The Conduit

[Purple Santa]

IGN gave it an 8.6. Higher than the 80 that Nintendo Power gave it.

Fuck Nintendo Power. They are trying to show they are a "real" game magazine. I can't remember what recent score on a game Spigot was playing and read a review in there but it was also off base. Not that I take any game reviews very seriously...just in general, NP i'm glad I didn't renew.

[H.Bogard]

Reviewz plz.

[Evil Avnovice]

I just got the voice mail from GameStop a few hours ago. They claim that my copy could arrive as early as tomorrow before 12pm.

*fingers crossed*

Doubtful, but I'll find out come tomorrow.

*fingers crossed*

[Urizen]

I hope to post impressions in the next couple of days. Still don't have my copy.

[Evil Avnovice]

1. Behind the scenes:

DqtqJnrflOE

2. Multiplayer skin customization:

vgJumZCVdys

Both from GoNintendo (http://www.gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=87004).

[Draconis]

Picked up my limited edition copy of the Conduit today alongside Overlord Dark Legend. They didn't have my PC copy of Overlord II so blegh.

I'll dig into this after work, should be good. I have been looking forward to The Conduit for a while and thus far reviews are pretty good, save for the idiotic and quite biased Gamepro review. God I am glad I don't read their craptastic magazine anymore.

The music however, seems to finally be a long overdue return to good, and I mean GOOD video game music. We'll see once I start playing tonight.

Hopefully you guys are enjoying your copies. Last I checked The Conduit was one of gamestops top sellers on their page yesterday so we'll see.

[Lutheran]

A few somewhat alarming reviews below , sorry if they are already posted..70 and 80 are not bad scores but they make the game seem sort of bland and only good because they are on the Wii and competing with no other real good FPS's there. Still going to buy it though.


# GamePro (70): "The Conduit is the closest you will get to recapturing the magic of Goldeneye ... To be blunt, The Conduit is a by the numbers shooter that offers a couple of thrills but ultimately doesn't make much of an impact ... anyone who loved Goldeneye will want to give a look as well if only to get a nice dose of nostalgia, but the rest of you shouldn't feel a need to abandon your favorite next-gen shooter for this one."
# GamesRadar (80): "The Conduit is fun, controls well, and is, at times, quite beautiful ... Both humans and alien drones are animated with competent physics and personality that puts High Voltage Software's Quantum3 engine outside the realm of the "GameCube 1.5" criticisms ... The truth is you probably wouldn't bat an eye at The Conduit had it appeared on PC, PS3 or Xbox 360 ... The solid, yet unremarkable single-player won't win any awards, but The Conduit still features the most finely honed online outings available on Wii."

[crazyD]

Sounds good, but not amazing. Although I do appreciate what the developer is trying to do on the Wii, I usually like to avoid shelling out $50 for good enough. Will probably pick it up some time on discount.

[Draconis]

Personally I'd ignore the Gamepro review. The reviewer came into it right off the bat spitting out vitriolic hatred of the Wii basically and comes off as completely biased. For example he gripes about the Wii remote using motion controls for the grenades and it sucking....yet he seems to forget that you can edit the controls.

Basically that review is getting ripped apart on Gamepro on the comments thread, and as a general Rule, I tend to ignore anything they post. Their review of the Conduit is a good example of why. Its a biased review, and heavily so. Journalistic integrity is something I associate with Toilet paper with them. It goes where it belongs, down the damn drain.

[Evil Avnovice]

I scored my copy today! What's surprising is that I got the "Special Edition", even though I pre-ordered at the last moment. :eek:

I'll be digging into this TONIGHT. Unfortunately, I won't be able to post my impressions until Friday due to work tomorrow.

Note: Welcome, Draconis. Nice to see you make the jump. :)

[Draconis]

Well, I managed to play this some....I guess?

I dunno, I want to try it so bad, but unfortunately the game has one massive problem for me. Bobbing, or head bobbing. Weapon bobbing...whatever you want to call it.

Simulation sickness sucks. Thankfully I can disable it in Games like Stalker etc, but on games like Halo where the size of the weapon can induce it, or motion bobbing can induce it, its far more difficult to get rid of. Games like Metroid Prime are fine for some reason. My guess is because the bobbing is far less exaggerated and the weapon is smaller.

