Forum > Gaming Discussion > The Conduit (Wii) Official Thread: Geek has game, impressions commence
The Conduit (Wii) Official Thread: Geek has game, impressions commence
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Sun, 28 Jun 2009 17:45:39

robio said:
gamingeek said:

I thought Blockbuster were going out of business? Do you not use the blockbuster website for rentals? I used to before switching to another company and they were very good.

Blockbuster is not real healthy these days, but they're not quite at the point of going out of business.  A few years ago though they did close like 20% of their stores.  But unless they come up with something radically different they will be out of business in 10 years. Netflix has been eating into their profits for years now, and their own online distribution model never took off the way they expected it to (i.e. just like Netflix).  

And in this country (not sure about internationally) the new big thing that's popping up is DVD kiosks.  These things are showing up in malls and grocery stores all across the country where people rent movies for a dollar a day.  I just read an article a few days ago about how the company that's doing this has been madly successful and they're now starting to effect Netflix and Blockbuster because of it.  

So between Netflix, kiosks, and digital download Blockbuster is living on borrowed time.  

I need to stock up then on their used games. I have no other place to buy them except a few mom and pop stores that offer them at extortionate prices.

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Sun, 28 Jun 2009 18:00:21

robio said:
gamingeek said:

I thought Blockbuster were going out of business? Do you not use the blockbuster website for rentals? I used to before switching to another company and they were very good.

Blockbuster is not real healthy these days, but they're not quite at the point of going out of business.  A few years ago though they did close like 20% of their stores.  But unless they come up with something radically different they will be out of business in 10 years. Netflix has been eating into their profits for years now, and their own online distribution model never took off the way they expected it to (i.e. just like Netflix).  

And in this country (not sure about internationally) the new big thing that's popping up is DVD kiosks.  These things are showing up in malls and grocery stores all across the country where people rent movies for a dollar a day.  I just read an article a few days ago about how the company that's doing this has been madly successful and they're now starting to effect Netflix and Blockbuster because of it.  

So between Netflix, kiosks, and digital download Blockbuster is living on borrowed time.  

 Yeah, I only rent from kiosks--namely Redbox--these days. Why pay $4 to rent the same movie at Hollywood Video or Blockbuster, when I can get it for $1 at a kiosk? Hollywood and Blockbuster are ripoffs, IMO. I've been renting from Redbox exclusively for over a year now, and I've never had any problems with them. It's an awesome service. Happy

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Sun, 28 Jun 2009 18:14:01

Ravenprose said:

robio said:
gamingeek said:

I thought Blockbuster were going out of business? Do you not use the blockbuster website for rentals? I used to before switching to another company and they were very good.

Blockbuster is not real healthy these days, but they're not quite at the point of going out of business.  A few years ago though they did close like 20% of their stores.  But unless they come up with something radically different they will be out of business in 10 years. Netflix has been eating into their profits for years now, and their own online distribution model never took off the way they expected it to (i.e. just like Netflix).  

And in this country (not sure about internationally) the new big thing that's popping up is DVD kiosks.  These things are showing up in malls and grocery stores all across the country where people rent movies for a dollar a day.  I just read an article a few days ago about how the company that's doing this has been madly successful and they're now starting to effect Netflix and Blockbuster because of it.  

So between Netflix, kiosks, and digital download Blockbuster is living on borrowed time.  

Yeah, I only rent from kiosks--namely Redbox--these days. Why pay $4 to rent the same movie at Hollywood Video or Blockbuster, when I can get it for $1 at a kiosk? Hollywood and Blockbuster are ripoffs, IMO. I've been renting from Redbox exclusively for over a year now, and I've never had any problems with them. It's an awesome service. Happy

Redbox! That was the name.  Yeah these are doing huge business, and they're starting to scare the shit out of other video rental companies.  In fact, they're doing so well that Netflix may start building kiosks of their own.  It's smart though. Practically no overhead so it's cheap to run, and who can complain about a $1 to rent a movie a night?  Now if only someone would do the same thing with games.  

Here's the funny thing though.  Do you know what they were orignally for?  Redbox was first started so McDonalds could sell fries through kiosks.  And then some genius realized they could use the same thing to distribute movies instead. And now that guy lives in a mansion, owns a yaught, and fucks 15 prostitutes a night.

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Sun, 28 Jun 2009 19:42:50

So the kiosks give out discs? DVDs?

You have to pay by credit card then?

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Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:12:30
mrchup0n from trigames.net gives his first impressions. He is a trusted source fer shur :

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Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:25:40
gamingeek said:

I hate spawning. I learned to deal with it in Call of Duty, they had these invisible points where you ran to and the spawning tailed off.

