Portal 2 — Achievement Walkthrough

Unmissable story achievement. Follow Wheatley's instructions through the broken Aperture facility until he plugs into your container's track. The ride that follows is on rails — just survive the cutscene and the achievement pops.

Story beat. Pops the moment GLaDOS comes back online and delivers her famous 'oh, it's you' line. Unmissable; you literally can't progress past her chamber without triggering it.

Pops after Test Chamber 5 in Chapter 2. The laser mechanic introduces redirection cubes. Just complete the puzzle as introduced; no special trick required.

Co-op only. At the end of the calibration course, GLaDOS prompts you to celebrate. Hit the gesture wheel and pick 'High Five.' Your partner needs to also high-five for it to land. Achievement pops on mutual high-five.

Pops on completion of the first Hard Light Bridge chamber in Chapter 5. The puzzle teaches you to portal light bridges into useful angles. Story-locked; just play.

First co-op course, ~5 chambers. Straightforward puzzles teaching the basics — portal cooperation, shared button presses, momentum sharing. Achievement pops on the final chamber's exit.

Story beat. The break-out happens mid-Chapter 6 when you escape into the old Aperture sub-levels. Unmissable; the cinematic plays whether you 'choose' to escape or not.

Mid-game story moment. GLaDOS asks you to press a button to resolve the AI stalemate. Walk over and press it. The achievement pops on press; the cinematic that follows is the chapter's climax.

Pops on completion of the blue-gel intro chamber. Repulsion Gel makes surfaces bouncy — bounce off the floor through a portal to launch yourself. Story progression; can't miss.

Story-locked. Pops the moment you pick up the potato-fused GLaDOS to carry her along. You'll do this many times in the deep-Aperture sequences; the achievement triggers on the first pickup.

Second co-op course. Introduces Repulsion Gel + momentum puzzles requiring careful timing. Several chambers need both players to launch simultaneously. Coordination matters more than skill.

Pops on completion of the orange-gel intro. Propulsion Gel speeds you up on contact — useful for ramps and momentum-portal puzzles. Story progression.

Pops on completion of the white-gel intro. Conversion Gel turns any surface portal-able — game-changing puzzle tool. Story progression.

Wheatley jokes early about doing the same test twice. Take him at his word: in Chapter 1, after completing the first test chamber, BACKTRACK through the portal you exited and re-enter the chamber. Solve it again. The achievement pops on second completion.

Pops in Chapter 8 when you master the funnel beam mechanic. The puzzle teaches you to redirect funnels through portals. Story progression.

In the turret manufacturing facility (Chapter 8), one of the scanning lasers is broken — turrets going through come out as 'defective' (cute boxy ones). Stand in the scanner yourself. Achievement pops when the scanner clears you as 'defective.'

Story-locked. Pops at the start of the final boss fight. Famously, this achievement is named for the in-game chapter title — Wheatley actually narrates 'this is the part where I kill you.'

During Wheatley's final phase, the ceiling collapses revealing a hole to the moon. Shoot a portal at the moon's surface. The achievement pops on the portal placement; this is also how you actually win the boss fight, so it's unmissable on completion.

Get airborne (via portal-fling or Aerial Faith Plate). While in the air, open the gesture wheel and pick a gesture; perform a second one before you land. Practice with a partner; the timing is tight.

Easiest setup: a long fall section with two distinct gesture-friendly windows.

Third co-op course. Hard Light Bridge puzzles requiring portal-routing cooperation. The hardest chamber asks both players to maintain bridges through portals while the other crosses.

In the turret factory, look for the conveyor belt sending defective turrets to the incinerator. Use a portal to redirect a turret onto a safe surface OR pick it up off the belt with your hands before it reaches the fire. Easiest spot: just past the defective-turret line, there's a clean drop zone.

## How to set up
Find a chamber with a button below a cube dispenser, where you can shoot a portal under the dispenser AND a portal above the button. Drop the cube; it portals from dispenser straight to button without you grabbing it.

## Easiest chamber
Chapter 2's early chambers have natural setups. Chapter 3, Test 11 also works. The achievement triggers the moment the button activates from a cube you never touched.

Wheatley tells you to escape. GLaDOS, mid-dialogue, sarcastically suggests you re-enter the test chambers instead. Take her at her word: turn around at the right moment and step BACK INTO the testing track. Achievement pops automatically.

The gesture wheel has 8 options (wave, high-five, dance, etc.). Use each at least once during normal play. Just remember to cycle through them; achievement pops after you've used all 8.

Fourth course. Funnel-beam puzzles requiring careful redirection. Several chambers have you both riding funnels simultaneously while one of you portals to redirect the other's beam. Communication-heavy.

Test Chamber 7 ends with the cube being thrown into an incinerator. To save it: at the end of the chamber, place a portal so when the cube falls toward the fire, it portals out and lands somewhere safe (e.g., back to the elevated platform). Bring the cube into the next room (the elevator) before it incinerates.

Auto-pops when you complete all five co-op courses. Plan to spend 4-6 hours total with a co-op partner across all chapters. The story-tied co-op DLC ('Peer Review') doesn't count toward this achievement — base game only.

In one of Cave Johnson's offices, a portrait of (you'll see whose) hangs behind a hidden door. Easiest to find: in Chapter 7, look for an office side room you'd normally skip; the portrait is on the wall.

Walkthroughs have specific maps for this; without a map, expect 1-2 hours of search-and-look-around.

In one of the old Aperture facility's deep rooms, there's a side path leading to a flooded chamber where a tiny model ship is balanced precariously. Walk up to the ship. Achievement pops on proximity. It's a goofy easter egg.

