SCALE takes to Kickstarter to help you manipulate reality

SCALE is one of those really interesting Kickstarter campaigns that come along a little too often for the health of my wallet. It's a "first person reality manipulation game that reimagines exploration with a unique resizing mechanic." If you're not sure what that means, the game gives you a device that can make any item any size. It's essentially a make-your-own-Honey I Shrunk/Blew Up the Kids a game. Sold yet?

The project comes from Steve Swink, creative director of Cubeheart and a former designer on Tony Hawk Underground. The campaign is asking for $87,000, and at time of writing has currently raised $19,708 with 29 days remaining.

As per the campaign page, "Space is relative in the game so progress is as much conceptual as it is physical. The unique mechanic of SCALEing is inspired by games like Portal and The Swapper. Progression through the game is freeform and open like Mario 64 or early Zelda overworlds. It’s all about exploring and discovering secrets!"

The story is, unsurprisingly, quite bizarre: "You play as young physics savant Penny Prince, inventor of a device which can suck the size out of one thing and shoot it into another. SCALE begins as Penny awakes in prison, convicted of 9,322,591 counts of Depraved Heart Murder for accidentally destroying the east coast. Someone has confiscated her cat. Against the express advice of the rehabilitative therapy coordinator now living inside her brain, she hastily reconstructs her device using materials from a nearby cellphone recycling bin and embarks upon escape in an attempt to regain her freedom and her cat."

Reward tiers start at $10 and go right up to $10,000. Head on over to the campaign page for a full run down, as well as videos and screenshots.