Long Before Friendslop, Portal 2 Made Co-Op Cool https://ift.tt/jMpcx4l April 18, 2026 marks the 15-year anniversary of Portal 2's release. Below, we reminisce about its memorable story, novel cooperative two-player mode, and enduring comedy. There was a time in the PlayStation 3/Xbox 360 era when Valve was spoiling us with games, packaging some excellent titles in The Orange Box and bringing us back-to-back Left 4 Dead entries. But the company hit a stride with the 2011 release of Portal 2, which might be its finest accomplishment of that generation. Following up from 2007's Portal, Valve would still have had a hit if it had only made and released the single-player campaign, but the developers went the extra mile with the addition of a full-fledged co-op campaign--which itself would have been an equally worthy sequel to Portal on its own, and in retrospect, was a harbinger for cooperative and social games trending today. Continue Reading at GameSpot
Lord of the Rings fans can save on Lego's Balrog Book Nook for the first time at Amazon. Released last June, the 1,201-piece Lord of the Rings building set is on sale for $117 (was $130). While it's only a 10% discount, deals on Lord of the Rings Lego models are exceedingly rare. The LOTR Book Nook can wedge between your various collectible editions of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit to add a fun flourish to your Tolkien shelf. Or you can open the Book Nook and display the buildable Balrog figure alongside your other Lego sets.
Lego picked a rather fitting scene from The Lord of the Rings for the brick-built Book Nook. The 1,201 piece model is based on Gandalf the Grey's battle with Durin's Bane in the movie adaptation of The Fellowship of the Ring.
Once fully built, the frame resembles the stone pillars and archways of the First and Second Halls in the Mines of Moria. The buildable stand for the Gandalf the Grey minifigure represents the narrowest point on the Bridge of Khazad-dûm.
With the Book Nook closed, as shown above, the model is 5.5 x 6.5 x 9 inches and captures the moment Gandalf confidently blocks the Balrog's path and exclaims, "You shall not pass!" The memorable line of dialogue is quoted on the Book Nook's front plaque. Lego Gandalf wields his signature staff in one hand and Glamdring (his sword) in the other.
The buildable Balrog figure is essentially an articulated action figure, because you can pose his wings, arms, hands, legs, and fingers. Balrog comes with a whip accessory, and flame elements attach to his back. Lego used flexible sheets of translucent plastic to make the wings. It's only been included with one other Lego set: the 269-piece Fell Beast, which was a purchase bonus Lego Insiders when the massive Barad-dûr building set launched in 2024.
You can disconnect the bridge from each side to open the Book Nook. This alternate display mode showcases the Balrog's imposing presence with its wings fully unfurled. Flame elements decorate the left and right archways, which is a reference to the Balrog of Moria's ability to start a fire by flapping its wings.
With the Book Nook fully unfolded, the wider model is 17.5 x 6.5 x 9 inches. Since neither the Balrog figure or Gandalf minifigure need to be connected to the frame, you can display them without the Lego Book Nook, too.
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