After what was considered one of Nintendo’s weakest showings at E3 2008, one of the games that provided the silver lining for the Wii’s show was The Conduit, an ambitious first person shooter being built from the ground up for the “casual” console. In the past year, there has been a large amount of hype placed on the title, and deservingly so, with the reports coming out showing extensive control customization, intense, fast paced action and a solid multiplayer mode featuring 16 player matches. Being that the Wii isn’t known for fluid, online gaming, I couldn’t wait to see if the mode plays as well as we’ve been promised.

Jumping straight into the action, the four player death match that was set up played just as smoothly as we’ve heard over the past year. Head shots are a breeze with the Wiimote, but remembering all of the motion commands did have a bit of a learning curve. Flicking the nunchuk for grenades, switching weapons and melee attacks all had specific movements or button commands that can feel awkward, but thankfully, it’s not so bad where you’re flailing around to the point of embarrassment. The character moved way too slow as well. Maybe it’s just me but I never thought a gunfight was the best place to take a stroll and enjoy the scenery. Yeah I know, it sounds disheartening but the control customization for the home release will relieve all of these problems for people who have trouble with this default setting.

Of course, what would an online FPS be without a variety of weapons. The guys at High Voltage Software are promising a large and varied arsenal to pick off opponents, classified in three types. They are the human weapons, which are traditional firearms like pistols and SMG’s. Agent weapons are gadget focused and were compared to the Men in Black. Lastly are the alien weapons that rely on sci fi technology to evaporate your foes. Besides death match, the demo also had a king of the mountain type mode where players vied for an item which they have to hold for a certain amount of time to win. The catch is whoever is holding it can be seen on everyone’s radar and moves much slower. If this wasn’t crippling enough, that player can only throw grenades and melee, so the player with the item was usually the one flailing around before he was shot to death. The deserted city that we played in was a great backdrop for all the mayhem, with gritty, condemned buildings all around. It was a great preview to what the rest of the maps will be like.

So after all of these details, it seems as if the game has the foundation to reach the potential the Wii has always had with the genre. It’s biggest hurdle however, is the online play itself. Happily, I can say that the matches at E3 were as smooth as any game over Xbox Live. Wii tends to do really well, (Mario Kart,) or really bad, (Smash Bros.) with online play, and Conduit falls into the former category. The biggest advancement for Wii’s online scene however, comes from an exciting detail that will somewhat remove the headaches of the friend code system. If two friends are playing a friend match with a group, and anyone in that group isn’t friends with some of the others, you will be able to send a friend request through the game where it will internally swap friend codes for you. To put it simply, the game features a friend exchange system as easy as the one found in Microsoft’s box. Wii developers should take note, because if every online game implemented a system like this, the Wii would be much more fun to play online without all the hurdles.

What’s this? An online FPS with a large variety of weapons, modes, voice chat and the most freedom with controls found on a console… and it’s on the Wii!? With the ability to control everything from button layout to running and turning speed, The Conduit is shaping up to be the best shooter for Nintendo’s system since Metroid Prime. With the online performing as well as it did, High Voltage has raised the bar for the console’s online capabilities, and on top of the single player, it’s no wonder it’s one of the most anticipated games this year. If anyone can reach the Wii’s FPS potential, The Conduit can do it!