At least in Conduit you can see the spawn gates and destroy them to stop the BS.

I've never played a FPS multiplayer with voice chat, I used to love split screen Goldeneye so maybe playing with people you know with VC will make things more enjoyable?

Does it feel like Perfect Dark?

 Sonofabitch. I just deleted my save file, not even sure how. I must have accidentally hit the delete button and I guess it doesn't give you a warning or confirm box. Another first for me.

Is it like Perfect dark? - I don't know. It's been too long since I played that.  In some ways I guess but I enjoyed the level design in perfect dark way more. In single player the levels are not that varied so far.  

aspro73 said:
mrchup0n from trigames.net gives his first impressions. He is a trusted source fer shur :

 I  definitely agree with - 

But as a result, lots of "killroom -- clear a space out, go to next" or "corridor shooter -- let's play whack-a-mole with soldiers popping out of doorways and from under cover" gameplay. Oh, and don't forget the exploding fuel tanks

 Graphics are fine and the framerate is good enough.  What it boils down to for me is that it's a competent game with great utilization of the control scheme and that it isn't WWII. All I wanted at this point. 
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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:04:59

The IGN podcast is commenting on Garnett Lee and Kim's Gamepro Conduit WTF statements. LOL

Bozon:

"It is a damned shame that SEGA did not give Gamepro a version of the game that had an options menu in it"  LOL

Matt:

"The bigger problem is when I see blanket statements by journalists where they say: well whatever, the Conduit is a workaround for the wii remote which is just not designed for FPSs. Those statements to me show that you have no effing idea what you are talking about. Because that is just blatantly wrong."  LOL



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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:36:19

More reviews:

http://kotaku.com/5303623/the-conduit-review-a-bland-but-enjoyable-shooter

Despite its shortcomings, I was pleasantly surprised to find The Conduit to be a solid shooter that offers just enough in its single-player campaign to keep me playing to the end and enough multiplayer support to make me want to stick around after I'm done.

The key moment for me was when I went in and played around with the control settings. Once fine-tuned to my tastes, The Conduit felt nearly as intuitive and precise as a shooter played on a PC.

http://www.vgchartz.com/games/gamereviewdisp.php?id=19541

So, all in all, is The Conduit ‘generic’? Or god’s gift to Wii? Gamers coming in looking for either will be disappointed. It doesn’t revolutionize the First-Person Shooter genre, as there are no vehicles like in Halo, no monsters to control as in The Darkness, and definitely no Morph Ball to be found. However, the high-quality graphics engine, very solid single-player, and online multiplayer that surpasses everything else on the system (even the venerable Mario Kart), put this game far above most efforts on Wii, and the perfect and fun controls greatly enhance the traditional shooting gameplay. So, no, the final product may not have warranted the impossible hype, but the Conduit is a very high-quality shooter that’s not to be missed by any self-respecting action gamer.

8.3

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=18956

What makes The Conduit's online component so impressive is its robustness. Multiplayer is WiiSpeak-enabled (for friends only), allowing players to chat with others in the lobby and during gameplay. The quality isn't always the greatest: you'll get echoes depending on the speaker setups of other players, and voice chat sometimes cuts in and out, but it adds so much to the experience that it simply doesn't matter. There's nothing better than talking smack after an especially satisfying kill. Friend code management is also a breeze, including functionality that allows you to add mutual friends and send invites that others can accept later. It's as fleshed-out as anything you'd find on the Xbox 360 or PS3, and can only be described as a remarkable achievement.

This is the paradox of The Conduit. Its disappointing single-player component seems hastily-designed with its cookie-cutter plot, limited range of enemies, and myriad elements copied wholesale from popular recent first-person shooters. On the other hand, its multiplayer component is great, matching online shooters on other platforms feature-for-feature and providing a no-hassle experience that's among the best on Wii. Hopefully High Voltage will learn from The Conduit's shortcomings for their next game, but for now, Wii owners will have to settle for something very good instead of truly great.

8.5

http://www.gaming-age.com/cgi-bin/reviews/review.pl?sys=wii&game=the_conduit

I definitely think Conduit's worth checking out if you're a Wii owner, it's easily the best FPS on the system, and the multiplayer is handled quite well. I'm a bit hesitant to suggest it if you're only going to play the campaign, as I don't think it's particularly strong or interesting, but even then it's worth a rental. However, if you plan on going online with the game at all, I'd suggest it as a blind buy, and it's certainly a lot of fun with a group of people to play with. The controls work well, and there's no reason you can't make the customization work for you in any case. Visually the game looks pretty solid, with some interesting weapon design to boot, so I can't find much to complain about there. Definitely check out the Conduit if you get a chance, and hopefully you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

B

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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:19:54
this game ended up being my opportunity cost when i bought another code just now Sad

i will get it when it goes down to £18

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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:12:16

bugsonglass said:
this game ended up being my opportunity cost when i bought another code just now Sad

i will get it when it goes down to £18

Ass, I was counting on your impressions.