It causes severe Headaches with me, usually if I can disable it, its fine, but unfortunately the conduit does not allow me as such. Oddly enough, Diablo II does the same thing with me, save Diablo II makes me feel like my damned eyes are about to bleed out of my skull.

The controls are also taking me some time to try and find the sweet spot. I tend to use a combination of strafing and looking at the same time, and in my attempts to find a control scheme that was the closest to Metroid Prime 3, I just couldn't find anything feasible.

If anyone can come up with anything thats close, I'd appreciate it. Right now I'm going to put it up in the shelf as I need sleep for work tommorrow. Thus far my impressions, what initial ones I have, are good. I have no doubt the game will be enjoyable and for a Wii game, it looks fantastic for the graphics.


Side note: The promotional codes can also be used on the regular game, you need only enter them into the code area.

oh, and screen calibration in the game never worked for me. My cursor never showed up on the calibration screen whatsoever.

For those who are interested:

NewASE11 Custom ASE unlocked
SuitMP13 Secret Agent skin unlocked

As I said, if anyone can come up with a metroid prime 3 like control scheme, I'd be grateful. I can play that game beautifully with zero problems, but the Conduit due to its controls and sensitivity and the bobbing all combined are giving me massive frigging headaches, which makes me a sad dragon.

[JayVe]

I dunno, I want to try it so bad, but unfortunately the game has one massive problem for me. Bobbing, or head bobbing. Weapon bobbing...whatever you want to call it.

It causes severe Headaches with me, usually if I can disable it, its fine, but unfortunately the conduit does not allow me as such.
Check under Camera Controls in the options menu. There are several options, some of which eliminate the bobbing when walking.

[JayVe]

We're having a Conduit party this weekend (http://www.colonyofgamers.com/cogforums/showthread.php?t=9819). Hope to see some of you online.

[Evil Avnovice]

All right, now for my small impressions:

I was floored from the moment I popped this in. The game looks stunning. If you say, compare this to Metroid Prime, no. To any other title, yes. Playing with the default controls, I had no trouble picking it up and it quickly became second nature (The 180 degree function is very nice).

On the easy setting, Drugde and Trust provide quite a challenge. I've been flanked, bumrushed, driven out by grenade/flash grenade....and I keep coming back for more even when I'm killed due to my own mistakes. Last, the voice acting and soundtrack are off the hook. In particular, I'll let the game idle in the Disc Channel to listen to the piece that plays before booting it up.

Some of my early favorites (weapons) are:

-Hive Cannon
-Warp Pistol
-Striker Rifle

No offense to High Voltage, though I do use Trust weapons, playing with Drudge weapons is just far too fun. :p

[Evil Avnovice]

"Developer Diary: Weapon Design" video:

52053

[Evil Avnovice]

Completed the game. Very satisfying. :D

Now, to go back and search for the hidden extras.

[pseudopseudo]

Seriously, I'm only halfway through "Trust" at this point, and I can boil my experience down to one statement:

It's the best FPS on Wii. Unfortunately, that's not saying much.

Seriously, I think the game probably would look better on an SDTV, 'cause even with the component cables, it doesn't look that great on my HD set. That aside, it's a decent game so far, and the multiplayer is hectic fun.

[Thrak]

UPS came by Friday to drop off my package, but since I was out of town and had a package still sitting on my doorstop from Tuesday, they picked it back up and now I have to wait to pick it up at the UPS center on Monday :/

[Purple Santa]

UPS came by Friday to drop off my package, but since I was out of town and had a package still sitting on my doorstop from Tuesday, they picked it back up and now I have to wait to pick it up at the UPS center on Monday :/

It must be nice to live in a place where a package stays in front of your home when not home. Even better the UPS person was coherent enough to take notice you hadn't taken the last one. I am jealous of both. Living in a place where your neighbors won't steal from you and a competent UPS person.

@Avnovice: Congrats on beating the game already. I'm glad it lived up to your high expectations. I'm definitely going to give this a whirl when I can. To bad i'm going to miss out on many of you playing multiplayer.

[JayVe]

It must be nice to live in a place where a package stays in front of your home when not home. Even better the UPS person was coherent enough to take notice you hadn't taken the last one. I am jealous of both. Living in a place where your neighbors won't steal from you and a competent UPS person.