Most-missed location: a side corridor in the Cave Johnson lemon-rant section. Look for ramps going down off the main path.

Find a co-op chamber with a turret on one side of a hard-light bridge and you on the other. Set up so the turret can see you but the bridge blocks its bullets. Hit the dance gesture in front of it. Achievement pops on first dance frame.

Use the rock-paper-scissors gesture in co-op. Both players input simultaneously. Win 3 in a row. With a cooperative partner this is trivial — just plan moves together.

Each course has a chamber with a GLaDOS-watching camera. Use any gesture in front of it. 5 courses × 1 taunt each = 5 total. Track which courses you've taunted in; some are easy to miss.

Return to courses you've skipped via the hub.

Pick up a turret with the gravity gun (or in your hands) and walk it onto an active Faith Plate. The plate launches it like any other object; achievement pops on launch. Easiest spot: Chapter 4 Test 13, which has a turret right next to a plate.

In Chapter 6 there's a moment where Cave Johnson talks about a pit in old Aperture. After his line about 'show that pit who's boss,' walk to the edge of a specific pit and stand at the edge. The achievement pops automatically when GLaDOS' dialogue triggers.

Chapter 8 has multiple chambers with cracked, vitrified doors that you can approach but not enter. Walk up and look at each. There are around 7-8 doors total. Achievement pops when you've examined them all.

Keep an eye on side hallways — some doors are off the main path.

Late in Chapter 8, you enter a Crusher Cube room. The cube falls from a chute; portal the chute opening to redirect the cube into your hands before it lands. Multiple attempts may be needed — timing matters.

Both players place portals in a chain: P1 → P2 → P1' → P2'. You enter the first; your momentum carries you through all four without grounding. Setup matters more than skill — find a chamber where four portals can be lined up vertically/horizontally.

Mass and Velocity Chamber 4 has a natural setup.

When Wheatley introduces his Chapter 8 first test, ignore his instructions. Don't shoot the button. Stand there. After ~30 seconds, the achievement pops as Wheatley reacts to your refusal.

## The requirement
After completing co-op once, replay the Calibration Course with a partner who has zero co-op chambers completed. Their account, not yours.

## How to find a partner
In 2026 the Portal 2 player base is small but active. Try r/Portal or steam group invites. Or convince a friend to install the game fresh.

## After joining
Just play through Calibration. Achievement pops when the course ends.

Partner stands still and triggers any gesture. You place a portal directly under their feet (paired with a portal somewhere lower so they fall through). Achievement pops on the portal placement. Easy with a coordinated partner.

Rat Man's dens are hidden rooms scattered through the campaign, decorated with paintings and notes about Doug Rattmann. The 'final transmission' is a specific den containing a radio playing a hidden audio file.

The most accessible one is in Chapter 8 — near the end of the chapter, look for a vent on a high catwalk. Crawl in. The achievement pops when you reach the radio inside.

Coordinate with your partner: they stand on a movable platform over goo and start a gesture. You activate the mechanism that drops the platform mid-animation. Achievement pops on death. Your partner has to be a willing participant or this is just griefing.

Each 'hug' counts only with a unique partner from your friends list. So you need 3 different Steam friends willing to play co-op briefly. Use the hug gesture once per session.

In 2026 with a smaller Portal 2 player base, this might be the hardest social achievement. Reach out to your friend list.

Chapter 2 Test Chamber 10 has a 70-second target. The route requires you to:
1. Skip the cube-on-button sequence by using momentum portals
2. Launch yourself through the long-fall section without solving the puzzle conventionally
3. Speedrun YouTube has 1-minute solves you can learn in 30 minutes

Use the chamber timer in your HUD. Multiple attempts are normal; reset frequently.

Monitors are the small screens Wheatley uses to talk to you. Break them by shooting them with the portal gun (no, portals don't break them — you need to throw cubes or turrets AT them, or place a portal so a heavy object falls on one).

Most monitors are in Chapters 6-8. Track count: 11 total. You'll naturally break a few; the rest need active hunting. Cumulative across playthroughs (saves persist).

Chamber 6 of course 2 has multiple cubes flying around through Repulsion Gel. If ANY cube hits the goo floor and gets destroyed, no achievement.

Strategy: communicate constantly; one player always near each cube. Coordinate gel-launches. Restart from the puzzle's start if a cube is lost early. Expect 3-5 attempts.

One co-op chamber has a Companion Cube hidden in a side area. Most commonly: Course 4 Chamber 2 has a secret room behind a portal-able wall on the upper level. Place a portal there, walk in, find the cube. Achievement pops on cube interaction.

The exact target time is shown in the achievement description (vary by chamber). Solve chambers 1, 2, and 3 of course 2 each within the par time. Restart between chambers if you missed one.

Use a portal-fling speedrun route — momentum portals shave the most time. YouTube guides exist for each chamber.

Each player can only use a limited number of portals across the whole chamber (typically 5 per player). Solving inside the limit requires planning every portal placement. Use only what you need; if you mis-place, restart.

Guide videos for this specific chamber are easy to find.

Mobility Gels (DLC course) Chamber 6 has multiple cubes flying through orange and blue gel surfaces. Lose none. Restart on any cube loss.

Strategy: communicate every gel-bounce; redirect cubes only when you've confirmed the destination. The puzzle has multiple solution paths — find the lowest-risk one.

No deaths from either player across the entire 8-chamber course. Funnel chambers have many goo-pit deaths; communicate every move.

Best strategy: agree to pause and discuss before any risky portal placement. Slow play wins this — speed kills players.