 | “I can't get over how small you are!”
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You really are doing great... Chell.
— GLaDOS
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Chell, documented as Test Subject #1 but previously as #1498, was a test subject of the Aperture Science computer-aided Enrichment Center, and was involved in the testing of the Company's Handheld Portal Device (commonly known as the Portal Gun).
She is the silent protagonist of Portal and the single-player campaign in Portal 2. Very little is known of her past, beyond her possible abandonment at birth and her stubborn will to live.
Throughout the series, Chell is antagonized by the AI and facility overseer GLaDOS during her testing courses. Wielding only the Handheld Portal Device, she eventually utilizes this device as a means of avoiding hazards and bypassing various sections of the Facility in order to escape.
Overview
Most of Chell's past remains a mystery. During the final events of Portal, GLaDOS mentions numerous times that Chell was abandoned at birth, and such references continue throughout Portal 2. She later mentions in Portal 2 that Chell was also adopted, although the credibility of GLaDOS' word is unclear. Many of GLaDOS' comments throughout Portal 2 and the latter stages of Portal are in an effort to belittle, annoy or distract Chell from achieving her goal, and whether or not statements of her adoption and orphan status are true or not is up for debate.
Portal
At some point in 2010, during the introductory sequence of Portal, Chell is awakened in a Relaxation Vault after being unconsciously placed into it. Curious, she explores the Vault, and within only ten seconds of awakening, Chell is greeted by a robotic and seemingly automated female voice who informs her that she is a test subject. The AI, known as the Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System (GLaDOS), then states that Chell will be undergoing testing for the benefit of Aperture Science's research programme.
GLaDOS then generates two oval-shaped teleportation fabrics (portals) on a solid flat surface, with an entrance portal in the Relaxation Vault and an exit just in front of the exterior of the Vault. Chell exits from the Vault, however she notices empty observation rooms which lack the staff that should be recording her performance. After completing her first test and acquiring an understanding the cube-and-button based mechanic, she is put through a series of tests to further explore and understand the use of portals.
Having completed two tests, Chellreaches a test chamber in which she acquires the Portal Gun. Later on during the testing course, she is put through a series of more dangerous tests including hazards such as Goo and High Energy Pellets among others. Skilfully avoiding these hazards, Chell is assisted by the Companion Cube and by the Aperture Science Advanced Knee Replacement components applied to the back of her lower legs to her ankles, which allow Chell to avoid injury when falling at high velocities from high altitudes as a result of portals and momentum. She is also finally able to replace the single-portal variant of her Portal Gun with a two-portal variant. As an incentive to complete the tests, GLaDOS promises Chell that Cake will be served once all tests chambers have been completed.
As the testing progresses, Chell stumbles across various areas with defunct wall panels, and manages to sneak into them. As she enters these maintenance areas, she finds refuge areas commonly known as the Rattmann's Dens, previously used as as hiding placed by Aperture technician Doug Rattmann. The scribblings on the walls in these Dens appear to be warnings for Chell, telling her that "the cake is a lie" and that "she's watching you". Chell, now made more aware of her situation, is forced to continue testing and play along with GLaDOS' plans. The Rattman's warnings are eventually revealed to be correct, because GLaDOS finally decides to lower Chell into a fire pit upon completing the final test chamber, despite earlier promises of cake.
Chell successfully escapes the dramatically slow death trap, and is informed by GLaDOS that pretending to kill Chell is simply part of the test. Dubious as to the veracity of this claim, Chell escapes the testing course, and travels through the Aperture Science Facility in an attempt to reach the surface and escape. Eventually however, Chell realizes there there is no chance of escape as long as GLaDOS is in control of the Facility, and is forced to confront GLaDOS in the Central AI Chamber.
As she prepares to face GLaDOS, Chell is greeted by the passive-aggressive rogue AI. GLaDOS claims that she will provide Chell with a surprise, however a Morality Core unexpectedly detaches from GLaDOS' chassis. Chell destroys it using a nearby Emergency Intelligence Incinerator, however the Core is revealed to be a safeguard designed to inhibit GLaDOS' homicidal tendencies. With the Core destroyed, GLaDOS releases Neurotoxin into the chamber in order to kill Chell. At the same time, a Rocket Turret emerges from a core hatch beside GLaDOS and begins to target Chell. Using the Portal Gun, Chell redirects the projectiles through linked portals, causing the rockets to strike GLaDOS, each of which detaches more Personality Cores from the chassis. Although inflicting damage, the loss of the Cores merely increases GLaDOS's desire to kill Chell. After destroying each detached Core one-by-one, Chell destroys the final Core (the Anger Core), and GLaDOS is sent literally spiralling into her demise, as the destruction of her generators triggers a gravitational vortex, which deposits Chell on the surface.
Chell slowly regains consciousness in the parking lot of the Enrichment Center, with with a lifeless GLaDOS beside her. As Chell's vision clears, the Party Escort Bot thanks her for "assuming the party escort submission position", and begins dragging her back into the now-ruined Aperture Science Facility. As Chell is dragged away, it is revealed that the destruction of the Central Core (GLaDOS) resulted in the automatic activation of other Personality Cores, tasked with the management of the Enrichment Center while GLaDOS is offline. The final scene depicts the Companion Cube and a cake deep within the bowels Facility, waiting for Chell to claim them.
Gallery
| Chell |
| Chell holding the Portal Gun, first-person view in Portal 2.
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| Chell first-person view in Portal 2 with GLaDOS as a potato attached to it. |
| Chell as she was seen in Portal.
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| Chell from the Audiosurf part of the Valve Potato Fool's Day ARG.
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| Chell's file showing her high level of tenacity from the Lab Rat comic.
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| Chell on the test subject list when Rattmann sabotages the list from Lab Rat.
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Trivia
- One of the Bring Your Daughter to Work Day science-fair entries within Portal 2 is signed, "by Chell"; indicating Chell was the daughter of an Aperture Science employee. The entry seemingly began as a potato, interacting with "an element from daddys work" and has now grown massively out of control and taken up roots in the structure.
- The turret opera at the end of Portal 2 mentions Chell by name, calling her "cara mia" – "my dear" in Italian. This implies a deeper connection between Chell and GLaDOS than was previously let on.[1]
- Chell is modeled after actress Alésia Glidewell.
- In Portal, Chell may sometimes emit small screams when hurt. However, these voice clips are simply archive recordings from Half-Life 2's female citizens, who were voiced by Mary Kae Irvin. This was then one of many things that received a retroactive continuity in Portal 2, as Chell no longer emits any pain groans whatsoever.
See Also
References
