty spikes.

Antichamber

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Antichamber is a psychological exploration game set in an Escher-like, non-Euclidean world, meaning the geometry doesn’t follow normal rules: hallways loop back on themselves and rooms reconfigure as you move. It deliberately subverts what you think a game will let you do, and accomplishing the impossible is often the only way forward.

Later on you get a gun that can create, destroy and manipulate matter. There’s no wisecracking AI here; the mood comes from ambient sound and a minimalist look. Steam lists it as single-player on Windows, macOS and Linux. Pick it if Portal 2’s sense of spatial trickery is what hooked you, and you don’t mind getting properly lost.

Quantum Conundrum

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A young boy arrives at his uncle’s mansion, there’s an explosion, and the uncle is missing. Using his invention, the Interdimensional Shift Device, you flip between dimensions in real time: a fluffy dimension makes a heavy sofa light, an anti-gravity dimension sends objects floating upward, and so on.

It has the most Portal-like structure on this list, with room-by-room puzzles that mix thinking and timing, and a playful, slightly cartoonish tone. Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support, on Windows, developed by Airtight Games and published by Square Enix. It’s a friendly pick for younger players or anyone who wants lighter games like Portal 2.

More Aperture Science: Portal and its spin-offs

Sometimes the best thing to play after Portal 2 is more Portal. Valve’s lab has a handful of official and licensed spin-offs on Steam, and two of them are free.

Portal

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If you started with the sequel, the original is the obvious next step. It’s a single-player game set in the Aperture Science Laboratories, where you solve physical puzzles by opening portals to move objects and yourself through space. It’s shorter and simpler than Portal 2, with fewer tools, but it introduces GLaDOS and a story that the sequel builds on directly.

Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support, a level editor and the Source SDK, on Windows and Linux, from Valve. Coming back to it after the sequel, you’ll notice how much of Portal 2’s humour grows out of this first game.

Portal with RTX

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This is the original Portal rebuilt by NVIDIA’s Lightspeed Studios with full ray tracing, new high-resolution textures and more detailed models, plus DLSS 4. The puzzles are the same; the lighting is what changes, with light bouncing around chambers and every light casting shadows.

Steam lists it as free DLC for Portal owners and notes it works with ray-tracing capable graphics cards, on Windows, as single-player. It’s worth a look if you own Portal and have the hardware; if your PC can’t do ray tracing, stick with the original.

Bridge Constructor Portal

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A different kind of Portal puzzle: instead of moving through chambers yourself, you build bridges, ramps and slides across 60 test chambers so the Bendies can drive safely to the exit. Portals, propulsion and repulsion gel, launch plates, cubes and turrets all make an appearance, and the store notes that Ellen McLain, GLaDOS’s voice, guides you through the tutorial.

Steam lists it as single-player with full controller support and Workshop support, on Windows, macOS and Linux. It suits players who loved Portal 2’s gels and contraptions and want a slower, engineering-flavoured puzzle game.

Aperture Desk Job

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A free playable short from Valve, made to teach the Steam Deck’s controls, set in the Portal universe. You’re an entry-level employee on your first day at Aperture, and things mostly involve chairs. The store is upfront that it is not Portal 3, so go in for the jokes rather than puzzles.

Steam lists it as free to play and single-player with full controller support, on Windows and Linux. It’s a quick, easy extra for anyone who misses Aperture’s sense of humour.

Co-op games like Portal 2

This is the hardest part of Portal 2 to replace. Its co-op campaign gives both players the same tools and equal weight, and there still aren’t many co-op puzzle games built that way. Honestly, if you haven’t finished Portal 2’s co-op, or haven’t tried the community chambers made with its level editor, that’s still the best two-player puzzle time you’ll find.

We Were Here

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We Were Here splits two players up inside an abandoned castle in a frozen wasteland. One is confined to a small section while the other roams the halls, and your only link is a walkie-talkie. Each player sees completely different things, so every puzzle comes down to describing what’s in front of you clearly enough for your partner to act on it.

That’s a different flavour from Portal 2’s co-op, where you both see the room and argue about portal placement, but the core is the same: you only succeed if you think together. It’s the free pilot of a series of standalone co-op puzzle adventures, with an atmospheric, tense tone. Steam lists it as free to play with online co-op and cross-platform multiplayer, on Windows and macOS, and notes that both players need a working microphone.

