This week’s Song of the Week is a very interesting and funny yet rather soft piece from the Half-Life 2 add-on mod, Portal. Jonathan Coulton composed the lyrics and the music and had the voice actress of the character, a computer, in-game to do the song. Fantastic piece. Here are the lyrics, and unfortunately, Stage 6 is being shut down forever due to high running costs on the 28th of February. It used to have the ending credits animation for Portal. The animation itself has the lyrics, but I will repost them here.

Scott Ramsoomair, the author of VGCats, did this great Flash animation, his own version of the tribute to the song. Well worth a look, and what made it known to me, in fact.

A little background information on the song. Black Mesa is the research facility where the hero of the story of Half-Life, Gordon Freeman, used to work before they accidentally brought in the aliens through a mishap. Thus, the computer is a sort of test coordinator at Black Mesa, but since I never played Portal, I hardly have any idea as to whether or not it is so.

The song is singing about a completed successful test subject – you, as the player, who completed the game.
 

The song is available in my IMEEM for your listening pleasure. Enjoy.
 

Still Alive
Jonathan Coulton

This was a triumph
I’m making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS
It’s hard to o-verstate my sa-tisfaction

Aperture Science
We do what we must, because, we can
For the good of all of us
Except the ones who are dead

But there’s no sense crying over every mistake
You just keep on trying till you run out of cake
And the Science gets done
And you make a neat gun
For the people who are, still alive

I’m not even angry
I’m being so~ sincere right now
Even though~ you broke my heart~ and killed me

And tore me to pieces
And threw every piece, into, a fire
As they burned~ it hurt because
I was so happy for you

Now these points of data make a beautiful line
And we’re out of beta we’re releasing on time
So I’m glad I got burned
Think of all the things we learnt
For the people who are, still alive

Go ahead and leave me
I think I prefer, to stay, inside
Maybe you’ll~ find someone else~ to help you

Maybe Black Mesa
That was a joke
Haha, fat chance
Anyway this cake is great
It’s so delicious and moist

Look at me still talking when there’s Science to do
When I look out there it makes me glad I’m not you
I’ve experiments to run
There is research to be done
On the people who are, still alive

And believe me I am, still alive
I’m doing Science and I’m, still alive
I feel fantastic and I’m, still alive
While you’re dying I’ll be, still alive
And when you’re dead I will be, still alive
Still alive!
Still alive

Related posts:

1. Song of the Week – Tsukiakari by Rie Fu
2. Song of the Week – What’s Up by 4 Non Blondes
3. Song of the Week – Number One by Hazel Fernandes
4. Song of the Week – Free by Lighthouse Family
5. Song of the Week – I’m Still Here by Johnny Rzeznik