Valve’s Portal is one of my all-time favourite video games, and with Portal 2 hitting shelves next week, it would be a bit of an understatement to say that I’m pretty excited about the release. Imagine then my elation when I learned that Valve had created a 28-page comic story, designed to bridge the gap between the plot of Portal 1 and 2. But it gets better, the project was overseen by, and partially illustrated by Michael Avon Oeming, one of my favourite artists!

I didn’t know this until today, but it seems that Oeming is employed as a staff member of Valve software, and has been workng on webcomics for them of Left For Dead, Team Fortress 2, and Portal 2.

This new webcomic is called Portal 2: Lab Rat, and picking up the plot from where Portal‘s end sequence left off, the comic tells the story of the enigmatic Rat Man character, and his mission to help new character Chell. The project was completely overseen by Oeming, written by Ted Kosmatka, designed by Emily Kent, and features artwork by both Oeming and Andrea Wicklund.

You can view the comic for free at http://www.thinkwithportals.com/comic/. It’s essential reading for all fans of the game, and of course features the super-cute companion cube!

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