Where to go for more co-op

If what you really want is two-player games where you have to coordinate, the broader co-op adventure genre is your best bet, even if puzzles are only one part of the mix. Our guide to games like It Takes Two and the list of co-op games like It Takes Two both focus on games built for two. If you play on one screen, the best couch co-op games on PC covers split-screen picks.

How to choose your next game after Portal 2

Most lists of games like Portal 2 throw every puzzle game together. A better approach is to work out which part of Portal 2 you’d miss most, then pick from that group.

A quick way to decide

1. You loved the writing and the AI villain: start with The Turing Test or Superliminal, then The Talos Principle.
2. You loved hard puzzles above all: The Talos Principle, then its sequel’s Gold puzzles, then Antichamber.
3. You loved the “wait, that’s possible?” moments: Viewfinder, Superliminal and Antichamber.
4. You loved the gels and flinging: Magnetic: Cage Closed and Bridge Constructor Portal.
5. You want co-op: We Were Here, then the co-op guides linked above.

A worked example

Say you finished Portal 2 solo, enjoyed the story and want something next weekend, but the late chambers frustrated you a bit. Skip Antichamber and the Talos sequel for now. Viewfinder gives you the same creative jolt with an approachable story, Q.U.B.E. 2 keeps the guiding-voice structure, and if you only played the sequel, Portal is a short, natural follow-up. Save The Talos Principle for when you want a longer, tougher run.

Mistakes to avoid

• Expecting Portal’s humour everywhere. Talos and Antichamber are thoughtful and quiet. Great games, different mood.
• Assuming “co-op” on a store page means Portal-style co-op. Check how the two players actually interact before you buy for a friend.
• Skipping the original Portal. It’s short and makes Portal 2’s story land better.
• Ignoring platforms. Several picks, including The Talos Principle 2 and Viewfinder, are listed for Windows only.
• Forgetting about hardware for Portal with RTX. It needs a ray-tracing capable graphics card.

Whichever direction you pick, there are plenty of games like Portal 2 to fill the gap until you inevitably replay it. For more picks built around games you already love, browse our games like hub. If the exploration and mystery in Portal 2 is what pulls you in, mystery games like Outer Wilds is a natural next read, and you can find genre favourites across the best games on Steam.

Questions and answers

What are the best co-op games like Portal 2?

On Steam, true two-player puzzle games in the Portal 2 mould are rare. We Were Here is the clearest fit: a free online co-op escape where two players are split up and must solve puzzles by talking over a walkie-talkie, so both need a microphone. Superliminal also lists online co-op on Steam. For broader co-op adventures with puzzles, games built around two players working together, like It Takes Two, are the next stop.

Does Portal 2 have split-screen co-op on PC?

Yes. Steam lists Portal 2 with Shared/Split Screen Co-op as well as Online Co-op and Remote Play Together, so you can play the two-player campaign on one screen, over the internet, or stream it to a friend who doesn't own the game. The co-op campaign is separate from the single-player story, with its own test chambers and two robot characters.

Are there free games like Portal 2?

A few. We Were Here is free to play and is a two-player online co-op puzzle escape. Aperture Desk Job is a free short set in the Portal universe, made to show off the Steam Deck, and it is openly not a sequel. Portal with RTX is a free ray-traced version of the original Portal, but it is DLC, so you need to own Portal to play it.

Should I play Portal before Portal 2?

It helps but isn't required. Portal is short, single-player and sets up Aperture Science, the test chambers and GLaDOS, so a lot of Portal 2's story beats and jokes land harder if you've played it. Portal 2 teaches its mechanics from scratch, though, so newcomers won't be lost. If you only have time for one, Portal 2 is the bigger game and includes co-op.

Which Portal-like games keep you busy the longest?

Games with community levels last longest. Portal 2 includes a level editor and Steam Workshop support, so there are always new chambers to try. The Talos Principle and The Talos Principle 2 also include level editors and Workshop support, and the sequel adds optional metapuzzles and hard Gold puzzles for players who want full mastery rather than just reaching the ending.

What platforms does Portal 2 run on through Steam?

Steam lists Portal 2 for Windows and Linux, with full controller support and Steam Input support. It came out on April 18, 2011, developed and published by Valve. Several of the picks in this guide, like The Talos Principle, Superliminal and Antichamber, also run on Linux, while others, such as The Talos Principle 2 and Viewfinder, are listed for Windows only.