@Avnovice: Congrats on beating the game already. I'm glad it lived up to your high expectations. I'm definitely going to give this a whirl when I can. To bad i'm going to miss out on many of you playing multiplayer.

Where do you live that people steal UPS packages off of your front door?

[pseudopseudo]

Where do you live that people steal UPS packages off of your front door?

I live in Vegas, and packages have been stolen off of my doorstep no less than three times in the two years I've lived here. :|

[JayVe]

I live in Vegas, and packages have been stolen off of my doorstep no less than three times in the two years I've lived here. :|

Ouch. That blows. :( Sorry man. This little tale makes me appreciate my neighborhood a little more

[Telefrog]

I'm glad you guys like the game, but the aggregate reviews (http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/wii/conduit) are not great. I'm interested, but not $50 interested. I'll wait on a sale.

[Ravenlock]

I just picked this up today, so I should hopefully have my friend code added to the database later tonight. Good to hear some favorable impressions from you guys. :)

[Evil Avnovice]

There's a third promotional code from the European/Austrailian versions. (Nintendo World Report (http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=18959))

Astute gamers will notice that there's a third promotional cheat option, yet there's no third code to be found. It turns out that the third code (along with the first two) will come with the European special edition, available from Play.com and GAME, and the Australian special edition, available from EB Games Australia. Unfortunately, the game's launch in PAL territories has been delayed until July 10th in Europe and July 16th in Australia.

But for those who can't wait until then, Nintendo World Report has uncovered the final promo code. As seen in the following screenshots, the code, Drone4SP, lets players play as a Drudge drone in single-player mode. The unlockable is just a skin and does not affect game play, though your character will also sound like a drone. Enjoy fragging as an alien invader!

[Evil Avnovice]

OP has been updated with the promotional codes.

[Evil Avnovice]

For european gamers who are still waiting for The Conduit's release may be interested in this pre-order bonus from Play.com (http://www.play.com/Games/Wii/4-/8267294/The-Conduit-Special-Edition/Product.html): (NintendoLife (http://wii.nintendolife.com/news/2009/06/preorder_the_conduit_at_playcom_and_get_a_freebie) )

Pre-Order The Conduit: Special Edition from Play.com and receive exclusive 'The Conduit' branded Portable Speakers absolutely free! These speakers are perfect for use with your MP3 player or laptop, and without the need for mains supply or batteries you can take the party anywhere! Speakers will be dispatched with your order week of release. Limited availability while stocks last.

[Evil Avnovice]

A Vooks interview (http://www.vooks.net/story-18142-Interview-The-Conduit--we-chat-with-High-Voltage-Software.html).

[RandoM51]

I'm glad you guys like the game, but the aggregate reviews (http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/wii/conduit) are not great. I'm interested, but not $50 interested. I'll wait on a sale.

Edge magazine just gave it a 4.

[JayVe]

Edge magazine just gave it a 4.

Oh shit! This game I've been enjoying so much got a 4/10? Well, looks like I can't play any more.

I don't know what they are smoking at Edge, but The Conduit is much better than a 4/10. :p

[RandoM51]

Oh shit! This game I've been enjoying so much got a 4/10? Well, looks like I can't play any more.

I don't know what they are smoking at Edge, but The Conduit is much better than a 4/10. :p

It is just Edge being Edge. They pride themselves upon using the "entire scale", among other things. Just as interesting as the 4 for The Conduit is the 8 they gave Prototype. Some seeming disparity in review criteria can be chalked up to different reviewers for different games, but some of this stuff just boggles the mind.

[Ravenlock]

Well, to be fair, having played at least some of both now I think Prototype IS a better game, though maybe not 4 points out of 10 better. ;)

Conduit's a lot of fun, but also extremely frustrating in some parts, not very fluid in any sense of the word, and (aside from the deservedly praised controls) completely rote in its design and execution. I mean, there is nothing this game does gameplay-wise that isn't pre-Half Life in its feel.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, I mean, I made clear on the IM podcast that I'll still happily play a Serious Sam or something, old designs can still be fun - but the throwback design in Conduit is coupled with a surprising lack of polish, considering how much attention it seemed like the devs were giving the game.