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:56:17

More reviews:

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/30/review-the-conduit/

For FPS fans who only own Wiis: First: What the hell is wrong with you? Second: Yes, you should absolutely buy The Conduit. While the Wiimote may lack the fidelity of the mouse and may not feel as comfortable as a thumbstick, it definitely works. It's also really satisfying to have a targeting system responsive enough to work without a bunch of auto-aiming assistance (it's there if you need it, though, in the form of a lock-on button).

There's a wide range of cool weaponry from an alien rifle that augments your powers of sight in place of a scope (a nice touch) to old classics like the shotgun and pistol. Less impressive are the underpowered grenades which are stupidly mapped to shaking the nunchuk, meaning: 1. The action of throwing one usually messes up your aim; and 2. You're guaranteed to set the controller down to answer the phone or pet your ferret and accidentally blow yourself to high heaven at least once.

But if you're starved for FPS action, it's not going to bother you. There's a lot you're going to like, and you'd be crazy not to pick this one up.

http://www.giantbomb.com/the-conduit/61-21121/reviews/

GERTSMANN ALERT (GAF guys found out he only played less than half the single player)

Playing The Conduit requires a Wii Remote and a Nunchuk. The control is pretty intuitive, but it takes time to get used to aiming and turning by pointing at the screen. I probably fumbled around with the aiming control for around half an hour before I started getting comfortable. The game offers a lot of different sliders and options for tweaking the control, but I ended up leaving it alone in the end. The more I changed things, the worse the control felt. But even once you get the hang of the controls, it all feels a little delicate. The lock-on targeting jerks your view around, which can be disorienting. The turning radius never feels quite right and makes the game seem sluggish. In fact, all of the movement feels deliberately slower than the average shooter. But the game seems like it was built with that in mind, as it's a fairly low-impact experience overall. The instances where it gets more hectic quickly became my least favorite parts of the game, since that's when the game's control wasn't up to the task at hand.

2/5

http://www.gamingbits.com/content/view/6090

High Voltage Software has electrified the Wii with The Conduit, pushing the Wii's performance and allowing a degree of FPS customization that even surpasses other next-gen shooters. The audio production, from soundtrack to voice acting, is polished. As for the storyline, it should satisfy conspiracy theory and sci-fi fans. If you want to experience a summer blockbuster story, you'll have to fight to unravel it in The Conduit.

4.5 / 5

http://gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/0299E3BA-18FB-4EC8-B884-E3C7742585A8.htm

The control is less horrible than you might fear. However, it falls well short of a vanilla dual analog scheme – not to mention mouse and keyboard.

There’s not much to hate about The Conduit outside of some lamentably uninspired design decisions. There isn’t much to love, either. It feels like a 10-year-old game at times, albeit a reasonably polished one. It’s on Wii, though, and that will be enough for some people.

Wow GI suck LOL I feel like I wasted 5 minutes reading this review.

7/10

Second Opinion:

While The Conduit’s controls feel tighter than most Wii shooters, its shaky aiming still doesn’t prove that the Wii can do FPS better than other consoles. Fortunately, the game is one of the best looking titles on the system, features some of the most creative weapons I’ve seen since Ratchet and Clank, and has some amusing multiplayer. But that’s not enough to make up for the fact that it plays like it fell through a time portal from the GoldenEye era of console shooters.

7.5

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:06:56

DUAL ANAL-OGUE vs IR

Sorry, but I cannot take any reviewer seriously who comes out with shit like this:

1. The control is less horrible than you might fear. However, it falls well short of a vanilla dual analog scheme –

2. While The Conduit’s controls feel tighter than most Wii shooters, its shaky aiming still doesn’t prove that the Wii can do FPS better than other consoles.

3. The more I changed things, the worse the control felt. But even once you get the hang of the controls, it all feels a little delicate. The lock-on targeting jerks your view around, which can be disorienting. The turning radius never feels quite right and makes the game seem sluggish. In fact, all of the movement feels deliberately slower than the average shooter.

So on statement 3. Gertsmann is so stupid he can't even tweak the controls properly, then he complains about the controls, the ones he's too stupid to tweak properly.

Statements 1 and 2......... add that to Gamepro and 1up's control views.....

I mean JESUS. These are games journalists, not only does it show their criminal lack of experience with IR controls schemes on FPS, it shows their ignorance, stubborness and blatant lack of co-ordination.

