Couldn't agree more, HVS loves their PR talk.

Conduit 2? (glee)

The Conduit had great technical power, but the character design was just subpar.

With better artists, they could have the best looking 3rd party Wii game.

This could be marketing for HVS' next game, or they may actually show the progress they made with The Grinder.

The potential for something great is there, but HVS is one the most unlikely and inexperienced (historically) teams in control here. Shame that a C+ company could do this much, but the B+ and up don't lift a finger.

I'm just going to say, if they don't make TC2 big and epic, they can goto hell, I like TC of course, but that's because I know it ran on low budget and time etc, I doubt their budget and time would be this low next time so they better deliver a lot more.

Unfortunately, every game they make will look like ass until they hire some decent artists.

How big is the company? Are they really developing 3 games in parallel?

They have over 100 employees...

graphics mean more then visual look. It includes physics.

As of right now, the two things HVS has done best are create a solid game engine for the Wii and create solid PR for as of yet unproven products.

As some have been saying, it would seem that their ability to create a compelling game with broader appeal has been limited at best.

If Conduit had performed a bit better (still ongoing, but prelim data may well have this being the next Mad World) HVS would have been better leveraged as a middleware provider for other developers interested in creating a quality title specifically for the Wii. While they stated this was not their intention in one of their interview/press releases, I would say this is probably what they would secretly prefer had The Conduit been an overwhelming success.

It would seem that HVS, impressive Wii game engine or no, has demonstrated little more than mediocre abilities as game developers as opposed to game engine developers. But we'll see what lessons they take from the Conduit into their next project and how they do or don't develop as game developers in the future.

Without a doubt.

Particle physics, lighting effects, rag doll physics, environment destruction physics all hugely contribute to the overall "visual" impact that the best of breed games showcase.