Kim Swift, a level designer and team leader for Valve's Portal franchise, has a new project in the works and recently offered an eight-minute demo that definitely got my interest piqued. Developed by Airtight Games and published by Square Enix, Quantum Conundrum is a first person puzzle game that follows a similar premise as Portal but adds a cartoonish touch and a few gameplay elements that make it unique in its own right.

The game stars a young boy going through a maze of puzzles trying to find his mad scientist uncle after he went missing in his underground laboratory. Players gain access to Professor Quadwrangle's Dimensional Shift Device, which at the press of a button will flip between five dimensions, each of which affects matter differently, allowing you to slow down time, reverse the pull of gravity, make objects lighter, and more.

The video above shows how various elements of the game's complex puzzles work, such as switching dimensions on the fly to make it past obstacles and laser beams. Like in Portal, you'll learn new techniques as you progress through the game and move from one challenging room to the next.

Quantum Conundrum is due for a summer release on Windows, Xbox Live Arcade, and PlayStation Network.