It appears developers finally are beginning to figure out the Wii. It's about time.

"The Conduit" is one of the few Wii first-person shooters that doesn't drive me crazy because of poor controls. In fact, the controls work well.

It's too bad the rest of the game is so mediocre.

You play as Michael Ford, a Secret Service agent who gets roped into fighting off an alien invasion. There's some back and forth about whom he should trust, but I had a hard time caring about it because of the dull way it's presented (voiceovers with subtitles).

The levels are another problem. They're boring. You'd think it would be exciting to have shootouts with aliens in the Library of Congress, but it's mostly just a series of similar-looking hallways.

Still, the controls work, and that gives "The Conduit" more life than it would have had. You point the Wii remote at the screen to aim, pressing the B button to shoot. As you move the remote to the sides, your view turns with it. The nunchuk thumbstick is used to move the character around.

It works amazingly well. I never had any problems with accuracy. Occasionally, the screen would get stuck and not turn to look, but that didn't happen often.

As you move through the game, you get a scanner that you use to look for hidden messages on the walls and other little secrets. While I enjoyed the added depth of looking for things, I wished I could do it without putting away my weapon. Usually I'd have to clear an area of enemies, then double way back to check for secrets, and that was more effort than I wanted to make.

Overall, "The Conduit" is a solid shooter. It's just not very interesting, and its campaign is really short (about five hours). It has online multiplayer, which works well but, again, lacks the personality.

"The Conduit" isn't more than a rental, but it does provide a lesson for other FPS developers hoping to get the controls right.

Etc., etc.

-- Buzz off: I learned quickly that using the nunchuk hand to wave off an annoying fly is a good way to get killed. It's how you throw grenades. D'oh!

-- Directionally challenged: The directional pad - used to switch weapons - is awkward, at least with the way I hold the remote. I have to reposition my hand to hit the buttons, costing me crucial seconds. But that's more of a Wii problem than a "Conduit" problem.

Aimee Green reviews video games for the Lincoln (Neb.) Journal Star, a Lee Enterprises newspaper.