Five Rockford residents and two guys from Poplar Grove will be the death of millions of aliens.
They want you to join them in killing off alien invaders and have fun doing it.
Eric Nofsinger, Mark Muraski, Pat Dolan, Tom Martin, and Damion Davis, all of Rockford, along with Altair Lane and David Pellas, both of Poplar Grove, helped develop High Voltage Software’s latest release for the Nintendo Wii called “The Conduit,” a futuristic adventure that puts gamers behind the guns of agent Michael Ford as he defends Washington, D.C. from an alien attack.
Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen also offered guitar riffs for the game’s soundtrack.
The game was released Tuesday, a nervewracking time for the game developers as they wait to hear feedback from consumers on a project that spanned 22 months.
Lane, software engineer for High Voltage, says it also can be a rewarding time to hear buzz around the game.
“If (people) don’t even know what you do and they say ‘hey there’s this game, you’ve got to play it’ and it’s the game you’ve worked on, that’s the win for me because then I know we did make a game that people enjoyed,” Lane said. “I definitely feel ‘The Conduit’ is going to be that way.”
Lane’s been in the gaming business for 20 years and worked on games such as “WWF Warzone” and “America’s Army.”
“For me, the kick was always going into the store and being able to see the product on the shelf,” Lane said. “When I saw my first product on the shelf it was a big moment, I won’t forget it.”
“The Conduit” is a first-person shooter, meaning the gamer behind the controls sees the action unfold through the eyes of the character they’re controlling. It’s a fast-paced run-and-gun with futuristic weapons, but the game has more layers than that, said Pellas, a director of game design.
“I don’t want to reveal too much because it really is enjoyable to have it unfold in front of you, but it is definitely laden with tons of conspiracy elements,” Pellas said. Gamers also can choose to “just shoot a bunch of aliens, have a lot of fun.”
Martin, a producer, said he’s proud of the final product.
“Our control is fantastic in the game. It’s very intuitive. I think the guys used the Wii Motion brilliantly in the game.” Martin said. “I’m confident people will love the game.”
