Catfish, and other readers who have never played the games
Portal or
Portal 2:
Yes, you need to have played one of the
Portal games to get it.
The device is the "portal gun" from the game. The setting is the Aperture Science laboratory. Aperture is the corporation that built the portal gun. The actress is playing Chell, the protagonist from the
Portal series. The game involves Chell attempting to escape from the Aperture labs, after some sort of disaster has taken place, of which only Chell and GLADos, the complex's artificial intelligence, are the only survivors. Most of the early stages of both games take place in testing areas where the subject uses the portal gun to solve a 3-D puzzle, in order to escape. The video shows Chell completing one of the puzzles in live action, though the puzzle is not one from the game. The concept is a lab rat in a maze. Hence, the escape being a lie at the end, with freedom being only a projection on a wall. The whole thing was a test, with Chell the test subject.
In the first game, Chell, the lab rat, is encouraged to complete the tests with promise of reward: A party with cake, once she completes the testing. But the cake is a lie, and GLADos tries to incinerate Chell at the end of the testing series. This sets up the final boss battle between Chell and GLADos.
The video is some sort of prequel, taking place at the beginning of Chell's experience at Aperture Labs. Or, it may be her mother. If I recall correctly, the
Portal backstory had Chell being born and raised at the facility.
Miao, Cat