In what freaky ass world is dual analogue better than IR? You may prefer it, but it's not anywhere near a close run competition.

I'm just going to quote this again which about sums it up:

IGN podcast is commenting on Garnett Lee and Kim's Gamepro Conduit WTF statements.

Bozon:

"It is a damned shame that SEGA did not give Gamepro a version of the game that had an options menu in it"  

Matt:

"The bigger problem is when I see blanket statements by journalists where they say: well whatever, the Conduit is a workaround for the wii remote which is just not designed for FPSs. Those statements to me show that you have no effing idea what you are talking about. Because that is just blatantly wrong."

Edited: Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:09:37

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:18:47
Holy shit EDGE mag just reamed the Conduit with a double headed dildo.

-The Conduit's self proclaimed role was to bring "next generation visuals" and "hardcore gaming" to Nintendo's Wii, a console that seems to be doing conspicuously well regardless of the odd derivative and often crushingly dull first person shooter. The makers of The Conduit insist that it's a "gamer's game", but it's difficult to see any gamer other than one with particularly low standards being satisfied with what is distinctively mediocre production.

-Multiplayer provides a brisk and no-nonsence shootout, with the usual deathmatch and thing-capturing variants, although it's as vanilla as they come. The Halo interface has been studied closely and fitted around the Wii's capabilities (including Wii Speak) and, compared to the average online experience on Nintendo's platform, it's a breeze to set up and join games. You may not choose to play it if you have access to any decent online shooter from the last three years, but at least it's there.

-The controls also work well - if a little sluggishly on the turn - and can be extensively tweaked. As well as the usual options, the opportunity to expand or contract the dead zone and set the sensitivity of the game's reactions to Remote and Nunchuk thrusts means The Conduit is just about flawless in terms of aiming. The problems lie in what you're shooting at.

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:35:35

LOL Edge to the rescue.

"The Conduit is just about flawless in terms of aiming."

Call the game generic, linear, short and retro that's fine. But jesus, control complaints grate.

Edge mag rape a lot of games though. Another code is a whatsits?


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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:40:59

gamingeek said:

LOL Edge to the rescue.

"The Conduit is just about flawless in terms of aiming."

Call the game generic, linear, short and retro that's fine. But jesus, control complaints grate.

Edge mag rape a lot of games though. Another code is a whatsits?


Four again.

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:14:31

SteelAttack said:

gamingeek said:

LOL Edge to the rescue.

"The Conduit is just about flawless in terms of aiming."

Call the game generic, linear, short and retro that's fine. But jesus, control complaints grate.

Edge mag rape a lot of games though. Another code is a whatsits?


Four again.

Exactly, and the assholes gave Phoenix wright a 4 or 5 too in the past.

This is annoying too:

About the online multiplayer:

You may not choose to play it if you have access to any decent online shooter from the last three years, but at least it's there.

They are holding it to a higher standard than other games. Because going by that very statement, they could apply that sentiment to "any decent online shooter from the last 3 years". So for the next 3 years let's see if they pull that statement out with any other game with a decent online mode. They wont and they didn't. But they're reviewing on expectations rather than reality.

Edited: Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:18:57

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Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:37:01

http://www.extremegamer.ca/wii/reviews/theconduit.php

High Voltage and SEGA have something here that could be the start of a strong franchise for the Wii, and it would be shame if we didn’t see The Conduit 2 in the near future. The Wii definitely needs The Conduits connectivity as it working towards making the Wii a more interesting prospect for the gaming adept audience. If you're one of those adept gamers then you have probably been waiting for a solid third-party shooter to come along. Well, that wait is over because The Conduit is that game.

High Voltage did a great job pushing their technology on the Wii making The Conduit a stand out title. The extra visual flair, Hollywood supported voice-cast and online multiplayer easily keeps The Conduit above its competition on the Wii. However rating The Conduit against the top shooters in the gaming industry would be meet with less praise. Even though the Conduit is pushing up our expectations for title on the Wii, The Conduit is as straight-forward as they come. Besides a few minor snip-its, little has been done to innovate the title past the Wii-based controls. That being said, if you only own a Wii then you will want to snag this one up right away. However if you’re a multi-console owners you might want to give the Conduit a rental first because there are ton of options out there. Either way you look at it, The Conduit is an important title and one of the best shooters for the system, it's definitely worth a weekend of blasting drones away.

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Thu, 02 Jul 2009 05:24:59

LOL

Wii-remote worse than dual analogue? Is there something wrong with that guy? 

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Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:33:03

A GAF guy has done a really good video review. I suggest everyone check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgZjWbR_Erc

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Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:34:48
Comparisons to Quake and Doom make me more interested.

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