Valve has taken the wraps off the Portal 2 Steam features that will be enabled on the PS3 version of the game. Having the Steam features for Portal 2 implemented on PS3 is notable because Steam has previously been a PC-only featureset.
In announcing the Portal 2 Steam features for PS3, Valve also noted that the items below are “shipping with the PlayStation 3 (PS3) version of Portal 2.” Using the word “shipping with” implies that future updates may be on the way.
Marking the debut of Steam functioning on any next generation console, the features shipping in the PS3 version of Portal 2 include cross platform play (PC/Mac vs. PS3) for multiplayer games, persistent cloud-based storage of PS3 saved games, and cross platform chat (PC/Mac and PS3).
In addition, those who purchase Portal 2 for the PlayStation 3 may unlock a Steam Play (PC & Mac) copy of Portal 2 at no additional cost by linking their PSN and Steam accounts.
“We made a promise to gamers at E3 that Portal 2 for the PlayStation 3 would be the best console version of the product,” said Gabe Newell, co-founder and president of Valve. “Working together with Sony we have identified a set of features we believe are very compelling to gamers. We hope to expand upon the foundation being laid in Portal 2 with more Steam features and functionality in DLC and future content releases.”
“We designed the Portal 2 PS3 experience to be very straightforward for gamers,” said Josh Weier, project lead on Portal 2 at Valve. “PS3 gamers will be able to simply drop the Blu-Ray disc in the PS3, link to their Steam account from inside the game, and all their Steam friends (on PC and Mac) will be visible and accessible for chat and game invites.”
If you’d like to pre-order Portal 2 for PS3 from Amazon, you may do so using the following link: Portal 2 for PS3