Back in the mid to late '00s, some third-party developers were doing their best to put the under-powered Wii through its paces. The Conduit developer High Voltage Software was one of those studios, which doubled down on its console exclusivity with Left 4 Dead-esque horror shooter, The Grinder.
It became one of the most anticipated titles in 2008 and 2009, with a full blown marketing campaign and plenty of coverage from the biggest outlets in games media, but it famously slipped past its 2010 release date, was rebuilt as a top-down shooter for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC and eventually disappeared into development hell, never to return.
YouTuber channel Unseen64 has finally helped lift some of the mystery from this long lost title, with input from developers who worked on the game and plenty of footage from both builds. If you ever played (and enjoyed The Conduit), this is definitely worth a watch:
Were you ever interested in The Grinder way back when? Did you think Wii was ever really the right platform for first-person shooters? Share your thoughts with the community below...
[source youtube.com]
Comments 28
never heard of this one, always interesting to hear these stories
I honestly had a lot of fun with a number of first and third person shooters on the Wii. I think it was a great platform for them and there was a lot of potential for different control schemes and interesting play styles. Thinking back on it now the Wii really had some killer games.
On this topic, I do think Conduit would look great on the Switch if it's rebooted (as I don't really think a sequel would do it justice). It's one of those very easily forgotten and underlooked Wii titles that to me really stood out. It's a shame this will probably never happen as the studio didn't meet a good fate releasing Conduit 2.
In addition, I do think Endless Ocean 3 should come out for the Switch as well. The Wii had some really well-hidden gems and it's been a long time since we've seen these games..it may just be the time for them to be revived.
Pfff would still buy & nolife the hell out of it.
I remember being quite excited for The Grinder at the time it was announced for Wii.
It's looks very fluid, and they promised all sorts of cool online features.
I'd play the heck out of this. Awesome character designs as well.
Oh yeah, I remember this one.
"Did you think Wii was ever really the right platform for first-person shooters?"
Given its controllers, yes.
Given its fan base, no.
Wow! a blast from the past!
I remember IGN's Matt Cassamassina hyping up High Voltage's game engine saying that we would get near Xbox 360/PS3 graphics on Wii.
Bought into the hype so much that i got the special edition of The Conduit only to be left rather unimpressed with the game.
But i still had hopes for High Voltage with "The Grinder" and their WiiWare game "Animales De La Muertes" which unfortunately never surfaced.
Remember a lot of fuss over the Conduit - from IGN especially - and wondering what happened to the Grinder. Seems they took too much on (a lot of grand ideas that didn't seem likely even without hindsight.)
I remember. I was kind of excited because left 4 dead was my favorite game at the time and that’s what they were comparing it to.
Slap some HD resolution on it and release it as a 20-30 dollar e shop title. Good time to do some FPS games in the system while fans of the genre wait for Wolfenstein.
I loved the Conduit!
I had this game on my purchase list, ironically I was just thinking about it the other day. I never remembered it being cancelled, but that was when the Wii completely died and the 3DS was about to thrive
That name is a blast to the past. I remember being somewhat interested in it and it missing its predicted release date. I just presumed it had to be scrapped after The Conduit 2 sold miserably.
"Did you think Wii was ever really the right platform for first-person shooters?" <-- FPSes use to play like a dream on the Wii. It feels backwards going back to a controller to play them now. However, most people that liked FPSes had an Xbox 360 or PS3. Most of the Wii's audience had no interest in that genre. Shame, really.
Video game development is the real grinder.
Oh wow, I remember some hype around this one. The Wii days were crazy. So many lack-lustre games but also greatness. The Conduit was kind of cool if I remember correctly and I was also interested in The Grinder even though to this day I don't know what Left4Dead was all about đŸ˜‚
Ah... a real shame that this never got released. I really loved the art style and the story back then, and I still do. If there's anything left of it, they should definitely get back to it, or do a HD reboot.
Was hyped for this way back when. I remember hearing about an enemy called 'the Slasher' who would teleport somewhere behind you if you let him out of your eyeline in tribute to the genre đŸ˜„
If only they would revive it for Switch, but it sounds like mere mentioning of the game to any of the developers leaves a sour taste for them after their whole bogus experience with it.
I really enjoyed and from time to time enjoy the conduit 1,2. Good games, but from what I understand they did not sell great and HV invested a lot of time and money... I still bring out then both every once in a while.
Absolutely awesome i will be watching this later, ive always wondered what happened to this game as i believe it was by the same team that made the conduit, but i may be mistaken. last i remember it become a top down shooter style game?? i remember this game and the game SADNESS been shown for the wii. both of which were never released.
Forgot ALL about that game.
I was so stoked when this game was announced. I loved the first Conduit. The second not so much. I always wondered what happened. High Voltage seemed to be a studio with alot of potential back then.
The Wii had some amazing titles and a lot of potential with games that never seen the light of day or struggles to get out of Japan. Shame it will be know as the non HD wiggle Wii Sports machine. Maybe Wii U should have been Wii HD minus the gamepad and the Switch could be the novel ifea it is without the is it Wii U 1.5 comparisons
Anyone remember that they were going to bring the Conduit to 3DS as well
The Conduit and Conduit 2 were incredible games.
Remember High Voltage, the saviour of the Wii that only made p....p in the end? Yeaaaahhhh, I remember!
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