Enemies and their bodies are constantly clipping through things, enemy AI ranges from "able to hit you with a grenade toss from 100 yards" to "completely braindead and not shooting you even though you're right next to them", animations are frequently glitchy, framerate gets spotty on a regular basis... and I tried to get into three multiplayer matches last night and they ALL crashed. I mean crashed. Two just had me staring at a blank screen, and one actually froze my whole system. I mean, it's just not a very solid game. Prototype has its problems, but it's smooth, fast, and not immediately buggy.

Also, I can't sprint? At all? Really?

Don't get me wrong, the game's not bad. For a shooter on the Wii, it's a fun experience and hopefully a promise of things to come. But it's not a revelation, which is what it was billed as and what I think a lot of us were hoping for. All things considered, Call of Duty: World at War seems to be at least as good, if not better, an example of how to do a Wii FPS right.

[JayVe]

All things considered, Call of Duty: World at War seems to be at least as good, if not better, an example of how to do a Wii FPS right.
Personally, I'd rather be shooting at aliens and playing with the alien weapons that going back to WWII again, but that's my take on it.

Call of Duty: World at War does not let me fight alien bugs the size of a 7-11.

Edit: Can you really complain about clipping? I see clipping occur in all games, even high-profile blockbusters on HD consoles.

[Adam Blue]

Personally, I'd rather be shooting at aliens and playing with the alien weapons that going back to WWII again, but that's my take on it.

Call of Duty: World at War does not let me fight alien bugs the size of a 7-11.

I think he's referring to gameplay rather than setting.

[Gorvi]

I don't think I've ever really agreed with Edge. While The Conduit doesn't seem like it's anything special aside from being a solid Wii FPS, 4/10 just seems stupid. No matter how you spin it that's saying it's subpar, and while it may not be great, I've seen nothing that indicates it's a bad game.

[Ravenlock]

Personally, I'd rather be shooting at aliens and playing with the alien weapons that going back to WWII again, but that's my take on it.

Call of Duty: World at War does not let me fight alien bugs the size of a 7-11.

Edit: Can you really complain about clipping? I see clipping occur in all games, even high-profile blockbusters on HD consoles.

Well, that was only one sentence in a litany of problems, but yes, I can complain about it when it's this obvious and constant. Almost every time I open a door and then back up to take cover (because behind every opened door, there's a bunch of guys waiting to shoot at me), I get an arm and/or a gun barrel clipping through that door after it closes while the braindead AI stands just on the other side waiting for me to open the door again and shoot them. I understand engine limitations, but that's sloppy. Similarly, when I shoot a guy on a stairwell and he falls flat such that half his body is clipping into the stairs and the other half is hovering in midair, that's sloppy. I don't expect every game to have Havok physics, but come on. Other games on Wii handle that stuff better, let alone other systems. It's not a game-breaker, but this game specifically was hyped as being the Wii's technical magnum opus. I expected much more polish than that.

I think he's referring to gameplay rather than setting.

Yes. Though if we're going to talk about that, shooting aliens is all well and good, but Conduit has one of the most hackneyed and cliched plot deliveries I think I've ever seen. The opening mission voiceovers are almost over the top enough that I would have assumed they were deliberate parodies if the game wasn't taking itself so seriously. The plot "twist" that happens at the hour-or-so mark is literally telegraphed from the opening paragraphs of the game.

I'll give it a pass on that stuff, though - lots of games have lousy plots. The technical aspects that I expected to be so proficient are where my complaints lie.

[crazyD]

I don't think I've ever really agreed with Edge. While The Conduit doesn't seem like it's anything special aside from being a solid Wii FPS, 4/10 just seems stupid. No matter how you spin it that's saying it's subpar, and while it may not be great, I've seen nothing that indicates it's a bad game.

Subpar doesn't necessarily mean bad. Just, not as good as the average FPS released.

[Evil Avnovice]

5 down, 4 missions left in terms of finding all the secrets.

[Purple Santa]

Where do you live that people steal UPS packages off of your front door?
You would think I lived in some big city where evils are told about. I think I rather live in a city...a small south jersey town that went south when mfg jobs went the way of the dodo. I
Oh shit! This game I've been enjoying so much got a 4/10? Well, looks like I can't play any more.


That's right, put down the controller and eject that game. If not the special game forces will be down there to intercept you playing. And if that doesn't work, well we'll just play some Rock Band while we are down there :p

[pseudopseudo]

I just popped in to say that I pretty much agree with Ravenlock 100%. The game has many, many problems. Not to say it's horrible, but it could've been so much better.

