Completed Fan-Made Portal Remake Stuck In Limbo As Valve Goes Silent - Kotaku

What the report says

Kotaku reports that Portal: Alive & Kicking, a long-running fan remake of Valve’s 2007 puzzle game Portal, is finished but cannot currently be released on Steam because the development team says it is waiting on Valve. The project, made by Rhubarb & Rhubarb and in development since 2011, aims to rebuild the original Portal using Portal 2’s engine and source code, with updated visuals and potentially additional test chambers alongside the original puzzles.

According to Kotaku, a developer using the name Dot Operator told users on the game’s Steam discussion page that the remake is complete, but the team lacks permission to publish it through Steam at this stage. The developer said Valve had previously supported the effort, including by providing access to Portal 2 source code under a nondisclosure agreement. However, after the team submitted a non-commercial license template months ago, they reportedly have not received further updates from Valve.

The situation is notable because Valve has historically allowed or supported a number of fan projects connected to its games, including Half-Life-related titles on Steam. Kotaku also notes Portal’s own unusual history: it grew out of a student project before Valve developed it into one of the standout releases in The Orange Box, later followed by Portal 2 in 2011.

For now, the same official access that helped Alive & Kicking remake Portal more directly also appears to be preventing an informal release. Kotaku reports that fans are trying to draw attention to the stalled approval process in hopes Valve will respond, but no release timing or final decision from Valve is confirmed in the supplied report.