List of references

Within Portal 2, both in-game and in the trailers, are multiple references. There are a variety of references, mostly including games or parts of games.

General References

• The achievement, Schrodinger's Catch, is a reference to Schrodinger's Cat, in which Schrodinger exposed radiation to a cat inside a sealed box. His theory dictates that the cat is both alive and dead while the box is sealed.

Games

Left 4 Dead series

• During one of the pre-release trailers, Atlas can be seen wielding the frying pan, a weapon used by the survivors in L4D2.

Smash TV

• One of the achievements labeled Smash TV is a reference to an early 90's arcade game called Smash TV, where two contestants are pitted in a brutal game show in which they're forced to fight for their lives for cash prizes.

Movies

• The achievement, Stranger Than Friction, is a reference to Stranger Than Fiction, in which a man finds out his life is being narrated like a novel.

Music

Song

• The achievement Bridge Over Troubling Water is a reference to Simon & Garfunkel's song Bridge Over Troubled Water.

Other Games

• The achievement Narbacular Drop is a reference to a puzzle game of the same name, Narbacular Drop. It was the Portal team's first game, from which Portal was based off of.