[Ravenlock]

I would like to add my friend code to the Wii COG database, but since it hasn't added Conduit as an available game yet, I'll add it here instead.

0302-7699-8238

I managed to get online without crashing tonight and played for about an hour. Had a good time, though I probably prefer Call of Duty: WaW's online mode just for having levels, perks, etc. Still, it plays well, the weapons are pretty good in multiplayer, and the map design doesn't seem bad.

[JayVe]

I would like to add my friend code to the Wii COG database, but since it hasn't added Conduit as an available game yet, I'll add it here instead.

0302-7699-8238

Try adding it to FriendoDEX.com (http://www.friendodex.com) </shameless plug>

[Ravenlock]

Done and done, sir. I will transfer other codes to there shortly, as well.

[Doctor Setebos]

Try adding it to FriendoDEX.com (http://www.friendodex.com) </shameless plug>Whoa, whoa - where did this come from? This site looks slick!

[JayVe]

Whoa, whoa - where did this come from? This site looks slick!

Thanks! It is my pet project. :D

[Ravenlock]

A few folks from Gamers With Jobs are going to try to hop online tonight in friends matches if anybody wants to join. Again, my friends code is 0302-7699-8238; you can find some of theirs in the thread over there (http://www.gamerswithjobs.com/node/45619?page=3).

We'll be on for a bit now if you want to try hopping in.

EDIT: Game done, and was a success. Myself and 2 GWJ'ers played for a little more than an hour, trying out several of the free for all game modes and most of the maps.

I have pretty much nothing bad to say about it. Especially when playing with friends, the game feels more like Goldeneye than anything I've played since Goldeneye, and that's not at all a bad thing. Lots of customizations in terms of weapon sets and rulesets (I'm very fond of bounty hunter, personally), some good large and small maps, and almost entirely lag-free, very solid action.

I still can't put much of a recommendation behind the single player game, but if you see this for a price point more reasonable than $50 and have some friends who would enjoy some throwback online FPS action, this works really well.

Hoping I get to try it out more with some CoGers in the future. :)

[Evil Avnovice]

"Mr. Ford Dev Diary" video:

52787

[Ravenlock]

Don't get me wrong, I like the game, but I think it's kind of hilarious and sad that so much thought (ostensibly) went into Mr. Ford's "look." As I think was mentioned by the In Game Chat guys, it's basically the most generic art ever, and certainly does not make me "relate" to the character. It's a short-haired white guy in a power suit, wearing a visor.

You could have told me it was copied off an SNES box and I probably would have believed you.

http://www.eatsleepgeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/the-conduit-boxart-500x704.jpg

Seriously? You filmed and put out a dev video about how proud you are of that?

[crazyD]

Yeah, that is a horribly generic game box.

[Evil Avnovice]

The HVS store (http://www.high-voltage.com/store.htm) is open, with four pieces of merchandise up for grabs.

[Evil Avnovice]

[]I didn't care to waste a thread for this, but there are some leaked promo/concept art that would suggest that The Conduit 2 is in the works.

One such piece even gives a date of October 10, 2012, but I wasn't able to get far in photobucketing so much as one image from the link they referenced before I was assaulted with an endless "Login" screen there:[/]

http://i758.photobucket.com/albums/xx230/Avnovice/Miscellaneous/network2.jpg

This comes from GoNintendo (http://www.gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=107413).

[JayVe]

[]I didn't care to waste a thread for this, but there are some leaked promo/concept art that would suggest that The Conduit 2 is in the works.

One such piece even gives a date of October 10, 2012, but I wasn't able to get far in photobucketing so much as one image from the link they referenced before I was assaulted with an endless "Login" screen there:[/]

http://i758.photobucket.com/albums/xx230/Avnovice/Miscellaneous/network2.jpg

This comes from GoNintendo (http://www.gonintendo.com/viewstory.php?id=107413).

Launch title for Wii HD

[Purple Santa]

So it's pretty certain there will be a sequel? I guess the game sold well enough despite some of the luke warm reviews/response from playing. I never did pick this up but I thought I read in the deals thread it's now $12 somewhere. Now that i'm on winter break, I'm going to see if I can find a copy and play it. Good to hear though there is a sequel. All the myths about how third party games don't sell well enough on the Wii...another piece of evidence it's not true.