Review: The Conduit

Fans of the First Person Shooter genre have been awaiting this title for quite some time. Sure, the Wii has other FPS titles, Call of Duty, Metroid Prime 3, and Medal of Honor. But while these titles are there, they are few and far between. Many times, the Wii gamer is left out for the “superior” capacities of the other platforms that are out there. When Sega finally announced the Conduit would be a FPS exclusive to the Wii, fans of the genre rejoiced. But is this title all that gamers were hoping for?

Developer: High Voltage
Publisher: SEGA
Platforms: Wii

The Conduit is based off of a simple consipiracy theory plot. The player is Mr. Ford, and he is responsible from stopping the invasion of the Drudge aliens and saving the United States. A simple plot for single player mode. It’s not overly compicated, which makes it easy to follow, but it also becomes predictable at times, taking away some of the excitement while playing. This is not to say that the game is not worth playing. The Conduit proves that FPS do well on the Wii console.

Controls are very responsive and customizable, which is nice to see on a Wii FPS. The player can control everything from how fast the cursor moves to how fast Mr. Ford can run. Targeting is a little difficult, however. While the weapons have a targeting system, it is not as intuitive as some other games. The player needs to still be able to focus on his target and refocus on the next one, as targeting doesn’t just jump to the next available enemy. This brings some realism to the system, as it is not automatically easy to lock crosshairs on the enemy. Where you happen to hit an enemy is also a factor on how much damage you inflict upon that enemy. For example, a clean head shot is more likely to take out the enemy than a body shot. The Wii remote and Nunchuck are fully utilized for this game making it fun to play as well as intuitive once you learn all of the controls.

The graphics of the game are really where The Conduit shines. While most Nintendo Wii games have a cartoony look to them, this is not the case with The Conduit. High Voltage Software’s Quantum3 visual engine does more for the Wii than any other game players have seen. The game is beautiful. The enemies are detailed, and the environments are stunning. It is a treat for the eyes, at times rivaling titles on other platforms.

The Conduit also brings something new to the Wii with it’s multi-player mode. Nintendo is known for trying to be safe with their online interactions making is so that players have to add one another to their friend lists in order to be able to play. The Conduit, however, breaks this mold with allowing players to search for others who live near them, across the world, or people who are on their friend lists. The multi-player mode is also well developed and fun to experience. WIth up to 12 players allowed to play at a time, and many modes of play to experience, this mode of the game rarely gets old. The Conduit is a solid FPS and should be a must buy for anyone who loves the genre and loves their Wii. Sony has brought new technology and gameplay to the Wii, which hopefully, will be continued with other developers. While the Wii may appear to be an inferior gaming system for the hardcore gamer, The Conduit strives to change that.

SCORE: 8.5/10