10 Times Video Games Got Science WRONG
5. Long Fall Boots Would Shatter Your Legs - Portal 2
Though there is a fundamental undercurrent of absurdity in the Portal games, they are nevertheless bolstered by a semi-rigorous focus on taking plausible physics concepts - namely momentum - and stretching them to breaking point.
But perhaps the most patently ridiculous element of Portal 2 - beyond GLaDOS being powered by a potato battery - sees protagonist Chell being kitted out with special "Long Fall Boots" at the start of the game.
These boots allow Chell to avoid injuring herself - or worse still, damaging the Portal Gun - when falling from great heights, except they're a feat of absolute scientific implausibility. Even more so than a Portal Gun, probably.
The issue comes down to deceleration, and the notion that you've never killed by a fall itself, but the sharp stop at the end.
There is no way for the boots to provide sufficient deceleration and spread the surface area of the impact enough to not explode Chell's legs into a gory mess.
Ultimately, it comes down to "because Aperture Science," and for most players, that's probably good enough.