AVault: The Conduit Review

AVault writes: "For the last year, anticipation for The Conduit has risen, buoyed by some promising demos at E3 2008. Gamers saw this shooter as a bright spot in a dim lineup that catered to "the casual" and put the pressure onto a modest developer to elevate the Wii to the lofty heights they initially imagined for it. Well, believe the hype. While it may not revolutionize the FPS world, The Conduit connects tightly with those core gamers who have longed for the new play experiences promised by the Wii".

[EvilTwin]

"Well, believe the hype. While it may not revolutionize the FPS world, The Conduit connects tightly with those core gamers who have longed for the new play experiences promised by the Wii."

IMO, this is the whole point of the game. I bought a Wii (instead of a 360) because I was intrigued with the new control possibilities. If you're a console-only FPS fan, you've never had these options for speed, precision or customization before.

Corruption was the first shooter to nail Wii FPS control, but Conduit is the first game to fully realize how much depth there is for this method of control. It's the first control scheme that lives up to the hype that was created when we all saw the Wii remote.

The graphics are only serviceable and the plot is unspectacular, but the controls are a revelation.

[Gr81]

Seeing as Prime 3 is probably my favorite single player game this gen, its hard for me to admit, but Conduit actually bests Prime in the controls department. I've heard even Red Steel 2 is adding a feature similar to Conduits customizable controls, it is that liberating.

In all honesty, I was going to sit this gen out because the focus was pretty much, the same games with a fresh coat of paint. (There are exceptions) But I didn't even get into the Wii until nearly a year after it launched..Prime 3 was the game that pulled me in, I got the Wii in late August.

[EvilTwin]

Honestly, I was ready to be very underwhelmed by Conduit because Prime 3 is a favorite of mine, too. I understand all the love Bioshock got ('cause I love it, too), but it still irks me how it overshadowed all that Corruption did right -- first GREAT looking Wii game, first game to get FPS right on Wii, introduce voice acting to a major Nintendo franchise, etc. etc. etc.

But there's no getting around it...as slick as Prime 3 plays, Conduit's customization options are simply better. I never got the sense of awe playing Conduit that I got with Corruption when I went to Sky Town or to a Leviathan seed (because of the art direction, not the number of polygons pushed onscreen), but the controls HVS came up with make it all worthwhile.

On the new-gen eye candy topic...I was all ready to buy a 360, because last gen I was a complete GTA addict (and in the PS/N64 gen, I was a huge Driver fan). I got a chance to play GTA4 through a friend, and as great as it is, it's definitely focused on a lot of new paint (better storyline, too).

I enjoyed playing it, but had I not gotten a Wii instead, I never would've played Corruption, Galaxy, NMH, Zelda, or now the Conduit. I don't mean to rag on the 360 or PS3, but I already played Call of Duty for hours, and I already played a ton of sandbox games, and I already took a day or two off of work for NFS:Underground. Fresh paint looks nice, but I want more.