Last month, following the recently-released sales figures for the likes of MadWorld, I expressed concern that The Conduit would perhaps not fare any better in the Wii marketplace. There was also some stuff about Red Steel 2, but I'm not going to get into that here.

Anyway, it would seem that High Voltage Software, who are developing The Conduit, do not share my concerns. Chief Creative Officer Eric Nofsinger told VideoGamer.com that their game would in fact avoid a similar fate to that of MadWorld or SEGA's other hardcore Wii offering of the year thus far, The House of the Dead: Overkill. His reasoning is that The Conduit is not only appealing to core gamers, but accessible to the mainstream as well.

"This is something that gets brought up quite a lot," he says, "but we're not concerned at all. Those games, and you can point to a few others as well… I think they're great games, but they're mature games. I think there's a nomenclature that you need to be certain on. Those games are gory and they are aesthetically niche. They're boutique games. They're great games and I love them, however I know that they're not accessible and they're not the kind of titles that are going to tap into both core and mainstream [audiences]."

This actually makes a good amount of sense, at least going by Hollywood, who has been taking franchises such as the Terminator's upcoming movie, Salvation, and toning down the rating in order to reach a wider audience.

"When I say that we're core, I mean that we have a level of detail and depth and customisation and variety that core gamers demand. When I say that we're accessible and that we're also aiming for the mainstream, that is why we specifically chose the art style we did, and the setting. The theme is very much in the mindset of going for that Hollywood blockbuster feel."

Nofsinger goes on to express that while he definitely respects those "great developers' amazing work," and while he is happy to support them with his own gaming dollars, he believes that they have a much better chance at financial success than they did.

The game's June 23rd release date is only a little over a month away; perhaps we'll find out then just how well a core third-party game can perform on the Wii.